[Midoriya Izuku ~ 01]
A/N: Hello everyone! Alas, it's here; the other BNHA concept that I've had in mind for some time has finally come into fruition.
Now, before we get into everything I might as well say a few things first. For one, this fic will be an AU with some fairly moderate changes — like Izuku having a natural quirk, lack of a toe joint and all. But of course, that's only one change of many! There are plenty more that I have planned, but those are for later. I'm also experimenting a bit here with some things (namely present tense) so we'll see how that goes.
Anyways, I hope that you all enjoy the first chapter! Do note, I will say that it's more of a prologue than anything, hence the expositional, heavily omniscient sort of start. So watch out for that!
But anyways, with that, I introduce to you: A Hushed Whisper.
P.S. More notes at the end. So stick around for those, or something. Happy reading! :)
P.P.S This is crossposted to AO3, to all of those who care!
[Midoriya Izuku ~ 01] | [Arc One: Revelations]
Deep within the heavy shrouding of a forest, far on the outskirts of the city of Musutafu, seven young boys are steadily making their way through the hot and humid wilderness.
The group is an odd bunch, seeing as they're not all necessarily friends. Rather, they're classmates; classmates brought together through a combination of common interest and fiery passion. In truth, their journey was a spur of the moment sort of thing — a trip made complete with childish enthusiasm and a single goal set in mind.
Their faces don't show it, but some of the boys — six of the seven, that is — all see that this isn't a simple outing for them. Outwardly, they're expressing faces of glee and happiness; smiles full of shining teeth and shouts filled with delight.
But their minds relay something different. Their thoughts are filled with notions of fatigue and determination, slight fear and worry. This is, after all, a chance to prove themselves. And they plan to make the most out of it.
Midoriya Izuku is no different from the rest, and is just as eager as the others to arrive at the groups' purported destination. While in part this is actually due to his inclusion in this activity, there's more to it than that: this is the first time that he'll be able to show off his quirk to his peers.
While the others in his preschool had already manifested their quirks months prior, Izuku hadn't been so lucky. In fact, it wasn't long until he was the only one in his class without a quirk.
He was worried at first, that he wouldn't manifest a quirk. Living without something so integral and meaningful to one's life… he just couldn't see it. And his worries didn't help one bit.
After one week of waiting for his quirk to develop, that worry grew to anxiety. After two, Izuku feared that he would be quirkless. However, a quick trip to the doctors disproved his theories. Indeed, he didn't have the extra toe joint. He was just a late bloomer, they had said. It was a breath of relief to the boy.
Still, it wouldn't be until a few months later that his quirk would finally appear. It was an incident Izuku would never forget.
It was in the dead of night, and Izuku had been on the verge of falling asleep. He had finally gotten his eyes to close when it was as if a switch had been flipped. Izuku was suddenly aware of things that he shouldn't have been, things that were far outside of his normal perception.
Izuku had immediately thought of showing off his quirk the next day at preschool. But as tempting as the prospect was, Izuku pushed it down. He didn't want to disappoint anyone, after all. So he had kept his quirk a secret until he could better learn how to use it.
Weeks were spent discovering and taking note of the intricacies of his quirk, learning everything that he could do, and everything he could not. Time passed like a judging clock, Izuku's patience growing especially thin when he had realized that he had barely surpassed his initial limitations.
This, coupled with the growing hostility of his friends, led Izuku to eventually cave in. It wasn't long after that Izuku admitted to his peers that he had a quirk.
They were surprised at first, disbelieving of his claims that he had finally sprouted his long awaited quirk. They had already written him off a long time ago, and they insisted that they wouldn't take credit to his claims unless Izuku showed them his quirk.
Bakugou Katsuki drew a stop to that. Instead, he planted himself before Izuku, aiming a piercing glare at the green-haired boy. The hard-pressed gaze of the blond brought Izuku to a shivering state; in fact, Izuku ended up shifting his eyes away to avoid direct contact with the blood red eyes before him.
A minute or so of this abruptly came to a halt as Bakugou stepped away. It was then that the boy spoke up about his plan.
Izuku was honestly surprised when he was asked to join in on Bakugou's expedition. Izuku had heard his friend rant on and on about his plans, but never once did Izuku think that Bakugou would invite him. So, when the boy actually got around to it, Izuku stood still for all but a moment before he erupted into a joyous stupor.
