Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Even after 3 weeks of having all of the sludge out of his system, Izuku still felt like shit. He was on his couch, covered in a blanket, with a congested and snotty nose, a cough, and a huge headache.

So yeah, pardon his French, but he felt like shit.

He glanced down at his phone, seeing his messages open. Not that he had many contacts. It was just his dad, his Mom, his one friend from online gaming, and All Might.

Which—despite having the man's number since the sludge villain incident—was surreal. Sure, it was probably given out of a place of pity, but it still meant something to Izuku. He could finally have some proof for when he said he had All Might's number. Not like he went around saying that.

He groaned and shut off his phone just as his mother, Inko Midoriya, came to give him his soup.

"Oh Izuku," she said with a kind voice. "I'm sorry you're feeling like this… but at least you saved Katsuki! I never knew why you two fell off, but I hope you both rethink it after this."

Izuku sighed and nodded, not really sure if he wanted to open that can of worms.

He took the soup from his mom and turned on the TV. The screen showed a news clip about Detnerat Inc. opening a small exhibition tour through their science facilities to show off their progress with genetic research.

The reporter, a lady with a head of bright pink dreads, spoke a little further on the subject, saying that Detnerat was relatively new to the field of biological and organic sciences, they've been making great strides in the fields of specifically genetics and biotechnology, like prosthetics and nanotechnology.

As the news station moved forward with the broadcast, Izuku couldn't help but think about the exhibition, something that his mother was made very aware of due to his very audible muttering.

And so, an hour later, as Izuku's soup bowl was being washed, Inko Midoriya bought two tickets to the next exhibition tour.

"Mom! I-It's fine, you didn't have to—"

"Izuku, I'm taking you on this science trip and you're going to enjoy it. Trust me."

Izuku sighed as he pulled his hat down and adjusted his face mask. He was wearing a jacket, baseball cap, jeans, a facemask to keep his germs in, and his classic red hightops.

He looked up to the Detnerat facility and couldn't keep his eyes from widening. It looked just like how it did in the commercials, maybe even more grandiose.

Inko smirked at the look on her son's face, then led them to the main group of people outside the facility.

After waiting for a couple of minutes, someone came around to collect and scan tickets from people. While Inko was fetching the tickets for her and Izuku on her phone, someone caught Izuku's eye.

The kid was a bit taller than Izuku but was probably the same age. His hair was brownish-red, almost a copper color. His grey-green eyes showed a certain excited shyness, much like Izuku's own. He didn't seem to be there with a parent, which would be reason enough to be nervous.

"You should talk to him."

"GAH!!" Izuku whipped around to see a knowing look on his mom, one that he used to see whenever Inko thought he would be good friends with someone. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. "I-I dunno, mom. What if he asks me what my quirk is? O-or what if I stutter too much? Or what abou—"

Inko shook her head and simply nudged her son a bit towards him. Izuku blinked at her, muttered something about him having reasons for not having friends, then walked off towards the boy.

As Izuku got closer, the two locked eyes, and then immediately looked away. But, Izuku pushed on. Once Izuku was standing next to him, he shyly waved and spoke in a small voice. 

"H-hi…"

The kid looked up, then returned Izuku's wave with his own.

"Hey! Uh, what's… uh… what's your name?"

Izuku gave a small smile. "Midoriya. Izuku Midoriya. A-and you?"

The boy smiled back, equally as awkwardly. "Harry Osborne. But just call me Harry."

Izuku cocked his head a bit and looked quizzically at Harry. "You're not Japanese? Osborne isn't a Japanese surname, and Harry definitely isn't a typical Japanese first name."

Not to mention, that surname sounded oddly familiar.

"Oh, I am, but on my mom's side," he explained. "My dad is American, and he works there full-time. He's Norman Osborne."

Izuku's eyes widened.

"Oh… my… god… YOU'RE NOR—"

Harry rushed forward and shushed Izuku, covering his mouth and cutting him off.

"Yes, but it's something I like to keep as 'on the down low' as possible. Got it?"

Izuku nodded, stepping back from Harry's hands.

"But," Izuku started, "why are you here then? On a secret espionage trip between companies?"

Harry laughed and shook his head. "No, nothing like that. I just… love science."

Izuku smiled and kept up the conversation with Harry, slowly getting more and more animated as the conversation continued.

Inko, from a distance, smiled at her boy, finally seeing him start to be happy with a friend again.

"—and here we have our Biotechnology Research Bunker, or our BRB for short."

Izuku and Harry snickered, finding humor in the naming conventions of the areas of the facility. All of them were internet abbreviations, like LOL, IMO, TLDR, and other similar terms.

"This is where we use genetic engineering, DNA splicing, and gene isolation in order to make new organisms for the benefit of the human race."

The tour guide, a lovely lady with blue skin and dark blue hair, gestured to the room around her.

"We also analyze quirked animals and their DNA, with the goal of determining what makes these animals manifest quirks."

She looked at the number of kids and teens in the crowd, then smiled.

"And now, for an hour, you'll be able to walk freely around this room, but please, do not touch anything that's marked with 'Do Not Touch' signs."

Izuku and Harry immediately sped off, much like the other kids, and started looking around. They were amazed at the sheer number of experiments and specimens the facility held, even more so by the thoroughness of the observations.

It was after 15 minutes that they stumbled into a room off to the side, where multiple display cases were marked with the do not touch signs. Each display case held a spider, with each spider having wildly different patterns and colors. However, one of the cases was opened, and the spider was missing.

"Hey Harry, look. All of these spiders have quirks! But they're all so different, even though they're from the same parent…"

Izuku and Harry examined the plaque for the exhibit, and it detailed that it was something in the spiders' DNA that made the quirk factor so unstable.

They then started examining the individual tanks, making comments on the quirks and how they could be used by humans. Harry almost always made connections to science or research, and Izuku—being Izuku—always made references to hero work.

This led to them being distracted enough to not notice a certain 'missing' spider climbing onto Izuku's jacket.

Harry ^^ - 7:32 PM
[ It was great talking to u! I gotta go for the night, dinner with ma and some homework, hehe. see you later! ]

You - 7:32 PM
[ oh, ok!!! I'll see u tmrw! ]

Izuku put down his phone with a smile on his face. His first friend in ten years! He was so excited! And he had his number? This was the best!

He threw his hands into the air and silently celebrated, but then he saw something.

A spider with a black base and green and purple lines in a sine and cosine wave pattern on its abdomen was crawling up his arm. It was small, but round in shape, like a Black Widow, but remixed.

Izuku leaned a bit closer and pulled his arm towards himself, examining the spider. It looked kinda cute. 6 eyes, chubby little legs, and small mandibles.

"Hey there…"

The spider crawled up Izuku's arm, stopping just below the palm of his hand, scuttling around a bit before settling on the crease between his wrist and palm.

Then, it bit him.

"AAAGH!!"

Izuku flinched at the pain and jolted, but then quickly realized...

Huh… he thought. This… doesn't hurt as badly as I thought it would.

He looked at the spider, gnawing on his wrist, then started getting a bit lightheaded…

Then… he started seeing funny…

Then he passed out.

Chapter Text

"HOLY FUCK ALL MIGHT I THINK I HAVE SUPERPOWERS FROM A SPIDER BITE WHAT THE HELL???"

Toshinori Yagi was a reasonable man. A man who, admittedly, made mistakes.

Now, he didn't think giving this young man his number was a mistake. No. He probably saved a life by doing so, in more ways than one. Not to mention, he did like the kid. He was smart and energetic and reminded him of a young David Shield. However...

"I'm sorry, WHAT???"

Maybe saying he could call at any time was an oversight.

All Might stood up from the meeting he was in and looked towards Nezu. And Nezu, being as scarily smart as he is, nodded and spoke in his signature non-committal yet calculated tone.

"Go on, All Might, talk to him outside. I'd love to hear Young Midoriya's story from you later, if that's okay."

All Might nodded and swiftly exited the room. Once outside, he poofed back down to his emaciated state and coughed out a little blood. Then, he held the receiver of the phone to his mouth and practically hissed into the microphone.

"What do you mean by, 'I have superpowers from a spider bite', Young Midoriya?"

"I-I don't know?! Well, I got bit by a spider that I think escaped Detnerat during the latest exhibition theyheldandIthinkitmayhavegottenontomyjacketwhenmeandHarrymynewfriendwerelookingattheexhibitandanalyzingthespiders'quirksand—"

"SLOW DOWN, YOUNG MAN"

Like he said, smart and energetic. Maybe a bit too much of the latter.

Izuku stopped talking and Toshinori took a breath.

"From the beginning."

30 minutes after his phone call to All Might and a short walk from his house later, he could only think one thing.

Dagobah Beach is a dump.

And that wasn't figurative either.

Izuku looked at the beach and took in the borderline mountains of trash.

This place looks like it was abandoned like… 30 years ago, he thought. Why did All Might tell me to come here…?

And just as the thought finished forming in his mind, the rumble of a hard landing and a wave of sand came washing over him. Izuku looked to see where the whole thing came from, and there he was. All Might, in a yellow pinstripe suit, was standing on the beach with a concerned smile on his face.

"YOUNG MIDORIY-aaagghhh!!!"

Izuku rushed forward as All Might forcefully deflated, revealing the skeletal 'true form' of the hero. And not having anything on hand to help, Izuku shed his shirt and handed it to All Might, who used it to clean up the blood he hacked up.

"Thank you, young maaaaaa…"

All Might trailed off as he got a look at Izuku's musculature. Musculature that was NOT there three weeks before.

"All Might," Izuku asked, "Are you okay?"

"Y-yes, my boy. Just… when you said you bulked up overnight, I wasn't expecting Olympic-level athlete muscles. More like… a few pounds of muscle."

Izuku looked down at his body and rubbed the back of his neck. What he had was, in a single word: impressive. His muscles looked like they had been worked to perfection, and toned to match. While his body had muscle, the muscle was lean, much like a mix between a sprinter and a gymnast. He had even grown two inches taller.

"Y-yeah," Izuku stuttered out. "It's a change, b-but I still feel weird. Like I don't know how to use this muscle…"

He giggled, which made All Might aware that—even with this newfound muscle—it was still Izuku standing in front of him.

"Anyways, I brought you here for two reasons. One, to observe and discuss your powers. Two, to propose an opportunity."

Izuku nodded, suddenly getting serious.

"Right. Well, here," he said as he pulled out his most recent analysis notebook. "I've already documented what I could find, but there could be discoveries or new information on what I've already observed."

All Might took the journal, a bit confused about where it came from, and started flipping to the most recent page where there was writing. He had already seen this notebook before. Granted, it had been three weeks before now, but he never ceased to be amazed by Izuku's analytical mind.

He arrived on the page Izuku was referencing and took in the information.

"Spider-Man? Sounds a bit unoriginal."

Izuku huffed, muttering about how he wrote the name in a state of panic.

"But…" All Might added, "It sounds legit. Simple and unoriginal names are often the most memorable."

As Izuku beamed from the small amount of praise, All Might looked at the information shown.

Super Strength, Wall Crawling, Spider Senses, and Spidey Sense were the entries he had. All unique powers, which seemed far-fetched. But, if the transformation was to be believed, why not this?

"Young Midoriya, what's the difference between 'Spider Senses' and 'Spidey Sense'? I know they have information written down, but explain them like how you perceive them."

Izuku blinked, then thought for a moment before speaking. "Well, 'Spider Senses' basically means all of my senses and sensory organs are way more sensitive. Essentially I've been dialed up to 15 on a scale of one to ten. And 'Spidey Sense' is a sort of warning for danger. I think it might be related to the self-preservation instincts that come with spiders relating to them needing to find a mate within their short life…"

At the mention of mating, Izuku promptly bursts into a crimson blush, covering his face with his hands.

"N-not that I'm any interested in m-ma-mating! Th-that's ridiculous! I'm only p-pointing out an observation that I've resear—"

Then suddenly, everything went on red alert. Something was gonna happen. Something bad. Bad to Izuku. Bad, bad, bad, BAD, BAD BAD!!!

His pupils dilated and he dodged to the right, leaping and flipping to his side. He landed on all fours, snapping his head up to glare at All Might. He looked like he had just lobbed something straight forward, and the crash coming from behind him and to his left reaffirmed that.

All Might looked at Izuku with a shocked expression.

"Holy shit, Young Midoriya, you weren't kidding…" He straightened up, deflating himself and smiling at Izuku. "That's incredible, young man. To think this all happened … last night?"

Izuku blinked at All Might, his body now deeming the threat gone, then stood up.

"Yeah, it uh, it did."

All Might looked around for something to write with, then found a pen in his breast pocket.

"That's 'Spidey Sense' and 'Spider Senses' checked out," he said as he wrote a little checkmark next to those two. "Now, let me see your strength."

Izuku nodded and went over to a small dumpster and took a breath.

"N-now, young man, when I said 'show me your strength' I didn't mean—"

All Might promptly stopped talking when Izuku not only lifted the dumpster but tossed it up in the air and caught it without breaking a sweat.

"Oh… my… GOODNESS!!!" All Might couldn't resist buffing up at the sight. This strength wasn't destructive like his, it was precise and honed, like Sir Nighteye or even Death Arms.

Izuku put down the dumpster and huffed, brushing his hands off on his shorts.

"I know, it's a lot… And I may need to explain why the sink in the bathroom is missing…"

All Might paused, then started laughing with his whole being. This kid is incredible.

"My goodness, young Midoriya, you're too much! Alright," he said as he checked off the Super Strength, "show me your Wall Crawling next."

Izuku nodded, then walked up the beach, onto the sidewalk, and up to the side of the nearest building.

"This might be jarring to see, All Might."

All Might simply gave a thumbs up, and Izuku sighed. He put a foot on the wall, then another, and then he was standing perpendicular to the concrete he was previously standing on. It took a second to get his balance, but he started walking on the wall, almost as if it was normal ground.

"So yeah, Wall Crawling. And yes, it works on my hands too."

He then proceeded to do a handstand on the wall. Was he showing off a tiny bit to his favorite hero? Maybe. But he had POWERS now, he could afford a bit of arrogance.

"Young Midoriya, this is AMAZING! You're like a whole new person! And now comes the second part of my visit here."

He deflated from his muscled form and walked up to the wall Izuku was standing on. Getting the message, Izuku scampered down the wall and stood in front of All Might.

"Young Midoriya, I've come to propose a training program. One that will hopefully hone your skills, and… before this demonstration, your body."

He handed Izuku a pamphlet, and Izuku took it. He opened it and skimmed it, blanching when he saw the different parts of the program.

"C-charisma and People Skills training? Why do I need that?"

All Might deadpanned at Izuku. "Stutter. Muttering. Blushing. Inability to hold a conversation for more than five minu—"

"Alright, I get it!"

Izuku blushed at the blunt criticism but appreciated it nonetheless. He did need to work on his people skills, especially if he wanted to shoot for UA. Or being a hero in general.

"And in addition to the program, I'd like to give you an apology. I'm sorry for saying you couldn't be a hero when we first talked. And I'm sorry for only giving you my contact information when I should've reassured you later that day."

He looked at Izuku with sincerity in his ironically hollow eyes.

"You can be a hero, quirk or no quirk. I truly believe that with the right tutelage, sans quirk, you could've been one of the greats."

Izuku started crying after that. Those were the words he'd been waiting to hear. And however late they were, they still sounded wonderful.

"Th-thank you, All Might."

"You're welcome, Young Midoriya. BUT! Moving on. Do you accept this program? Know that while I am sponsoring you in your journey, I will not be directly helping you."

Izuku nodded, tears still in his eyes.

"I promise, All Might. I will make you proud."

Chapter Text

NINE MONTHS LATER…

Izuku stood at the gates of UA, his middle school uniform on and his backpack on his back. His suit—courtesy of Best Jeanist and his Mom—was stored in his backpack, along with his trusty web-shooters and utility belt—both courtesy of Power Loader—and his pencil case.

This, he thought, is the start of my journey.

He took a step forward…

Then immediately tripped.

Why, Spidey Sense, why?

He started falling with his eyes clenched tight, ready to catch himself. But for some reason… he stopped.

As he opened his eyes, he saw he was floating off the ground at a 45-degree angle. He felt like he was suspended by a full-body harness, taking the pull of gravity away from him. Even his hair and clothes were waving around as if he were in a spaceship.

"Ah, sorry 'bout that! I know it's rude to use a quirk on someone without their consent, but I didn't want you to fall!"

Izuku turned and saw a cute girl.

Wow, brain, he thought. Way to go.

She was shorter than him, it seemed; maybe five foot four? Her hair was brown, cut short to her shoulders, and in a very round and floaty bob. Her hands had little pads on her fingertips, which Izuku ever so slightly squinted at. Probably to do with her quirk, Izuku inferred. Her cheeks, he noticed, had similarly colored blush marks.

Realizing he must be staring a bit, Izuku snapped out of his softcore analysis and gave her a soft smile.

"It's no problem," he said. "It'd have been unfortunate if I got a bloody nose twenty minutes before the test for my dream school."

She nodded with a small blush, then looked at her watch. Izuku clocked the brand and how rough the make was. Must be cheap. He then took in the rest of her outfit. Either hand-me-downs or bargain brands. Either her parents were frugal, or they needed to be.

"Gah! The time!" She slapped a hand on her forehead and looked back up at Izuku. "Sorry to cut this short, but we're going to be late! See you later!"

She put her fingers together and muttered the word 'release' before she sped off. Izuku watched her leave and waved at her, but just as he was about to start making his way forward, his Spidey Sense flared up.

He ducked low, noticing the body fly over him and land in a roll.

"HOLY SHIT IZUKU THAT WAS SO COOL!"

Harry Osborne got up and pulled Izuku into a hug, which Izuku returned gratefully. It had been a while since they saw each other, due to Izuku being busy with training and meetings with heroes. But, they had seen each other a few times since they first started talking. 

"Yeah, Harry, I know. Now, we should go! We're gonna be late!"

He walked up to the written testing area with his best friend, talking about the past few months. Once the hallway divide happened for the different course tests, Izuku paused.

"Are you sure, Harry? I know your quirk isn't the best for combat but—"

Harry held up a hand, walking backwards towards the 'Management' area.

"It's fine, really. Besides, here I get to learn how to be your guy in the chair AND how to get paid for doing so!"

Izuku nodded at Harry with a sad but proud look in his eye. "Right. Well, don't flunk your test. I don't wanna upstage you too hard."

"Okay, MIDORIYA, you're on."

"Back at you, OSBORNE."

Izuku walked into his testing area, turning away from Harry.

Let's do this.

Izuku stretched in his suit as he looked up at the observation deck on the wall of the testing area. It seemed like only he out of the examinees noticed it and whoever was in there hadn't seen him looking up.

That was good. Usually, people found Izuku staring at them a bit weird until he explained himself. 

