After the rush at the mall and talking to All Might, the two of them headed to Kei's house to work on more ways to help Izuku control his anger. Yet they continued to run into the same roadblock and once it was time Izuku left to go home. The next day at school, Izuku was tired, his body was all the training with Kei and his mind from staying up late thinking about All Might's offer. He had forced himself to focus on his training with Kei, but as he laid down to go to sleep, his mind went back to that conversation.
Luckily school was easy and Izuku didn't have to focus too much. Then as he left to go to Lacrosse practice, Kei grabbed him and dragged him over to a corner. "What are they saying?'
"What?" Izuku asked as though he had been friends with Kei since they were children, but he was still caught off guard by Kei's antics.
"My father and his deputy are talking to the principal, what are they saying?" Kei said as he pointed around the corner. Izuku poked his head around the corner and focused on the conversation.
"We haven't ruled out either villain attack or animal attack, but for the time being we're thinking about enacting the curfew. We want everyone under the age of 18 to be in their home no later than 9:30. And if any student is found missing, the school needs to contact the police immediately." Sheriff Keitaro said.
Izuku pulled away from the wall, "They're putting in a curfew. They haven't ruled out villain or animal attacks."
"Great, half the police force is going to be looking for a rabid animal while the other half look at the wrong people. While Takeo runs around with no one the wiser." Kei said as he held up his arms in defeat.
"Well it's not like your father would believe you if you told him the truth about Takeo." Izuku said, knowing that Sheriff Keitaro listened to his son's bizarre theories with a grain of salt.
Kei suddenly looked like he had a dumb idea. "I might not be able to tell him, but I can show him. You showed me the spot where you found the body, Takeo admitted it was on his property. Chances are he hid the other half somewhere around that. I just have to find it and show it to my dad." Kei said then took off. He dodged around Momo with a quick hi then disappeared.
"Was that Keitaro?" Momo asked as he walked up to Izuku.
"Yeah, and he goes by Kei," Izuku said then noticed Momo was holding her jacket from the night of the party. He was pretty sure that he had accidentally left it in the woods, "Nice jacket."
"Yeah, I thought I lost it after the party, but it showed up in my locker today." Momo said as she slipped it on, "It's one of my favorites."
"Happy you could find it," Izuku said. The only other person who knew that jacket was in the woods was Kuraim. He had gotten too close to Momo for Izuku's liking, "Can you excuse me, I've got to practice."
Momo smiled and Izuku headed out of the school. Yet he didn't go in the direction of the field, he headed straight for Kuraim's house. Walking down the memorized trail, Izuku soon arrived and yelled, "Takeo!" Izuku then looked around the house, it was old and had burn marks and the only recent thing was a dirt pile in front of the house.
A few moments later, Kuraim walked around the corner of the house and got onto the pouch, "What?"
"Just stay away from her. You hear me, I don't want you going near Momo again. She doesn't know anything." Izuku said, his chest heating up and it wasn't too bad. He could just bear the thought of Momo being hurt.
"Momo, Momo, Momo." Kuraim repeated each time with more irritation in his voice, "First name basis, you've gotten close to her. I thought I told you to distance yourself from her. Her father is a hunter and she's probably one too. If not, then all you're going to do is put her in harm's way." Kuraim began to turn around, signalling the conversation was over.
"You don't get to tell me how to live my life!" Izuku yelled.
Kuriam quickly backed around and faced Izuku, then began walking towards him, "You think your life is simple. It's not. You think your friend Kei can just look up werewolves and have all the answers. What the world knows about our kind is very little to the whole truth. You don't get it Midoriya, I'm trying to look out for you. Then you have made my job more difficult by telling All Might."
Izuku paused, "How did…"
"I told you Midoriya, we're brothers now. You can't hide anything from me." Kuraim said.
Izuku then realized if Kuraim knew about his conversation with All Might, then did he know about One For All?
"Do you know about One…" If Kuraim knew that All Might needed to know.
"I don't care about others' quirks, me knowing the truth about the symbol of peace's quirk does now hold the world in balance. But he doesn't matter, the issue is you. If you play on Saturday, you're out on the field, the aggression takes over. Then you shift and then everyone at that game will see. Your friends, your teammates, the other team, your girlfriend, everyone sees you and when they do, everything will fall apart. You're a smart kid, so why don't you stop acting like an idiot and make the right decisions." Kuraim then turned and walked back up the porch and disappeared into the burnt-down house.
Izuku huffed and as he looked at the spot Kuraim had disappeared. All of his issues were coming from Kuraim if Kuraim would just mean his own business and stay away from him. Yet Kuraim had made it clear he wasn't going to. Izuku then looked down at the fresh dirt pile and smelt blood, Kuraim wouldn't be able to get to him if he was behind bars.
Turning away from the house, Izuku pulled out his phone and texted Kei, "Found it." Izuku then walked home and waited in his room. Kei arrived once practice was done and ran up to Izuku's room, "What did you find? How did you find it? And Where did you find it?"
Izuku looked at Kei with a little concern, "Yes I've had a lot of adderall today. Now tell me."
"I found something at Takeo. I think it's the other half of the body. In front of the house, there was a fresh dirt pile like something had just recently been buried and I smelt blood coming from it. If Takeo did kill the girl and is trying to hide it, I think that's where he did." Izuku said.
"That's awesome, I mean horrible, I mean that could get him arrested. Whose blood?" Kei asked as his right eye twitched a bit.
