Chapter 27: Missing A Train Only Hurts If You Run After It
"I'm not really sure how to start this…"
Midoriya sat painfully still on a stool in the break room and pulled up to a table. All Might sat across from him, on a large couch much too big for him. Once the two had entered the break room, All Might let go of his transformation immediately, reverting back to his skeletal form. It wasn't the first time he'd seen the hero all skin and bones, but it still startled him nonetheless. Something about the symbol of peace looking so paper thin just didn't sit right with him, and he imagined the rest of the country would feel somewhat similar.
All Might poured out two cups of tea from the thermos on the table, and hesitantly offered him one. Some instinctual obedience inside the boy guided his hand out to take it, but he found himself hesitating as well, stopping mid movement. He was trying to make an effort, but something seemed to stop him every time. It wasn't that hard, just grab the cup. That's all he had to do, just grab the cup. Why couldn't he do it?
Why were his hands shaking so bad?
The hero seemed to understand he wasn't going to take it from him, and instead placed it down in front of him on the table. He let out a heavy sigh, dabbing at the blood that leaked from his lips, before grabbing his own glass to wash the metallic taste down.
"A lot's been on my mind as of late…" the bony hero admitted, losing the tension in his shoulders, "But I guess I should start from the beginning."
Midoriya couldn't stop the slight hitch in his breath, but no one else seemed to notice.
Gami, who was floating next to his successor, narrowed his eyes cynically, and shifted a bit closer, wishing he could be seen by the other man.
The air in the room was undeniably tense, thick like fog. Each breath felt like swallowing water, the pits of lungs heavy with weight. And the silence certainly didn't help, only fueling the anxiety that invaded everyone's thoughts, which hashed out constant possible scenarios for how this situation could end up.
"I'd like to offer my deepest apologies for my words and actions the first time we met."
The teen swore he felt his heart stop, like it was cramping up and he was having a heart attack. If he wasn't so petrified from the atmosphere before, he would have clutched his chest dramatically out of instinct. Did… did he just actually hear that? It wasn't his head making it up like some sick fantasy, right? He couldn't bring himself to words, simply sitting there in shock like a deer in headlights, not that All Might noticed anyway. It seemed the hero was too deep in his own thoughts as well.
Gami almost said something, but decided against it last minute. His bony fingers curled into a fist, but he otherwise did nothing to break the pause.
"I'm the symbol of peace, I'm supposed to be a source of inspiration and hope for all." His voice shook with fervor, and yet his head was cast with shame. "And even if I wasn't the number one hero, my words were ignorant and spiteful, and completely inappropriate to say no matter the situation."
Midoriya was sure he looked like a fish out of water, much like how he remembered the hero looking when he turned down his quirk that fateful day, but he couldn't quite fathom what was occurring right before his eyes. It was fair to say he certainly wasn't expecting this, but that would most definitely be an understatement. And yet, here was the small slight of hope that had survived that encounter currently playing out before him, the tiny shard of optimism that he had somehow hung onto.
It was risky: to get this attached again. He was only asking to be hurt again, opening himself back up to someone who had damaged him in the past. He was only asking for his confidence to once again be crushed, to be left in shambles at his feet for him to scrape back together just like before.
And yet, he reached out over the edge with full faith, grasping for that one sliver of longing that plagued him as greatly as his troubles did.
"I didn't handle your acceptance to U.A. all that great either," All Might continued, "I guess I was just in disbelief, but that doesn't excuse my childish actions."
The ghost continued his quiet observance. Surely humans couldn't have a change of heart so suddenly, so drastically, right? Surely it wasn't possible, for ways set in stone to erode away like they hadn't existed at all? But, for all his skeptical and cynical nature, Gami could not pick up a hint of malice off the tongue of the hero before him. Despite how protective he was, nothing set off the alarms he was so used to hearing. Everything felt so genuine, but how could that be?
Humans are cruel and unrelenting, surely they couldn't change, right?
He peered over to his successor, who had suffered far more at the hands of fate than what should've been necessary. And yet, he held no desire for revenge, no ounce of malice. Despite his mistreatment over the years, his dreams remained the same as they always had, pure and honorable.
Surely that couldn't have been natural either, right?
Or were humans less categorizable than he initially believed?
"I hope you can at least accept my apology, even if it's coming far later than it should've." His skinny fingers dug into his suit pants, which were now far oversized against his body, "I truly am sorry, and I hope to make amends."
Midoriya felt kind of floaty, like he wasn't really grounded on Earth anymore. Like gravity had just given out on him, and he was going to float out into space. It was surreal, in the sense that he felt so strange and yet normal. Confused and yet relieved. Unsure and yet resolved.
Was it nice?
Yeah, it was nice.
"You don't have to say anything now…" All Might reassured, waving his hands a bit frantically, "I just couldn't prolong this any more than I already had."
"N-No no, I just-" He couldn't catch himself before the words spilled out, like they were one the tip of his tongue the whole time. "I just don't really know what to say, but…"
His thoughts trailed off as he was pulled back to the events of the USJ attack. Bloody, tired, lying helplessly on the ground as the Nomu loomed over him. Shigaraki's smile permanently engraved into his mind, carved into his skull like stone. His body filled with nothing but fear, the adrenaline he had been living on had been long bleed out of his veins. He remembered desperately hoping, praying, that someone would come. That someone would save him. Because he was scared, terrified even, and he needed a hero.
"I AM HERE."
And then one came.
And even after that, he remembered the fear that shot through him as All Might fought, and all the breaths he held as All Might bled. Shigaraki's words replayed in his head over and over like a broken record, his skewed ideology sparking that same disgust he felt on the battlefield. He didn't want to agree with a villain, especially one like him, on any point, no matter how small. And as Shigaraki continued to call All Might names that had undeniably passed through his own mind, he knew he had to change.
"You saved me."
He was going to change.
"But… after what happened at USJ, I knew I had to say something to you," Midoriya finally admitted, "I knew I couldn't just keep going like… like you didn't exist, despite what happened before…"
The blond hero looked to the side for a moment, gathering his thoughts again after a brief pause. "I wanted to thank you again for that as well. I really meant it when I told you that you saved my life…"
The teen took a short sip of his tea while waiting for the pro to finish his sentence, because it was clear he wasn't done yet. Wait… when had he grabbed his cup?