And so they went off to the forest. The expedition consisted of Izuku and the others undergoing a self made challenge — a multi-stepped process that they had come to call their own rite of passage.
The first step requires making the journey without the usage of their quirks. This is to demonstrate both their strength and their willpower. In Bakugou's words, it's to show that they aren't powerless without their quirks.
The second step revolves around following orders. And, as the self-imposed leader of the group, Bakugou leads the charge; barking orders left and right, ensuring the group doesn't let up on their progress one bit. His influence is unceasing, Bakugou pressuring the group to advance through the thick underbrush of the wilds.
To Bakugou, it wouldn't do for any of them to show any inkling of weakness. That would mean that they aren't cut out to hang around with him. To him, he needs to weed the extras out, since extras are just stepping stones on his path to greatness.
The others don't know this, of course. Not even Izuku, his supposed best friend. Rather, they all admire Bakugou for what they see in him. He's strong, he's loud, and he holds everyone's attention. These are all prime factors that the boys find important for someone aiming to be a pro hero. This is why Bakugou is put up on such a high pedestal.
Bakugou's dynamic and hold over the group persists well into the forest: Bakugou orders the others around, and the others comply and follow. It's simple, orderly, and effective. The others do little to argue, especially considering that at the end of their trip they have a chance to use their quirks without the watchful eyes of adults hiding around every corner.
But this all comes to a halt somewhere halfway between their starting point and their destination.
It's around midday when the group stumbles upon the stream, surrounded on both sides by thriving vegetation and two steeply sloped banks. A large log closes the gap, acting as a makeshift bridge that's sturdy enough to walk across.
Bakugou doesn't hesitate for even a second, and within moments he's leading the march across the log. His eagerness and overconfidence, however, does little in preventing him from tripping over an unseen crevasse, falling off said log, and landing into the shallow water below.
Five of the six boys still on the log above smile and laugh the incident off, urging Bakugou to hurry back up. But the last of the six reacts differently. His eyes widen with shock, and before he can think his feet are rushing him forward and down the bank of the stream.
"Kacchan!" Izuku yells, his voice shrill and strewn with worry. Within moments, he finds himself in front of the downed Bakugou. By instinct, Izuku reaches down towards his friend with an offer of assistance.
"Kacchan, are you okay?" Izuku asks with trembling hands, a small smile forming on his face upon seeing Bakugou's relative lack of injury.
Upon hearing the voice, Bakugou ceases his coughing and looks up from his position. His eyes steadily meet those of Izuku's.
Several thoughts flow through Bakugou's mind all at once, and none of them are all too pleasant. His face quickly morphs into a scowl, and his hand instantly moves to smack away the offered assistance from Izuku.
"I don't need your help, nerd!" Bakugou relays, standing up on his own. His hands aim themselves towards his clothes and instantly go off with a bang. His quirk activates, a shower of sparks turning into miniature explosions that erupt from his palms. The explosions do as Bakugou intends, their heat instantly drying out his clothes.
When he's done, Bakugou shoves his way past Izuku and starts making his way up the slope of the stream.
Izuku adopts a strained smile as he watches the retreating back of his friend. After a moment, his head bends down to look at his feet, one hand going up to rub his opposite arm. He doesn't say anything about his friend's rudeness, and neither does he mention how he truly feels about it. Rather, after a brief moment's respite, Izuku perks up and forms a bright smile, readily following after Bakugou.
The rest of the trip is fairly uneventful. Izuku trails behind the group, content in listening to the ambiance of the forest. Whether it's the birds nesting high up in the trees, the scurrying of rabbits deep within their underground homes, or the various creepy crawlies squirming their way beneath various downed logs, Izuku listens in to them all with a serene smile on his face.
Time passes, and before the group knows it they've arrived at a small clearing. The place is a small gem that was found by Bakugou, discovered during one of his many outings in the forest. It's just the place they want to be, considering that they don't want any adults seeing them. The isolation ensures that nobody will be interrupting them for the foreseeable future.
"Alright, we're here!" exclaims Bakugou as he climbs his way atop a large rock. "You all made it! And that means you pass the first part of the test!"