Izuku stood up and said, "I don;t know, but tonight we're going back and digging the body up. When we do, your dad can nail Takeo for the murder. He's arrested and put behind bars, I don't have to worry about him and I can focus on the game, while you help me figure out how to play lacrosse without changing."
"Okay sounds like a plan, but first we need to make sure the scent is the same. Because I don't want to go digging up from old grandma and be cursed for the rest of my life." Kei said.
"Good, I heard my mother talking about the body at the morgue at the hospital and with your quirk, we should be able to easily get in." Izuku said, as he grabbed a jacket and headed out of the room.
Yet Kei took a few moments, then raised his hands up and cheered, "Finally you make a plan where I have to use my quirk. You're finally starting to see how easy it is."
"At most we're only going through two doors." Izuku said as he walked down the stairs.
"Come on, why do you have to ruin my fun?" Kei asked as he went after his friend.
Getting on their bikes, they travelled over to Musutafu General. Dodging the receptionist's desk, they headed to the elevator and called it down. Stepping inside, Izuku hit the button for the third floor. After a quick ride, the two stepped out and instead of heading to the waiting area to the right, Kei went to the left and easily unlocked a door. Sneaking through the door and then quietly closing it, they hurried down the hallway until they reached the door that had Morgue on it.
Kei inserted a key in another door and after a few seconds, turned it and the door easily swung. They slipped in and while Kei stood guard, Izuku moved over to the wall that held the metal door. He scanned them until he came across one that said, Jane Doe and Partial. As that could be anyone else, Izuku opened the door and pulled out the gurney. Pulling the white sheet up a bit, Izuku had to hold down his lunch as the smell hit his nose.
Izuku quickly dropped the white sheet and pushed the gurney back in. Once he closed the door, he turned to Kei and said, "Yeap, the smell is the same."
"Alright, then let's go dig up the other half of the body and get Takeo arrested," Kei said. After making sure the coast was clear, the two made their way out of the morgue and back to the elevator. As they rode the elevator down, Kei turned to Izuku, "We're going to need some shovels."
With that being the plan, Izuku and Kei headed to Kei's house and grabbed a pair of shovels. With the sun setting soon, the two of them made their way to the park and then waited for the sun to fully go down before heading to the Takeo house and finding the dirt pile.
Yet as they walked around, something felt off and Izuku told Kei.
"Different how?" Kei asked.
"I don't know, just something." Izuku said as they stopped at the dirt pile and looked down at it, "So we're about to rob a grave, identify a girl's body based on smell and then report to your dad and have a guy we barely know get arrested for it."
"Yeap and funny enough that's not the strangest thing we've done today." Kei said as he pushed the tip of his shovel into the ground and began digging. Izuku quickly joined his friend and they spent the next hour digging.
As they dug a question arose in Izuku's mind, "So what are we going to do if Takeo comes back."
"Same plan as always, you go one way and I go the other. And since he seems more interested in you, I wish you the best of luck." Kei said, as he pushed his shovel down and felt it go through something, "We hit it."
Kei knelt down and brushed some dirt away, revealing some rope and a trap. Izuku crouched down and helped move the dirt away. After a bit of work, the trap was uncovered and they undid the rope. Together they pulled the trap back, ready to lose dinner over the sight of a girl cut in half, yet as they revealed the body they were greeted with the front half of a wolf.
Kei still screamed and jumped back, while Izuku just left back. "What is that?'
"It's a wolf." Izuku said as he looked over the body.
"Yeah, I can see that. When you said you smelt blood, I thought you meant human blood." Kei said, as he looked up at the sky and caught his breath.
"I don't understand the scent from both they were the same, but I knew something felt different." Izuku said as he sat down next to Kei.
"Alright, this didn't work. We have to find something else. For now, we cover this up and go home." Kei said as he grabbed his shovel, "You want to help." Izuku nodded and grabbed his shovel. As Kei put his shovel into the dirt pile, he looked up and noticed a strange flower. It looked like a salvia flower, but much smaller. Kei pulled out his phone turned on the flashlight, directed it at the flower, and saw that the pedals were a mixture of white and purple, "You see that flower? I think it's wolfsbane."
"Wolfsbane?" Izuku questioned.
"Yeah, I first heard about it from an old movie I watched as a kid." Kei said and saw Izuku had no idea what he was calling about, "Really, it was like the original werewolf movie. You are so underprepared for this."
Kei dropped his shovel and walked over to the flower. He pulled it out of the ground and found a rope attached to the bottom. As ropes don't naturally grow under flowers Kei began to work his way down the rope, pulling it out of the ground. He moved around the burial sight, slowly getting closer, so the rope made a spiral pattern.
After a bit Kei pulled the last of the rope out of the ground and looked it over, "So that was completely pointless."
Izuku looked down at the wolf's body and saw that it was no longer a wolf, " I won't say that."
Kei walked back over and saw the same thing Izuku saw. "I guess Takeo is killing other werewolves."
"We should call this in." Izuku said.
"No, but they won't handle anything like this until the morning. Come on, I'm exhausted from the day, let's go home and try to get some sleep." Kei said.
Izuku agreed and they left. The next morning Kei called the body in and the two of them hurried over to the house. The police were already there, checking over the body and Sheriff Keitaro was talking to Kuraim inside the house. After an hour the body was bagged and taken away, while Kuraim was taken to a police car by an officer.
Once the officer left the ground, Kei snuck his way over to the car and got in, all the while Izuku tried to stop him. Kei sat in the front passenger seat and looked back at Kuraim.