All Might clenched his fists tighter, bowing his head in shame and guilt.
"Damn, I really was wrong about you…"
The deathly duo watched as he hunched in on himself, resting his forearms on his thighs. His shoulders stooped and his head bowed submissively between them. Indignity pulled at his heart, tearing it and squishing it back together again repetitively, but that wasn't something that could've been seen.
Though, if his piercing blue eyes could've been seen through the shadows casted over them, maybe that would've cued them in on his feelings.
"You know, when I watched you take down that zero-pointer during the entrance exam, I couldn't understand it. My mind kept flashing back to what you asked me under that bridge, and I was so certain you were quirkless," the hero sighed as he admitted his faults, "The way you said it… it just didn't seem like something you'd lie about."
Midoriya's guts churned at the word. Quirkless. He'd never truly get away from it, even if his quirk records said otherwise, but at this point, he wondered why it was taking this long for him to get over. He was so ready to move past it, to move past how it used to define him, and yet here he was taking another sip of tea to push back the stomach bile.
"I'll be honest, I was worried you had received a quirk from a great enemy of mine. And upon seeing you again during the battle training exercise, I remember speaking with Nezu immediately after." He recalled the timeline of his events. "And even after I explained to him all my intuitions, he brushed me off. Told me adamantly that wasn't the case, but wouldn't explain to me why."
All Might had gone to Nezu concerning his powers? Well, he guessed that was fair. After all, he assumed it was just a miracle that All Might hadn't mentioned anything to anyone concerning his admission of quirklessness that day under the bridge, but it made more sense that the hero was just keeping it to himself. Especially if he believed the boy had gotten his powers from an enemy of his. That thought too, rang loud in his head. Great enemy of All Might's? He couldn't really remember any villain that seemed to fit that title. Sure, there were tons of villains who declared it on their end, but the number one hero never really seemed to declare it back. Maybe that was just out of keeping as much peace as possible, after all, the last thing a hero needed was to engage a villain in their sick ideologies or beliefs, but still; Midoriya felt like he should've heard of a "great enemy" of All Might's.
Also, what did he mean by "receiving a quirk"? Of course, based on the bit All Might had spilled to him the first time they met, it seemed as if the hero made out his quirk to be transferable, which of course he kept to himself in the same way All Might had done for him. But, even then, the teen had never heard of a quirk that could be given or passed onto someone else, and here were two examples swarming around in his head. Maybe he'd get to ask about it, if the opportunity presented itself.
"I really didn't know what to think for a bit, but after everything at USJ, after seeing your condition and after you still risked your well being for mine, I knew I had made a grave miscalculation in my opinion of you."
Midoryia was flabbergasted. Even Gami, who he could see out of the corner of his eyes, seemed to be taken aback at the pro's admission in its entirety.
"Though I'm not sure where exactly your abilities fall under." His speech had an air of finale to it. "I've realized that your intent here is good, and if Nezu trusts you, then so will I."
The teen couldn't stop the smile that bloomed on his face, small and shy, but a smile nonetheless.
"You… you don't know how much it means to hear that…"
He couldn't deny the spark of warmth in his heart, as well as the undeniable sense of joy that flooded his system. He wanted this, he really did. And he was sure about that, if the bouncy feeling in his soul said anything about it.
But he wasn't a fool. He knew his boundaries better than anyone, and if All Might really wanted to press about his powers, he'd have to bite the bullet first. He could go ahead and ask, but that didn't mean he was going to answer.
Even just thinking that felt really good to that small, prideful ego he knew was somewhere.
And of course the pro realized this, which was to be expected after all. He coughed nervously, and for a second Midoriya had hope that he would decide to keep his questions to himself, that maybe the hero would defy his expectations after all. But alas, curiosity was a fine snare, and the reward of satisfaction made it all the more enticing.
"This may be a lot to ask, especially after all of this," All Might started, though he didn't even have to finish for the boy to understand what he wanted. Of course, he wouldn't dare interrupt him; he had the right to ask regardless. "But could you explain your quirk?"
The symbol of peace had the right to ask, and he would honor that.
But he didn't have to answer.
"I don't really feel comfortable sharing anything about my abilities as of yet," Midoriya replied firmly, the doubt that constantly plagued him surprisingly nowhere to be found.
Damn, he was really starting to love this new bout of confidence.
"But, I hope that in the future, that can change…"
And he wasn't lying. There was no false hope or common courtesy in his voice, despite not really registering what just flew from his mouth. But, it sounded right to every sense of his mind. He felt no anxiety, no self doubt, well… maybe a little self doubt, but that was normal, right? Because right now, he felt normal, in every sense of the word.
He could really get used to this.
"Of course of course," All Might backtracked frantically, doing his best not to come off imposing. Though, the stress seemed to quickly die off as the hero collected himself. "I'd feel the same way if it were my quirk being discussed."
The thought of that sent a small smile to the blond's face, a huff of amusement escaping his lips as his gaze trailed off to the side.
"Now that I think about it, I left you with a lot of unanswered questions that day, didn't I?"
Midoriya too sent back an awkward little smile of his own.
"That's a bit of an understatement…" He chuckled back quietly under his breath, though the air was silent enough for it to be heard anyway.
Even despite all the smiles and chuckles and talk, the air in the room was still heavy with tension. The two of them were simply riding on the waves of the moment, going wherever their words let them without a second thought. It was the only way either of them were going to get their words through to the other, and it was mighty convenient that both of them seemed to recognize it. And though both of them seemed to be fine with it, or at least tolerate it, Gami had to restrain every will in his soul from intervening. He knew this conversation didn't involve him, but boy did it hurt him to listen to.
"I supposed I owe you an explanation at the least," the hero mumbled, "It's the least I can do after all this…"
Widening his eyes, Midoriya moved to wave his hands dismissively. Sure, the analyst in him was freaking the fuck out currently, he wouldn't deny that. All Might's quirk had been a media mystery since, well, forever, and every major fan, analyst, and doctor had done their take on what it could possibly be. Even he, somewhere in one of his old journals, could admit he had speculated, which was putting it lightly. And if that was what the hero was implying, there was a huge part of him that was excited, tense even, to hear the answer.