A toothy smile adorns Bakugou's face, his eyes going into a manic delight as he asks the next question. "Now, who wants to go first for the second part?"
Nobody makes a peep. The six other boys are quiet, still as statues of stone. They're equal parts afraid and in awe of Bakugou, a mix of emotions that make the group wary of volunteering for what's to come next.
But after a brief bout of silence, a lone figure steps forward to respond to the challenge. The boy is Kirihara Mirai. Despite being the same age as them, he towers above the others. His spindly arms and legs pair well with his thin figure, with his long brown hair accenting his black-rimmed glasses.
His more developed nature — something that goes both physically and mentally — leads to many of his peers making fun of him on a daily basis. However, Kirihara takes none of it. He brushes them off and perseveres, and it's that specific trait that deems him interesting to Bakugou.
And so, with the first challenger chosen, everyone watches as Kirihara and Bakugou place themselves across from one another. Sparks begin to fly from Bakugou's hands as an eerie red glow envelops Kirihara's eyes. The two are each edging the other to move first.
But, of course, that responsibility eventually defaults to Bakugou.
Everyone cheers when Kirihara dodges the first explosive-endowed punch. The cheers grow in volume as Kirihara dodges the second punch, and then the third, and the fourth. By the time the fifth punch is ready to go out, Kirihara holds his hand up, signaling for the fight to stop. A small smirk finds itself on his face.
"Quite impressive, ain't it?" he says aloud. His voice is somewhat shrill, fitting for his looks. "As I've said before, my form of combat precognition reigns supreme." There wasn't any further evidence needed to prove his point; after all, nobody had been able to properly dodge Bakugou's attacks before.
The way Izuku had seen Kirihara used it in the past, his quirk allows him to predict the actions associated with combat to a certain degree. This allows Kirihara the current ability to dodge Bakugou in the one-on-one spar.
However, the ever-present smirk on Kirihara's face disappears when Bakugou suggests non-quirk combat. Not wanting to look cowardly, Kirihara accepts.
Bakugou, quite predictably, reigns supreme in the fight, showing that he is still superior in terms of pure unadulterated strength. Kirihara accepts the loss, even if Bakugou says that he's a scrawny weakling without his quirk. As always, Kirihara takes the insult in stride.
The second to take a go at Bakugou is Takahashi Kaze — their class's own self-acclaimed prankster. He's a stout kid, with a pudgy face and a brazen attitude he's well known for. He has a mean streak as large as a spider crab, and many know to avoid angering the boy if they don't want to find themselves the victim of a vicious prank the next day.
Like before, Takahashi and Bakugou line themselves up, and the fight begins.
Takahashi is the first to use his quirk this time, jumping five feet from the ground with a single motion. The blast of air that erupts from his feet allows him to evade Bakugou's signature right hook. Uncontrolled gusts of wind then take up Takahashi's remaining arsenal, shooting from his arms and knocking Bakugou off course in his attacks.
From Izuku's own observations of the boy, he finds Takahashi's aerokinesis to be rather crude. He's only able to disperse large blasts of air all at once, lacking any fine control whatsoever. Even still, his quirk has the potential to become a promising ability with practice. But in the end, the crudeness of his control leads to Takahashi's defeat, as expected.
The next three trials aren't all too different.
Tatsuda Gomu has a transformation quirk which allows him to give his body elastic properties. This rubber-like state gives him an innately high defensive capability, though his spindly arms and scrawny frame make him downright useless against the offensive power of Bakugou's explosions. He ends up losing after a minute long beat down — a little faster than Izuku's initial predictions.
Machida Yuto's quirk is well known, knowledge of it spreading among his peers ever since the horns had sprouted up atop his head. The young, heavyset boy is even more intimidating than he was before his quirk manifested — even if the few patches of fur that grow on his skin take away from it. As for his capabilities, his horns are reminiscent of a ram's. Machida can also go into a charging rampage, being able to produce enough brute force to crack open small boulders.
The gathered group expected Machida to have the best chance against Bakugou, but their hopes were proved to be for naught. Machida's enhanced strength and durability aren't enough to quell Bakugou's aggressive fighting style.
