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scribblestatic · 2 days ago

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Well, well, well. If it isn't the actions of my consequences.

More Preyzuku cause I can and I wanna. I hope y'all enjoyed being spooky and queer this past Friday the 13th, June edition.

Body horror warnings include canon-typical gore mention, eye trauma mention, and medical malpractice via restraints.

---

Izuku stares in surprise at his exam results.

With 1 Villain Point and 54 Rescue Points, he was in 9th place. The girl who helped lift the debris from his leg and pull him off to the side to safety before the time ran out got 28 Villain Points and 22 Rescue Points, being directly below him in 10th place.

She'd had a kind face, fretting over him. He focused on her before looking away, glad to no longer see any remnants of that thing clinging to her presence. Any fatigue she'd felt from it should fade off in a few days.

Anyway, his exam results.

Having come in 9th place as a quirkless individual was making the news. There were talks about the difficulty levels of U.A.'s entrance exam and whether they made it less difficult on purpose. They also discussed if it would be "ethical" to let him pursue the Hero Course, considering his quirklessness. If he's not just throwing himself into danger to chase a pipe dream.

He hears those stories play on the TV as he eats breakfast, his mother on the other side of the table. She doesn't turn the TV off.

They don't say much of anything to each other.

That evening, Izuku sends an email to U.A., humbly declining admission into the Hero Course and requesting to be placed in General Education.

Instead of being allowed to do so, he gets an invitation to another interview.

So, he finds himself sitting in what looks to be a lounge. Between himself and the person on the other side is a table, on which sits a teapot and a cup of tea. He takes it cautiously and sips.

It's sweet but not sugary, earthy with matcha flavor. He likes muted sweets.

"Now then, I received your email, Midoriya-san. I wanted to make sure that this decision is something you're making on your own instead of being influenced by those around you."

On the other side, a creature sits. He isn't sure what the principal is, but considering their introduction to each other included the other joking about whether he's a dog, a rat, or a deer, that seems to be part of the point.

There's a few things near him. None seem malicious, strangely. Still, he doesn't take his chances and doesn't make eye contact with any them.

"We know that the general public has certain perceptions about quirkless people. Many serve in the police force and protect society, but it's not quite as flashy a position as being a pro hero. As such, they tend to forget how many quirkless people put their lives on the line every day for us. Moreover, 20% of the population is quirkless.

"So, if you feel pressured to give up the spot you earned because of outside sources, I would implore that you didn't. You've achieved the results we saw with your own hard work, outpacing and outperforming students with quirks. I think that's something you should be proud of."

...It's a little overwhelming to hear this. How long has it been since he's been praised for anything?

He blinks as his eyes tear up, but he rubs their corners dry, still looking away.

"...I am...not sure I'm well-suited for hero work."

"Well, the ones who didn't score as well as you did ought to prove themselves well-suited, don't you think? We wouldn't want to give them an easy handout."

Izuku doesn't respond.

"Do you not want to train to be a hero?"

"...I...I can't."

"Why not?"

Because I'm dangerous. Because I'm a risk to everything you know and love. Because I fear that, if I get stronger, they will get stronger, too. And I can't... I can't be the cause of someone suffering a fate worse than death. Not again.

"I'm...really..."

He can't say he's not worthy of it. He tested. He won. Despite all odds, his name was listed on the same paper as the one announcing Kacchan's No. 1 position. To say he's not worthy of the position would undermine the testing process, and that's not something he wants to do.

He can't say he doesn't want to be a hero. Because that would be a lie. It's just...he's never tasted the potential to be a hero so closely before. Something about it is so...liberating. Truth be told, even with the news casters talking negatively about him, he's been dancing on stars for the last few days, up until he knew he needed to give up his spot for the sake of the world.

And, if he's in the hero course, maybe he can meet more teachers. Maybe that would get him access to Eraser Head faster.

...But that would be selfish. Because if he does...well.

Hmm.

Izuku blinks as he thinks, his head tilting slightly.