His suit—which was a mix of homemade and professionally crafted—consisted of a green bodysuit, a white sleeveless hoodie with a black spider insignia on the front and back, red professional running sneakers, a black utility belt, his black web-shooters, and a mask with specialized eyes. He narrowed his eyes at the booth, watching the people mill about. His eyes on the mask narrowed in kind, focusing and zooming in his vision slightly.

I wonder what they're doing up there…

Then, as he turned his gaze around at the other examinees, he noticed the girl from earlier.

Huh, she's hyping herself up, I might go say hi to—

But as he was walking towards her, a hand shot out in front of him.

Izuku looked up at the boy and saw he was glaring at him. He had glasses, blue hair, and a very stiff posture. He had made himself known earlier by accusing Present Mic of withholding information and possibly desecrating UA's name.

"You there, are you trying to distract that young lady? Perhaps throw her off her game? What's your goal?"

Izuku's eye twitched at the accusatory rant, making the suit emote that to the boy.

"I was trying," he started, "to wish her luck. I don't know why I offended you, and I'm sorry for that. It does sound like you're projecting, though. Are you okay?"

The boy's eyes widened and he stepped back, looking like Izuku had just grown three heads.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some luck to wish."

He walked forward towards the brown-haired girl, letting out a breath.

Hawks was right, it DOES throw people off when you personally attack them. I wonder how an actual villain would react…

But as he was just approaching the girl, his Spidey Sense went berserk. He looked towards the gate to the testing area, then the observation booth up above. He saw someone about to push a button. He then looked back at the door, getting the feeling that it was about to open.

He quickly moved towards the front of the crowd, and just as he popped in front of the last wall of people, the doors started opening. Without wasting another second, he burst through the opening as everyone behind him was left in the dust.

"WELL, WHAT ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR, HUH?" The loud voice of Present Mic bellowed out towards the examinees, startling them into looking up at the observation deck. "GET A MOVE ON! HEROES DON'T GET ANY COUNTDOWNS! LOOK, THAT KID HAS THE RIGHT IDEA!"

As that last part was added, Izuku had already blitzed a one-pointer, webbed it up, and kicked its chest in.

"Damn, I guess all villains are heartless…"

Izuku inwardly cringed at his joke, then ran off to find more robots.

Thirty-seven…

Izuku's fist found purchase into another three-pointer's skull.

Forty…

He sent a web line at a fist of a two-pointer, preventing the examinee next to him from getting ambushed. He then pulled the robot towards him then caught it by its face and slammed it into the ground.

Forty-two…

He found a herd of one-pointers, around 4 of them, and webbed up a manhole cover. He then whirled around and threw the cover at them, letting the metal disc tear through them.

Forty-six…

And just as Izuku was going to swing off in a different direction, his Spidey Sense went off. Unlike all the other times, it wasn't just a flare and a pulse to do something. This one hurt. It was screaming at him, inducing a head-splitting migraine.

"GAAAHHH!"

He dropped to one knee, looking down the street. He saw in the distance a panel opening on the street, basically preventing access to an intersection. And once he saw what came out of that opening…

Everything made sense.

It was the zero-pointer.

A massive robot, easily 15 or 16 stories tall, emerged from the hole. It stepped forward, and the very arena shook with its weight. Izuku looked around at the people in the area, then saw them sprint away. However, he saw something that froze him in place.

The girl from outside was trying to run away. She was maybe three city blocks away, sprinting as fast as she could. But when the zero-pointer took another step, it dragged its arms along the sides of the buildings, cascading rubble and debris down onto the street ahead.

And as the girl fell from the rumble of the step the zero-pointer took, the rubble crashed down around her, burying everything below her belly.

Izuku's eyes widened, and he could only describe this feeling with a phrase.

He didn't think. He just moved.

It was exactly like the sludge villain incident with Kacchan.

And so, he moved.

"HANG ON!" he shouted. He sprinted forward, then leaped into the air and sent out a web line. He made it to the rubble pile in one large swing, dropping into a roll and running up to the girl.

"It's okay," he said to her. "I gotcha."

She looked up and looked at him, eyes wide.

"M-my legs," she stuttered. "They're… they're trapped. I can't move them."

He nodded and looked for a piece of rubble he could safely remove, but realized that everything was so precarious, moving anything from underneath anything may cause her legs to be even more hurt.

He looked up, seeing the zero-pointer move closer, then had an idea.

"Hold on, I need you to stay here. Just… hang tight, okay? I'll be back."

"Be back?! What are you—"

But everything else fell on dead ears. Izuku jumped past the rubble pile and towards the zero-pointer, swinging up to its head. He landed on its eye and stuck himself there, looking into the camera.

"Hellooooo? Bolts and Scraps Incorporated? Your latest model is about to kill my friend and I don't like it. Honestly, zero stars out of five."

He then jumped out of the way, as his Spidey Sense told him that something was going to happen. And sure enough, as he fell, he saw the giant arm of the zero-pointer slapping its own face.

"HAH! Stop hitting yourself!"

He shot a web line at its shoulder and swung under its arm, launching himself up and behind the giant robot.

He then started swinging around and under it, making more and more webs, connecting lines as he swung and wrapping up the zero-pointer. He also shot web lines to the buildings around them, tethering the zero-pointer in place.

Then, he swung up to the nearest building, watching the zero-pointer gradually come to a struggling halt a mere two steps away from the brunette girl.

“Wow… Looks like he’s in a sticky situation… I gotta work on those…”

He then looked at the eye of the zero-pointer, then grinned as he got an idea. He swung over to the head of the robot and stuck to it, once again peering into its eye.

“Hey, guys, maybe next time build something that can withstand being tied up in around four hundred square meters of artificial spider webbing? This thing was far too easy to gunk up. Sincerely…”

He smiled as he reeled a fist back, then winked at the eye.

“Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.”

Then, he punched straight through the eye, disabling the camera and surprisingly the main functioning systems of the robot. Izuku looked at the now exposed insides of the robot’s head, seeing he punched through the brain too.

“Oops… hope I don’t have to pay for that…”

Then he looked down at the brunette girl he stopped the zero-pointer for, seeing her staring up at him like he was the coolest thing ever. He jumped down, swinging a bit to slow his descent, and landed next to her. She was still staring with an amazed expression.

“Alright, now that Robo-Rudeness over there has stopped… uhm… rampaging…” He choked a bit on his words, starting to blush from her expression. “A-are you okay?”

She snapped out of her stupor, nodding.

“Right… You still need help, right?”

She nodded again, opening her mouth to speak. However, nothing came out.

Is she… he thought. Is she speechless?

He slowly started removing the rubble that was above her, making sure to start from the top and go down from there, when suddenly…

“ALL RIGHT, LISTENERS, THAT’S TIIIIIIIIIME! HOPEFULLY, YOU DID WELL! IF NOT, TOUGH LUCK! THERE’S ALWAYS ANOTHER CHANCE SOMEWHERE ELSE!”

The girl deflated a bit, which Izuku picked up immediately.

“Hey, it’s okay,” he said. “You probably did great. I only got forty or so points, so don’t sweat it.”

She pursed her lips and looked up at him, and she nodded with a sad smile.

“Y-yeah… thanks.”

As the last of the rubble was cleared, Izuku helped her to her feet and supported her under her arm. Her ankle had been badly hurt by the trip and the rubble, so he started to guide her to the entrance of the testing area to hopefully find someone with a healing quirk.

And as luck would have it…

“Come ‘ere, kids. I got gummies and healing for the lot of ya.”

Recovery Girl—an elderly hero dubbed, “The Youthful Heroine”—was walking around, healing and examining kids who had been injured. She caught sight of Izuku and the brunette and briskly walked up to them.

“Alrighty, that ankle looks bad. Can you lean down a bit, miss?”

The girl gave Izuku a side-eye before leaning down to get to Recovery Girl’s level.

Then, her lips extended, and kissed the brunette on the forehead. Immediately, her ankle healed up and lost any swelling or bruising it had attained. However, the girl also immediately slumped forward and blinked rapidly as a wave of exhaustion and sleepiness washed over her.

“Woah, easy there,” Izuku said. “Don’t go passing out just yet.”

The girl mumbled something, then nodded as she took a deep breath to wake herself up.

“By the way,” Izuku started. “You never told me your name.”

The brunette looked over at him, realizing she was still being supported from under her arm. She blushed and quickly scrambled away, also realizing Izuku was ripped.

“O-oh! My name’s Uraraka Ochako! N-nice to meet you!”

Izuku smiled in return, then took off his mask and extended a hand.

“I’m Midoriya Izuku. And hopefully, we get to go to UA together.”

Chapter Text

Izuku was zipping around his apartment, dashing from room to room, scrambling to get ready. 

Of course he would oversleep on his first day of school. Why wouldn’t he?

“MOM!” he yelled from his room. “Where is my tie?”

“Izuku, honey, that’s the third time you’ve asked me! It’s on the couch!”

Inko tossed a wrapped breakfast sandwich into the living room, and in the blink of an eye, a web line stuck to it and snatched it from the air. Not a minute later, Izuku emerged from the recesses of his room, dressed fairly well for how fast he was rushing. He grabbed the tie, fiddled with it for a minute, then gave up. He walked over to Inko, who gave him a motherly look (of exasperation) and started tying the fearsome piece of red cloth.

“You’re going to have to learn how to do this eventually.”

Izuku averted his eyes from his mother’s half-annoyed half-smug gaze and mumbled something into his shoulder. Inko merely laughed and finished tying the tie with a smile. Then, she stepped back and looked at her son.

His UA uniform was a little wrinkled from the rush, but it was bearable. His gray blazer and nearly black-green slacks complemented his hair wonderfully, and the white dress shirt and red tie only made him look better. His red high tops—which had somehow not gone out of style in 10 years—completed the look. All of it together brought a few tears to Inko’s eyes.

“Mom? Are you okay?” Izuku stepped forward to comfort his mom, but her extending her hand stopped him in his tracks.

“Yeah,” she said. “You… you just look so cool.”

His gaze met hers, and he saw his mother. A huge smile on her face, and a hopeful look in her eyes. He knew what she was thinking. And he was thinking about it too. She was silently asking him for forgiveness for all those years ago.

He never held anything against her, but he would be glad to give her the reconciliation she needed.

He blinked at her, then smiled and nodded, pursing his lips and holding back tears.

“Thanks, mom.”

After a few seconds, Izuku blinked away any moisture in his eyes and grabbed his backpack and web-shooters.

“I’ll uh… I’ll be off.”

Inko nodded and waved to him as he made his way to the front door of their apartment. Once there, Izuku opened the door, took a breath, and burst forward and over the railing of his 'porch', letting the door swing close behind him. And as he fell down the couple of stories the middle of his apartment building reached up, he slapped on a web-shooter and thwipped out a web line.

As the web line caught a nearby building, and the web was pulled taught, Izuku started swinging, first leaning into the downward arc for speed, then flinging up and away from the apex of the upwards climb.

"WOOHOOOOO!"

Izuku walked up to the door to class 1A, thankfully early due to his rushed swing through Musutafu. The door was massive, easily upwards of 20 feet tall.

I'm really here, Izuku thought. This is it, this is my first day at UA… I can only hope Kacchan or that kid with the glasses isn’t here.

As he opened the door, he saw that most of the class had already gathered… but two people near the back were making a lot of noise.

"HAAH? What did you say, nerd?"

"You cretin! I said you must take your feet off of that desk! You're disrespecting UA property and the alumni that graced that desk before you!"

"HA! Did you grow that stick up your ass yourself or did someone shove it up there? Who even are you anyway, you side character?"

"You dastardly fiend! Is that any way to talk to a peer? And my name is Iida Tenya, hailing from Somei Private Academy!"

"Oh great, an elite. I can't wait to grind you into the fucking dirt, extra!"

"My word!"

Of course they're both here. Izuku thought with exasperation.

Katsuki Bakugo—better known to Izuku as ‘Kacchan’—and Iida Tenya—whose name Izuku just learned—were arguing in the back of the classroom. While Izuku watched the interaction, he debated just closing the door and waiting outside until they were finished. But of course, the universe had other plans.

Before Izuku could act, Iida looked over to him and stood up ramrod straight, and then proceeded to bow.

“Hello! My name is—”

“Y-yeah, I heard…” Izuku started. “Iida Tenya, right? I’m Midoriya Izuku.”

Iida looked up and stood out of the bow, then chopped a hand forward, which made Izuku flinch back a bit. “I see. Introductions aside, you realized that there was something more to the practical exam, didn’t you? I apologize for my uncouth behavior and accusations. Hopefully, we can get along better in the future.”

More to the exam? I was clueless about that until I got the acceptance letter… Izuku thought to himself.

“Yeah, It’s fine,” Izuku said. “And I hope so too! And sorry for that little jab at you, it relates back to my hero persona, I guess.”

Then, a voice sounded off behind Izuku from the hallway. “Oh my gosh, Midoriya! Alright, you got in!”

Izuku turned around and saw Uraraka, smiling at him. He couldn't help but blush a little bit, as he truly saw how damn cute she was in her uniform.

“Hey! Glad to see you made it in too!” he replied.

Uraraka nodded. “And dude, you were AMAZING in the entrance exam! All that swinging and tying up the huge robot! That was so cool! And the things you said to it were hilarious! I probably would’ve laughed if I wasn’t trapped!”

As Uraraka kept raving about Izuku’s great performance, Izuku suddenly got a small wave of his Spidey-Sense. He held up a hand to signal to Uraraka to quiet down for a second, then peeked his head outside the door.

There, he saw a disheveled-looking man with black hair going past his shoulders, a scraggly beard, a black jumpsuit with matching black boots, and a gray scarf around his neck. He looked very tired and annoyed, but still had an aura of seriousness. That seriousness, however, was undermined by the fact that he was climbing into a yellow sleeping bag that looked like a chrysalis.

He noticed Izuku looking at him and his face turned from one of mild annoyance to one of surprise.

“How did you know I was out here?” he said.

Izuku blinked at the man and shrugged. “My powers let me know. Why are you sneaking up on the class?”

The man narrowed his eyes, then sighed, stepped out of the sleeping bag, and rolled it up. He tucked it under his arm and walked towards, then into the classroom. He stood up at the podium in front of the blackboard and glanced over all of the students, keeping his eyes on Izuku for a moment longer than everyone else.

“Hello,” the disheveled man said. “I am your homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shota. And thanks to Midoriya’s perceptive skills, you all quieted down relatively quickly. Good.” He flicked his eyes over at Midoriya, then addressed the rest of the class again. “Put on the uniform that’s inside of your assigned desk. Then meet me out on the field. You have ten minutes.”

Chapter Text

“Midoriya.”

Izuku looked up, having just secured his web-shooters to his wrists. He met the eyes of Aizawa, who was giving him a look.

“You scored first on the entrance exam, right?”

Izuku nodded, not sure where this was going. “Yes, sir.”

“And what was your highest distance for a softball throw when you took your test back in Junior High?” Aizawa looked down at a handheld recording device before looking at Midoriya again.

“O-oh, hah…” Izuku rubbed the back of his neck and blushed. “J-just under 36 meters…”

Aizawa tossed Izuku a ball, then nodded to a shot-put circle on the field behind him.

“Try it with your quirk,” Aizawa said. "You can do whatever you want, just stay in the ring."

Izuku looked at Aizawa with suspicion, narrowing his eyes, but walked over to the circle anyways.

“Okay…”

He looked at the ball, made a face, then got into a mock pitcher's stance.

"And one more thing…" Aizawa started. Izuku looked at him, and the scruffy man seemed to be hiding a grin under his scarf. "Don't hold back."

Izuku nodded, now definitely thinking something was up. He took a small step back, then shifted forward and launched the ball with all of his strength.

But, something made him falter.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something red flash. He saw that Aizawa was glaring at him, and his eyes were red. Suddenly everything clicked.

He's Eraserhead. And he's trying to erase my quirk… the quirk… I don't technically have… Oh fuck.

Izuku shot his gaze back to the ball that was flying away from him, then used a web-shooter to snatch the ball out of the air and yank it back to him. He caught the ball, then looked at Aizawa.

"S-sorry, sir, but did you want me to throw it softer? I mean, you looked like you had a point to prove, or at least you wanted to do something… hehe…"

Aizawa was just staring at Izuku, looking like Izuku had just grown fangs and four extra arms.

The class had much of the same reaction, staring at Izuku like he was purposely goading an angry, hungry bear. With a sword.

"Huh…" Aizawa muttered. "Do me a favor, Midoriya. Hold onto that ball with your quirk."

Izuku nodded slowly, then let the ball in his hand stick to one of his fingertips. He then spread his hand out wide and faced his palm down, so he was the only thing holding the ball up.

As the class marveled—and a certain person glared—at Izuku's quirk, Aizawa once again tried erasing the power.

And just like before, nothing happened.

"Interesting. Do the ball throw again."

Izuku looked at Aizawa with a small suspicion, but let it go as he turned to do the ball throw. He noticed Aizawa turn around and start explaining the rest of the tests, and listened as he wound up another throw.

Then, out of nowhere, his Spidey-Sense flared up. He ducked low, getting into his usual all-fours fighting stance, then flipped behind Aizawa, who had just tried to kick him.

"Rude!"

And while the class was stunned into silence at such an openly jeering comment towards their teacher, Izuku webbed Aizawa's hands to his sides mid-air, then landed between him and the rest of the class.

"So… testing out the Spidey-Sense?"

The name garnered a few nervous snickers, but Izuku paid it no mind. His Sense had faded, proving Aizawa wasn't a threat. He looked at the teacher, who still had his quirk active from when he presumably tried to erase it before kicking Izuku.

"How," Aizawa started, "are you doing this?" He seemed confused and was giving Izuku an almost incredulous stare.

Izuku, in response, shrugged.

"I'm just… your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man?"

At that line, four different reactions were had.

Aizawa looked at him like he was insane. He knew Izuku Midoriya had a quirk. A quirk that wasn't a Mutation Quirk, because of the lack of physical change his body had. So why couldn’t it be erased?

The majority of the class' reaction was similar, but for different reasons. He just did… something to Aizawa, and seemed to be getting away with it.

Kacchan was livid, borderline enraged at Izuku. Where did this strength come from? The agility? The fucking charisma? All of this was too much for tiny little Deku, the kid who couldn't even be worthy of a fucking quirk.

But Uraraka… she looked at Izuku with stars in her eyes, hearing not just his nerdy quip at Aizawa, but hearing his words when he saved her.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man…

That had a nice ring to it.

Izuku, at this point, had rushed over to Aizawa and torn off the webs. While Izuku tore them off like they were made of actual cobwebs, Aizawa was struggling as if they were steel bindings.

After a pregnant silence, Aizawa stood up straight, then cleaned his throat.

"Just… throw the ball. Please."

Izuku nodded, then stepped up to the ring. He took a breath and stepped forward, then launched the ball.

"SPIDER STING!!!"

The ball exploded from his hand, at an even greater intensity than some people in the class were expecting. And somehow, no shockwave was made. He had practically turned the ball into the bullet, so it was tearing through the air.