But, having a secret of his own had taught him a lot of things, some more valuable than others. It taught him to be vigilant, aware, always one step ahead from the worst possible scenario he could conjure up. It taught him to be guarded and suspicious, which didn't always work for him, but wasn't exactly a bad trait to have. But most of all, it taught him responsibility and the weight of it, because as much as he wished to confide in Uraraka, Iida, Todoroki, hell, even All Might on the premise he could give some pointers for keeping such a grand secret, he understood why he couldn't. He was keeping himself safe, safe from being targeted, outcast, compared, and it kept the people close to him safe, whether they realized it or not.
"T-That's really not neces-"
"My quirk-" All Might continued anyway- "is called One for All."
Midoriya felt the breath get stuck in his throat, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.
"O-One for All…?" he repeated back in a mix of confusion and awe.
The hero nodded in confirmation. "Like I hinted at the day we met, One for All can be passed down from person to person, accumulating power as it moves between users. The first person cultivates the power, and then passes it on to another. The next refines it and passes it on again. And this network of power, this olympic torch, was then passed down to me!"
By this point, All MIght had risen out of his seat on the couch, standing profoundly above the table despite his skeletal form. His fists were clenched with pride, hands extended outward to touch all of the air. If he were any louder, Midoriya would have been sure someone could overhear, but honestly, he couldn't blame the pro in the slightest. Just listening to him describe it filled the teen with wonder.
Gami too, seemed to be at a loss for words.
"That's incredible…!" he responded, his voice so hushed it may as well have been silent, "I've never even heard of a quirk like that."
"I was the 8th user of One for All-" And just like that, the joyous mood was dashed as All Might clutched his injured side- "but my injury forced me to look for a successor sooner than I thought I would have to. It's the reason I came to teach at U.A., to find a student worthy of this power!"
Midoriya recalled the injury the hero was referring to, how could he forget? The gruesome, web-like hole in his side, that stretched across his skin in spidery veins. It was the reason the hero could only work 3 hours a day, the reason blood leaked from his mouth, the reason billows of smoke steamed from his skin. He couldn't even begin to imagine the battle that caused that injury, nor the foe who gave it.
Did that have anything to do with All Might's great enemy?
"In fact, my time is even shorter after the events at USJ. I only have 50 minutes left…"
The boy gasped in shock, unable to restrain himself at the reveal.
"That's it?!" One of his gloved hands clasped over his mouth. He hadn't realized how much the Nomu had really damaged him, despite all that he did to deter it.
"Midoriya dear, you would have died."
He needed to be better.
All Might nodded painfully, like the acceptance hurt him as well. "It's true… and that's why my search has become of even more importance."
So he really hadn't been kidding when he offered his quirk to him that day? That was… kind of crazy to think about. That he had been offered a quirk that had existed for decades, maybe even centuries. Did Gami have any insight into this then? He'd have to ask the ghost later. But for now, Midoriya found himself in pure awe, and he couldn't help but imagine where he might be if things had gone differently that day.
Where might he be now?
The sickly hero wasn't making eye contact with him anymore, instead looking away to ponder his own thoughts, of which he couldn't really imagine. The amount of stress the number one hero was under, it was truly unfathomable, and Midoriya was sure he had it bad. Such a phenomenal power seemed like such a curse right now, much like how he often felt towards his own abilities.
"Midoriya." The use of his name without any additional titles certainly startled him out of the depths of his head, forcing him to snap back to attention and back into eye contact. "I recognize how I handled myself the day we met was certainly unprofessional, and very unheroic…"
The teen could sense the drop in air temperature and reached for his warm cup of tea, hoping that whatever Gami was feeling wouldn't manifest itself as destructive activity.
"But if I were to offer you my quirk once more, the power of One for All… would you accept it?"
They say that second chances aren't to be squandered, that they should be taken advantage of since the first was already lost. That second chances are an opportunity to do better, to change for the better. That second chances are a comeback, a possibility to go all the way. That second chances come and go like trains, and that picking the right one is the true challenge.
They say that only lucky people get second chances, and that only astute people know when to take them.
Midoriya already knew he was pretty lucky, it practically defined him by now, but then again, maybe he wasn't as sharp as he liked to believe.
Oh well, intelligence was subjective anyway.
"I can't. I'm sorry."
Midoriya hadn't even realized he had risen from his seat as well, to the soles of his sturdy feet. His hands were clenched too, right into his pants. His eyes burned with determination, with focus not unlike his training days.
He'd never felt so sure of his thoughts before.
How ironic indeed.
But when the air remained as tensely silent as it had been before and the pro in front of him remained the statue he was, the boy found himself reeling back into instinct.
"I-I didn't mean any disrespect by it! I just-" He stuttered, waving his hands frantically- "I just need to do this with my own power."
At that, he looked towards his feet, unable to meet the glance the hero was sending him. He was confident in his words, yet unsure in himself. And that was the perfect combination for feeling hesitant overall; he especially looked the part. No one would've believed him unless they looked into his mind for themselves, and he had plenty of other thoughts up there that he didn't want to explain anytime soon. So they would just have to have faith in him, he would have to have trust in himself, because proof just wasn't possible.
He knew what he was saying.
He just needed to trust in it.
"I need to prove to everyone… and to myself, that my abilities can really help people. I can't hide behind another quirk. I have to do this myself."
He lifted his head up, fiery green irises meeting chilling blue. His stare burned with resolve, clear and unwavering, intense like the heat of the sun.
He'd always wanted a quirk, for as long as he could remember. He'd despised being quirkless: the label, the feeling, all of it, and despite having power at his fingertips, he'd hated it for the longest time. He'd wanted a real quirk, not the excuse he had instead.
And yet, he'd turned down that opportunity twice now.
Clearly, he wasn't the only one who found that amusing.
All Might smirked right back at him, letting out a little huff that sounded somewhat like a chuckle. He ran a hand through his messy hair, pulling it back between his fingers. His blue eyes were the clearest Midoriya had ever seen them.
"I figured you would say that," the hero answered, his face holding a sense of acceptance, "That's why I already passed down One for All to my successor."
The boy's face immediately drained of all its strength, fading to shock instead. He nearly took a step back into the stool behind him, but managed to keep his feet firmly planted on the floor. Though, that was more due to the cold hand on his back propping him up than any sort of self resolve he'd like to attribute it to.