"Okay, just so you know, I'm not afraid of you." Kei said, but then Kuraim jolted forward a bit and Kei quickly backed up, "Okay, maybe a bit, but that doesn't matter. I just want to know, the girl you killed, she was a werewolf but obviously a different kind. She could transform into an actual wolf, something Midoriya isn't about to do. Is that why you killed her?"
"Why are you so worried about me, when your friend is the actual problem? He might not be causing trouble now, but he was lucky the last full moon. He is still fighting against what he truly is, but the moment he accepts everything, the instinct will kick in and the next full moon. It doesn't matter while you have the Sheriff on your side, or All Might, the bodies will pile too high for anyone to look away. That's what's going to happen during the game, I might not be able to stop him from playing but you can. So if you really see him as a brother then you'll stop him before he throws his life away." Kuraim said.
Kei was able to say something, but then the door opened and Sheriff Keitaro pulled his son out. "Okay that's enough for you. Now maybe you would like to explain exactly how you and Midoriya came across the body." Sheriff Keitaro said as he looked his son in the eyes.
Kei sighed and said, "We were looking for Midoriya's inhaler, he lost it in the woods."
"Which was when?"
"The other night."
"You mean the first night, when you were looking for the first half of the body."
"Yes."
"The night you said you were out here alone and claimed Midoriya was back at home asleep. The night before you started school, that night?" Sheriff Keitaro asked.
"Yes." Kei said in a casual tone as if he didn't realize his mistake. He then caught his father's eyes, then realized his mistake, "No. I mean he lost it when we took a walk after practice."
"You understand the trails for the park end about 60 yards in that direction." Sheriff Keitaro, pointing towards the park and landing on the old stone wall Kuriam pointed out before, "So you lied to me."
"That depends on how you define lying? I see it as reclining your body down on a horizontal plane." Kei said, trying to save his butt.
"Officer Kage, see to it that my son and Izuku Midoriya make it to school and on time. If they try to escape, you have my permission to tase them." Sheriff Keitaro said, then walked away.
Izuku flinched at the suggestion of Sheriff Keitaro, and Izuku hoped he was joking. Yet as Izuku looked at Kei, he saw his friend was just as stressed, meaning Sheriff Keitaro's threat was valid. As neither boy wanted to be shocked, as Officer Kage grabbed the back of their collar, they matched her movement to her patrol car.
Izuku and Kei were peacefully forced into the back of Officer Kage's car, and their backpack soon joined them. Officer Kage then got into the front, turned the car on, then began driving away.
As the house disappeared in the rearview mirror, Izuku had a thought and pulled out his phone to look at something. Yet the question he put in the search bar, wasn't resulting in the type of answer he was looking for.
"Uh." Izuku let out, catching Kei's attention.
Without turning away from the window Kei said, "Do you have something to share with the class, Midoriya."
"It's… um." Izuku paused and looked at Officer Kage then said, "It's strange, I can't find anything about wolfsbane being used for any kind of burial. No supernatural properties, so religious significance."
Kei nodded his head and looked at Officer Kage, who didn't seem to be listening to their conversation, "Well just keep on looking. I'm not going to let Mr Yuuto, stupid extra credit point go to waste. Maybe it wasn't religious, just a family tradition. Like they would bury you with it so you could be reincarnated as a wolf."
"Or so that wolves didn't dig up your grave." Officer Kage said, showing she had been listening, "You look at all the different things people have done throughout history to prevent animals from getting into a person's grave. The Egyptians had the pyramids, the Romans had their stone coffins. Even nowaday, people get buried in specialized coffins to keep the earth from getting to the remains and accelerating the process."
"Insightful information Officer Kage." Kei said, starting a sarcastic tone but quickly dropping it when he saw Officer Kage glancing down at him through the mirror, "Then there was also the belief about werewolves back in the day."
Office Kage let out a laugh, then put her eyes back on the road.
"Maybe werewolves would bury their dead and use wolfsbane to keep the body from turning human. That way if the grave was discovered, people would think it was just a regular wolf, instead of a werewolves." Kei said.
Izuku let out a small huff, and then Kei noticed, "You alright."
Izuku surprised Kei by speaking in an annoyed tone, "Can you stop saying werewolf so much. And stop enjoying all this so much."
Kei looked Izuku up and down, "Are you okay?"
"No. I'm so far from being okay right now" Izuku said in a wheezing voice.
"Well we'll figure something out. The game is coming up" Kei said, trying to be as vague as possible, as Officer Kage could still be listening to their conversation.
"No, it's not that. I-I can't breathe." Izuku said as his voice dropped a bit and then his eyes began looking around. They then fell about Kei, a bag which had the top open and Izuku saw Kei had the rope with wolfsbane attached to the end, "You kept it."
Kei looked down and saw the rope, "What was I supposed to do with it?" Kei then looked that Izuku's eyes were starting to glow, "Officer Kage roll down my window."
Officer Kage swerved a bit at the sudden yell, but then said, "You can't give me any orders."
"Midoriya is having an asthma attack," Kei said in a quick voice.
Officer Kage looked at Izuku and saw the sign of panic. She quickly rolled down all four windows, while Kei quickly grabbed the wolfsbane and threw it out the window. He then grabbed Izuku's inhale and handed it to Izuku. Off instinct and muscle memory, Izuku quickly shook the inhaler and then held it up to his lips.
Izuku took a shot and then stuck his head out the window and took a deep breath. If there was anything he could count on Kei for was coming up with a quick cover story and sticking to it. Once Izuku was about to think clearly, he stuck his head back into the car and nodded, but since he was still a little ticked at Kei for keeping the wolfsbane. Izuku glared at Kei and whispered, "You and I are going to have a conversation about that later."