"I can hear it traveling," said a girl with purple hair and auxiliary cables for earlobes.

And finally, easily after a few minutes…

["11,500 meters!"]

The class blanched, and so did Aizawa. 11 and a half kilometers wasn't something to turn your nose at. It was nearly impossible.

Suddenly, Izuku felt all 20 pairs of eyes present lock onto him. Some held fear, some held admiration, some held disbelief.

But one pair…

"DEKU!!!!"

One pair held anger.

Izuku ducked under Kacchan's swing, then flipped away.

"Always with the right hook," Izuku jeered at Kacchan, unconsciously. "Gotta get better at choreographing your fights, man."

Izuku's quip only angered the blonde more, and Kacchan rushed Izuku once more.

However, this time, Izuku didn't move at all, because Aizawa used his capture scarf to restrain Kacchan right before Izuku got hit.

"Stand down, Bakugo."

Izuku looked at Kacchan, seeing him so aggressive and angry, and something in him broke. Not snapped, but broke. He stepped forward, then turned at the last second to look at Kacchan. Izuku's face was marked with a frown, and his brows were gently furrowed. His expression was one of pity and sorrow.

"Look at what you're doing, Kacchan… you almost attacked me. Is that any way for a good hero to behave? Honestly, think. Would All Might do that? Would any good hero do that?"

Izuku's voice was soft, barely audible. He wanted to reach out to Kacchan without resorting to rudeness or violence. He watched Kacchan twitch with anger, then go halfway slack as what Izuku said fully caught up to him.

Izuku then joined the line of students waiting for their test, then watched as Kacchan got scolded and released. And any question trying to address why Kacchan reacted that way was met with a smile and a dismissive comment from Izuku.

Izuku tapped his desk as he waited for All Might to show up. It sucked being the only one who knew, and it was made worse by the fact that he was still a fanboy after all this time. His nerves were shot, his senses wired. He had already gotten used to his enhanced senses, but his excitement always tended to make him feel hyped up.

Then, as Izuku just barely picked up on the sound and feeling of heavy footsteps outside the room, Jirou and Shoji perked their jacks and ears up respectively.

And now that Izuku thought about it, it was cool as hell that he could feel the footsteps through the floor and desk, rather than hear them. 

The footsteps grew louder and clearer until they stopped in front of the door. And then, in true All Might fashion…

"I am here…"

Izuku gripped the side of his desk in excitement, using enough strength to accidentally make dents in the tabletop. The entire class seemed to be getting just as riled up if the electric amounts of tension in the air were any indication.

Or maybe that was just Kaminari.

Either way…

"WALKING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!!!"

Everyone in the class grinned and gasped at the Number One Hero, even Kacchan. Mutters and whispers were thrown out, commenting on all the little things that the class noticed about All Might as he walked up to the podium. Once standing in front of the class, he gave his signature smile and thrusted out a peace sign.

"All right, Zygotes! Welcome to Hero-ing 101! This class is called Hero Basic Training, and will be the class you have the most this year! In this class, you will learn the on-field protocols of a hero, and exercise your bodies to their limits!"

The class was listening with rapt attention, hanging on every word All Might said. Izuku was doing the same but was taking this more seriously.

I need to learn, Izuku thought. I was given my power by pure chance. I can't afford to waste this opportunity or the help I've received along the way. He wrapped his right hand around his opposite wist and felt the web-shooters there, using the sensation to ground himself and center his thoughts.

Then, as All Might presented a card with the word 'BATTLE' in English written on it, the Hero grinned with raw excitement and pride in his students. “This is the lesson plan for today, BOOYAH! Let’s get right into it!”

Izuku shuddered as his Sense vaguely picked up the waves of malice and aggression rolling off of Kacchan. It was faint, as there was no real threat yet, but he’d have to be careful around the blonde.

All Might spoke once more, gesturing to the wall to his right and Izuku’s left. “AND TO GO WITH TODAY’S PLAN OF ACTION ARE THESE!” The wall he pointed to started pushing out sections of itself, displaying the boxes with each class member's hero costumes. And as All Might explained what the cases were, a single line of thought flowed through Izuku's head.

I will be a hero. No matter what it takes.

Chapter Text

"—and you zygotes really look the part!"

Izuku dashed out of the hallway, cursing himself for taking so long. He shot a web-line at the mouth of the tunnel and pulled, zipping out and up into the air. He looked down as several people turned their heads upward. They were all squinting as he approached his apex, most likely due to the sun.

He smiled to himself and started flipping in the air, spinning around and landing in a low-profile crouching stance, with his knees bent and one hand on the ground.

"H-hi…"

Everyone's eyes widened at the display, surprised at Izuku's athleticism and sheer mobility. Then, Kaminari and Sero started to clap, which made Izuku blush bright red.

"Dude," Kaminari said. "That was cool as hell!"

Izuku took off his mask and rubbed the back of his neck, holding in a shy giggle.

"Thanks, Kaminari, Sero."

Then, Izuku looked around at the costumes of his classmates, taking in all the designs. He then landed on Uraraka, who was looking at him with wonder.

"Hey, Uraraka. You look nice."

He took in her black and pink bodysuit, the arm bracers, her boots, and her visor.

"Really? I should've been more specific with my design request,” she said. “They ended up giving me a skintight bodysuit… I was going for more of an—"

"Astronaut theme? Yeah, I could tell from your boots."

Uraraka blinked at Izuku and nodded, her face growing redder by the second.

“Y-yeah… Y-your costume looks cool too, very… uh…”

“Simple?” he asked. “Yeah, I kinda wanted to start out with this base idea, then explore further from here.”

Izuku flexed his hand, feeling the material of his bodysuit shift on his skin. It was thin enough so he was still able to use his wall-crawling, but was durable and flexible enough to not tear apart or limit his range of movement.

He also took note of his utility belt, which had been fully stocked with various combat items and first aid supplies. It sat just under the hem of his hoodie, which meant he wouldn't have to reach around for things if he needed them in a pinch.

“N-not what I was going for…” Uraraka stuttered out. “I was gonna say it looks really…”

She glanced down at Izuku’s abdomen, which he noticed. He couldn't really put together why that made her blush though, much less immediately look away.

“F-f-fitting.”

Izuku patted his stomach, looking down to see his abs. He could see their shape through the bodysuit, but it wasn’t much definition… he didn’t think.

All Might cleared his throat, getting the teens' attention again. Izuku looked up at the Number One, eyes focusing on him. He put his mask back on, slipped the fabric over his hair, then started making sure his web-shooters were secure on his wrist. He was nervous, he’d never used his strength on someone before, much less in a hand-to-hand fight.

"Right! Now that we're all here, let's get started!"

All Might smiled wide and puffed out his chest.

"Now, you all might be thinking: 'Since we're at the place for the Entrance Exams, surely we're doing urban battles, right?' Well, you'd be correct, but misinformed."

Izuku noticed as Iida slowly lowered his hand, as well as a few more students who had probably been thinking something similar.

"Today, we're moving a couple of steps forward. As of now, you're currently in a place where assuming that most villain battles take place out in the open, and even in broad daylight, would be a sound judgment. But, having worked in the hero industry for decades now, I can assure you that most villain encounters happen indoors or in secluded areas, or even at night."

Izuku shuddered at the memory of the slime villain, and how much he suffered for weeks after the encounter. He caught All Might's gaze lingering on him, but was glad his new teacher quickly moved forward with the lesson.

"Things such as in-home hostage situations, drug deals, even a simple mugging in a tight alleyway… these are all where the most dangerous people in the world tend to perform their malicious acts."

Izuku felt something stir in his gut as All Might's smile dropped a slight bit, showing not only his age as a teacher but also his experience as a hero. He'd seen things that he'd never wanted to see. And even now, it haunts him every time he puts on the costume.

But, just as quickly as the somber attitude washed over the class, All Might's smile quickly brought the vigor and excitement back with full force.

"SO! For this class, you'll be facing off in teams of two against your classmates! Five teams will be villains and five teams will be heroes. You will use these buildings to conduct your indoor battles against each other, duking it out like a real scenario!"

As the words registered within the class, Tsu raised a hand and started to speak.

"Without any preliminary training, kero?"

All Might nodded but gave a so-so sign with his hand.

"Not quite. This lesson will be heavily monitored by me and will be able to be stopped at any time. This is more of a point where we break you off from dealing with robots and emphasize the nature of fighting an actual person—whose quirk is mostly unfamiliar—while in an urban environment."

The class nodded, but more questions were fired away.

"Excuse me, All Might," said Yaoyorozu Momo. "How will the wins and/or losses be determined?"

Then, Kacchan spoke.

"Can we beat them up anyway?"

Izuku looked at him, and Kacchan was glaring at All Might with a passion. He was unsettled at seeing Kacchan so eager to fight, but he could only hope that he wasn't matched up with him… or against him.

But, breaking Izuku out of his own head, Uraraka's voice carried out from her with worry.

"Will the punishment be like with Mr. Aizawa?" she asked. "Last time he threatened to expel us…"

Then, Iida fired out a quick question.

"SIR!!" He thrust his arm upwards, making a strict ninety-degree angle with his elbow. "How will the groups be split up?"

And just as Izuku caught the inklings of Aoyama complementing his own cape, All Might clapped loudly to gather everyone's attention.

"Alright, alright! It seems I haven't explained this well enough!"

He then pulled out a small booklet, then began reading from it.

"These skirmishes will occur according to the following scenario: Villains have infiltrated a sky rise and hidden an explosive device within the building. The goal of the heroes is to try to dispose of the bomb. The objective is either to retrieve the bomb by making physical contact with it or to catch the villains by wrapping them with capture tape. This exercise will have a limited time allotted to you, so you must act swiftly! The villains' goal is to protect the device for the entire time or to subdue the heroes. Make sense?"

Izuku nodded along, thinking about how he could handle this. It's obvious that the goal here is to incentivize quick and sneaky movements, but also to allow the opportunity for combat training within a natural or semi-natural environment…

"AND! For an added punch, teams will be decided by drawing lots! That way, you have to adapt on the fly to who you get as a partner! Heroes do this all the time in the field, myself included!"

Izuku looked up at All Might, then around at the rest of his class. He had very limited information about any of them, not to mention even less information about their quirks. Whoever he got would have to explain how their own quirk worked to him, and then he'd have to quickly brainstorm a way in which both of them can be useful to the team.

Either way, he thought as he clenched his fist. I'm not backing down.

Izuku didn't know what to say.

He had been paired with Uraraka, who was thankfully familiar, and had just gone over her quirk with her. She could remove the effect of gravity from any object she touches with all 5 fingers on her hand. However, she has a weight limit, somewhere around a few tons before she has to tap out. To restore gravity to the objects she anti-gravitates, she presses all of her fingers together and says, "Release." But, she gets nauseous the more she holds onto more weight. And removing the gravity from herself takes an extra toll on her.

That wasn't why he was speechless.

When he drew the lots, he was excited to maybe storm the building, or sneak in and disarm the bomb without a fuss. He had looked forward to finally trying his best to be a hero.

So of course he had to be a villain.

He had ten-ish minutes to prepare in total, and two had been taken up by quirk talk. These are up on the fifth floor, in the room with the bomb in it. And so, he was currently trying to brainstorm ideas to stop Bakugo and Iida, who would be storming the building after their prep time was spent.

Maybe I could meet them and fight them head-on? Or even distract them and lead them on a goose chase…. I out-maneuver Iida due to the walls, but Kacchan had always bragged about being able to fly through the air with his explosions when we were in junior high… So even if I fought him in a one-on-one fight, there's no guarantee I could stall him long enough to—

"Why not just make a big web?"

Izuku snapped his head up, looking at Uraraka dead in the eyes. He closed his mouth, realizing in the back of his mind that he had been muttering. Uraraka blushed and turned her body away, but glanced towards Izuku after a moment.

"I-I mean…" she stuttered out. "It's probably a bad idea, or too silly to pull off. After all, it's not like your quirk makes you act like… an actual… spider…"

She trailed off as Izuku turned her out, already spinning webs in every corner of the room. He zipped around the chamber the bomb was held in, crossing web-lines and making a massive cobweb throughout the entire volume of the room. The pillars helped too, as they made more attachment points for webs.

He punched out any lights he saw and boarded up the windows with webs, cascading the room in near-total darkness.

Then, after a moment, he stepped off of the webs and back onto the ground, satisfied with his work. He held a finger on the closest web-line, then used his other hand to strum it like a guitar string. Instantly, his brain lit up with a mental image of the entire web and where that strum was in relation to it.

"Uraraka, you're a genius."

He was surprised to hear her squeak but shrugged it off internally. He couldn't exactly see her blush, but he felt the body heat increase in her face. Still weird that he can feel so much, but it's cool.

"T-thanks, Midoriya. Should I stay here and guard the bomb… or?"

"Yeah, that would be best," Izuku said. He then pulled something out of his utility belt and clicked a button on it. It started to glow dimly in the darkness of the room, illuminating the space just enough to barely make out the webs next to them, Uraraka, and Izuku himself.

"Use this to see if you want to move around. Just make sure to turn it off if you hear someone approaching, okay?"

She nodded as she took the light, which Izuku handed off to her. He then jumped into the darkness, wanting to flood the hallways with webbing as well.

However, just before he left, he felt Uraraka get stuck in a bit of webbing. He gave a small smile, covered by his mask but emoted through the eyes, and crawled over to help her.

She couldn't see him in the dim light, so when his hand suddenly lifted a web off of her foot, she screamed in fright before gasping for air.

"Sorry Uraraka, Sorry. Just… yeah. Don't get stuck."

He then vanished into the darkness again, off to make even more webs.

Chapter Text

Izuku watched as Kacchan and Iida walked through the entrance of the building, both of them immediately wary of the darkened rooms. He knew neither of them were dumb, so he didn't expect them to get caught.

He was immediately proven right when Kacchan used an explosion to blast a few lines of webbing in front of him. Iida, however, was at a major disadvantage. He was big and bulky, without any of the firepower Bakugo had to clear a path for himself.

"I'm looking for the nerd! Go to the bomb or whatever and take out Round Face. I don't care what you do, just… leave Deku to me."

Izuku made a puzzled expression at the comment, seeing that the talk he had with Kacchan the day before had made some impression on Kacchan. What impression that was, he couldn’t quite tell. 

"Bakugo," Iida started. "While I am inclined to ignore your cryptic comments towards Midoriya—"

"Deku."

"—MIDORIYA… How am I going to move through this mess? Or see through it, much less."

Izuku watched with what little light he had as Kacchan thought about it, then huffed in annoyance. He took out a few sticks from his belt and bent them, making them crack and then glow with orange light.

Izuku moved a bit away from the light, squinting his eyes at the glow sticks. He didn't want them to be able to see, that ruined most of his trap.

"Take them, Glasses. They're the only ones I have, so don't fucking lose them."

Those are his only ones? Izuku thought. Interesting...

He crawled above them as quietly as he could, moved to where he was in the corner of the wall and the ceiling right above the door, then waited for a moment. As Kacchan was about to hand over the sticks, he webbed them, yanked, and let them fly out of the door. Then, he webbed the door and pulled, closing it with a slam.

Izuku saw Kacchan and Iida's eyes travel with the glow sticks, then saw them look up at him.

And for the life of him, he didn't know what to say. So he didn't say anything.

A brief moment of silence hung over everyone, a moment which Izuku used to reposition himself. He saw Bakugo lunge and blow up that corner, then fall to the ground as he realized he didn't make contact with anyone.

Actually, he could see. In the dark. It was just barely, not nearly enough to call 'night vision', but he could see. It was probably a byproduct of his enhanced sight.

And what he saw was strange. Both Kacchan and Iida looked panicked, which was very out of character for them. Iida was usually very stiff and loud, and Kacchan… well, Kacchan being 'panicked' doesn't happen.

"Where the FUCK did that nerd go?"

"I-I don't know, Bakugo. He seems to have vanished…"

Izuku cocked his head, then knocked on the wall. Both of the other boys whipped their heads around to look at him. Or rather, where the noise came from. Izuku's eyes widened and he moved, silently leaping from one wall to the other. Then, another lunge and flash from Bakugo trying to explode Izuku revealed… nothing.

"DAMMIT! He moved again!"

Slowly, they made their way to a large room near identical to the one with the bomb in it. But as Izuku kept testing them, he realized something.

They were scared.

Iida would jump and flinch every time his legs would get caught in something, and Bakugo grew more and more jittery with each failed attack. It even got to a point where the conversation between them sounded like a horror movie.

"D-don't move away from that spot, Glasses!” Kacchan shouted, fear palpable and making his voice tremble. “I can't see shit, so if you move and I lunge, I'll probably hit you."

"R-Right,” Iida stuttered out. “B-but Bakugo, why are you holding my hand?"

"I'm not."

Izuku, now standing behind Iida and gripping his hand, watched as Iida slowly turned his head in Izuku's direction.

Then, Iida screamed.

Denki considered himself to be a great class clown by everyone's standards. He was funny in class without being disruptive to teachers, he was fairly not-brain dead and could make kinda smart jokes, and he could bring almost anyone to a smile or a laugh.

Plus, his pranks were godly, if he said so himself.

But this…

This was beyond godly.

After hearing Iida—the uptight and stick-up-his-ass class rep—shriek like a banshee, he doubled over while laughing his fucking lungs out.

He, Mina, Jirou, Kirishima, and even a few other less vocal people like Todoroki and Tsu were all laughing as well… to varying degrees of course. He wasn't exactly sure if a, like, 2-degree increase of Todoroki's smile angle was anything to go by.

It probably was.

In which case, kudos to Midoriya.

But that wasn't all.

In his humor stupor—Heh, that rhymes…, he thought—he saw All Might lean into the microphone.

And what he heard made him laugh even harder.

["IIDA IS ELIMINATED FROM THE MATCH!"]

Izuku smiled to himself as he finished wrapping the capture tape around Iida's wrist. The boy had passed out from fear, fainting and crumpling in Izuku's arms.

One down, he thought. One to go.

"D-DAMN NERD! SHOW YOURSELF!"

Izuku rolled his eyes at Kacchan's scared barking, then tossed Iida into a large pile of webs.

That should hold him…

He then started making his way towards Kacchan, silently creeping up on the blonde. But, he ended up underestimating the radicalness of the angry pomeranian.

Kacchan spun around, facing his palms in a random direction. Izuku was only barely able to duck under his hands before the palms of his gloves started to heat up and glow red.

“COME OUT, COME OUT, WHEREVER YOU ARE!”

Izuku dropped low at the blast ripped from Kacchan’s gloves, leaving behind an orange cloud of fire and force. The webs were torn from the room and the wall opposite Kacchan exploded outwards, having been closest to the center of the blast, bathing the room in bright light.

Shit…

Kacchan jumped back, having seen Izuku under his arms, sneering. He stood up straight, his face and body language a mix of focus and rage.

"You think this is funny?"