"Then… then why?" he stumbled out, "Why are you telling all this then?"
All Might roughly threw himself back onto the couch with a plop, completely falling into it like his legs suddenly gave out on him. He leaned back into it: head, neck, and all, staring up at the ceiling. His shoulders dropped and his arms hung limply at his sides.
"Since we first met, there have been no reports about me having some sort of passable quirk," he rambled as his head fell to the side, "In fact, there hasn't even been as much as speculation of a passable quirk existing."
Midoriya immediately calmed down from his panic, the tension leaving his body in an instant. His eyes widened like camera lenses, a look of realization spreading over his features.
"Even after all the things I said, the way I treated you and disregarded your potential," The pro addressed for what seemed like the millionth time today. "You still kept my secret."
And then, All Might sat up, snapping his head forward to stare back at him. His glare shot right through the boy, and for a second he wasn't even sure if he was breathing. It was only the sound of his pounding heart echoing back through his ears that reminded him he was still conscious.
"I trust you, Young Midoriya… and I hope one day I can earn your trust as well." The strength and passion in his voice was undeniable, like its sheer power could topple a mountain. "But until then, I want to support your journey as much as I can!"
Gami shuffled from his still spot, his bones creaking like rusty hinges. He hadn't moved much since entering the room, and his throat was running pretty dry, but he understood why his thoughts were telling him to do so. And as much as it pained his soul to sit back on the sidelines, the soft smile on Midoriya's face told him all he needed to know.
Maybe he'd been wrong after all.
He looked back and forth between the newfound confidence rolling off his successor and the admiration shining on All Might's face.
But… maybe being wrong wasn't so bad either.
"Well, today has certainly been eventful…"
Midoriya huffed as he packed away his school books, "That's an understatement."
The final period had finally wrapped itself up for the day, and the teen found himself more than ready to head home and spend some time alone. Though he was much more collected than the others, he was internally jumping for joy at the upcoming festival, and was more than ready to end the day so he could get started on training.
He'd managed to get back into the mood for it after his conversation with All Might. They ended up drifting towards the Sports Festival after the hero got everything off his chest, and now, it was all he could think about. And on a full stomach of rice and tea, he was beaming with more energy than he was used to.
"Midori!" Uraraka cheered as she made her way over to him, clutching the strap of her backpack, "I don't know about you, but all the talk today has got me super pumped!!"
He smiled at her enthusiasm. "I'm really looking forward to it."
"Indeed." And that was when Iida decided to join them in his usual blunt manner. "This is a prime opportunity to gain exposure in the hero world! Chances such as these should not be squandered!"
The trio began making their way towards the exit of the classroom, and Uraraka and Iida found themselves surprised when Midoriya followed. He usually remained in the classroom when they were leaving, and the other two had to walk to the station on their own.
Noticing their curious stares, the boy scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.
"I just want to stop by my locker," he clarified to them, "I want to grab an extra set of gloves before I go home to start training."
Uraraka put a finger to her chin. "Ah, that makes sense…"
Iida nodded stiffly. "Preparation is key!"
But Gami cocked his head to the side, admittedly not following the current conversation in the slightest. "I do not understand. Do you not have more than enough spares at home?"
His friends smiled at him warmly, and he couldn't help but smile back without a word. They were the first ones to reach the door, with the rest of their class trailing loosely behind them. Uraraka pulled gently on the shut door, sliding it open, with the rest of the group chatting lightly behind her. But they were all pulled back to attention when she gasped loudly, and took a step back in shock.
Standing all around the doorway, as well as filling up the hall, were tons upon tons of U.A. students, all from different classes. They crowded around the now open door, all trying to get a peek inside. The chatter was overwhelming, and Midoriya swore he almost couldn't hear his own heartbeat over it. He stood there petrified, unable to move anything other than his wide eyes, which shot over to Iida, who only looked the same.
"W-What's going on?!" she cried out.
The rest of the class shared her dismay, gasping out in disbelief as all the chatter amongst themselves died instantly. The deathly duo shared a quick look, but all was silent between them.
"No way out! What're they here for?" Mineta stuttered, wiping the sweat off his brow.
And then there was a squeal behind him, and Midoriya whipped his head around just in time to see Bakugo shove Mineta out of his way. The teen promptly stepped to the side to avoid the blond doing the same to him, and Bakugo strolled right on past them before turning his head back.
"They're scoping out the competition, duh," he quipped before pushing Uraraka out of the way, though considerably lighter than he had the others.
The fiery student stopped at the doorway to the classroom, right where the brunette had been standing before. He rolled his eyes before stuffing his hands absentmindedly into his uniform pockets.
"We're the kids who survived a villain attack," he continued, "Makes sense they'd want a look before the Sports Festival."
When it was put that way, the USJ incident didn't seem as far away as he was subconsciously trying to make it. Every little thing seemed to worm its way back to that event, in all its terror and glory. He could still feel the wet blood running down his face, the aching in his bones about to shatter, the tightness in his throat. It seemed like so long ago, but it just kept coming back.
He wiped the bead of sweat from his forehead, and couldn't deny his surprise at the absence of red from his glove.
He was so ready for this to be over.
"No point though," Bakugo scoffed, reminding Midoriya he was in the classroom right now, not bleeding out on the plaza floor, "Move aside extras."
And that was all that was necessary to send class 1-A spiraling back into chaos. Though, Midoriya could admit, that was arguably much better than spiraling back into the chaos of his own suffocating thoughts.
"Goodness, he truly cannot keep his mouth shut, can he?"
If the circumstances were different, maybe Midoriya would've laughed at the uncharacteristic annoyance in his mentor's tone.
Iida swung a hand out robotically. "Can we please not resort to calling those we don't know 'extras'?!"
Even amongst the chaos of his own class sputtering out excuses for Bakugo's behavior and the chatter of the students outside, Midoriya still picked up on the slight grunts and yelps coming from the back of the mob. If anything good came out of the USJ attack, it would have to be his heightened senses. He was much more observant of the world around him, and in turn much more wary. His ears honed in on the noise, and he moved to try and get a better look of the doorway.
A tall mass of gravity defying purple hair could be seen over the ocean of heads outside, as well as the heads that toppled in its path. It stood much taller over the other students, much taller than Midoriya was, even looming slightly.