What if he gets into the hero course, finds Eraser Head, and then immediately finds the time to test his theory? After all, students in the hero course don't just suddenly start working. There has to be some sort of preliminary training. That would only make sense.

In fact, wouldn't it be best if he gets into the hero course? Sure, it will be painful to leave his dream behind depending on the answer he receives, but it would be the fastest, most efficient way. Why didn't he think of this before? Now he's gone and caused this meeting for nothing.

"...Mm. I will attend the hero course." He finishes the rest of his tea and stands, bowing politely. "Thank you for your time, Principal Nedzu."

"Well, I'm glad you thought this through. I hope you learn lots from our hero classes, Midoriya-san. Though, I'll admit that I'm curious. I feel you earnestly intended to send that email and the contents therein. So, why did you say you can't attend hero classes?"

Should he say it? Well, he would be asking for a favor in the future, so discussing it now would probably be best.

"It's because I have ulterior motives."

"Oh? What motives?"

"I want to meet a hero and ask them a question more than I want to be a hero."

"What sort of question?"

"...Is it okay if I ask them personally? I...haven't really, uhm. Gathered the courage yet."

The principal is quiet for a moment, but he eventually chuckles.

"Alright, alright. I know that our staff has fans. Though, I do want to ask. How much do you actually want to be a hero?"

"I've wanted to be one since I was three."

"And that desire hasn't changed?"

"No. Just the method. Potentially."

"Mm. Well then, again, thank you for confirming your attendance. I look forward to what you'll bring to the table!"

A thought passes through Izuku's mind, and before he can remember to keep it quiet, it slips out of his mouth.

"I can bring tea cookies next time."

The principal pauses, and then he's laughing.

"Well, if you do, I have a hankering for strawberry jam!"

"...Mm."

Izuku turns away, the tips of his ears as red as his face, and he leaves.

---

The class had reacted to his acceptance into U.A. about as well as he would've expected.

Kacchan had pinned him to a wall and demanded to know how he'd cheated. Izuku again asked him not to sully the names of the heroes they respected, and he got a shiner for his troubles.

His teacher had brought both Kacchan and him to the teacher's office. One, to congratulate Kacchan on his success. Two, to suggest that Izuku pursue something different and give up on his desire to attend U.A., letting Kacchan walk out partway through his lecture toward him.

Normally, Izuku would've let this slide. He really tried to let most things people said about him pass through one ear and out the other.

Normally.

"I passed."

"Hmm?"

Needing to fiddle with something, he clenched the bottom of his school uniform top between his fingers, rubbing his thumbs harshly on the soft material.

"I passed. I didn't cheat, and I passed. I took the same test as everyone else." Izuku frowns. "Why do I have to give up?"

"Well, I mean, it's a risk—"

Izuku looks at him. He doesn't bother registering most of the teacher's facial features. All he bothers with are his eyes.

"I passed."

He stares long enough to see the little threads that make his irises constrict. Then, he looks away again, blinking quietly.

"...Right then. You passed. Then, do what you will."

Izuku walks home, feeling frustrated. But he can't let his emotions get the best of him. He has to be calm. It makes living easier. It makes functioning easier. If he got mad over every little thing that upset him, then he'd really be too loose of a cannon to live.

He already knew what the consequences of losing track of his emotions were.

He gets a reminder anyway, when he enters the apartment, and his mom pauses partway through greeting him.

"...Did you...why is your eye..."

Ah. Right. Kacchan punched him.

He reaches his hand up to feel the heat of the puffy, swollen skin around it—

—but his mother runs forward, slapping his hand away.

"Stop it... Stop it!" She begs, her voice starting to strain. "Why... Why, why, why?! You were getting better!"

She snatches the wrist she slapped away and pulls him further into the house. He manages to kick off his shoes before he can trail too far in.

"I thought... I didn't want you to go to U.A., but you were so focused. You were doing good things! Like...like that volunteer group!"

She smacks the bathroom light on and pulls him inside, cornering him within. She grabs and turns his head to get a better view of his injury.

There's a thing on the ceiling. They almost make eye contact.

He stiffens. His gaze jolts off to the side, just as he sees the eye embedded in its back shift toward him from the corner of his vision.