Izuku froze… then kinda shrugged.

"I mean, Iida's scream was kinda funny… and seeing you guys pad around in the dark wa—"

Kacchan growled—like the pomeranian he was—and tightened his fists at his side.

"NOT THAT!” He yelled out at Izuku, hands and eyes shaking with anger. “Your power. You think it's funny the way you've been hiding it from me? Huh?"

Izuku blinked at Kacchan, stunned at the accusation. “My… my power.”

Kacchan nodded, huffing as he did so. “Yes, your power, quirk, whatever you want to call it! You hid it from everyone since you were a kid, right? For what, to make me look stupid?”

“You honestly think,” Izuku started. “That I’ve been hiding it from you. For years.” He paused, then gestured towards the air around him as he spoke. “Even through ALL of the bullying and horrible things I’ve been through.”

Kacchan, to his own credit, nodded again without hesitation. “Duh. Why else would you have it now and not have shown it before?”

Izuku took a second to comprehend that, he really did. Then, he started searching through his utility belt and even the pockets of his hoodie. Kacchan seemed to stare at Izuku, confused and honestly surprised he wasn’t getting an answer.

“What are you looking for, nerd?” the explosive teen questioned.

“Oh, nothing,” Izuku commented. “Just some toilet paper. I swear I had some around here… maybe in this pocket…?”

“Why are you looking for toilet paper? You slow or something?”

Kacchan got into a ready stance, clearly tired of dancing around the issue.

“Hm? No, nothing like that, I just need some for the BULLSHIT you just spat out of your mouth! Are you insane, Kacchan?” Izuku tore off his mask and his glove, showing his face and the scar from the spider bite. The wound had healed well if a little… odd. The two puncture wounds were bright green in color, fading out into veins with a green to a skin-colored gradient. The scar itself was smoother than his skin but tiny enough to miss if you tried to feel for it.

Izuku glared at Kacchan with disbelief and a blasphemous lividity that he’d never looked at anyone with before. His eyes focused on the boy opposite to him, piercing daggers into Kacchan’s soul. He thought Izuku was hiding his quirk? After years of abuse and bullying? Is he NUTS?

“I suffered for YEARS while you pranced around, flaunting your quirk, shoving me into the dirt! I was your best friend! You were my best friend! I loved you like a brother! But you threw me out like a dirty old rag!” By this point, Izuku was shouting, causing Kacchan to take a step back. “I looked UP to you, you ass! You were my symbol of victory! You, Mom, and All Might were my favorite people in the world! WHY WOULD I HIDE MY QUIRK FROM YOU IF I HAD ONE?”

Kacchan stuttered for a moment with his body. Even through Izuku’s anger, it was still apparent that Kacchan was struggling to find a justifiable excuse. Then, he rocketed forward, propelling himself with his explosions, and tried to kick Izuku in the gut. Izuku dodged by twisting in the air, then landed with a huff.

“I’ll tell you why,” Kacchan said. “You wanted to know that while I was putting you down, I was in the wrong. That you weren’t actually useless and you were using me beating you up as a way to vent your sick kicks.”

“KACCHAN, YOU BEAT UP A FOUR-YEAR-OLD ON THE PLAYGROUND FOR BEING QUIRKLESS! DO YOU KNOW HOW FUCKED UP THAT IS?”

Kacchan didn’t respond, looking at Izuku with mixed expressions. Finally, he spoke. “I know. I know and I… I know I fucked up. But if I hadn’t, you would've gotten yourself killed! You could've died! You think I want Auntie Inko to feel that? HUH?”

“Then maybe, Kacchan, instead of bullying me for TEN FUCKING YEARS, you could've helped me become a hero! Or even, NEWS FLASH, talked me out of it!”

Kacchan stood there, shaking lightly, tears forming in his eyes. “You wouldn't have listened! You were so obsessed with heroes that you were blind to the ways you could get hurt or die!!! You couldn't see it! So I had to MAKE YOU!” He lunged, feinting a blow which Izuku blocked, then spun and kicked his adversary in the shoulder. Izuku winced at the steel plating on Kacchan’s boots, but grabbed the blonde’s leg. He flung Kacchan across the room and through a bunch of webs, shoving his mask and glove back on.

“I am NOT your punching bag anymore, Kacchan! I am Midoriya Izuku, I am a student at UA High School, and I am the AMAZING SPIDER-MAN!”

Chapter Text

Deku was strong.

That much was obvious.

But this was insane.

Deku had bulked up a lot in the months after the sludge villain incident. He had grown taller, though not as tall as Katsuki, and had grown more confident. He was stronger willed and had a stronger body.

Katsuki felt sick.

Deku was right, he had been a terrible child. He was still a terrible child.

But he had been that way for so long that he didn’t know what else to do. Ever since he was five years old—and dear gods, the fact that it had been more than a decade since he started his tirade made him nauseous—he was known to be violent, angry, and… explosive. Pun probably intended.

Originally, he had taken out his excess anger and energy on random kids on the playground that he found to be weaker. At the time, he could only make pops as strong as firecrackers. But burns are burns. His blasts got stronger and stronger, and more people around him became weaker and weaker. Within months, he had been able to make second-degree burns on the bodies of the kids he tormented.

But, one day changed his… routine.

Deku had stepped in the way of one of his tirades and put himself between Katsuki and the kid he was bullying. Admittedly, in retrospect, it was a damn brave thing to do. He knew he was quirkless, he knew he was less able than others, but he still did it.

That had made Katsuki angry. Deku, the little weakling, was not only opposing him, but also being a hero about it?

Deku ended up beaten and bruised on the floor, and that little insurrection led to the whelp becoming his main target. For years… and years… and years…

Katsuki snapped out of the memory, struggling to stand up. These damn webs were way too strong for his liking, and he’d like to get out of them. He blasted the webs behind him, finally ripping himself free. It wasn’t pretty, as he still had a bunch of webbing on his back, but he would manage.

“Alright Deku,” Katsuki snarled. “You want a fight so bad? Fine.”

Katsuki stood up, a glare of fury in his eyes directed straight at Deku.

“Come. And. Get it.”

Izuku watched Kacchan stand up and taunt him. He realized it was a bait in order to make him sloppy and care only about beating Kacchan. He was aware of this because he was taught this by so many daylight heroes and even the one or two underground heroes that All Might had put him in contact with.

Doesn't mean it didn't work.

Izuku bolted forward, rushing down his former best friend, ignoring whatever weird pulsing his Spidey-Sense was giving him. He threw a telegraphed punch, too telegraphed for his usual fighting style, but Kacchan dodged it. Easily. Using his explosions, the blonde pivoted around his foot and elbowed Izuku in the back, making the green-haired boy cringe and grunt in pain.

The assault didn’t end there, though. Kacchan then grabbed a bunch of fabric from the costume Izuku was wearing and pivoted again, using more powerful explosions to turn and fling Izuku over his shoulder and into the pavement. The impact made a solid dent in the ground, cracking the stone beneath Izuku.

FUCK, Izuku thought. THAT HURTS!

Izuku then instinctively rolled out of the way as a falling knee strike was delivered to the spot where he just was. He flipped up into a standing position right in time to guard a haymaker from Kacchan. However, what he didn’t expect was an explosion to follow the apparent palm strike. The blast assaulted Izuku’s body and brain, destroying the costume where the explosion made contact, leaving him stunned long enough for Kacchan to think he had an opening.

But, when Kacchan attempted to bind Izuku with the capture tape, Izuku yanked his arm out of the way and jabbed Kacchan in the nose.

“N-Not today, sucker!”

The daze finally started to clear from Izuku’s eyes as he delivered a half-blind roundhouse kick to Kacchan’s side. The impact was followed by three sharp cracks as Izuku could feel what could only be described as a few ribs snapping clean in half. Kacchan, to his credit, muffled the scream as best he could.

Izuku drew back from the encounter, watching as tears sprung from Kacchan’s eyes. The blonde had crumpled to his knees, taking deep and labored breaths. He was clutching his side, trying his best to not cry. But Izuku could tell that he was in pain.

Izuku tapped the communicator in his mask, which had been shredded to reveal a bit of his mouth and his cheek. “A-All Might, call the match. Both Iida and Kacchan are… unable to continue.”

He couldn’t pay attention to the buzzer or the announcement, not when he was busy crouching by Kacchan and helping him up. The blonde resisted at first, but with a sharp wince and a cry of pain he relented.

As Izuku heard Uraraka start to descend the stairs, he got a sick feeling in his stomach as he realized something about the fight.

I was holding back…

The rest of the day went by in a blur. He had dropped Kacchan off at Recovery Girl’s office, Uraraka accompanying him, then had practically dragged himself back to the viewing area for the trials.

Once he arrived, he immediately wanted to leave, as the class looked at him with a myriad of expressions. Most of Izuku’s classmates looked at him with undeniable fear in their eyes.

So they also saw him break Kacchan’s ribs. Great.

A few, like Todoroki, Tokoyami, and Shouji, seemed surprised and even impressed. That didn’t make Izuku feel any better. In fact, it made him feel even worse.

“S-so…” All Might started. “Can someone tell me who the MVP of the match was?”

Whatever pity the class had seemed to pale in comparison to the look All Might held. His face showed that he knew the pains and griefs of hurting a classmate during training. Especially in the manner that Izuku did. Super strength, and all.

The first person to speak up was Yaoyorozu Momo, a tall, raven-haired, intellectual girl that sat two seats behind Izuku. “Sir, I believe Izuku was the undeniable MVP of this match. While Bakugo displayed excellent forward-thinking and caution for his teammate, his aggressive and rash demeanor cost him the match early on. Midoriya may have enabled the verbal squabble, but it was ultimately him who controlled the way the shouting match influenced the fight. Similarly, his use of his webbing as traps not only slowed the heroes’ progress but also made it difficult for them to physically move around, allowing for takedowns to be swift and succinct. Lastly, due to his blocking of any light source, and removal of any extra ones within his control, he was able to gather information unseen and use it to exploit the weaknesses of his adversaries. His analytical mind no doubt formulated—”

“U-uhm… actually…” Izuku muttered. “That was Uraraka.”

Yaoyorozu blinked, evaluating Izuku’s statement. She then looked at Uraraka, who mirrored her own expression.

“M-Me?” Uraraka questioned.

Izuku nodded, then gave a small smile, happy to have his mind off of the latter half of the match… if only for a moment. “Y-Yeah. During our planning, you made a comment asking why I don’t just make a huge web. Like a real spider. And, honestly, I was kicking myself for not thinking of it sooner. The entire plan was made by an off-the-wall comment. And It was a brilliant idea, as outlined by Yaoyorozu.”

Both girls blushed at the praise, but Uraraka seemed to explode into a cherry red flare while Yaoyorozu only gathered a dust of pink on her cheeks.

“A-and…” Izuku continued, “I don’t think I deserve MVP. All I did was scare someone and uh… hurt someone else. K-Kacchan should get it. He was the one who almost won the match for his team…”

After some deliberation, the rest of the class seemed to accept that argument against Yaoyorozu’s point and gave MVP to Kacchan. And thus, the next match started. Usually, Izuku would have been fervently taking notes on everyone and everything that happened. But, he resigned to himself to taking simple notes. Mostly in order to think about things.

Bakugo cared? But why… why do THOSE things to me… and others? Did he really think he was helping? I guess he would’ve learned that from Auntie Mitsuki… but shouldn't Masaru have corrected it…? But, it was never reported… so he wouldn’t have known.

The more Izuku thought, the more things started to line up. Bakugo never really did anything by himself, nor were most things unprompted. It wasn’t justified, not by any means, but there was rhyme and reason to it. And if Kacchan was never reprimanded, of course he’d think it was okay to do that.

But Izuku still had a few questions.

And that’s what led him to chase after Kacchan, after school let out, while the blonde was walking through the campus’ gate.

“K-Kacchan, wait!”

Kacchan stopped, then turned to face Izuku.

“What, nerd? Gonna yell at me more? I get it, okay? I was a shithead and everything, I should’ve been better, blah blah blah. Can I go home?”

Izuku pouted, which made Kacchan look at him weird. Then, Izuku walked up to Kacchan and slapped him. Not hard enough to cause serious harm, but enough to leave a mark.

Kacchan, now wide-eyed and with a growing red handprint on his cheek, stared at Izuku incredulously.

“That,” Izuku stated, “was for bullying me when we should’ve worked together.”

Next thing Kacchan knew, he was being hugged.

“And this is for trying. As demented as it was.”

Izuku let go of the hug before he could be hugged back, then looked at Kacchan, his… maybe friend.

“From now on, try to show that you care like a normal person, okay? I… I don't have any hard feelings from back then, as angry as I was and AM at you.”

Kacchan winced at the verbal jab, but he did deserve it so Izuku didn’t feel too bad.

“BUT! Now I can fight back. So don’t expect any easy hits anymore.”

He pointed a fist at the blonde, then smiled.

“From now on, heroes together, okay? And maybe you can cheer me on from Number Two, huh, Kacchan?”

Kacchan blinked at Izuku, seemingly mulling things over or perhaps even just processing the massive word-vomit Izuku just launched at him. Then, with a scoff and a fist meeting Izuku’s, Kacchan looked Izuku back in the eye.

“Whatever, nerd,” Kacchan said. “Just don’t come crying to me when I gloat at you from Number One. Got that, Deku?”

Izukui smiled, feeling… better.

“In your dreams.”

Chapter Text

Izuku laughed as Iida began reprimanding the gaggle of his classmates picking on Kacchan.

The class president’s hopes for an orderly bus situation had been dashed near-immediately by the actual physical seating arrangement, and now the bus was yelling at Kacchan for having a, quote, “dumpster fire personality that’s been steeped in raw sewage.” Thanks, Kaminari.

Izuku's new suit fit nicely as well. The dark green material was breathable but durable, and was flexible enough to stay flush to his skin when he moved. The suit was also very comfortable, almost like a second skin. There were homeostasis features to keep Izuku warm or cold, depending on which he needed. The red high tops that he always wore were designed into less bulky form with white accents. They matched his new web-shooters and contrasted the details of his suit. The main body had grey accents and had grey… pants? They weren't actual pants, but a wash of grey covered his waist to his mid-shin. His fingertips and palms had a similar grey color to them, too. The suit had shoulder pads cast in white and black, which matched his eyes, mask design with fangs, and shoes. The black also matched a gorgeous spider emblem on Izuku's chest. Black with a red space inside, angular but curved in the right places. Lastly, he had a set of 'plastic knuckles' so to speak, allowing him to take minimal damage from strikes.

Anyways, Izuku was sitting next to Uraraka, both of them sporting a shy blush.

It had been a few days since the mess that was the UA Break-In, and Izuku, Iida, and Uraraka had worked together to calm the students down. After Iida had been elected Class President, with Izuku being his vice, Uraraka had congratulated Izuku with a hug. And with his enhanced senses, he had been able to pick up the subtle scent of her perfume.

Mochi…

And so, today, he pursed his lips as he dug into his new utility belt and held out a small bag to Uraraka. She looked at him quizzically, blush flaring and eyes flicking over his form.

"Wh-What's this, Deku?" She glanced down at the bag once more while questioning him.

Izuku smiled a bit, trying not to look awkward. "Think of it as a small thank you for helping out yesterday. You did great and… I dunno, I just felt like getting you something."

Urataka looked like a deer in headlights—Albeit a very cute deer… WAIT STOP, Izuku thought—but accepted the baggie cautiously.

She opened it and saw a few small cookies inside.

"Hehe… I hope you like them, they remind me of you, if that makes any sense." Izuku rubbed the back of his head as he watched her try a cookie, then immediately beam at the bag and pop a few more in her mouth.

She hummed with delight as she took in the taste. Then, she fixed Izuku with a friendly side-eye. "How'd you know my favorite food was mochi, huh, mister?"

Izuku laughed and put his hands up in a surrender position, claiming innocence. "Didn't know, I swear! Would you believe me if I told you my Spidey-Sense told me?"

They both laughed at that, but were then interrupted by a certain froggy voice.

"Excuse me, Midoriya, kero, but I have a question or maybe an accusation to give you."

Midoriya looked over in confusion, then gave a smile to match his expression.

"Y-yeah, Asui, go for it."

"Call me Tsu, kero," the girl replied. "And I'm not gonna sugar coat it, I speak my mind. It seems like you have lots of quirks. How is that?"

The bus quieted at the voiced thought, everyone wanting the answer. It seems like the topic was popular brain food for Class 1A. And Izuku couldn't blame them. It did look suspicious, having only tangentially related powers without being classified as a mutation. He believes he's still classified as Quirkless so, why not tell the truth?

Izuku sighed and smiled. "Well, me having multiple quirks would imply that I have any quirks to begin with."

Izuku stood up and hopped up, sticking a hand to the ceiling of the bus and hanging a few centimeters off of the ground.

"Mr. Aizawa? Can you try to erase my 'quirk', please?"

Aizawa, who had been fake-asleep at the front of the bus, shot a scarlet glare at Midoriya. And just like the quirk assessment, nothing happened.

"I don't have a quirk."

The entire bus blinked. Until.

"I call bullshit."

Kaminari called bullshit.

Iida shot a glare at Kaminari, then looked at Midoriya. His glare held suspicion, but not with any ill intent or any maliciousness.

"Does your suit happen to allow you to do extraordinary things?" Iida asked.

"But, uh…" Uraraka spoke up, holding a finger in the air. "Yesterday, when we had to calm the students, he wasn't wearing his suit, and he still was able to stick to the wall."

The class nodded, going back and forth between Iida's idea of fancy suit, and Kaminari's idea of bullshit.

But, while they were deliberating, Izuku had removed his gloves and was holding them in his mouth. He cleared his throat, prompting everyone to look at him. Nothing was said until…

"So it's bullshit."

Iida once again glared at Kaminari, but that was when Kacchan spoke up.

"You idiots are blind. Look at his damn wrist."

Everyone looked at Izuku's wrist, taking in the scar.

"Fucker was bit by some weird ass spider a year back. Gave him superpowers. Strength, being sticky, some sort of danger sense, and way enhanced senses."

Some people cringed, some people didn't believe him, some people looked on in wonder.

But Izuku was looking at one pair of eyes.

Uraraka's.

She was looking at him with a smile, a light blush on her cheeks. Her eyes gleamed with a definition that he didn't think possible.

"I believe him," Uraraka said. "One-hundred percent.”

He smiled back at her, holding the eye contact for a bit too long it seemed, prompting Ashido to side in next to Uraraka and start to tease her.

Izuku snickered at the sight, liking how Uraraka's face looked when it was all red.

"—and I have something to say to you… well, maybe two things! Or three… maybe four…"

Everyone sweat-dropped at home undeniably awkward Thirteen was. Sure, she was a hero, but… she reminded Izuku of himself from a while ago.

Izuku turned back in to hear and process the speech that was being given, and it immediately hit him close to home. 