And Midoriya didn't ignore the small alarm bell in the back of his head.
"It's true. We came to get a look, but you sure are modest."
At the sound of his voice, the teen felt shivers run down his spine, and not the pleasant kind.
"Are all the kids in the hero course like this one?"
Bakugo grunted in response, "Huh?!"
Beside him, Iida moved to begin denying the words thrown onto his class. Midoriya started to do the same, but was promptly shut down by a press to his shoulder by a familiarly bony hand.
Now that was the kind of chill he liked.
"Do not call attention to yourself," Gami advised firmly, "There is something off about this voice, and I would rather not have its owner focus in on you."
He guessed the ghost was experiencing the same sort of red flags he was, and so he nodded slightly and kept his lips shut.
The wearer of the purple hair finally emerged from the crowd, shoving his way to the front, which allowed everyone to get a better look at him. He was exceptionally plain, with dark bags under his eyes, even worse than the ones Midoriya owned. His hair weaved wildly into the air and looked kind of fluffy to the touch.
Gami would never say it aloud, but the newcomer reminded him greatly of his successor.
"Gotta say," he piped up in the same voice that had pierced through the crowd, "I'm a little disillusioned if this is what you're offering."
He lowered the hand resting on the back of his head, and Midoriya couldn't help but feel slightly intimidated at the action.
"Those of us who didn't make the hero course are stuck in general studies and other tracks," the zombie-ish teen continued, "There're quite a few of us, you know?"
Midoriya did know that, actually. He understood that if he failed the hero exam there was a good chance he'd be put into general studies instead. He had done his research into the educational system at U.A., and crafted up a plan just in case that happened. And because of that, he understood exactly where the boy in front of him was headed.
There was one way, and one way only, for a general studies student to get up to the hero course.
"Depending on the results of the Sports Festival, they might consider transferring us up to the hero course. I understand the reverse is also possible for you."
And even though he knew it was coming, the teen had to gulp down the nervousness in his throat. He couldn't afford to fail in the next two weeks, and if that meant constant blood, sweat, and tears, then he'd make it happen.
The tips of his fingers tingled with anticipation and anxiety, and he wasn't sure which was which.
"Scoping out the competition?" He mocked Bakugo's choice words from earlier. "For a general studies kid like me… this'll be the perfect chance to knock you off your pedestals."
As an extra rub of salt in the wound, he stuffed his hands in his pockets to mimic the exact stance of the fiery blond in front of him.
"Consider this a declaration of war."
Midoriya felt his heart skip a beat, and not in the romantic way that is always portrayed in sappy movies. He legitimately felt his heart stop for a second, cramping in his chest like a dead weight. He looked around slightly, and found himself just a bit relieved at the tense faces of Uraraka and Iida, thankful that they were the ones, if any, to share his unease.
"I do hope the children in other classes are not this rigid and aggressive," Gami commented, "You do have a tendency to make… less than pleasant first impressions."
Midoriya wanted to argue, but then he thought back to Iida… and Aizawa… and All Might, and found himself reluctantly agreeing with his mentor.
But just as he was starting to think the chaos was over… suddenly it wasn't.
Another student shoved himself to the front, and his appearance was much more eye catching than the teen before. His hair was colored a light grey, and almost appeared metallic in nature, with stiff ends that never seemed to move. There was thick hair that seemed to gather around his eyes, to which Midoriya could only presume were his eyelashes. His teeth were sharp and pointed like Kirishima's… and like the shark villain that nearly chomped him in two at the USJ attack.
God, why couldn't he get his mind away from that place?
"Hey!!" he called out, "I'm from class 1-B, next door!"
They'd be seeing more of him then…
"Heard you guys fought some villains, wanted to find out more but… all I'm seeing is this arrogant bastard!!"
And there went any chance of repairing their reputation as a class. Midoriya resisted the urge to curse out Bakugo to the universe right then and there.
Gami, however, did not.
"You know, there've been rumors going around about someone from your class getting seriously injured after the attack." The intensity of his voice never seemed to de-escalate. "To think I came to offer my sympathy!!"
Even if Midoriya wanted to debate his calmness with the earlier student's declaration, there was no way he could even fight the fact that his heart stopped completely this time. He didn't dare move to check on his friends beside him, desperately hoping that they didn't make a move to indicate him. In fact, instead of choking on the tense silence, he was praying it continued. But out of 19 other students, it was a harsh improbability. The true question was, who would be the one to talk first? Would it be Mineta, unable to tell the sensitivity of the situation? Would it be Iida or Kirishima, inadvertently exposing him to defend his honor? Would it be Bakugo, uncaring to his feelings or using the opportunity to single him out?
He waited in long silence
He waited in even longer silence.
He waited in the longest silence he'd ever experienced.
"Ugh," the class 1-B student jumped back in as his patience died down, "You better not make fools of the hero course at this thing!!"
He was still too rigid to move, but he noticed Gami observe the class out of the corner of his eye. The ghost seemed to do one quick sweep of the room, and afterwards returned to his stance. But the boy could've cared less about what he saw, still relishing in the wonderful silence.
Even as the student from before shouted something else, all Midoriya could hear was the beautiful, wonderful silence.
And then Bakugo had to go and ruin it by pushing his way through the crowd to leave the classroom. Clearly, he wasn't the only person bothered by the sudden development.
"Wait, you jerk! What are you doing?!" Kirishima yelled, "Thanks to you we've got a whole mob of haters now!!"
Bakugo spared a glance behind him, staring down the redhead with one explosive look.
"I don't give a crap…" he admitted, "I'm heading for the top. Why should I care?"
And that was enough to leave the class speechless as the blond resumed leaving. The trio of friends stared absentmindedly at Bakugo's back until it disappeared between the mass of students. The rest of the class made no move after him until he was completely gone, not even a sound.
Midoriya missed the silence, but not like this.
But he didn't have time to reminisce about any of it, as Kirishima broke it again with a scoff. "I wanna be mad, but that was so straightforward and manly."
Tokoyami nodded affirmatively. "The top… well, he's not wrong."
"Don't let him play you!" Kaminari clearly didn't agree. "All he's doing is winning us enemies!"