Kei swallowed a bit of saliva and Izuku's eyes flashed a bit as he glared.
Ten minutes later Officer Kage dropped the two boys off at the front of school and after they walked through the front door, she left. Knowing they were most likely on thin ice, Izuku and Kei made sure to pay attention in school and not go on any adventures. Izuku was stressed that Kuraim would get out, but Kei claimed that with the evidence the police had, they would be able to hold him for a week. That was if they didn't arrest him at all.
Friday after school got out, Izuku was headed to his bike, luckily it hadn't been damaged this time. Izuku knelt and began to undo the bike lock.
"Hey Midoriya." A sweet voice behind Izuku said. A voice Izuku recognized as Momo. Izuku quickly inputted the last number and unhooked the bike lock. He then stood up and turned to face Momo.
"Hey." Izuku said with a smile.
"I'm excited for the game tomorrow."
"What game?" Mr Yaoyorozu suddenly said as he walked up to the duo.
Dad." Momo said, confused about her dad being there, "I thought Mom was picking me up."
"Last minute grocery run." Mr Yaoyorozu said that Momo took a code that her mother was following up on a lead. Mr Yaoyorozu always said his wife was better with information and organizing everything, "What's this game you're talking about."
"Oh, Midoriya plays for a team." Momo said.
"Oh, what sport?" My Yoayorozu asked Izuku to turn.
Izuku tried to keep his cool and keep his mind off the night he had run into Mr Yaoyorozu in the forest, "Lacrosse. It's our first game since school started. We're a bit on a winning streak and slated for the championship game."
"Lacrosse, huh. Never played, but touched Futball a few times in my younger years." Mr Yaoyorozu said.
Momo titled her year and said, "I've never known that about you."
"Got more injuries from those games then from my job." Mr Yaoyorozu said, "Mo, why didn't you tell me about the game. It sounds fun."
Momo blushed a bit, and began to say, "It didn't…."
Mr Yaoyorozu then looked from his daughter then to Izuku then back to his daughter, "Oh I get it. The whole thing is about having your girlfriend's dad there, judging you the entire time. You don't have to worry Midoriya, of all the guys that have come after my daughter, you're the best."
"So far…" Izuku chuckled.
"We'll see. You still have to get Mrs Yaoyorozu to like you first." Mr Yaoyorozu said and slapped Izuku's shoulder.
Izuku tried not to flinch, even with his higher werewolf pain tolerance, Mr Yaoyorzu's slap stung a bit. Izuku hid his pain by laughing, "Yeah I think I know what you mean. Took forever for my mom to agree to let me play."
"Sounds like she raised you to be a good man." Mr Yaoyorozu said, "So what time is the game?"
Izuku went back to panicking, he and Kei were still working on gaining control over Izuku's werewolf powers. Even then they were struggling to get them to show themselves. But if Mr Yaoyorozu was there and saw Izuku shift, Izuku could say goodbye to UA, Middle, and having Momo as a girlfriend. Izuku was sure he wouldn't even get the chance to survive until the end of the game.
"It's 6:00. I know where the field is?" Momo said with an innocent smile, that Izuku tried to match.
"Oh perfect, We'll be finishing up with dinner around then." Mr Yaoyorozu said, then put an arm around Momo's shoulder, "We'll see you then Midoriya."
Izuku had never really understood the phrase of one's heart sinking. It was physically impossible for someone's heart to sink through their body. But as Mr Yaoyorozu walked Momo to the car, Izuku's heart sank. He had never felt so much panic, fear, despair, depression, or worry in his life before. He no longer thought he was going to die, he knew he was going to die.
With the hollow feeling in his chest, Izuku got on his bike and went home. He mindlessly did the small bit of homework left and then he just laid on his bed and stared up at the ceiling.
He was going to die.
He was going to play Lacrosse.
He was going to play lacrosse and shift.
He was going to shift and Mr Yaoyorozu was going to see.
Mr Yaoyorozu was going to see and Izuku was going to die.
He was going to die.
With that panic and worry in his mind, Izuku fell asleep. That night he dreamed he was standing in the middle of the lacrosse field. The sun was going down, casting a long shadow over the grassy field. Izuku was wearing his jersey and pad, he looked down and saw that his lacrosse stick was lying on the ground, broken in half, and it wasn't the only one. Izuku then saw that his gloves were off and his nails were fully transformed into claws.
Izuku took in a sharp breath and looked around, only to see that the field was covered with dead bodies. He recognized the bodies as people from school and on the team.
"Why did you kill them?" Momo cried out and Izuku looked up and over to the stands. She was crying and put a pistol drawn in close as if she knew how to use one. Her body was tense and she had the pistol aimed at Izuku. Her finger was on the trigger ready to use it, but she was crying.
"Please, Yaoyorozu. I don't…" Izuku said but Momo fired a bullet that went right past Izuku's eyes.
"Don't try to lie to me. You're a werewolf, you're not the Midoriya I know." Momo said as she moved the pistol to be aimed at Izukus's head.
Izuku held up his hands as if to defend from a melee attack, "Wait Momo, please you have to listen to me."
"How long?" Momo asked in a broken voice, "How long have you been a werewolf? Were you sent to infiltrate our glide?"
"Wait, no Momo. I love you." Izuku said as he took a step back.
Momo flinched and held her pistol out a bit further, making Izuku stop and then say, "Momo you have to trust me. I became a werewolf the day we met, and I didn't know your father was hunting until he hunted me in the forest.