Thirteen was talking about how quirks are inherently dangerous most times. Electricity, explosions, even anti-gravity can all be used to take a life. Aizawa and Kacchan glanced over at Izuku, who didn't need the reminder. He's aware of how strong he is. He had discovered that when he first got his powers, then re-discovered it on the first day of school.

Izuku listened, watching with intense attention. He needed this lesson. If not only to learn to control his strength, then to learn how to properly save someone. Because, unfortunately, just pulling someone out of sludge with raw strength usually isn't exactly the best choice.

The class walked into the USJ while Thirteen was giving their speech, and Izuku felt a little better. He saw the zones and all of their different attributes, thinking that it'd be a good opportunity to work on his web-swinging.

Then, the vertigo hit.

It was just like at the Entrance Exam, only less direct. It hit him in a massive wave, almost dropping him to a knee. But, he stood up and pushed his way to the front of the crowd. A few concerned classmates tried to stop him, but he kept walking. Once at the front of the group, his eyes darted back and forth over the wide expanse of the USJ. Something was wrong. So very wrong. But what?

“Midoriya,” Aizawa said. “What’s wrong?”

“S-sir, my Sense… it’s going off like a fire alarm. My head is on fire and everything is wrong. Something bad is about to happen. Something here.”

“How could you possibly know that, problem child?”

“I knew you were outside the classroom on the first day. And I can always Sense when you pretend to sleep.”

Izuku was about to retort, but then he turned to Thirteen.

“Get everyone out, now!”

“M-Midoriya, while I appreciate your concern, what evidence do you hav—”

“I believe him! He saved me once, and he’s shown that he can sense things like this! I-I think we should go!”

Everyone looked at Uraraka, then muttered amongst themselves, debating this. But, unfortunately, they stalled for too long.

At the center of the USJ’s courtyard, down the massive concrete staircase from where the entrance was, a shift in the air occurred. Space seemed to swirl in on itself, coallescing into a purple and black vortex.

“See?” Midoriya yelled. “Now MOVE! It’s way to dangerous for any of us to be here!”

Thirteen looked at the portal, then nodded.

“Everyone out! Stay together and remain calm!”

Meanwhile, Aizawa pulled aside Midoriya for a little chat.

“You spoke to the class like you would stay here. Becoming a martyr in your first week of hero school isn’t rational, Midoriya.”

Izuku stared into Aizawa’s eyes, knowing he should be intimidated. But with the threat of villainy literally a football field away, Aizawa seemed a lot less scary.

“I don’t plan on becoming a martyr. Because I’m not dying until I become the Number One Hero for at least twenty years, so…”

Aizawa sighed and dragged a hand down his face. “You’re so annoying.”

“I know.”

Aizawa rolled his eyes and turned away from Izuku, getting his scarf ready. “Just make sure the class and YOU get outside safely. Understand?”

“Crystal clear, Aizawa.”

Aizawa leapt down the stairs, ready to engage the villains below. And as the class began to be evacuated, Uraraka hung by Izuku for a moment. They stood in silence for a moment, watching Aizawa fight the villains, then turned to each other.

“What about you?” Uraraka asked

“I can stay in here,” Izukureplied, “and make sure that they—”

“Hello, children.”

Before Izuku could finish, the portal seemed to appear above the entrance, casting the class in shadow.

“I see All Might is not attending this little field trip. How unfortunate. It seems my master will have to attract his attention somehow. Now, children, I am Kurogiri of the League of Villains. I advise you to prepare for your imminent doom. Thank you.”

Izuku blinked at the dude, then nodded.

“Yeah, sure, only, no? I won’t be doing that.”

Izuku tried to shoot a web at Kurogiri’s face, but the web went right through him.

“Huh. That usually works.”

“I see you’ve chosen to act first. Well, it seems like there’s only one course of events. BEGONE TO YOUR DOOM, FLEDGELINGS!!!”

Then, the black and purple mist of Kurogiri’s body spread out like a sheet of clouds, enveloping everyone in a deep fog. Portals opened left and right, swallowing students whole. Isuku just managed to dodge around his fair share, as well as use his webs to yank some people put of the way. After the maelstrom settled, there was a severely injured Thirteen left, surrounded by a concerned Shouji and Uraraka, along with Sero, Ashido, and Satou. Izuku snarled at the fact that most of his class had been sent away to fend for themselves, but he couldn’t dwell on it now.

He looked at Thirteen, then almost threw up. Her back was shredded open from her quirk, exposing her muscle, body fat, the tips of her vertebrae, and other bodily tissues.

“Oh dear…” Kurogiri lamented, “It seems as if I missed a few. No matter. You’ll be dealt with soon enough.”

Izuku watched as Kurogiri warped away, then appeared back at the side of some blue-haired— kid? Adult? It was hard to say—dude covered in hands and…

Holy shit…

Izuku could only fathom two words in his thoughts as he looked at the hulking beast next to the blue-haired one. Its skin was pitch black, rippling with insane amounts of muscle. It stood a solid meter above Kurogiri, who already looked about as tall as Aizawa. Its brain was exposed, and it was attached to a head with a fugly face on it. Bulging eyes and a metal beak with jagged teeth… a face not even its mother loved… probably.

Izuku looked back at Uraraka and Shouji, huddled down next to Thirteen. He approached them, getting on one knee and unpacking stuff from his belt.

“Sero! Give me a bunch of tape!”

The black-haired boy looked over, then started producing tape as quickly as he could.

Within a matter of minutes, Izuku—with the help of Sero and Uraraka— had patched up Thirteen as best they could. It still looked rough, but she was disinfected and covered in gauze so… best they could do.

Izuku stood up, then pulled his mask on. “Keep her safe. Shouji, be mindful of any villains trying to creep closer. Satou and Uraraka, guard Thirteen and keep her stable. Satou and Ashido, play long-range if anyone gets close."

“What about you, Deku?” Uraraka asked.

Similar cries of concern were spoken by his other classmates, but Izuku smiled and started walking backwards towards the stairs.

“Don’t worry about me. Just keep her safe.”

Uraraka shouted for Izuku, but it fell on deaf ears. He had already yanked himself up with a web-line and started swinging to the center plaza.

I need to help Aizawa, Izuku thought. He may be good at group fights, but it isn’t his specialty. And besides, I happen to know a few things myself.

He swung over to the plaza, seeing his first target.

He would help Aizawa make it out alive. They didn’t need another Thirteen.

They wouldn't have another Thirteen.

Not on Izuku’s watch.

Chapter Text

When he told Midoriya to stay with the students and get out, he didn’t expect anything else than obedience. But, he should’ve accounted for teenage stupidity.

Because here Midoriya was, kicking absolute ass, quipping at the villains like they were his buds.

“WOAH, hello Ms. Ugly! Does your quirk do that or were your genetics just THAT bad?”

Said Ms. Ugly charged him with her fists, which were coated in a sort of slime, but she missed her haymaker as Midoriya ducked under her, gave her a swift uppercut, grabbed her leg as she was lifted off of the ground, and flung her into a group that was approaching him from behind.

He then proceeded to pump his fists in victory.

“STEEEE-RIKE!”

Aizawa was right to dub him ‘Problem Child’, wasn’t he?

Whoever hired these villains needed better recruiting methods and quality control, because honestly…

These dudes were easy to take down.

Him and Aizawa working together cleared through maybe seventy of them in a few minutes. Within a quarter-hour, the entire group of bad guys had been cleared out, and Izuku had barely broken a sweat. He and Aizawa now stood opposite to the line of Kurogiri, the blue-haired dude, and the monster.

"Master Shigaraki, I do believe most of our troops have been taken out.”

“Meh,” the blue-haired one—now known as Shigaraki—replied. “They were cannon fodder anyways. Mere summons that were supposed to tucker out our opponents. Go deal with some of the kiddies, won’t you?”

“Of course, master.”

As Kurogiri warped out, Shigaraki spoke.

“Now the real fun begins.”

Izuku got a shot of his Spidey-Sense a half-second before Shigaraki moved. Luckily, he was able to react quickly enough and pull Aizawa to the side before the villain got to him. The Sense flared down back to a dull buzz, but it was still ringing, indicating Shigaraki as a constant threat.

“Midoriya?” Aizawa questioned.

“Don’t let him touch you,” Izuku replied. “He’s dangerous. I don’t know why, but we can’t get Touched. At all”

Aizawa, not one to dismiss any useful information in a battle, nodded. “Right.”

Shigaraki launched himself at Aizawa again, but Midoriya decided to intercept the lunge, meeting Shigaraki halfway and sweeping him off his feet. While Shigaraki tripped, Aizawa followed up with a hammer fist to his back, sending him sprawling onto the concrete.

“Take that, Handy Manny!” Izuku taunted.

Shigaraki tried to get up, cursing the two heroes for their insolence, blah blah blah, but Izuku webbed him by his hands and feet to the floor.

“Nope,” said Izuku. “Not today!”

But it, in fact, did happen today.

Shigaraki shifted his hands in the webbing, trying to find some sort of purchase, dissolving it as soon as all five fingers made contact. The villain stoop up, shaking off the webs, and snarled at the heroes. His eyes were bloodshot and angry, focusing on Aizawa and Midoriya.

“Well… that isn’t good.”

After trading blows and dodging near imminent death, Izuku faced Shigaraki. The blue-haired man and Aizawa were both panting, clearly pushed to their bodily limits by each other. But Izuku was fine. His body seemed to have boundless energy, seemingly never running out of it.

Shigaraki snarled at the heroes, clearly having grown tired of this cat and mouse game.

“Noumu,” he commanded. “Break the tired one.”

Then, for the third time this month, that splitting headache returned. But he didn’t even have time to react. The Noumu was already pushing his fist into Aizawa’s abdomen by the time Izuku could process it moving. He could hear the snapping of ribs and the tearing of tissue as Aizawa was lifted off of his feet and launched backward. Everything happened in slow motion. Everything happened all too slow. Everything happened all too slow as he watched his teacher slam into a pillar and he could just barely hear the faintest notions of his spine cracking.

“MISTER AIZAWA!”

Izuku darted after his teacher, blood rushing through his ears. He slid to a halt, barely processing the sting of the concrete against his knees. He looked over his teacher, slowly getting sicker to his stomach. His abdomen was caved in and mottled by the force of the impact, and his chest was heaving in and out with wheezing breaths. His left arm was bent strangely, and so was his right leg. He was slowly pooling in his own blood, and that freaked Izuku out.

“Aizawa!” Izuku cried. “Wake up! WAKE UP!”

Izuku heard a sickening giggle from behind him, which made him send a glare over his shoulder. He saw Shigaraki, laughing at him.

“Oh my god, you should hear yourself! ‘Teacher, teacher, please wake up!’ HAHAHAHAH! It’s honestly pathetic!”

Shigaraki then leveled a bloodthirsty look at Midoriya.

“Noumu. Now the gree—”

But Izuku had already moved. Motivated by rage and vengeance, he had burst forward to try and strike Shigaraki down, holding back be damned.

“NOUMU!”

—

Izuku heaved as he felt his fist against the hulking body of the Noumu. His fist didn’t sink into the Noumu like he had hoped, it just stopped dead against his abdomen.

Shigaraki, once his shock wore off, laughed.

He cackled at Midoriya, doubling over, laughing his lungs out.

“HAHAHAHA! YOU FOOL! YOU THINK YOU COULD REALLY HURT MY NOUMU!? THE THING MEANT TO KILL ALL-MIGHT HIMSELF!?”

Izuku snarled in the back of his throat and jumped up, delivering a spinning kick to Noumu’s face. He heard the metal beak and the bones in the skull crack and shatter, and the creature recoiled from the impact.

Shigaraki blanched at the sight of his Noumu staggering at a blow from such a small kid, then caught Izuku’s glare.

“You talk too much.”

Shigaraki yelled out in anger and pointed at Izuku, face angry and eyes desperate. “NOUMU! KILL!”

Noumu, from his place, rocketed into Izuku and struck, the impact causing a massive dust cloud to be whipped up in its wake. But as the dust settled, and Izuku was able to lay his eyes on Shigaraki again, the look on the hand-man’s face was priceless.

Izuku had caught the punch. Only barely, and it had taken all of his strength, but he had caught it with one hand. All while staring right at Shigaraki.

“What was that about… ‘Noumu, kill.’ again?”

Izuku then pivoted, then sent a wild haymaker to Noumu’s knee. The blow landed, buckling the monster, and Izuku followed up with a hook to the face. To his surprise, though, he heard the dame cracking of bones from before. And even though he was putting everything into his strikes, strikes he knew should be at least able to break human ribs, he was barely cracking bones now.

Some kind of regeneration quirk, along with a durability enhancer, Izuku thought. Super strength rivaling All Might as well. Shit…

He leapt backward to put space between him and the Noumu, but it was already starting to get up. He could see muscles rippling and could faintly hear bones snapping back into place. Seems he had only dislocated the knee.

Shigaraki laughed more, turning to face Izuku.

“See? You have no chance! My Noumu has multiple quirks, each specifically designed to kill the Number One! How could a useless whelp like you possibly handle his power?”

“I don’t know,” Izuku said, “why don’t you give me a run down, lemme know what I’m working with.”

As Shigaraki began talking, Noumu rushed Izuku, sending out a heavy swing downwards to squash the bug. Izuku barely dodged, flipping to the side, then landed a strike on Noumu’s arm which bent the elbow backward. But in no less than ten seconds, the arm righted itself.

“I’ll indulge you, hero, since you're about to die. My Noumu has hyper-regeneration, shock absorption, enhanced strength, and enhanced speed. He was designed to take hits left and right, then dish them out tenfold.”

Izuku dodged another strike, and then another. He was completely on the defensive, not able to get any solid hits in. He looked around for anything he could use, then it hit him.

“Hey, Handy Manny—”

“My name is SHIGARAKI!!!”

“Whatever! What’s big and ugly and heavy as fuck?”

Shigaraki stuttered at the riddle mulling it over.

“I dunno, a—HOLY SHIT!”

Izuku, while Shigaraki was thinking, had webbed up Noumu after a strike, then heaved it around in a circle and thrown it at Shigaraki. The blue-haired man ducked, but took his eyes off of Izuku for a breif moment. That was all Izuku needed to blitz forward and deliver a flying dropkick to Shigaraki’s chest. The villain was sent flying back, but Noumu snapped the webbing like it was Silly String and caught his master.

Shigaraki, heaving as he tried to get his breath back, spat out a command.

“NOUMU!!! SQUASH THE BUG!!!”

Izuku rode the tsunami that was his Spidey Sense as he barely dodged a haymaker from the Noumu. It swiped at him again, this time, grazing by his arm. The force of the abrasion was enough to shred the suit apart and scrape off a few layers of Izuku’s skin, leaving a blotch of raw flesh on his arm.

More and more punches were delivered, with Izuku getting fewer and fewer hits in. He had stopped holding back a bit ago, and was doing decent damage to the Noumu with the hits he did get in, but it wasn’t enough. The Noumu would just heal by the time Izuku got another strike in.

He also started to slow down. He was getting exhausted from dodging the Noumu left and right, limbs growing heavier and his Sense flaring to try and encourage him to move. His body may have been strong and had a literal superhuman level of endurance, but this monster in front of him was in a different league. It was stronger and faster than Izuku, and had stamina to spare. It was almost like he was fighting All Might, but even All Might had to push himself to go all out like this.

The fight started to fall apart when he got hit in the arm by the Noumu’s fist. He had been too slow to dodge and got caught in the middle of a flip. The bones in his arm creaked and snapped, then broke when the Noumu fully pushed against Izuku. The pain rocketed up Izuku’s arm, causing him to cry out in pain before he flew back and landed on his side, rolling across the ground. Then, it was just cat and mouse. Izuku would run and try to evade the Noumu, but it always ended up right next to him again.

Izuku tried to keep track of time, just to add some security that he was indeed stalling, but he gave up someway past the five-minute mark. He was now panting with exhaustion, chest heaving with each inhale. His suit was torn in multiple places, the plastic knuckles cracked, and his shoes scuffed to all hell. He had a probably broken arm, a sprained ankle, a few cracked ribs, and a dislocated elbow. But, through it all, he stood up to face the Noumu as Shigaraki recalled it.

“Don’t you see now?” said the hand-covered villain. “You’re fighting something meant to kill the bastard known as the Symbol of Peace! A useless whelp like you couldn’t possib—”

But, before Shigaraki could finish his stupid monologue, Izuku shot a web ball at his mouth while glaring daggers at him.

"Shut up."

That seemed to be the final straw for Shigaraki, as he screeched behind the webbing and Noumu rocketed towards Izuku. With little energy to dodge left, Izuku could only barely shift out of the way before the Noumu's fist collided with his shoulder. He heard the pop more than felt it, then he felt it way more than he ever wished he'd wanted to. He screamed out in pain as he was launched backward, and collided with a stone pillar. It cracked behind him, smearing dust on his back as he slid down the marble.

Izuku felt like death. Which was fair, he was just punched by a ten-foot-tall super abomination. But he still felt like death.

Luckily, Death's clutches seemed to be far away from Izuku at the moment.

As Shigaraki was about to bark another command to the Noumu, the doors of the USJ flung open.

And there he stood.

"I had a bad feeling, one that I couldn't ignore."

His footsteps shook the ground as he walked into the USJ, and the dust kicked up from the doors around him settled to reveal his yellow locks.

"I rushed over, meeting Young Iida on the way. He gave me a rundown of the situation. After that, I pushed myself to make it here as soon as possible."

The dust cleared, revealing All Might's face. His head was hung and covered in shadow, eyes pointed to the floor. His fists were clenched and his suit was bulging with barely contained strength. Anger wafted off of him like a foul odor, paralyzing anyone that looked at him.

"It really pisses me off that someone would try to hurt my students. But, it's all okay now. Why?"

All Might looked up, face marred by a huge grimace and glare towards Shigaraki.

"Because I am here!"

Izuku looked up at All Might, eyes blown wide.

The speech was incredible, so was the feeling of safety bubbling up in his chest. But he could only really process one thing right now.

He isn't smiling.

Chapter Text

In a burst of wind, Aizawa disappeared from across the battlefield and All Might was standing next to him with his hand extended.

“You’ve done well, young Midoriya. But not, it is time for you to sit back and watch the Pros go to work!”

His smile was strained, twitching at the edges. His rage was barely contained by his soft gaze towards Izuku. But, Izuku didn’t accept the hand. He stood up by himself, hissing at his wounds, which already seemed to be healing. Seems he has a pretty good healing factor along with his other powers.

“Sorry, All Might, but I started this fight and I intend to finish it. Besides, I think I loosened the proverbial jar, don’t you?”

Both All Might and Izuku looked at the Noumu, who was standing in its usual hunched-over, beastly stance. All Might cracked a bit, snickering at Izuku’s wit.

“You sure about that, sonny? He seems to be rarin’ to go.”

Izuku felt a shift in the air around him as All Might turned to face the Noumu. He followed All Might’s example, staring down his enemy. Shigaraki laughed at the display, doubling over.