Gami rolled his eyes, not that anyone could tell. "He is much too aggressive for his own good. That type of attitude certainly brings nothing good…"
But Midoriya remained silent, staring at Bakugo's now empty spot. He hadn't even realized he was staring there, nor for how long, but he was snapped out of it with a slight touch to his upper arm, one that wasn't cold and undead.
"Hey, Midori?" Uraraka spoke with a slight whisper, probably because she'd stayed silent for so long, "You ready to go?"
He looked to her quickly, before his eyes trailed back to where Bakugo was standing before. The spot looked kind of empty and lifeless compared to before, and when he snapped his neck back around to look behind him, the rest of the classroom felt the same, despite having the rest of the class present. There was plenty of chatter, and smiles, and laughs, but it all seemed aimless. Even the air felt dead to his lungs.
Strange how just a couple days ago, it was the opposite.
"Yeah, let's go."
"Alright, I'll see you guys tomorrow!"
Midoriya softly closed the door of his locker, the click still audible in the mostly cleared out hallway. He waved passively to Uraraka and Iida, who were now walking down the hall without him on their way to the station. They smiled back at him from over their shoulders, before turning the corner and disappearing from sight. He sighed, an extra pair of gloves in his hand.
Once he was sure they hadn't forgotten anything and were on their way back, he quickly rolled in the combination for his lock and opened the door back up. The metal hinges squealed much louder this time, but he didn't mind the obnoxious noise, placing the extra set of gloves he had come to fetch back on the shelf inside. He didn't say anything to the ghost beside him, closing the door back up again and starting his route back to the classroom.
"You did not really need those gloves, did you?"
The teen shifted his backpack to stop it from drooping. "I needed them enough."
The two traversed the near empty halls together, dodging the occasional glances from leftover students on their way back. Normally, Midoriya would wait in the classroom for everyone to leave, and only then would Aizawa let him know who he was walking back with, if anyone. Most of the time he left the school with Yamada, who preferred to do his paperwork at home anyway. Sometimes he walked home by himself, using the set of keys Yamada would lend him, and the two heroes would walk home together. Very rarely would he find himself walking with Aizawa, though that was usually because he always stayed after to talk with Nezu or to finish up work. But because he had left the classroom with Uraraka and Iida, he understood that he needed to check back in with the underground hero before doing anything. And even though he had obtained his official set of keys this morning, he doubted the heroes wanted him to go running off with them.
So he couldn't quite hide his surprise at seeing Aizawa waiting for him with the closed classroom door behind him. And of course the pro picked up on it, no hero intuition necessary.
"Nezu wanted me to bring you down to one of the support labs," he explained to the teen's curious gaze, "He probably has something obnoxious planned, knowing him."
Midoriya let out a noise of recognition and nodded. He paused, waiting for Aizawa to lead him, and sure enough, the hero set off on a path, with the deathly duo quickly moving to catch up.
He eventually matched pace enough to trail just slightly behind him, with Gami floating off to the side. By now, every hallway they turned into was completely empty, with all the students from before filed out of the building. They reached the elevator doors, and with a swipe of Aizawa's keycard, the panel flashed green and the doors parted like the sea, magnificent and righteous.
The man stepped inside, holding one arm out to prevent the doors from closing while Midoriya followed. When Aizawa removed his arm to let the doors close and Gami still wasn't inside yet, the boy stuck his own out instinctively to stop them from doing so.
Aizawa almost looked confused for a moment before he realized who he was dealing with.
"You coming?" he asked expectantly.
Gami looked down at himself, more specifically the wispy trails of his robe that ended into mist. "I would, but I do think that would be a very awkward elevator ride if I continue to pass through it as it is moving downwards."
The teen lurched his head to the side. "Are you going to meet us then?"
The ghost nodded in confirmation. "I will follow the elevator through the wall so I can arrive on the destination floor."
Aizawa, however, was able to pick up on the gist of the conversation even through the student's responses alone. "He can meet us on basement floor 3."
Midoriya snapped back to Aizawa, confused on how he obtained the context of their discussion, before just chalking it up to his rational intellect. He shrugged, before returning to his mentor. "Got that?"
Gami nodded once more, allowing his successor to pull back his arm and the elevator doors to close. The last thing he saw was his mentor giving a comedic mock salute, and then his vision was flooding with nothing but shiny metal.
He let out a sigh, a breath he didn't realize he had been holding, before his glance trailed back to the hero standing next to him. Aizawa leaned across him to punch in their destination floor before returning to his spot. The green haired teen couldn't help but notice a troubled look on his teacher's face, and worry grew in his gut.
"S-Sorry about the hold up just now, Sensei…" He assumed the bothered expression was because he had held the elevator from moving to talk with Gami.
But clearly that wasn't it, because he made no move to respond, that or he just was too bothered to. Midoriya shifted around nervously as the elevator hummed its way down, twiddling his fingers in an attempt to soothe himself. Things sure were more awkward without Gami, which was saying a lot when he was a 6 foot tall ghost that only he could see.
"Problem Child," he began, making said child turn his attention back to him in an instant, "You are eating lunch everyday, right?"
Suddenly the elevator hum seemed very interesting to listen to. Where did this even come from? And why now, the one time his companion had separated from him throughout the day?
And so he did the only thing he was good at, lying like the pathetic excuse of a thankful human being he was. "Y-Yeah."
But Eraserhead was a pro for a reason, and Midoriya cautiously resisted the urge to wipe his brow of sweat. "Well, Nezu told me your lunch account never seems to go down, so he wanted me to remind you that it gets automatically funded by the school budget."
The boy felt his vision go blank. "It is…?"
"It is," the homeroom teacher repeated, "And I wanted to remind you that you need stamina to save people."
"You need to start eating regularly if you want to make it as a hero, or you won't have any stamina to save anyone."
His throat ran dry, and he could feel his stomach rumble despite having eaten with All MIght earlier. His hands grew shaky, like someone else was moving them for him, and he had to clasp them together out of fear that DT would start up unconsciously.
How long was this freaking elevator ride?
"I-I'm eating…" The words came out more hesitantly than he wanted. "I mean… yeah… I'm eating."
Aizawa didn't question him, to both his surprise and thankfulness. "Just wanted to let you know."
And finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the elevator hitched to a stop and the doors dinged open to reveal one familiar ghost waiting for them.