"Lies. Werewolves and the like are a disease in humanity. They gain powers of the devil, they kill and they hunt. It has been my family's fight for generations!" Momo yelled as she took a step forward, but it looked as if she wanted to go the other direction.
"No, Momo. I would never…"
"Kill, feed on other people. Look around Midoriya" Momo said and Izuku's eyes darted back around to the dead bodies, "You killed everyone here. Your best friend." Izuku took a step back and tripped over a body. He looked to see who it was and saw Kei's lifeless body staring at him.
Izuku nearly threw up at that side.
"My father and mother." Mr and Mrs Yaoyozu appeared next to Kei.
"Even your own mother, Inko Midoriya." Momo cried out.
Izuku had barely been able to stomach the first three, but when his own mother appeared next to him. She was holding out her hand, in a cupping shape as if she was going to wipe a tear from his cheek. Izuku couldn't take it and emptied his stomach.
"Please no." Izuku began to cry, then he heard a new voice.
"I told you this was going to happen, but you just won't listen. I told you, you won't be able to control your emotions and you are going to kill everyone." Kuriam said from the opposite end of the field.
Momo didn't hesitate to turn and shoot Kuraim in the head, then she quickly aimed the pistol back at Izuku. As Izuku tried to catch his breath, but felt his airway closing up, Momo slowly approached. She then put a foot on Izuku's chest, making the act of breathing even harder.
Yet Izuku didn't even try to grab Momo's foot and push it off, as Momo dropped the pistol and had it aimed at the middle of Izuku's forehead.
"Please, Momo, please. I didn't ask for this." Izuku begged, he didn't want to die. He could gain control over his werewolf half, and if now then he would find something to hide himself from the world.
"Maybe not, but clearly you'll never gain control. So to spare the world and your soul from its own evil, I'm doing this to save you." Momo said and then pulled the trigger.
Izuku woke up in a cold sweat. He quickly put a hand to his chest, to feel his heart beating, he then quickly put a hand to his forehead. He didn't feel another kind of wound, so Izuku sighed and flopped back on to rest his head on the pillow. As Izuku's head sunk into his pillow, he let out a long sigh. Well, he couldn't remember much of his dream, the last image of Momo standing above him, foot compressing his chest, pistol to his forehead, but with tears in her eyes as if she didn't want to pull the trigger. That remained in Izuku's mind and he didn't think it was going to disappear anytime soon.
In an attempt to try and get the image to disappear, Izuku got out of bed and took a shower. Once he was done, Izuku got dressed and then headed downstairs for breakfast. In the kitchen, Izuku began to pour himself a bowl of cereal but stopped when the doorbell rang. Izuku put the box of cereal on the counter and headed over to the door.
Upon opening the door Izuku saw the muzzle of a gun. With the dream he just had, Izuku didn't even take the time to see what type of gun it was, or even the colour, or who was holding it. If he had, he would have seen Kei, holding a Nerf gun loaded with suction-tipped darts. But as Izuku didn't see this, he tried to step to the side but was then hit in the forehead.
As Izuku realized what was going on, Kei saw that the dart had stuck and he began to laugh.
"Haha, that's like the first time I've ever been able to get one of those to stick to a person." Kei laughed as he brought the gun down, but not without cocking it and loading the next bullet.
"Really Kei, what were you testing this time?" Izuku asked in an annoyed tone as he pulled the dart off his forehead with a resounding, "Pop"
"Well I realized all the times we've tried to get your anger up, you knew it was coming, so I want to see what would happen if it was a surprise." Kei said as he walked into the house, "And you sounded angry, but not even Bakugou's level of anger, so surprise and pain play a part."
"So what, you're going to shoot me in the leg with a real gun next time." Izuku said as he closed the door and then threw the dart and nailed Kei in the back of the head.
"Don't tempt me." Kei said, then turned around and leaned against the back of the couch, "So are you ready for the game?"
Izuku shrugged his shoulders, "As Coach given any word about Bakugo's involvement."
Kei held up a finger and then pulled out his phone. "He said and I quote, "Bakugo involvement in tomorrow's game will be discussed at the team meeting before the game. However, it does not matter if he is able or not, I expect all of you to play to win."
Izuku groaned, "Coach should have gone into acting and written a drama."
"Well either way, are you ready for the game?" Kei asked, as he looked at the kitchen and saw the cereal bowl Izuku had left behind.
Izuku was going to answer, but then he recalled his dream. While it was just a dream, all he had been hearing for days was he was going to shift and kill people at the game tonight. He was drawn out of his thoughts when he heard Kei eating cereal. Izuku looked over and saw Kei had stolen his cereal.
"Hey." Izuku said.
"I got you a new bowl." Kei said as he used his spoon to point to a new bowl on the counter. Putting aside how lazy his best friend could be, Izuku walked over and poured himself a new bowl of cereal. After pouring some milk, Izuku put the milk and cereal box away. He then joined Kei at the table.
After Kei swallowed his bite of cereal, he looked over Izuku and said, "You didn't answer my question. Are you ready to play the game?"
"I think. I mean I was until Yoayorozu's father learned about and is now joining the game." Izuku said.
"Oh." That was all Kei did and could say to the bit of information as he went back to eating his bowl of cereal. If it had just been Momo, they could potentially play off it in case Izuku didn't shift, but if Mr Yaoyorozu was there. Well, he was a hunter and would know the sign of someone shifting into a werewolf, "Well we'll cross that bridge if we get to it."