“FOOLS!!! Rush to your deaths! I’ll be sure to spend any skill points we get from this boss wisely. NOUMU! DISPOSE OF THE NUMBER ONE!”

As soon as the Noumu moved, so did All Might and Izuku. Izuku didn’t move nearly as fast as either of them while covering large amounts of distance, but All Might seemed at least surprised that Izuku was moving at the speed that he was.

Noumu and All Might clashed, and Izuku hopped over All Might and wound up a punch. All Might kicked the Noumu back and Izuku fell, bringing down a heavy fist onto the Noumu’s brain. He landed in his crouching pose as All Might suddenly appeared in front of him, already pummeling the Noumu.

Izuku dashed and slid between All Might and the Noumu’s legs, then webbed up the Noumu’s ankles as he emerged on the backside of the Noumu. He pulled with all of his strength, yanking the feet from underneath the Noumu. All Might twisted and delivered an uppercut to the Noumu’s chin. The sheer force of the impact caused a shockwave of air pressure and launched the Noumu up, making it tumble through the air.

While the Noumu was in the air, Izuku leapt up to meet it and delivered a hard axe kick downwards. The Noumu rocketed towards the floor, landing on and shattering the concrete below it. It sat in the crater for a moment, but by the time Izuku landed next to All Might, it was already starting to get back up.

“What are we working with here, my boy?”

All Might stood next to Izuku, scowling at the monster in front of them.

“Shock absorption, super regeneration, very strong and durable, fast as hell.” Izuku shrugged and made a small noise. “Y’know, the average Tuesday.”

All Might chuckled, tightening his fist. “Right. Just your average Tuesday.”

Izuku nodded, rolling his neck as the Noumu squared up again. “Got a plan, sir?”

“We hit it.” All Might glared at the Noumu, eyes shining with power and righteousness. “We hit it until it stops moving.”

Tomura watched as his Player 3 clashed with All Might and that spider freak again. It was a fight between two massive barbarian DPS Tanks, but with an annoying rogue in the mix. But for as tiny as the kid was, he had power. Probably min-maxed his skills.

Come on, Noumu. KILL!, Tomura thought. He was getting agitated, an emotion he didn’t particularly enjoy. His hands reached up to his neck, scratching at the dried but also raw skin near his jugular. Each downward scrape of his nails tore off skin in line with his pulse, quickening as his heart rate got faster.

Noumu was slowing down. And the heroes weren’t.

Tomura watched as his ace in the hole was thrown around like a ragdoll, being aerial comboed to hell and back. Sure, he was fighting back, but a two-v-one wasn’t fair! None of this was fair!

Not fair not fair not fair! Cheaters, all of them! All Might wasn’t supposed to be this strong! That kid wasn’t supposed to be that strong! Only my NOUMU should be that strong!

His Noumu slammed into the pavement, spreading dust everywhere. Tomura waves his hand through the annoying brown haze, trying to get a clear picture.

Then, he heard the lecture.

“You know, one of your quirks is Shock Absorption, correct?”

Izuku listened as he and All Might were rapidly striking the Noumu in alternation, hitting it so fast it couldn’t react. All Might only seemed to be hitting faster and faster, overwhelming the Noumu.

“I guess we’ve broken through all of that, haven’t we, Young Midoriya?”

Izuku nodded, smirking under the mask.

“I guess we have, Yagi-sensei!”

All Might delivered blow after blow, with Izuku administering stunning strikes wherever he could to slow the beast. The process was methodical, but also harrowing. Each fist was met with rock-hard muscle, and only a little bit of give was being met. However, the more he and All Might led their assault, the more purchase his strikes had.

“If we can’t handle you at our 100 percent…” All Might cried.

“Then we’ll have to push past that boundary! And defeat you from there!” Izuku finished.

Receiving a signal from All Might, Izuku swept the Noumu’s feet from under it, letting All Might bash the behemoth with his fist, sending it rocketing back. Izuku chased the creature, keeping in mind All Might’s position.

“TO ME, MY BOY!”

Izuku skidded to a stop and webbed the Noumu up, twisting on his heels and spinning the Noumu around himself.

“Us Heroes can always break out a pinch, y’know?! It’s how we keep defeating evil time and time again!!”

Izuku let the Noumu fly, sending it to All Might. The hulking monster tried to recover mid-air but was stopped by a brutal uppercut double hammerfist from All Might. The Noumu soared into the air, where it was met by Izuku. He flipped mid-air, delivering the same hammerfist that All Might did, but back onto the ground. And from the air, Izuku saw the next few moments as if time was slowed down. Except for All Might’s voice, which rang in his ear as clear as day.

“Hey, villains! Have you ever heard these worse before? Go Beyond!!! PLUS…”

Then, All Might planted a fist into the Noumu’s stomach, stretching its body around his fist in an epic display of strength and grit.

“ULTRAAAAAAAA!!!”

The demon shot from the punch, streaking towards the glass dome of the USJ. Izuku and Shigaraki both stared at the scene, then blanched as the Noumu shattered the dome and flew through the sky, popping holes in clouds as it soared.

Woah…, thought Izuku. That’s insane…

The shockwave that followed jolted Izuku, making him resort to a safe, all-fours landing.

The whole of the USJ took a breath at that moment. One deep, tense breath.

All Might stood up, smiled, and tapped a fist on his heart.

“That was rough. In my hay-day that would’ve only taken only five hits! But just now, I had to dish out upwards of two hundred!”

But, the breath had to be released sometime.

“YOU BASTARD!” cried Shigaraki. The blue-haired menace sprung forward, with intent to kill bleeding through his angered expression… but before he could reach the Number One…

BANG!

Izuku watched as Shigaraki fell to the background, then heard two more similar bangs sound off before Kurogiri surrounded Shigaraki, redirecting whatever made him fall.

Turning his head towards the stairwell, Izuku saw an open door filled with…

With…

Heroes.

It took an hour or so, as indicated by the now-setting sun. But, in the end, a majority of the villains were captured, all of the students were accounted for, and all of the injured were either taken to a hospital or healed on-site. Aizawa and Thirteen were carted off to the hospital, much to the dismay of everyone in Class 1A and All Might, but everyone else seemed to be fine. Including…

“Deku!”

Izuku turned to see Uraraka, Kacchan, Iida, and Kaminari. Uraraka was leading the group, waving to Izuku with a worried face. Everyone looked worried actually. Weird.

“Deku,” Uraraka said between breaths. “Why are you not going to the hospital?”

Iida raised a stiff hand and chopped it in a swift manner towards Izuku. “I concur with Uraraka, you should be taken care of by professionals!”

Izuku looked at Kaminari and Kacchan, who nodded in agreement.

“So uh…” Izuku started. “Funny thing with that is… I heal fast. Like really fast.”

He flexed his arm, the one that got broken during his solo fight with the Noumu, and only mildly winced at the soreness. It was still very tender and fresh, but it just felt like he overworked himself rather than shattered the arm.

Iida looked at Izuku’s arm, then frowned. “Are you sure?”

Izuku nodded, smiling. “Yeah. Just feels like I had too big of a workout.”

Kacchan then huffed, walking past Izuku, muttering something under his breath.

“Just stay alive nerd. I still gotta beat you to Number One.”

Izuku sighed and shook his head, smiling.

“Sure, Kacchan, sure.”

Izuku saw Uraraka approach him for something, but was swiftly interrupted by the hulking form of All Might.

“Young Midoriya! Or should I say… Spider-Man?”

Izuku blushed, really wishing he hadn’t left his mask on the bus when he was looking for a place to put it.

“Spiderman?” Uraraka parroted.

Izuku looked at Uraraka with a weird expression. Something was off with the way she said that.

“It is a strange, yet fitting name,” Iida commented. “Spiderman… it does ring nicely on the tongue.”

And there it was again! Izuku could swear that they said it weird!

Kaminari muttered the name a few times—each said just… fundamentally wrong—before smirking.

“Y’know,” the blonde said. “Sero would love to hear that your name is Spiderman. Sounds a lot like this one—”

“Uh… I’m sorry but you’re saying it wrong.”

Everyone stopped and looked at Izuku, even All Might.

“No, All Might, not you,” Izuku said. “It’s Spider-Man.”

Uraraka, Iida, and Kaminari blinked, looked at each other, then looked at Izuku.

“We’re saying it the same way as you,” Uraraka claimed. “Spiderman.”

Izuku shook his head. “N-no, you’re forgetting the hyphen. Spider-Man.”

“What?” Iida squawked.

“I don’t understand, young Midoriya.” All Might spoke.

Izuku shrugged, then took a breath. “It’s fine All Might. Just say it with me. Spider-Man.”

Iida, Uraraka, and Kaminari gave each other odd glances, but relented and spoke. “Spider-Man”

“Good!” Izuku said. “Now, we can move on to the next chapter.”

“The next wha—”

Chapter Text

[“—an you believe it! He must’ve saved over a hundred people already!”]

[“That’s insane! It hasn’t even been ten minutes!”]

Izuku watched the video he’d seen so many times before, eyes darting over the screen. His journal was lying in his lap and there was a pencil in his hand, ready to jot down any notes.

[“Hahahaha!”]

Izuku put down his notebook and pencil, opting to curl up and watch the video with his knees tucked under his chin.

[“It’s okay! Y’know why…?”]

Izuku sighed, then opened his mouth to speak in time with the video.

“Because I am here…”

After a moment or two, he closed the tab with the video, closed his browser, and then shut off his computer. He had watched that video about five times since the USJ incident, and he hadn’t even made it past Sunday yet. The class had been texting in the group chat that Kaminari and Mina had made, and Izuki had been speaking with Iida, Uraraka, Sero (surprisingly), and Bakugo on the phone. His best friend turned enemy turned best friend again had even come over and cooked for him and his mom. Izuku had seen that Inko was moved to tears. Mainly because of the extra spicy sauce the Bakugos had pioneered, but semantics.

Then, the doorbell rang.

Izuku’s Sense rose to a dull buzz. He peeked out of his room to look into the kitchen, where Inko was peeking into the hallway. She shrugged, then darted her eyes to the door and back at Izuku. He shrugged as well. Inko then ducked into the kitchen, then picked up the house phone, ready for anything. Izuku narrowed his eyes and grabbed a web-shooter from his desk, slapped it on, then crawled onto the ceiling. Quiet as a spider, he crept onto the well and eventually the ceiling, He webbed the doorknob, slowly turning it and waiting for—

“Y’know, Izuku, you don’t have to do all that. I heard the web shoot out. It’s just me.”

A moment passed before Izuku sighed, dropping to the floor and opening the door normally.

“Been a while,” Izuku chuckled, “Huh, Harry?”

Harry Osborne and Kacchan were standing outside of his door, both carrying ceramic trays of food.

“You betcha! Now, let’s eat! Bakugo here owes me a few stories from you as a baby!”

Kacchan snorted and shot a challenged look at Harry. “Oh, you want stories? I got stories!”

Both Izuku and Inko laughed at the exchange, smiling after the brief moment of tension.

—

Dinner went well, the combination of lasagna and katsudon filled everyone up very quickly, and stories had been exchanged from nearly everyone about nearly everyone. It was after everyone had laughed at a brief anecdote about Izuku’s shoes that Harry asked the question.

“So…” the redhead began. “What exactly… happened?”

The room’s air crawled to a suffocating stillness, especially for the two boys who had been there. Kacchan and Izuku looked at each other for a moment. In Kacchan’s eyes, there was a layer of horror. He had seen the latter half of Izuku’s fight, then the entire fight where he had teamed up with All Might. Izuku remembered Katsuki’s face after the whole ordeal.

It haunted them both.

So, of course, Izuku was the first to speak.

“Well, it was… a lot. Kacchan can tell you, I knew something was up from the very start." Izuku glanced at Kacchan, who nodded to Harry. The blonde then glanced towards Izuku, signaling to continue. "It was going off like an alarm, it even made me nauseous. Felt like I got a huge wave of vertigo or something.

"Then, we got attacked by villains, like you saw. Lots of my classmates got teleported everywhere by the portal guy, but I was at the front of the USJ with Uraraka and a few others."

Harry smirked at Izuku, eyebrows wiggling.

"So you remember where your girl was and not your childhood friend?"

Izuku blushed at the comment, Inko blushed for a different reason than Izuku and looked at her son, and Kacchan started to burst out laughing.

"Hardy har har, very funny. Uraraka is… she's cute. And pretty driven… and smart… and…"

Izuku looked around only to see everyone at the table staring at him.

…

"HAHAHA! Anyways!!!"

Harry let the moment simmer for a bit more before speaking up, much to Izuku's relief.

"So, Izuku, that… thing… you fought. How… y'know…"

"How did I make it out…?"

Harry nodded, which prompted both Inko and Kacchan to look towards Izuku. The six eyes on him only made him more nervous.

"I… I don't know."

Kacchan put a hand on Izuku's shoulder and Harry's face grew more and more regretful by the second.

"Listen, man, I didn't mean to tread where I shouldn't have bu—"

Izuku smiled and raised his hand, signaling for Harry to stop.

"It's fine, I heal quickly. A shattered arm and a few busted shoulders can't keep me down."

The table went silent before the beast awoke.

Inko stood up, then looked down at Izuku with fury in her eyes. Kacchan and Harry both backed away, growing more and more scared of the usually sweet mother. 

"A SHATTERED WHAT???"

"KACCHAN, HARRY, RUN!!!

Izuku sat in class, listening to everyone talk about the events at the USJ. Tones weren’t hushed, but pretty much everyone seemed to have a certain cap on what they would talk about. Most of the more serious things like media coverage, how big the news made it seem, and even eventualities were spoken about, but it seemed a veneer of laxness was put over the ordeal. It made sense, even he and Kacchan were able to joke about it with Harry.

Speaking of Kacchan…

“OI, GRAPE FACE! SHUT IT WITH YOUR WHINING!”

Izuku had to hold back a laugh as the diminutive boy was stunned into silence by Kacchan. No one else seemed to pay it any mind, as indicated by the continuing conversation once the outburst concluded.

Izuku leaned over to Kacchan, waving over Iida, Todoroki, Sero, and Uraraka. The six of them seemed to have formed a little squad over the weekend. Sero kept calling themselves “The Avengers”, which made Izuku giggle. Kacchan being dubbed “The Hulk” in everyone’s group chats was worth the rage fest that came after (which just so happened to be the main reason why it stuck).

“So,” Izuku started. “Any idea on who the sub is gonna be? Aizawa should be out of commission for weeks. Maybe months. Is there any other pro who can teach like him?”

Kacchan shrugged, which was mirrored by Sero and Todoroki. “Maybe we’ll be taught with Vlad King’s class?” Sero asked. “Makes sense for the sister classes to learn together after all.”

Iida shook his head. “Aizawa-sensei would want us to pioneer our own paths to knowledge and hero-dome. He’s most likely written out lesson plans for various teachers to test our skills and evaluate how we, in these trying times, self-regulate our behavior!”

Izuku giggled at Iida’s subsequent hand-chopping but shook his head to that.

“My money,” said Izuku, “is on Snipe. I feel like Aizawa trusts him to teach us. Maybe.”

Everyone shrugged at that idea, but just as Kacchan was about to speak up again, the door opened.

“Morning,”

Everyone balked at Aizawa standing in the doorway, bandaged to hell and back. Even with his hero costume on and a little of his eye peeking out, he looked like a certified mummy.

Iida, glancing at the time, ushered everyone besides Izuku and Kacchan to their seats, then sat down himself.

“Excuse me, Aizawa-sensei!”

“What is it, Iida?”

“Why have you returned so soon after your injuries? Should you not be resting and recov—”

Aizawa shook his head, interjecting during the boy’s question. “My well-being isn’t a part of your guys’ equations. Or at least, it shouldn’t be. You have much more important things to worry about.”

A chill went over the class, A few murmurs of villains popped up, but Izuku knew better. He stared down Aizawa, then raised his hand.

Aizawa glanced over to Izuku, then sighed as he nodded. “What is it, problem child?”

Ignoring a few snickers from Sero and Kacchan, Izuku put his hand down and smirked. “You’re talking about the Annual Sports Festival, right? Should be coming up in… two weeks?”

Everyone sighed a breath of relief and some even cheered to themself.

Glad the tension was broken…, Izuku thought.

“Exactly right, Midoriya.”

The reprieve didn't last long though, as Jirou, the girl with the headphones jacks for earlobes, raised a hand.

“Sir, isn’t it too soon to be hosting the event? We were just attacked by villains after all.”

A few in the class agreed with her concerns, voices popping up in scattered concurrences.

“If it were up to me,” Aizawa began, “this wouldn’t even be happening. But, apparently, saving face is more important than the lives and safety of children.

“Security will be at five times the standards previously held, and then some. Nezu also bargained with the Hero Commission to have all available heroes on deck, just in case something does happen. And above all else, you only get three Sports Festivals in your high school career. Miss one, and your chances of getting picked up by a pro become exponentially smaller.”

The class’ morale shook at that last statement and resolves steeled themselves as the realization sunk in.

“The Olympics, one of the greatest sports contests of all time, was the most popular sporting event in Japan. Then, with the rise of quirks and difficulties regulating everything, came the UA Sports Festival. It took the place of the Olympics and has grown into a bigger event than that. This is your chance to show off to millions of people, to show society the new cream of the crop for future heroes.”

Yaoyorozu and Kaminari went on to mention how the festival opens doors to become sidekicks. Izuku didn’t pay much attention, as he had his own plans once he burst onto the scene.

“Should any of you expect to become Pro Heroes, this is one of the only guaranteed ways to get your foot in the door. Not by raw academics, not by raw experience, not even by dumb luck. This event, the Sports Festival, is your key to success.”

Izuku furrowed his brows as Aizawa concluded his speech.

“Once a year, three years in a row. Only three chances to show the world what you’re made of. So don’t slack off on your training, got that!”

The class, including Izuku, responded at once, giving firm confirmation that they wouldn’t.

One step closer.

—

“Wh—” Uraraka started.

Izuku peered over her shoulder, eyes widening at the scene. It had been a day since Aizawa’s speech, so this was unexpected. Especially as everyone was leaving for lunch.

“What’s going on here?!”

In front of Uraraka was a huge crowd of students, all of them from classes 1C, D, and E. Izuku narrowed his eyes at the looks some of them had. Most looked on with contempt or resentment. Even jealousy. They were talking amongst themselves, murmuring about the fame and the glory 1A must be getting.

Izuku didn't realize he had been clenching his fist until Kacchan swatted him on the shoulder and walked past him.

“C’mon Round Face, it’s obvious. They’re here to scope out the competition.”

Kacchan grinned at the crowd and looked down at them.

“Good. Let them see who they’ll lose to. No hope in trying to contest the best of the best.”

A few people in the crowd backed up as he walked forward, but most stood their ground and jeered back at Kacchan. He, of course, wasn’t phased and yelled back at all of them, telling them they’d have to work harder than a single-man factory to take down Class 1A.