"Goodness, what took you so lon-"
He stopped immediately upon seeing his successor's pale face, the enthusiasm in his voice drained away without a chance to savor.
"What did he do."
It wasn't a question, but for once, Midoriya really didn't feel like following orders. He shook his head lightly, knowing that Aizawa would still notice, and dismissively gestured for Gami to follow. He could feel the reluctance in the ghost's expression, despite not being able to see it, and noted him actively getting closer to the underground hero. The teen dropped his shoulders in a mix of annoyance and irritation, though neither were really Gami's fault.
"We're going to be late to whatever Nezu needs us for if you keep that up," he called out to his companion, "Now are you coming or what?"
The spirit picked up on his tone of voice like second nature, and though unwillingly, he moved away from the pro and back to his side, allowing the three to walk to the designated support lab in peace. As they moved past the other labs, Midoriya noticed they actually had student names on the doors, meaning these were just any support labs, they were support course labs.
Wonder what they were doing down here…
As he peered from door to door, he realized the sheer amount of teenage technological talent that was housed down here. Could he have been down here in another world? Could he have been a support course student in another universe, designing and creating gadgets for heroes instead? It put into perspective how lucky he was to have Gami, as well as the powers he had such a love hate relationship with. Not that there was anything wrong with what the support course students did, in fact, he thought it was the most underappreciated aspect of heroism. So many brilliant minds were behind the most popular and favorable heroes on the streets, and it was a real shame they didn't get as much recognition as they deserved. But, in his heart, he wasn't sure if working in a lab all day was for him. Sure, his gadgets would be aiding the fight against villainy and saving people, but he wanted to be out there and save people himself, not only for himself, but for the souls he put away every day. Of course, without Gami, without his job, he probably wouldn't have that kind of strong motivation like he did now.
Maybe in a world without Gami, in a world without his responsibilities, he might have been down here after all. Besides, what else would a quirkless kid like him have done?
Aizawa stopped suddenly, making Midoriya pump the brakes in order to avoid running into him. Both he and Gami looked around curiously, trying to understand why they stopped moving, before the hero in front turned sharply to the left and knocked on the door. But try as they might, with the pro in the way, they couldn't read the name on the door.
"Ah, that must be Aizawa-san and Midoriya!" Nezu's unmistakable chipperness called from just beyond the door. "Come in! It's unlocked!"
Aizawa nodded to himself and slid the door open, covering the label between the doorframe. The boy grumbled to himself at that, but he didn't even have the chance to pull out the door to see as his teacher gestured for him to come inside. He made a quick look back to Gami for reassurance, but when the ghost merely shrugged, he found himself grumbling further under his breath.
The room was fairly large, but not large enough for his entrance to go unnoticed, so he slunked behind the underground hero as they went inside. The walls were lined with shelves upon shelves of tools and machinery, with scraps of metal lying all over the floor and underneath desks. Half finished projects hung on the walls and lied upon tabletops, wires strewn about. Blueprints were scattered about the room, some still in the process of fluttering to the floor after the gust of air that came from opening the door. All in all, the area looked to be a creative warzone, like a real life depiction of one of his quirk analysis notebooks.
"It's so wonderful of you two to join us!" Nezu chirped, clasping his paws together.
Aizawa rolled his eyes, but it had very little irritation in it. "You asked us to come down here… Maijima, what are we doing here?"
Midoriya moved out to see who Aizawa was referring to, and recognized that signature yellow helmet rested on a lanky build. Powerloader stood behind the principal, and raised a hand to address the other pro's question, but before he could do so, another mass hidden beside the excavation hero launched at him.
The teen had almost no time to react as something bright pink shot right at him with energetic speed. But even so, USJ had sure dug its teeth into him, and he hastily stepped back and brought up his gloved hands defensively on instinct. The thing seemed to understand somewhat and stopped right at his face, and from there, he could see that it wasn't really a thing at all.
There before him, stood a girl with pink hair in thick strands. Her skin was pale, though covered thoroughly in a sheet of grease. She wore a pair of red goggles on her forehead, the gear keeping her hair out of her face, as well as a lively smile, to put it lightly. But her most notable feature were her green yellow eyes with a strange, yet captivating target symbol in each. She looked to be about as old as he was, so maybe a first year support course student? It was likely then that she was the owner of this lab, if her dirt and grime said anything.
But before he could analyze her any further, she made another excited jump at him, bringing back his apprehension tenfold.
"Ooo, you must be who the new baby is for!!" She grinned, getting right into his face. "Powerloader-sensei wouldn't tell me while we were working on it."
So she was a support course student for sure, and this was definitely her lab then. He nearly jumped when she told him of some new "baby," but assumed it was some way of referring to her inventions. Inventors were eccentric like that, or at least supposedly. Midoriya didn't really like to assume stereotypes, but this girl was making it hard not to.
"Hatsume, you promised not to bombard them when they arrived," Powerloader scolded.
She rolled her eyes much like a child and lurched her head over her shoulder. "I'm not bothering anyone, just ask him!"
The support course teacher sighed, his arms going limp in exasperation. "Can you please just let Nezu-san finish?"
It was now her turn to sigh, but she did listen and backed off from Midoriya ever so slowly. He couldn't help the small bubble of relief that threatened to escape from his throat. Gami joined him at his side from the corner of his eye, and he resisted the urge to call out the ghost for leaving him on his own during that.
"She is certainly a handful."
Midoriya clenched his fist.
He would not reveal his secret to two other people. He would not reveal his secret to two other people. He would not reveal his secret to two other people.
His nails pressed into his palm even through the fabric.
"Well, I am sorry for taking the time out of your day, Aizawa-san." Nezu took over. "But I was afraid Midoriya wouldn't feel comfortable coming down here with anyone else."
Said hero nodded, keeping as much malice out of his actions as possible. "What did you need Problem Child for then?"
Powerloader snorted at the nickname, but no one seemed to pay him any mind.
Nezu then directed his attention to the green haired teen standing warily next to his teacher. His paws still held together, he brought them to his face, tilting his head slightly to create an enamored look. "Midoriya, do you remember what we discussed directly after the events of the USJ incident?"