The rest of the day Izuku and Kei spent playing games and after making a quick dinner, Izuku packed up his equipment and met Kei out in the driveway, where they then biked to the field. After storing their backpack Izuku and Kei headed out to the field after they practised some passes, then Kei utterly failed at being goalie as Izuku made every shot.
15 minutes before the game was scheduled, more and more people showed up and the team headed inside to get their equipment on. As everyone began to chance, Coach Yuuto announced that Bakugo would be playing. With a sigh, as that was clear, but not a good indicator of how the night was going to go, Izuku began changing.
In the middle of the changing room, as he pulled down his uniform over his pads, the stress hit Izuku. Playing video games with Kei had distracted him, but now that he was focused on playing the game, everything was coming back. Mr Yaoyorozu was going to be in the crowd, as well as his mom, and Izuku still couldn't get the image of Momo standing over him with a pistol out of his mind.
Then Izuku remembered the date that was supposed to happen. Izuku dropped his head forward and hit the metal locker. He had forgotten the change of clothes, and he rather had taken his chance of cancelling on Momo again. Then again if he shifted and Mr Yoayorozu chased after him, cancelling the date would be the least of his worries. Hopefully, if Izuku made it through the game, then he would be able to blow off some steam at the arcade.
As Izuku pulled his head back and continued to get his gear up, his hearing suddenly increased. He could hear everyone whispering, get ready for the game, he could hear lockers being slammed, and the crowd cheering out on the field. Then he heard something that caught his attention, "Already listen up, the team we're up against is undefeated and for a long stretch, but we're in luck tonight. Their star player, number 23, was injured last week, both of his shoulders were almost dislocated. So how about to get him out of the game, we finish it. Without their star player, they'll be easy to handle. Got it."
Izuku's focus was suddenly pulled away as Kei stepped up to him and said, "One last time. Are you ready?"
Izuku sighed and sat down to put on his knee guard, "Are you going to try and convince me not to do it if I'm not?"
"I'm just trying to make sure you know what you're doing. You essentially gained a quirk a few days ago. Your body hasn't had time to adjust to its new power." Kei said as he shoulders his equipment bag that had all his protective guards beside his chest pads.
"If I don't play, I lose the first line and Yaoyorozu, and I'm just giving into Kuraim." Izuku said, as he finished with his knee pads, "I'm working towards, wanting something like this since forever. And We've been training."
"Not too well." Kei said, and well Izuku hated to admit a small piece of him saw it that way as well.
"But if it comes down to the line and I start to feel myself shifting, I think I'll be able to control myself. I don't want to lose Yaoyorozu. I just want a semi-normal-ish life, is that too much to ask for." Izuku said.
"Dude, she gave you a second chance for abandoning her at a party, if you step out and not play, she won't think less of you," Kei said as he sat down.
"I'd rather not take that chance." Izuku said.
"So you'd rather take the chance of going out and playing and shifting in front of everyone. Including and not limited to, Yaoyorozu, her father, your own mother, my dad, everyone else from school. Not to mention, Bakugo, that if you somehow survive tonight he will corner you and yell at you for hiding your 'quirk' this whole time. I'll have your grave ready in either case." Kei said, "Just don't worry too much out there, getting tossed around by guys that are probably nearly twice your size."
"You know, you're not very good at pep talks." Izuku said.
Kei shrugged his shoulders, "If you die, can I have your All Might collection?"
Izuku had to laugh and said, "No, I'm getting buried with those."
Kei then stood up and slapped Izuku's shoulder, "Come on, you'll get great and if you do shift, try to go for the other team, so they run out of players and get disqualified."
Kei began walking away, while Izuku was trying to figure out what he meant. Once Izuku did, he lifted his head and said, "That kind of sarcasm isn't needed."
"Maybe not for you." Kei called back as he walked out of the changing room.
Izuku shook his head as he stood up and looked at his helmet. He knew he could do this, he could control the bite, the gift as Kuriam called it. Izuku smirked as he thought that if he survived the game, he would have something to throw in Kuriam's face. With that thought, Izuku gripped his helmet and pulled it out of the locker. He then headed out to the field.
Out on the bench, the rest of the team made the finishing pieces of equipment and looked over at their opponents. Izuku was walking up to the bench when he was stopped by Mio.
"Midoriya." Mio said in a forced voice as Izuku stopped.
"Oh hi Mio." Izuku said.
"I just want you to remember one thing for tonight." Mio said as she locked eyes with Izuku.
Izuku had no idea what Mio was talking about, so he shrugged his shoulders and said, "Um, everything isn't about winning."
Mio gave a fake laugh, "No. Nobody likes a loser, so make sure Bakugo wins."
Confusion was evident on Izuku's face, as he tried to figure out why Mio was so possessive of Bakugo; they hadn't been dating before summer. Did something happen over the break? While Izuku tried to figure this out, Mio walked away. Izuku's focus followed her and saw her sitting down next to Momo and her father. Momo noticed Izuku and gave a small wave, something Izuku gave back.
Izuku then turned his direction to the bench and saw Coach Yuuto sitting down next to Bakugo.
"How's your shoulders?" Coach Yuuto asked.
Bakugo turned to Coach Yuuto and said, "Fine."
"I just want to make sure, you're a hundred percent tonight. The enemy seems to have some heavy hitter and I'd rather not lose you halfway through. So feel any pain?" Coach Yuuto asked
"No." Bakugo said and then clicked his tongue.
"You sure?" Coach Yuuto asked and Bakugo nodded, "What if I gave you a big old punch on your shoulder? Would you feel any pain then?"