Then, Izuku’s Sense went off.

He scanned the crowd, feeling for the flare, then noticed that the Sense focused whenever he looked at…

Aizawa Junior?

The kid looked—somehow—more tired than Aizawa, but just as annoyed and irate. He had a large bush of purple hair on his head, with a hairline that’d make Vegeta jealous. The bags under his eyes could’ve held Izuku’s groceries for a month. He walked up to Kacchan and scoffed.

“So, this is what Class 1A has to offer? Are you all so insufferably vain and pompous?”

Just as Kacchan was about to answer, Izuku saw a knit in the kid’s brow and immediately moved. He tapped Kacchan on the shoulder, fixed him with a glare, then turned to the kid.

“Kind of rude to make assumptions, huh? Hi, I’m Midoriya Izuku, and this brute here is one of my good friends: Bakugo Katsuki. Pleasure to meet you.”

Izuku stuck out a hand to shake, smiling the entire time. The kid looked annoyed but shook hands anyways.

“Shinso Hitoshi. Pleasure is… all mine.”

Izuku noted the sarcasm, then looked for the knit in the brows. But it didn’t come. Seemed he was right.

“So,” Izuku said. “Here to scope out the class? I respect the effort but gotta be honest… this is just a bad look. You guys are crowding around the door to Class 1A like we’re some sort of peanut gallery? Now, I love peanuts just as much as the next non-allergic guy, but this is a bit much. Don’t you know about the villain attack we just had to go through? Seems like a pretty big oversight to try to agitate us so soon after such a horrible event.”

Izuku watched as the crowd slowly started to murmur amongst itself, finally realizing what they had been thinking before.

“Well,” said Shinso. “We wouldn’t have to if you guys didn’t hog all of the spots. Lots of people here signed up for the Hero Course at first, but had to enroll in other courses because they didn’t make the cut.”

Izuku blinked. “And that’s my problem… how?”

Shinso raised an eyebrow, face growing a bit askance. “Well, just know that your spots are up for grabs. The school gave us this chance. Be careful, or we’ll sweep the feet right out from under you.”

Izuku saw Kacchan glance at him, nodded, then looked at Shinso.

“Well, you’ll have a bit of a problem with that. Our class isn’t something to be messed with. So buckle up, sweetheart, you’re in for a wild ride.”

He smirked at Shinso, who gave a very annoyed look. But, thankfully, someone interrupted the interaction. As Tetsutetsu from Class 1B—Thank you class roster memorization, Izuku thought—rounded the corner and began shouting, Kacchan started to disperse the crowd by walking through. The grey-haired boy and Kacchan started having a small back-and-forth, letting Izuku walk by Shinso.

He eyed the purple-haired boy, taking note of his attitude.

Something to prove… just like all of us.

He walked to lunch, thinking of Uraraka, Kacchan, his entire class, and even Shinso. Even himself.

Well, this will be a fun Sports Festival, Izuku ruminated, won’t it?

Chapter Text

Izuku winced at the loud cheers of the crowd, glancing back toward Jirou and Shoji. The class walked out of the locker rooms into the massive stadium where their Festival would be held. However, the crowd decided that would be the PERFECT time to blast everyone’s ears with their voices. While it was to be expected, this being such a big event, it couldn’t hurt to maybe save their screaming for later? Or maybe just not do it? Izuku, Jirou, and Shoji all shared a look of solidarity before wincing again at Present Mic’s blaring voice.

The other first-year classes, 1B through 1K, were all walking out at the same time as 1A, but Mic gave… shorter introductions to them. It rubbed Izuku the wrong way. Just a little bit.

…

Okay, it annoyed him a lot, but he has to keep a brave-ish face.

As the classes huddled together, making a sea of blue gym uniforms, Midnight took the podium in the center of the field and cracked her whip. Everyone subsequently shut up from either horniness or respect. Maybe a bit of fear. Izuku was in the respect category, as he actually looked up to Midnight for the commitment to her persona.

“Alright, it’s time to SHUT UP! Time for the Player’s Pledge!”

Izuku felt a flare of his Spidey-Sense, growing extremely anxious as it smacked him in the face. He looked around, trying to find the danger, but couldn’t see anything. Then, he looked at Midnight right as she began to speak again.

“And this year’s speaker is none other than Midoriya Izuku!”

Oh, Izuku thought. That’s why.

“Please welcome him to the podium with a big round of applause, everyone!”

As Izuku was punched in the shoulder by Kacchan and smiled at by Uraraka, the crowd picked up their applause and cheered for Izuku. He smiled back at both of them, holding his gaze with Uraraka for a bit longer than he normally would for another friend, then started to walk forward. He stepped with uncertain legs, having zero percent of a speech figured out. As he walked forward, he spied Harry with the Business and Management kids, giving him a thumbs up. Izuku returned the gesture, feeling a bit more confident.

He got to the podium, taking a deep breath. Midnight smiled and winked at him, sending what Izuku could only describe as “encouraging vibes”.

Izuku leaned into the mic, then spoke.

“H-hey, everyone! Glad to be here…”

He chuckled into the mic, taking a moment to let the crowd see how nervous he was. Build expectations, then deliver past them.

“So, speech, huh? Well, I’m not one for speeches. I prefer quick jokes and making fun of villains.”

He listened for the crowd’s response. Laughs, a few claps. Good.

“Well, seeing as I’m not only representing my class, but my course and even the entire First Year student body, I’d like to say this: Everyone can be a hero.”

The crowd went quiet, an invitation for elaboration.

“What I mean by that is, everyone can make a difference.”

Breathe in. Breathe out.

“I was born quirkless, for those that don’t know.”

The crowd collectively gasped. He heard it. The shock. The confusion. The hate.

But he ignored it.

“I was born quirkless, and as a result, I was bullied. Badly. Day after day, I’d come home with bruises, burns, scratches, and other marks that were a product of the malice that kids held towards ‘others’. Towards people that are different.

“Adults were no help. They told me that those with hero-like or powerful quirks were destined for greatness. They told me those with quirks were just playing. Sometimes that told me that my lack of a quirk was what made me deserve the punishment.”

The crowd mumbled. Good, keep them enthralled.

“But. One day changed that. I saved someone, one day. I saved them from certain death. While it was stupid and reckless, I did it. And then a month later, someone approached me. They said that I could’ve been a hero. Powers or not.

“During that month, I got bit by a spider. This spider was special. It mutated my DNA and made me into what I am now. Into who I am now. I grew physically and emotionally. A hero sponsored my journey, giving me contacts and connections. Then, I went here. I enrolled in the Hero Course at U-mother truckin’-A!

“My point with this is… everyone can be a hero. I got lucky. But you don’t need to. Saving someone’s life isn’t the only way to be a hero. Help out around your community. Babysit for parents who can’t be with their kids all the time. Enroll in programs that help the homeless and marginalized. Heck, doctors, law enforcement, teachers, any profession where you’re serving someone. That is what it means to be a hero.

“Not beating up the bad guys. Not throwing criminals in jail. Although don’t get me wrong, that certainly helps.”

One more big breath.

“Being a hero is about helping. Any way you can.”

Izuku smiled into the hovering camera, waiting for the screen to focus on his face.

“This is your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, signing out.”

He stood at the podium in silence. The quiet wasn’t suffocating, thought. It’s contemplative. As if everyone was still absorbing the speech.

Then the first clap sounds off.

Within seconds, the entire stadium gave Izuku a standing ovation. Not just the crowd, either. Midnight, his class, and even the rest of the first-years were applauding Izuku.

Izuku smiled and waved to everyone and walked back down to his class, taking his spot by Kacchan and Uraraka. They were gawking at him, two totally different emotions on their faces.

While he would’ve liked to see what they were, Midnight speaking into the microphone drew his attention away.

“Oh… my… goodness! That was amazing! Truly one of the best speeches held at this festival in a while!”

Everyone in the class starts to congratulate Izuku, who brushes off every single bit of the praise. While he’s glad he made an impression, his message was all he wanted to get out there. Anyone can be a hero. And not just that. Everyone can be a hero.

As Midnight started to announce the first event, Izuku felt his Sense buzz gently, and he followed it to the face of one Shinso. He was gawking at Izuku, confused beyond belief.

Izuku smiled at Shinso, glad to have been the cause of that mental upheaval.

Izuku stretched at the starting line of the race, glad he got a spot up in the front.

He made sure to take note of those around him, specifically Kacchan, Iida, and Todoroki. Those three had the highest chance of blitzing past everyone, including himself. So, he had a plan.

Keyword… “had”.

As soon as the race started, Todoroko froze the ground, which stopped most people dead in their tracks for at least a few seconds. But thanks to his frankly ridiculous strength, Izuku was able to rip himself free pretty quickly. He dashed forward, using his powers to stick to the ice and not slip.

A few others made it past the initial freeze, including those he thought to keep an eye on. However…

Izuku saw the robots. The big ones, too.

He grimaced as Todoroki froze all of them, knowing it was a bait. Izuku could hear and almost feel the unsteadiness of the zero pointers and the other robots as he ran forward. He leapt into the air, refusing to use what limited supply of webs he thought he had. Truly, he didn’t know what he had in stock, but it’s better not to risk it.

He dodged the falling robots as they crumpled and shattered, letting his Sense and agility carry him through the blockade.

This… will be tough, Izuku thought.

Izuku picked up a slab of metal and some wires as he ran, not knowing if he might need them later. Hopefully, they’d serve him some purpose.

He ran as hard as he could, practically leaping forward. Todoroki was close and getting closer.

“Hey! Candy Cane!”

Todorki turned just as Izuku streaked past him.

“HAH!” Izuku shouted. “Made you look!”

Izuku bounded forward, then started to fall. 

Weird.

He looked down, seeing the pit grow darker around him.

Then, he smacked into the wall of the pillar.

“Ow…”

Izuku peeled his face off of the wall and stuck there, looking up and around. A bunch of pillars and a giant pit.

“Just like buildings. Huh.”

Izuku jumped from pillar to pillar, slowly rising to the surface. Once he broke, he stood on top of the pillar he was on and saw he was about halfway through. Other students, mainly Iida, Todorki, and Tsu, were traversing ziplines set across each pillar. It was a smart option, especially with their quirks.

Looking back towards progress, Izuku ran off of the pillar and jumped, clearing a few pillars before rolling into a landing. He was ahead, but not by much. He jumped again, just making it to the other side of the yawning gap. He could hear Todorki and Kacchan on his tail, and he didn’t like it.

Izuku dashed forward, leaping up the stairs in front of him.

What next, what next?

He stopped dead though, grimacing lightly with his food just above the ground.

Izuku stepped backwards, then frowned. He knocked his shoe to the ground, trying to feel if there was anything under him.

And oh boy, there was.

An extensive network of mines littered the track, mere inches below the surface. His sense didn’t tell him he was in mortal danger, just that they wouldn’t be pleasant to step on. So, he tossed the wire on the spot that he almost stepped on, leaping back as he did so.

The ground erupted with pink glitter and smoke, letting loose a rather cartoony boom. Izuku blinked at the minefield, then smiled.

Oh, this’ll be fun.

He dashed across, focusing more on speed rather than accuracy. He didn’t trigger any mines but felt himself get dangerously close.

Around halfway through, Izuku felt Todoroki’s footsteps approach. He snickered at the idea that flashed across his min, then laughed out loud as he realized how funny it would be.

After a moment, Izuku stopped dead, looking back towards Todoroki.

“STOP! Wait!”

Todoroki paused, probably instinctually, then looked at Izuku.

“What? Was Mic lying about the mines?”

Izuku grinned at Todoroki, hand primed to fire a web ball.

“Nope.”

He pressed the trigger on the web-shooter, then winked as the ball made contact with the mine directly under Todoroki’s feet.

“MIDORIYA YOU—”

But his tirade was cut off by the explosion that consumed his body. Izuku started to run again, occasionally sending web balls back to startle Todorki. Once Kacchan caught up, he became a victim too. And as Izuku crossed the threshold of the field, he ran out of webbing.

“Boo, no more fun.”

He shrugged, then skipped the metal plate along the ground, sending it ricocheting via explosions. He counted as it made its way backwards through the race.

“Ten hit combo? Meh, could’ve done better.”

Izuku started to jog towards the finish line, then suddenly got the urge to sprint. He was lucky he did, though, as Todoroki had somehow snuck up on him. He dashed forward, surprising the red, white, and angry boy with his speed. He crossed the finish line, face a mask of focus and grit, and listened for the announcement.

“Your first place winner,” Present Mic started. “Narrowly coming in the place he did by a few seconds, the one and only, MDIROYA IZUKU!!!”

Izuku let his momentum carry him for a few more steps, then started to slow down. He looked back, seeing Todoroki and Kacchan having already finished. As the others started to filter in, Izuku began to relax. He would move on to the second round with a bit of ease on his shoulders.

That and Kacchan.

Izuku smiled as Kacchan jumped him, landing square on the top of Izuku’s back.

“Hey! No fighting until the tourney, you monster!”

Kacchan ignored Izuku though, giving him a noogie.

“Ow, OW! Watch the curls!”

“Yeah, Bakugo, gotta let Spider-Man over here look his best!”

Izuku and Kacchan looked at Harry, who waved at them. He was red-faced and a bit out of breath, but he seemed fine otherwise.

“Hey!” Izuku said. “Do you think you qualified?”

Harry shrugged but had a sly grin on his face.

“Does tenth sound okay?”

Izuku rolled his eyes, then smacked Harry on the shoulder.

“Yes, you idiot, it does. Congrats, dude. Way to show those other nerds who’s boss.”

Kacchan snorted. “Says the green-haired smartypants who has aced every single pop-quiz Aizawa’s given so far.”

“Oh shut it, Kacchan, we both know you’ve also aced all of those quizzes.”

The three boys laughed together but were drawn away from the moment by Midnight cracking her whip once again.

“Well,” Harry started. “Best of luck to you two. I’m gonna go hang with the nerds. See ya later!”

Izuku and Kacchan waved as Harry walked away, then separated as Midnight began speaking. They shared a look, challenging each other without words, before focusing on her speech.

The next event.

Izuku smiled to himself.

Let’s see how many firsts I can get.

Chapter Text

“Alright! The top 42 has made it through!” Midnight announced. She gave a sly eye to the crowd and students, smiling as she spoke. “But don’t fret! If you didn’t make the cut, we have… other ways for you to shine. But now, the real fight begins!”

Midnight licked her lips as she gazed over the crowd. Izuku noticed that she genuinely enjoyed the thrill of the event, a evidenced by her body-wide shudder. He smiled to himself, noting that he couldn’t help but relate. In fact, the hairs on the back of his neck were standing completely on end. This wasn’t his Sense either, just the raw anticipation of the next event.

“Now! The second game is about to be revealed!” She gestured above her as the jumbo-sized screen began showing what was essentially a spinning lotto wheel of games. “I already know what it’ll be, but god, the anticipation! C’mon, c’mon!”

Izuku watched the digital wheel spin, watching as he clenched his fists. Depending on the event, the amount of webbing he was given, and the level of animosity towards him, this could either be a cakewalk… or hell.

He blinked as the wheel stopped spinning. It landed on something that made him smile.

"YOUR SECOND EVENT IS… A CAVALRY BATTLE!!!"

A murmur of excitement, nervousness, and anticipation rippled through the student body, people already starting to formulate strategies. Izuku included.

A team event, which means I can strategize. If we can pick our own teams, I feel like that'd be even better. Rules? Midnight will explain them. Now think… I should be the rider, considering I can't exactly fall off… but I need stable horses…

"You can form teams of up to four people with a minimum of two! You can only have one horse, though, so don't try and be sneaky! The rules are pretty much the same as a normal cavalry battle!"

Four people? I need surveillance, movement, utility, then me. Playing defensively sounds like the best option if it's a survival exercise. But if it's elimination, I may need to swap utility for someone who can disable opponents…

"HOWEVER!" Midnight emphasized herself with a crack of her whip. "There's a catch!"

Izuku froze his thoughts and looked up at the screen. Names and point values appeared in chart format, two columns by twenty-one rows. 

"Each participant has a point value assigned based on their placement in the last event!"

A whisper of recognition was uttered by the students near him, but Midnight quickly silenced everyone with a flick of her whip and a loud resounding crack.

"That's tight, little ones! You at the bottom might have a low total…"

Forty-second was on the bottom right of the chart, with five points… and he, in first place…

"BUT FIRST PLACE? TEN MILLION POINTS!!!"

Izuku blinked, then felt the hairs on his neck raise—with his Sense, this time—as every single pair of eyes in the student body turned to him. He was frozen under the pressure, if only for a fleeting moment. He could feel the desire. The want. The need. Everyone in this moment wanted to take him down.

And to that?

Izuku turned around, then faced the crowd with a cocky grin.

"Come and get it, everyone! Or should I say… come and try!"

Izuku frowned as Iida and Bakugo immediately walked off once the start of the game had been announced. After getting his random webbing from Power Loader, they had both said they wanted to kick his ass (in varying levels of politeness). Izuku didn't mind but… he kinda had a strategy that revolved around his best friend, and the first friends he made at UA.

But, one person did stay.

"So, Deku, can I be a part of your team?"

Izuku smiled, then nodded. He flashed a confident grin that immediately made Uraraka blush.

Is she feeling okay? I should ask.

Sadly, before he got the chance, someone bumped into him from behind. Or rather, along an arm over his shoulder and tried to drag him down a bit.

Key word: Tried.

Sero tripped on himself and fell to the ground, groaning as he knocked the wind out of himself. Izuku looked at Sero on the floor. Then Sero's elbows. Then Uraraka…

I like this.

"Hey Sero," Izuku began. "Wanna join m—"

Within an instant, Sero was on his feet with stars in his eyes.

"Yeah, sure! Just gimme a sec to be able to breathe again!"

And while Sero was recovering, Izuku scanned the crowd. He started gazing at all the kids still finding partners, then saw someone—Fukidashi Manga, if he recalled correctly—looking at him.

I'm not quite sure what Fukidashi can do, Izuku thought. Seems his powers are on the esoteric side, something like a hybrid between all three quirk types. Sort of like—

Then, Fukidashi looked around, pointed to himself, then cocked his head.

Izuku blinked.

Did… can he read my thoughts? That—he's not a telepath… is he?

Fukidashi shook his head, then apologetically waved someone off who had just approached him. He then jogged up to Izuku and smiled. Well, he had an emoticon of a smile on his face. Colon, closed parenthesis.

"Not really. I read them. Like how you would read words on a comic book or something."

Izuku blinked again.

"You read my thoughts. Like a comic panel."

Fukidashi shrugged. "Yeah. Like a giant yellow box appeared over your head and everything. Clear thoughts, organized and in sentences."

Izuku blinked. Then his Sense started to flare.

He quickly leaned to his left as a horn flew past him, narrowly missing his ear. He heard some shouting and chastising, then turned to see Pony freaking out.