And then came Tsubasa Hane who, like Machida, has a mutation quirk. Tsubasa has two red dragon-like wings sprouting from his back, the two appendages combined equaling a six foot long wingspan that's difficult to miss.
From Izuku's perspective, Tsubasa doesn't have much that is capable of defeating Bakugou, his wings not being useful for anything but travel as of yet. His belief is proven true with Tsubasa's swift defeat.
And with Tsubasa's loss, the boys who had already faced Bakugou numbered at five, leaving only a single individual left to demonstrate their quirk.
Izuku notices this fairly quickly, a wide smile forming on his face upon the realization. He moves forward, his steps crunching against the fallen leaves of the forest floor as his gaze meets Bakugou's eyes. As Izuku comes into position, five feet across from his best friend, he takes a deep breath.
Izuku concentrates on the things around him: the summertime breeze, the minute tramplings of small critters of the forest, and the shallow breaths of the others around him. He feels the power emanate from his mind, tingling his sensations with a subtle surge of energy. He breathes, and he wills the sounds of his power to prosper.
He points a finger at a rock a few meters away. "Right there. There are two bugs hiding under that rock."
…
"What?" the collective question rings throughout the clearing.
Izuku lets out a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean uh, one of you can go check. There should be two bugs under the rock."
Takahashi ends up being the one to do it, and the second he flips over the designated rock his eyes shoot up in surprise. "Midoriya's right," he says. "There's a stink bug and one of those mukade centipedes under here."
"So… what?" Machida asks. "Midoriya can tell where bugs are? Pretty lame if you ask me."
"That isn't it!" Izuku interjects. However, the second he realizes his outburst he shrinks in on himself. He continues with a much more reserved voice.
"It's… I could hear them, is all."
"Hear them?" Kirihara asks.
Izuku eagerly nods in response. "Mhm! I have really good hearing! Like, super hearing!"
Kirihara puts a hand under his chin. "Hmm. Well that's… well."
"Oh! Oh!" Takahashi jumps in the air with his hand raised. "We can use him so we know when adults are coming! So we can use our quirks all the time!"
"Idiot!" Tatsuda chimes in. "I've got something better! We can listen to those conversations adults don't like us hearing instead!"
"Fight me," comes the abrupt voice of Bakugou. The chorus of voices immediately cuts out.
"Wha— What?" Izuku sputters, turning suddenly to face Bakugou.
"I want you to fight me," Bakugo reasserts. "With your quirk."
A look of apprehension dawns in Izuku's face. "Ka— Kacchan! Earlier you said that this was just a demonstration! My quirk won't hel—"
There isn't a warning when Bakugo shoots forward. An explosion is charged up in the cusp of his palm, the cluster aiming right for Izuku's torso.
Given Izuku's surprise, the attack strikes true. Izuku gets launched a few feet back, tumbling into a nearby tree. A large excess of air comes barreling out of his lungs as his back meets the hard and aging bark.
His head suffers a similar fate, and he almost thinks that he sees stars. The impact has Izuku wheezing and clutching his body in pain. He barely has the strength and willpower to pick himself up.
"That's it?!" demands Bakugou. "That's all you have going for ya?!" Bakugou snarls, his expression growing tight. "That's got to be the most pathetic quirk I've ever seen! You might as well be quirkless for all I care!"
Izuku sniffles. Slowly, his arms push against the ground until he's standing once again. His legs are shaking, and his breath is shallow, but in his eyes shine in determination.
"Kacchan…" he coughs, "I can—"
"Ha! Look at him!" Takahashi exclaims, his words devolving into a fit of laughter. "He didn't even last a second against Bakugou!"
"Yeah!" Machida agrees. "That was the shortest any of us had against Bakugo! What a loser!"
As the two laugh, it doesn't take long for the others to join in. Izuku, quite understandably, shrinks in on himself.
Bakugo ignores the scant remarks, making his way up to the beaten Izuku and picking him by the scruff of his neck
"Is that all you can do?" Bakugou questions, his voice an accusing whisper. "A whole year of waiting, and that's it?" His eyes tighten, aiming to gauge Izuku and place judgement.
Izuku takes a moment to respond. A visible bulge forms at his neck, a gulp sneaking down and disappearing before he speaks.