It would be best if he could look down, so he tries. But she keeps shoving, forcing his face toward the light.

"Midoriya Izuku, you will let me see. Goddamn it... Just when I thought you were over this. It's been years."

He keeps looking away. The thing is getting curious, starting to crawl along the ceiling to get closer to him. To get a better view.

His heart is starting to beat faster... So he breathes in, and out. In, and out. And as he continues his breathing exercises, he closes his eyes, angling his face toward the light.

"...who is there?"

Its voice is raspy. Deep. Rumbles in his chest like the beat of a drum.

In, and out. In, and out. In, and out.

He can still see its shadow on the ceiling through his eyelids, right by the bathroom light. Why can he see it so clearly, even with his eyes closed? But it's still not the same as eye contact. It's the best he can manage.

His mother clicks her tongue, finally satisfied with surveilling the damage. He lowers his head, but doesn't open his eyes yet, breathing softly as he hears her rummage around in the cabinet.

"Here I was, thinking your acceptance meant you got somewhat better. But you're doing this sort of stuff again! Why do you keep doing this to yourself?!"

He doesn't answer. She won't listen even if he does.

"Do I... Do I not give you enough attention? Isn't this enough? You're on TV now, you know? They haven't put your face or name, but I know it's you. You've always been so smart... But why don't you ever listen to me?"

It sounds like a first-aid kit that she puts on the counter. And then, she's grabbing his chin and moving his head again, back toward the light.

He feels like the thing is closer.

"strange...I could have swoooorn..."

The shadow shifts.

Something cold passes through his body.

In, and out. In, and out. In, and out.

"Stay still."

He feels something wet on his throbbing eyelid. Probably Vitamin C oil.

"nothing? noooothing?"

The light glowing from beyond his bruised eyelid darkens as she puts a patch over it. With her handiwork done, he lowers his head, and he hears her huff in irritation. He still doesn't open his eyes.

"...I'm not taking any chances with you. Hands up. Where I can see them."

His heart skips a beat, fear striking through him.

"...oh."

Dammit.

He hears dry lips split open gleefully. Bones crackle above him as it moves much less cautiously.

"There is something."

"Izuku?"

"Little liiiiight."

In, and out. In, and out.

He raises his hands, and she pulls him out of the bathroom, opening a nearby closet to get something he really, really, really didn't like. Especially not right now, where having his hands free would be instrumental for his safety. Instead, now, he can only hope that the thing loses interest.

"...You know, I don't like doing this to you," his mother murmurs as she slides gloves onto his hands, tightening the straps around his wrists. "But when you do stuff like this, I have to protect you from yourself. You understand that, right?"

Izuku doesn't answer, opening his uncovered eye to stare toward the floor. He sees his, his mother's, and the thing's shadows on the ground.

In, and out. In, and out.

Not receiving an answer, she barely contains a scoff before pulling him to the kitchen. He can smell the food she'd been making earlier.

Instead of giving him any utensils, she feeds him by her own hand.

Instead of letting him bathe, she removes his clothes and wipes him down herself.

She dresses him in night clothes, then pulls another thing from that closet in the hall.

In, and out. In, and out. In, and out.

He breathes in one last time, then holds it for a while. He tries not to flinch as the straps buckle around him, pulling his arms across his chest. Tries not to let his fear spike. The more emotional he gets, the more the thing can see of him. And if they make eye contact...

She makes him stand in the corner of the room as she dismantles his bedframe, huffing and grumbling all the while. With a box in one hand, she shuffles any sharp or pointy things into it. Pencils, markers... Even the round tipped scissors. She folds his desk, leaving only his books and paper on the ground.

Once she's done, his room is mostly bare, save for the posters he's taped to the walls since he wasn't allowed to pin them. Tomorrow is a weekend day, so there's no worries about him having homework to turn in. His bed has been replaced by a futon. She pauses as she straightens out the sheet on top of it, sighing.

"...So. What is it this time? Why did you do it?"