"It's no problem, Pony!" Izuku made sure to shout in English, as he figured the girl would be a bit more comfortable speaking her native language. She smiled at him with a nervous and wavering grin, then gave a weak thumbs up as the horn slowly floated back.

"Oh cool, squigglies."

Izuku turned back to Fukidashi. "I'm sorry, I must've misheard you, but 'squigglies'? What do you mean?"

Fukidashi paused for a moment, then drew in a deep breath. His face then morphed into a very simple illustration of Izuku. But, above his hair, there were small squiggly lines.

"Like that. Right before you dodged, those popped up."

Izuku blinked. He never knew what his Sense looked like to other people, and he had assumed for the longest time it was invisible. But that was… weird.

"So my Spidey-Sense is a bunch of squigglies. Good to know, good to know."

Izuku looked at Manga. Then he started thinking. He looked back to Sero, then back to Uraraka. Then back to Fukidashi.

"Why don't you join us?"

Fukidashi looked back, gazing at what Izuku could see was his class. A few people were glaring at Midoriya, probably for a mix of reasons.

"Listen," Izuku started. "If you wanna go to your class, I get it. But I think I have a way for you to stand out. And to be helpful."

Fukidashi looked back at Izuku, then took a breath.

"Okay. Let's do this."

Izuku smiled, then called over Sero and Uraraka. He introduced them to Fukidashi, then huddled them all up.

"So," Izuku began. "I think I have a plan."

Izuku tightened his band around his head, scanning the other teams. He saw a few people that he recognized acting as riders. Kacchan, Todoroki, that Shinso kid, and even a few people from 1B.

He grinned as he saw that no one seemed to have a perfect counter to his strategy.

"Alright, everyone!" Izuku looked down at his team, smiling with confidence and excitement. "You guys ready?"

"Yup!" they all replied. Uraraka gave a thumbs-up as Fukidashi nodded and Sero flashed a determined grin.

"Then let's go! To victory!" Izuku cried out as he thrust his hands in the air, prompting his teammates to cheer with him.

Izuku hunkered down right as Present Mic started announcing the start of the round. He had made sure that everyone could feel his bare skin, same with his headband. He had an idea, and he hoped to the gods that it worked.

"ALRIGHT LISTENERS!!! THE FEARSOME BATTLE BEGINS IN THREE…"

Izuku looked around one last time.

"TWO…"

He narrowed his eyes at Todoroki, who seemed to be glaring at him.

"ONE…"

He felt his teammates tense below him.

"GO!!!"

Immediately, everyone dashed over to Izuku, which was all according to plan.

"FUKIDASHI, NOW!"

"Got it!"

Fukidashi took in a breath and spoke, releasing a huge block of でこぼこ onto the ground. Suddenly, the entire arena in front of them started to shake and crumble, morphing into a craggy and rough version of the smooth grass it once was.

"NICE! Now, Uraraka, Sero, jump!"

Nodding, the two bent down and leapt forward and up, being carried by their collective weightlessness. Izuku could Sense Uraraka's nausea catching up to her, so once over the crowd, he shot a web line at the floor and pulled everyone down. 

"LANDING!"

His riders braced for impact, then landed perfectly. Uraraka quickly released everyone, relieving her stomach from its pain, then made sure to keep running with the group.

"AMAZING!" Izuku cheered as he looked behind him and saw everyone tripped up by the rough terrain. "My man, Fukidashi! That was incredible!"

A few bubble letters of かあっ floated around Fukidashi's head as his face drew red blush lines on itself.

"Oh, it was nothing. But thank you, anyway."

Izuku smiled as he realized that this would work.

First place, here we come.

Chapter Text

Hitoshi shifted on top of his hypnotized horses. He didn’t like using the b-word, even if that’s what his quirk was legally registered and documented as. Reminded him too much of… insecurities.

“Try and stay along the outer edge. We don’t want any attention on us.”

He felt them shift their direction, then sighed as he felt none of them slip from his control. Hitoshi’s eyes drifted towards the green-haired one from 1-A… Midoriya, if he remembered correctly. His team has just escaped the initial rush, and was now skating around with the tape dude acting as a portable rod and axle.

He’d like to say he felt bad. He really would. But some part of Hitoshi, the angry and vengeful side, felt kinda good that someone with such a cool quirk—No, not a quirk, a superpower, Hitoshi reminded himself—was getting fucked over from the get-go. Some kinda extra sense, super strength, healing, durability, the whole package. Practically built for heroics. He’d seen the clips from the entrance exam, and the ones from the USJ. The kid had fought with All Might against the Noumu and won. It was bullshit.

But, conversely, he wasn’t born with his power. He happened across it. Hitoshi didn’t know if that little fact made him feel better or worse.

Probably both.

Hitoshi shook away the thoughts as Present Mic announced that the initial crush was over and people were scrambling for others’ points. That was fine, he had his plan.

“Alright, let’s cool our pace and let me observe. We need to find chances to clash with teams in a peaceful way.”

Hitoshi’s horses stopped, letting him scan the battlefield. He spied a team looking around, headband missing from its rider. Not them, they’d be desperate and of no help…, he thought. The next group he saw seemed to have been untouched. Perfect.

“Advance on that team there. Keep your gait gentle, no need to scare them.”

As his horses moved under him, Hitoshi kept his mind on his goal.

Get into finals.

Izuku ducked as a stray purple hairball whizzed past his head. His Spidey Sense was very dully warning him of literally everyone around him, which made sense. Literally everyone had their eyes on him. But holy CRAP were people persistent. He and Sero hadn’t gotten a break from the quick maneuvers they’d been pulling since the start. Fukidashi’s throat was reportedly doing fine, but even Izuku could tell that he was quickly approaching some kind of limit.

He appreciated the challenge, though. It made things interesting.

“FUKIDASHI! BARRIER AT 3 O’CLOCK! SERO, SHARP LEFT TURN!”

As the dull thump of a team colliding with an air barrier sounded from Izuku’s right, he and Sero shot out webs and tape respectively, letting them turn like a planet orbiting a sun. Uraraka made everyone weightless for a brief moment while they revolved, releasing the group as they started going straight again. Their landing was flawless as usual, and his horses kept sprinting.

This is looking good, Izuku thought to himself.

“I know! Your Sense is amazing!”

Izuku jolted a bit, still not used to Fukidashi being able to essentially read his more internal-monologue thoughts.

“Thanks, Fukidashi! You all are doing great as well! Let’s win this!”

Reinforced by praise and motivated by that first-place spot, his team dashed, continuing to evade the other teams that were still pursuing him.

Then, things got cold.

Izuku shivered as he felt his team skid to a halt. He turned to the left and saw Todoroki, right hand raised and frost covering his fingers. Two massive walls of ice had enclosed his team, making a lane with Todoroki’s team at one end, and Izuku’s team at the other. The glare that the Half-Hot Half-Cold boy leveled at Izuku was almost as frigid as the walls around them.

Almost.

“So, IcyHot, I take it you’re looking for some privacy, hm? Couldn’t this have waited until after the Festival is over?”

He heard a distant chortle that sounded suspiciously like Kacchan. Izuku smirked as Todoroki blushed a little, then furrowed his brows. The redness and expression faded from flustered and surprised to downright livid.

“Midoriya, those points are mine.”

“Jeez…” Izuku replied. “At least take me out to dinner, first…”

Izuku tapped his hand on Fukidashi’s shoulders three times, signaling one of his contingencies.

“Or don't. I couldn’t care less.”

With a shit-eating grin and a wink, Izuku sprang up as faint ぴょんぴょん sounded below him.

He wished his Spidey-Sense worked faster though.

He felt a huge electric shock go through his body, making his body cringe and convulse against his will. Luckily, Fukidashi had launched him towards a wall, so when his hand made contact, he was able to stick himself by using his powers alone.

“FUCK! GOOD ONE KAMINARI!!!”

He grimaced as the electricity surged through his body, making his muscles and hand twitch. Not only that, but the ice was melting under his hand, so he needed to move, and fast.

Izuku started moving along the wall, slowly shaking off the shock from Kaminari. He picked up speed, running perpendicular to the ground while looking down at Todoroki.

“Now unless you can grow wings, I don’t see how you—”

Damn him and his big mouth.

Todoroki and his team shot up from the ground, Todoroki having made an ice pillar and ramp. Iida was boosting them up, his engines glowing a bright blue from the exhausts. Within a second and change, Todoroki’s left hand was reaching for Izuku’s headband, flames coating it as the scarred boy’s face read nothing but anger and determination.

Time seemed to slow as Izuku moved. It took all of his impaired agility to drop from the place he was sticking, twist in mid-air, then kick Todoroki’s hand away from his head and into the ice wall. The collision of heat and cold made an instant wall of steam for Izuku to drop through. Luckily, Sero had his back.

Tape wrapped itself around Izuku’s waist and pulled him down to Earth. Then, two pairs of hands caught him before he fully crashed.

“Deku! You okay?” The worried voice of Uraraka rang in Izuku’s ears, but he didn’t look. He kept his eyes on Todoroki. “That shock looked pretty nasty…”

Izuku nodded. “Just fine. We have to be careful though. Todoroki’s team composition leaves them with very few weaknesses.”

Manga and Sero exchanged a worried glance, but Uraraka’s determination held firm.

“You said very little. What did you see?”

Izuku looked towards Todoroki’s team, which was half running half slipping down the ice ramp-turned-slide. He made note of the multiple lengths of pure carbon that Yaoyorozu made.

“They need to touch the ground.”

Izuku watched as first Uraraka, then Fukidashi, then Sero all had a realization.

“We can make them not do that.”

With his teammates under him and his target in front of him, Izuku grinned. It’ll be close. It’ll be risky, but honestly…

“This’ll be fun.”

Izuku set his face as Todoroki glared daggers at him from across the arena. The arena had gotten colder because of his ice, and it was now just approaching temperatures cool enough to start seeing someone’s breath. Goosebumps tickled his skin, making his arm hair stand on end. Whether that was from the cold or from his nerves is up in the air.

“So. You want the ten million, huh?” Izuku smiled as Todoroki’s glare sharpened to swords. “Then you’ll have to come and get it! Time for our SPECIAL MOVE!!!”

Todoroki and his team’s eyes blew wide as Izuku got into a ready stance on top of his team. They waited with bated breath as Izuku, Uraraka, Sero, and Fukidashi all hunkered down.

Then, Izuku’s team turned tail and ran.

“RUN AWAYYYYYYY!!!”

Izuku didn’t bother to look back. He didn’t need to. Sero’s laughter at watching Todoroki get stunlocked was all he needed to satisfy himself. He led his team down the ice alley, quickly approaching the edge.

“FUKIDASHI! QUIET BUT POTENT, PLEASE!”

The living comic book nodded, whispering a string of ボヨーン onto the floor. Izuku could tell immediately, that the floor between them and Todoroki, if only for a small stretch, was now almost completely rubberized and extremely bouncy. He nodded to himself, tapping Fukidashi when he was content.

“Now stop!”

Uraraka, Sero, and Fukidashi all skidded to a stop, pausing just inside the arena’s area.

Izuku looked back at Todoroki, who was already in hot pursuit.

“Uraraka? Float ‘em.”

Uraraka nodded, shifting Izuku’s weight to just Sero and Fukidashi. Izuku hoisted Uraraka up, holding her with ease. The four of them watched as Iida set his face and charged up his legs again.

Oh, this was going to be good.

Izuku watched in almost slow-motion as Iida used his Recipro Burst… right into the bounce pad. He threw Uraraka, who tagged everyone and herself, keeping them all floating in the air.

“Now, we wait.”

Not 30 seconds after, Mic’s ever-so-loud and ever-so-bombastic voice rang out.

“TIME’S UP EVERYONE!!!!”

Izuku sighed and checked his cartridges. He still had maybe 15 full lines left. Perfect. He webbed everyone gently down while everyone started dispersing, helping Todoroki last. Once Uraraka released everyone, Izuku went up to the frosty student, hoping to clear something up.

“Hey, Todoro—”

Said frosty boy smacked Izuku’s hand away, then scowled at Izuku.

“You and me. During lunch break. East hallway. We have something to discuss.”

Then, he walked away, no words left for an explanation.

…

“Who put the stick up his ass?”

Izuku stared at Todoroki. It was certainly different than the moments Kacchan had cornered or intimidated him. Kacchan had something oppressive, something hot and crackling. Like one wrong step and a mine goes off under your feet. Or chin.

“So… unless you’re gonna deal me something, I’m gonna go…”

Todoroki’s face shifted to something akin to surprise, then set itself again.

“Wait… You outsmarted me just now. Completely out-planned me and outgunned me to some extent as well…”

As Izuku settled back on the wall, Todoroki looked down slightly.

“So much so that when I saw a chance to win… a chance to prove myself… I broke my pledge.”

His pledge? To what, be an idiot and only use half of his quirk? There were so many opportunities, even from the start of the year, to use his flames. But he never did. Why?

Todoroki drew his left hand from his pocket, turning his gaze downward to look at his palm.

“Yaoyorozu, Iida, Kanimari, even your team… they all didn’t feel it… the oppressive dominance you had over the situation. But I did.”

Izuku narrowed his eyes a bit, but let Todoroki continue.

“I, who’s been around pro heroes and other similar people all of my life…”

Todoroki paused, prompting Izuku to speak.

“And what do you mean by that…?”

Todoroki looked back into Izuku’s eyes, half-glaring, half-searching.

“It means I felt something similar. Not physically, but mentally. Esoterically, even. You seem to be like them.”

Izuku’s eyes narrowed wondering what his point was. Sure, he’d not been exactly open about his relationship with pro heroes, but he’d not been tight-lipped. If anyone asked, he’d be able to give them a list. Hawks for training his people skills, quips, and ability to lie; Metal Shogun and Edgeshot for his combat abilities and mobility, and Power Loader for his technological skill and most of his support items.

“Midoriya…”

Snapping his focus to Todoroki again, Izuku braced himself.

“Are you… a secret pro here to sabotage or challenge us?”

…

Wow, Todoroki was… really dense…

“I’m going to pretend what you just said made any amount of sense, Todoroki. A secret pro hero? Here for the sole purpose of fucking you over?” Izuku chuckled a bit. “Unfortunately, nope. My reason for being here isn't anything like that. Not as dramatic.”

Todorki huffed a little, but Izuku took it more as a noise of acceptance.

“And since we’re asking questions… why have your eye on me specifically?”

“Well,” Todoroki started. “The way you said ‘isn’t anything like that.’ implies that there’s some reason that you can’t exactly speak about.”

Izuku stilled, thinking about why he was motivated and who exactly motivated him.

All Might… His secret… his endorsement… I guess I do have some secret connections…

“Anyways, you’re aware of who my father is. Endeavor… Enji Todoroki. He’s been stuck at the Number Two spot for decades.”

Izuku nodded along, following the story.

“If you have connections to pro heroes… to All Might… that means I have even more reason to defeat you.”

Izuku’s face set, but let the boy continue speaking.

“My old man is stubborn. His strongest desire is to rise in the world, to become more powerful. He got to where he is right now with raw power and unparalleled brutality. That’s why All Might, someone who’s done objectively less than him, is an eyesore on the Number One spot.

“And since he couldn’t surpass All Might on his own, he moved on to another plan.”

The two-toned boy paused and looked up at Izuku, eyes dreadfully neutral. Izuku didn’t want to speak up or interrupt, but he kept wondering what Todoroki was getting at.

“You’ve heard of Quirk Marriages, yes?”

Izuku stopped his thoughts, trying to grasp what Todoroki was implying.

“Up until the third generation of quirk users, it was possible and legal to strong-arm another family to engage, marry, and bear a child with you solely to produce a child with a powerful quirk. It was a barbaric practice brought about by a lack of ethics.

“My father is a man with a lot of money and influence. He, upon meeting my mother, found that her quirk would be perfectly complimentary to his. A quirk that would balance out one’s body temperature, employing both my mother’s ice, cold resistance, and lower body temperature and my father’s flames, heat resistance, and heightened body temperature. A radiator when I’m cold, a freezer when I’m warm.

“He’s trying to use me—and the bastardization of his quirk that I have—to fulfill the dream he never was able to accomplish by raising me to be a hero and surpass All Might.”

Izuku glared past Todoroki, towards the wall.

“It sickens me…” Todoroki finished. “I refuse to be used as some tool by someone like him.”

Todoroki scowled at the floor, his teeth gritting together.

“In all of my memories, my mother is sobbing… always asking what she did for her or any of us to deserve the treatment he gave us. She said to me… she said, ‘The left side of you is repulsing.’ Right as she poured a pot of boiling water on my face.”

The scarred boy looked up, and Izuku could see his left eye twitching a bit, as if the angry red burn marring the left side of his face was making it.

“That is why I picked my fight with you. To prove to that bastard that I can be a hero. To show him what I can do. All without his quirk.”

Todoroki’s face grew livid, as if recalling the worst memory in his life. He probably was.

“No, I’ll reject him completely!”

Izuku watched as Todoroki simmered and stewed in his own anger. He wasn’t exactly how to handle the situation. Firstly, he had no idea why Todoroki would be telling him about this, much less anyone but a licensed therapist. But I guess having Endeavor breathe down your neck 24/7 was bound to create some trust issues.

But, there was something nagging at him.

“Well, Todoroki, that all sounds kinda dumb.”

The boy flinched, then glared at Izuku.

“Yeah, you heard me. Dumb. Idiotic. Frankly stupid. And not stupid morally, no. Your reason for doing what you’re doing is fine. It’s that… aren’t you still playing into Endeavor’s hands?”

Todoroki blinked, clearly mulling it over with his half-stunned brain.

“I mean, even if you don’t use half your quirk—which is an insult to everyone around you, by the way—you’re still winning. Still surpassing. Still being what he wants you to be. If anything, it’s more proof that you could do it with ‘his’ quirk because you did it without it.”

Todoroki looked like his brain was slowly firing up the gears. Izuku couldn’t help but internally giggle.

“Listen, Todoroki, bottom line is, be a hero because you want to. Don’t do it because of some grudge or some bullshit mission. You’re your own person, Todoroki. Your own person with your own ideas and your own agency. And, in this case, more importantly: your own quirk.

“I don’t know how you feel, and I doubt I ever will. But I know this. If I had been… given a quirk by someone before I got bit, whether it be by my parents or some miracle universe magic, I would probably think the way you do. That it’s their quirk, not mine. But you’ve got to realize, you’re the one using it. You’re the one honing it and perfecting it. Even now, with my spider bite, I feel like I was given a lucky break. But I’m taking it in stride and using it in my own way.”

Izuku paused, taking a breath.

“Todoroki, it’s your power. Just like mine is mine.”

He searched the other boy’s face for some sort of emotion, then decided it would be best to let Todoroki process.

“I’m going to go get lunch. Catch you during the tournament.”

And with that, Izuku walked off.

Hopefully this didn’t come back to bite him in the ass.