"I— I guess…" Izuku stammers, his hands clambering and eyes shifting to the side. "I haven't really been able to do much more. But quirks are like muscles, right? So maybe if—"
Another blast erupts from Bakugo's hand. This one is aimed differently, the explosion going off in the space that's directly right to Izuku's head.
Izuku stumbles to the ground again as Bakugou lets go of him. He clutches his ear in pain, a low ringing having sprung into existence after the blast. It doesn't take much for the beginnings of tears to start trailing off his eyes.
"Super hearing?" Bakugou mutters in question. "And how about now? Can you hear now?" His nostrils flare before he faces the rest of the group.
"We're going back home. The nerd here can catch up with us when he stops being a baby."
The group steps in line behind Bakugou without a word of rebuttal. A few snicker at Izuku's vulnerability, but a growl from Bakugou easily silences them.
It doesn't take very long for Izuku to be the only one left in the clearing. He doesn't know how long he lays there, staring up into the treetops while his mind reels in chaos.
Izuku doesn't know how long it's been when he decides to unfurl himself from his position on the ground. He still clutches at his ear, wiping away at the small trail of blood that seeps through his fingers and drips to the ground.
The ringing in his ears eventually begins to subside, going from a harsh whistle to a low hum in the back of his mind. It's because of this that Izuku catches the faint sound of crunching leaves being made by the retreating steps of his classmates.
Izuku estimates the distance to be around half a kilometer away. He knows that he could still catch up to them if he hurries, and so he prepares himself before he sets off in a sprint. He runs despite the agony to his sides, the damage to his head, and the raging thoughts in his mind.
Because there's a small part of him that hopes he can still prove himself to Bakugou. No matter what it takes.
Children can be cruel creatures when given the right motivation. This is a simple truth in a world ruled by those with powers — a world where the ones with quirks reign supreme, and the quirkless and less powerful suffer as the strong reap the benefits of their labor.
That is also to say that not all humans are created equal. Nobody chooses to be born quirkless or with a weak quirk. Everyone aspires to be a hero when they are young, looking up to the likes of All Might. But many times, such dreams are shattered by the reports of two joints in their smallest toes.
Such people are scorned by society. They are deemed weaker, and are treated as such. They are ignored and placed aside, things coming in favor of those with quirks than those who don't.
But, ever an optimist, Midoriya Izuku never comes close to thinking such thoughts. Never does he think that maybe, just maybe, that those kids who act against him treat him as so out of scorn and hate. Izuku doesn't think this. Even if, day by day, it's getting harder and harder not to do so.
Instead of growing resentment, or a desperate spiral of depression, Midoriya Izuku has one goal in mind: he wants to have an honest chance to talk with his best friend. Izuku has noticed the way the ashy blond boy had changed ever so drastically over the course of a few months. Izuku knows that Bakugou wasn't always like he is now: vindictive, cruel, twisted.
The shift was a rather abrupt change, the current Bakugou being nowhere near the more reserved and kind — if not sometimes explosive — boy Izuku had grown to know.
Izuku wants to know what changed. He wants to know what he's doing wrong. And, perhaps most importantly, he wants to know what he can do to fix the rift that has grown between them.
What Izuku doesn't know is how that day in the woods would only be the beginning of a series of unfortunate events. It ultimately wouldn't be the last time the world would share its misfortune with Izuku.
But at least for the moment, late into the night of that fateful day, Izuku went to sleep, snug and comfortable in his All Might plastered room, the figurines and posters providing him a sense of security. As he drifted off to sleep, he never noticed the low hum still present in his ears.
And thus was a day in the life of Midoriya Izuku.
A/N: So, if the tone didn't already have you guessing, this will be a… bit of a darker sort of fic. Not "oh-my-god-the-entirety-of-1A-just got brutally-slaughtered-during-USJ!" sort of dark, of course. But more, morally grey anti-hero Izuku type of dark.
But anyways, what'd you all think? Good? Bad? Feel free to comment upon my work on your thoughts! I'd like to see what you all enjoyed (or didn't) and what you think I need to improve upon. It really helps!
Well, that's all for now. Stay tuned for the next one! Ta-ta!
P.P.P.S. This is technically a prologue with a much more broad character perspective than you'll all see, but let's just pretend that it's chapter one. Otherwise, the chapter numbering gets messed up, you know?