Bakugo just gave Coach Yuuto a very confused look. Coach Yuuto was the only person he understood less than when Deku mumbled under his breath. Bakugo shook his head and stood up to stretch, "If you feel any pain during the game, just…."
Coach Yuuto paused as he could find the right words.
"You got it Coach," Bakugo huffed as he took a few more steps away from Coach Yuuto.
A whistle blew and the starting lines for both sides went out onto the field. Bakugo and Izuku were on either side of the field of the middle line and they both locked eyes as the referee put the ball in the starting position and stepped back.
Back on the bench, Kei's focus was jumping between Bakugo and Izuku, when suddenly his dad walked up behind him. Sheriff Keitaro had a hand on his son's shoulder and said, "Hey, kid. So do you think you're going to see any action day?"
Kei looked between Bakugo and Izuku, "Action? Yeah I'd said there's going to be some action tonight?"
Out on the field, with every second after he had taken position, Izuku was begging, pleading, praying to whatever divine being existed that tonight wouldn't be too bad. He didn't care if they didn't win the game, or if he was injured, as long as he didn't shift.
A whistle went off, drawing Izuku from his thoughts. He immediately looked over and saw that their team had managed to win the ball. The middle player tossed it to Bakugo, who expertly caught the ball within his net and immediately began sprinting down the field.
Yet the defender wasn't about to let Bakugo get off scot-free, so as Bakugo prepared to dodge him he threw the ball to the middle player. And it happened so fast that even Izuku had trouble following the movements. The moment the ball was out of Bakugo's net, he spun around the defender, and the middle player caught it.
The middle player took a step and began to throw it back to Bakugo, but then he hit from both sides. As Izuku's teammate worked to keep his feet under him, Izuku began looking around for the ball. He noticed it lying on the ground, and without hesitating Izuku took off towards the ball. But Bakugo had always found the ball and when he noticed Izuku going for it, he increased his speed.
Izuku and Bakugo reached the ball at the same time, and Izuku would have gotten it but Bakugo pushed him to the ground and took the ball for himself. Izuku fell to the ground and rolled to save him. And the moment he could Izuku looked up and saw Bakugo take the shot, but he had two defenders on him. As Bakugo flung the ball forward, one of the defenders rammed his elbow into the back of Bakugo's shoulder.
While the ball went into the net, earning them a point, Bakugo had to take a knee and left a hand against his shoulder. At that moment Izuku realized that what he had heard in the changing room had been in fact the other team's coach. He was having his player target Bakugo, especially his shoulder to get him out of the game.
Izuku felt his chest heat up a bit at this, but it was random, it was directed towards the other team. Specifically, the player who had rammed their elbow into Bakugo's shoulder. During this time, the referee began walking over to Bakugo to make sure he was okay and as if sensing the referee's presence Bakugo stood up and began walking up to the small team huddle.
Izuku also picked himself up and walked back to the starting position. Tonight was going to be a long night. And it was a long night as after six more points scored, the away team was up 4 to 3 by the end of the fourth quarter. The away team had targeted Bakugo the whole game, trying to injure his shoulder with every hit. Izuku had started to defend Bakugo, screening the other team players from getting to him. But not every block worked and Bakugo would get hit, but he kept on getting back up.
But Bakugo wasn't the only one, as Izuku was blocking more and more, he was making his presence known more and more. The other team would truck through him trying to get to Bakugo and with every hit Izuku took he felt his anger build up a bit more. The away team had just scored their fifth point and both Izuku and Bakugo had been hit to the ground.
As Izuku picked himself off of the ground, he looked over the stand. He saw his mother giving him a big thumbs up, but then he saw Mio and Momo holding up a sign that read, "Let's go Bakugo!"
Izuku growled a bit at that, his anger wasn't just directed towards the other team, but Bakugo now as well. Izuku could have easily got the ball and got through the defender, he supposedly had the strength now. Izuku then looked over at his defender, what better way to see if that thought was true?
As Izuku walked back to his position, Kei was watching him closely. He noticed Izuku's stare and saw the sign as well. Knowing what that could do to Izuku, Kei quickly turned back and saw the glow in Izuku's eyes. It wasn't the normal yellow glow that came from Izuku's werewolf shift, but it was a glow of focus. Something that was bound to get increased by his werewolf instincts.
Kei's knee began to bounce and he had to put a hand on it to make it stop. This night was not going to go this well for much longer. Kei looked Izuku in the eyes again and mumbled, "This is not going to be good."
As Izuku got back to his starting position, he glanced over at the small huddle Bakugo was in with three other teammates. Izuku could hear Bakugo say, "Only to me.
"But what if he's open? During practice…"
"I don't care about practice, Deku is still useless and he'll make us lose the ball." Bakugo interrupted the player.
"But." a different player began, only to be interrupted.
"Who's the captain? Me or you? And if you want to keep playing, then you'll not pass it to Deku." Bakugo said and the other players nodded.
"Got it, don't pass to Midoriya." The third player said.
Izuku huffed as he turned his focus away, and watched as the player defending him came walking up. He would show Bakugo he was strong. That he was strong enough to make it through his defender, that he was strong enough to be a hero. He had the strength now and he was going to prove it.
Feeling this, Izuku knocked his hand against his helmet to try and clear his head. He could control his anger, this strength, this feeling. He could control it and he was going to do so. Then again, did he want to be the one in control, maybe he could let his strength run wild. What better way to put Bakugo in his place, than to show that his quirk was nothing compared to the gift Izuku had been given?
Izuku kept his head down, as with every breath he exhaled, he growled a bit. The defender noticed and asked, "Yoo, bro. You on something? Because you don't sound good."