The teen stiffened at the mention of the attack, and he wasn't the only one. He didn't want to think about that anymore, not the blood, the pain, the fear. He wanted to be done, and he didn't want to accept the fact that he'd never truly be done with his experiences at the USJ. He hated trying to sleep at night and somehow waking back up again in Recovery Girl's office in a panic, cold, achy, and scared. But that's not how he woke up; he woke up with Gami at his side and plenty of people who came to check on him.
That's right.
"Y-Yeah, we were talking about-" He robotically responded before realizing just what Nezu was talking about- "Wait, you mean…!"
The principal smiled. "I asked Powerloader to craft them for you, and it seemed Hatsume decided to join him."
He turned back to the teacher, and like a planned presentation, Powerloader reached behind him to one of the tables, but before he could do anything, Hatsume grabbed what he was aiming for and ran back up to him.
"Allow me, Hatsume Mei, to introduce my newest baby!" she cried out like a businesswoman flaunting her new product, "With the help of Powerloader-sensei, here they are!"
She then held out a pair of gloves, which looked very similar to his own. Black and solid in color, polyester in look and likely feel. But there were some differences. One, there was a green stripe that ran down from the back of the index finger to the base of the gloves, giving it a slick design. The tips of the fingers were padded slightly to give the gloves more sturdiness.
He couldn't stop the gasp of awe that erupted from him.
"Impressive, right?" she huffed, "These babies have got padded fingertips for cushioned support when landing on all fours and reinforced seams to prevent tearing. The stripe is for added flare, and they're made completely from your own DNA!!"
He raised a hand to cover his agape mouth, feeling his own polyester especially cheap on his lips. His eyes began to water and he had to will the tears back. He reached another hand out to grab them, but hesitated, unsure of whether he was allowed to.
"I had Powerloader and Hatsume make a multitude of pairs for your hero costume." Nezu continued, his smile ever wider, "But there were more than enough for you to have a pair for casual wear."
He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "S-So I can…?"
"They're all yours!!" Hatsume cheered as she thrusted them at him.
He wasted no time, reaching out ever so shakily to take them from her. He began to pull off his usual ones to replace them, but found himself a little nervous to do so. Looking back up, he made eye contact with Aizawa next to him, who gave him a small nod of confirmation. There was a cold press to his shoulder, and he resisted the urge to look at what would be empty air.
And so with one big breath, he swapped the pairs, stuffing his old ones into his uniform pocket.
The fit was phenomenal, perfectly sized, not too snug, but certainly not too loose. The seams were practically indistinguishable, both to look and touch despite being reinforced. The texture wasn't as rough as his polyester, but yet not soft enough to make him think they'd fall apart at the slightest touch. And the green stripe wasn't as obnoxious as he was afraid it was going to be, and actually felt quite fitting to him. He couldn't stop himself from flipping his hands around to examine them over and over again.
He couldn't remember the last time he had felt this overjoyed.
"Test them! Test them!" the inventor chanted, "Try to decay my baby!"
Caught off guard by her knowledge of his power, Midoriya shot his head over to Nezu, who simply sent another smile his way.
"I informed them about the decay aspect of your quirk, among other information such as the size of your hands," the principal explained to him, "It was necessary for them to know the constraints and purposes of the design I was requesting."
The lie came out so smoothly, even Midoriya nearly missed it. But, that did make sense for Nezu to do, as creepy as it was to imagine how he obtained that information in the first place.
Shaking off his shudder, he turned both hands so his palms faced upwards, flexing his fingers as he did so. He couldn't deny the anxiety and hesitation pooling in his stomach. He hated seeing his own gloves decay, usually from stress, as it reminded him of how little he could really do to prevent his destructive power from growing out of control. He wanted to help people, to save people, but that meant not being afraid of his own power. He had to get to a point where he didn't even hesitate when using it, and as far fetched as that seemed right now, this was that next step.
Even while watching his hands shake and tremble, he knew this was the next step.
So he closed his eyes and let out an unsteady breath, keeping his vision dark as he let DT rush to his fingertips. He wanted to watch, but he couldn't risk watching all this work go up in flames. He didn't want to see them decay.
He waited in long silence
He waited in even longer silence.
He waited in the longest silence he'd ever experienced.
And then he opened his eyes.
Black fabric still stared back at him.
He almost collapsed to his knees, tears threatening to spring from his eyes once more. He was so sure he was going to openly break down into tears, the first time he felt such dissatisfaction at holding them back. He wanted to bring one hand to his mouth in disbelief, but he didn't even want to move.
He couldn't believe what was right before his eyes.
"I can't…" he stuttered, "I can't decay them."
"Yes!!" Hatsume exclaimed, pumping her fist into the air, "My baby is a success!!"
Powerloader let out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad to see they work as intended."
But Midoriya barely even heard them over his own internal happiness, his heart rate spiking out of control. He couldn't decay them. He couldn't decay them. As long as he was wearing them, he'd never have to worry about accidentally hurting someone or breaking something ever again. The answer to his problems, to all of his struggles, was truly right here at his fingertips.
He really couldn't believe it.
"It seems you are satisfied with the end result, Midoriya?" Nezu pondered, though the answer was obvious.
The teen only nodded, unable to coax the words from his throat.
"Wonderful!" the principal chirped again, "I don't have to worry about you decaying my microphone out of stress then!"
That caught everyone's attention, and all heads shot in that direction. The boy immediately felt his wondrous mood begin to turn for the worst, but he scrambled to hold it all together.
"I'm not sure I understand…" he admitted, hoping the mammal would take the hint and clarify.
Sure enough, he did. Though, he probably would've anyway, even if he hadn't asked.
Probably…
"Ah, I forgot I haven't mentioned anything as of yet," he chuckled as he placed a contemplative finger on his chin, though it was obvious he didn't truly forget, "Must have slipped my mind then…"
It was a shame how smoothly the principal could lie at some points, and how he seemed to care so little for convincing during others. But that was just the phenomenon that was Principal Nezu, both in theory and actuality.
But when he clasped his paws together once more with a sickening smile, it reminded Midoriya that phenomena were often as terrifying as they were mysterious.
"You'll be the one to deliver the opening speech for the first years at the Sports Festival, Midoriya!"
He was pretty sure his eyes rolled all the way to the back of his head and snapped back into place all at once. And judging by the way everyone else seemed to do the same, he guessed he wasn't the only one to learn of this information now.
Still, that didn't exactly make him feel any better.
"WHAT?!"