"I'm just fine." Izuku said in a gravelly voice.
On the other side of the field, Bakugo shot a glance over at Izuku and saw the hunched-over position. Izuku looked ready to run through someone, with the amount of white vapour that was coming out of his helmet. It didn't matter, besides Bakugo just took it as the Asthmatic Deku was struggling to breathe already and would be out of the game soon.
Yet as Izuku continued to growl a bit, his defender took a few steps back, afraid he was going to be caught in the middle of something. A smart move, given the world of quirks they lived in, but in the end, it didn't help the defender much.
As the referee put the ball down and the player got into the position, Mio decided to give Bakugo a bit more motivation. Mr Yaoyorozu had just asked which one Midoriya was and Mio was quick to provide his jersey number, but also provided the state, "Otherwise known as the only player on the field not to get the ball once."
Mio looked over at the scoreboard and then said, "We need to win this." She then turned to Momo and said, "Yaoyorozu, a little help."
Momo looked at the sign, then looked out at Izuku. He was hunched over and not looking so good. But Momo resigned and helped Mio hold up her sign, Momo could only hope it didn't give the wrong impression.
Unfortunately to Momo, Izuku and the player defending Izuku, it gave the wrong impression.
Izuku saw the sign and he felt the heat in his chest build up even more and he was sure his eyes were glowing. Izuku's growling became more prominent and just in time as the Referee blew his whistle and the round started. Izuku's attention flew back to the middle where the other team managed to snaggle the ball. Then to Izuku's surprise, the middle player for the other team threw it to his side.
Izuku's eyes shot back to his defender as he moved back to catch the ball. But then Izuku's anger began to unleash. He dashed forward and jumped. He had jumped so high that his waist was at the same level as his opponent's chest. Izuku swiped the ball out of the air and the moment his feet hit the ground, he bolted forward. He rammed his stick into the defender, causing them to fall backwards and hit their head against the ground.
But Izuku didn't care, his anger disregarded the defender as they stayed on the ground and began to focus on the other player in front of him. They were all blocking his way to the goal and he was going to make sure he scored a point. Izuku took off down the field and was preparing for the infield defender.
Izuku juked the first one, then broke the ankles of the second defender. Then came the third defender, who was the biggest player of the away team. Izuku didn't worry about trying to get around him. As the player came down to hit Izuku, Izuku jumped and rolled down his back. The moment Izuku was clear he took two steps and then brought up his lacrosse stick as if he was going to go for the top middle.
But Izuku noticed the goalie moving to defend there, so Izuku quickly shifted his entire weight to spin his lacrosse stick down. He then flicked the ball forward and passed it right between the goalie's legs. As Izuku took a breath, he could still feel his chest heating up, but as he exhaled he realized he didn't need to be as angry as he was. He had scored the point, he had proven himself, if he kept acting like that he would just be like Bakugo.
Then as the cheering of the crowd reached Izuku's ear, he felt the heat of his chest die down even more. It didn't fully disappear, but Izuku felt like he was controlling it. So he turned to the crowd and raised his hand in victory.
The only ones not cheering were Bakugo and Mio. As Izuku walked down to the middle of the field, he was surrounded by his teammates and was getting high fives and slaps on his back. The worry about shifting and killing someone, while present in Izuku's mind, was in the far back. As for right now, he was just going to have fun.
Then Coach Yuuto called out, "Alright, pass to Midoriya. Pass to Midoriya. Maybe then we'll have a chance to win this."
Bakugo clicked his tongue at this. His shoulders were in pain, it hadn't taken long for him to notice all the players of the other team were aiming for his shoulder. They knew about his injuries and tried to get him out. But Bakugo just took it as another challenge that he would overcome on his path to be the next number one hero, All Might could keep on fighting even if he was injured.
The players got into their positions and Izuku lended down to be ready. He wasn't growling as much, at least he didn't think he was, but with the adrenaline rushing through his body, he could be. So the referee blew the whistle, and Izuku was ready to score another point. But unlike Coach Yuuto's command, the ball was not passed to him.
Izuku's team still won the fight, but then the middle player passed the ball to Bakugo. Bakugo raised his stick to catch the ball, but then the defender "accidentally" struck Bakugo in the shoulder. This caused Bakugo to drop his stick and the defender caught the ball. He began running to the goal with relative ease as he was quick to take a shot.
Luckily the goalie blocked the ball and then looked between Izuku and Bakugo. Bakugo had gotten back on his feet, but with how Izuku was looking, he looked like he was ready to run through gunfire to score a point. Disregarding Bakugo's rule, which the goalie didn't care for as he went to a different school, he threw it to Izuku.
Izuku began to move back to catch the ball, but then a long stick reached out in front of him and caught the ball. How dare someone take something that belonged to him! So Izuku quickly turned around and stared down at the opponent player who had stolen his ball. Izuku growled and he was sure his eyes were glowing and his teeth were transforming, as the opponent player audio gulped and tossed Izuku the ball.
Yet Izuku didn't care, and with a quick note, he took down the field.
As Izuku ran down the field, Coach Yuuto walked over to Kei and asked, "Did the other team just hand us the ball."
"Yes Coach, it appears that's precisely what they did." Kei said, knowing Izuku was shifting. But he wasn't attacking anyone, just being focused on Lacrosse, though Kei was still ready to jump in, "Midoriya's very passionate about Lacrosse, perhaps his demeanor is able to control the opponent players."
"Wouldn't that be a quirk. Scare someone into doing what you want." Coach Yuuto said as he walked away.