Would she even believe him if he said he'd gotten punched in the face, after all the effort she put into bandaging him, binding him, removing every sharp thing and edge possible in his room, and putting him in the straitjacket he hates so much? Would there really be any point in clarifying it? To tell her that she's wrong?

That he has never once begged for attention with anything he's done?

That he had gouged out his eyes out more than once to protect himself and others?

...He has a little slack in the jacket. Breathing in, expanding his chest, while she strapped him into it, gave him some give once he breathed out. If necessary, he can wiggle his arms free, but it'll take some effort. Even so, the option is there.

But he won't. Not unless the thing attacks.

He's as ready as he's allowed to be.

So, Izuku doesn't answer. It's not like she'll believe him, anyway. Not like she used to, before he became a problem child.

When he doesn't answer, she huffs and stands up. He doesn't look at her face.

She approaches, and he waits.

A hand, her hand, reaches toward him...but stops short. It drops to her side.

"...Come on. Get in the bed."

He obeys.

He stays still as she tucks him in, but turns away from her once she's done. After all, it's better of his eye is closer to the floor.

"...I love you. You know that, right?"

"Mm. Love you, too."

"...Then, I wish you would act like you did, Izuku."

He has nothing to say back to that, and he closes his eye as she closes the door.

And with her gone, all he can hear now is the thing talking at him. Trying to coax him into being frightened. Trying to make him reveal where he is once more.

"You're in here. Come ouuut. I saaaaw you. Aren't you loooonely? Come here. Let's be frieeeends."

He hears a thump. Another thump. And another few.

He doesn't have to open his eye to feel the presence crouched above him. Waiting...

It only finally loses interest in trying to trail him about two days later, presumably attracted by something or someone else.

He tries not to let the guilt get to him and keeps a low profile for the next few weeks, waiting to attend his chosen high school.

---

The actual inside of U.A.'s main campus is exceptionally large. There's a lot of space to move and the ceilings are very high, possibly to allow for people with flight, expansion, and other quirks and such to use their abilities. Or maybe, to allow large students to still walk around. It was very spacious and non-constricting.

Though, admittedly, he kind of hated their propensity to use windows and glass everywhere. Like, he understood why they did it, but it made avoiding eye contact that much more difficult.

Well, maybe this won't be so much of a problem for too much longer.

All he has to do is meet his teachers and the staff members, find Eraser Head, and maybe, just maybe, finally take the first step to saving the world from the things he sees.

He had been running late, since his mom let him out of the jacket later than she'd intended. So, despite preferring to get to school earlier to choose his seat closer to the back if allowed, most of them are already filled up by other students. In fact, he may be one of the last ones to arrive.

And, of course, when he arrives, it's in the middle of a fight between two students, both of whom have voices he recognizes. He can't help it when his lips purse in a slight grimace.

"Don't put your legs on the desk! Don't you think that's disrespectful to your classmates? If we change seats, someone will have to deal with the fact your shoes were where they'll put their hands!"

"No, as a matter of fact, I don't think so. Which middle school are you from anyway, you two-bit extra?"

Izuku closes his eyes, sighing.

Goddammit. This was always a risk, considering Kacchan also got into U.A. And he saw the top 10. But he'd really, really hoped Kacchan would be in 1-B, since it wasn't like all the top 10 were in one class...not that he knew of at the moment, anyway. Maybe they were. He'd have to see.

He feels a gaze lock onto him, and he resists the urge to flinch. Shoes shuffle into his view.

"Hello, I am Iida Tenya from Soumei Junior High School."

"...Midoriya Izuku, Aldera."

"I see! Midoriya-san, I must hand it to you. You saw through the true purpose of the practical exam, didn't you?"

Actual purpose? He tilts his head and frowns a little, questioning.

"I'm not sure what you mean."

"The practical exam! Rescuing others was just as important as getting rid of villains! But, I was blind to it. I hate to admit it, but you were the better man."

But Kacchan suddenly laughs.

"That's the only way a quirkless bastard like him could get into U.A. anyway. Picking up after the scraps of others and saving extras who can't take care of themselves. If not for that, he wouldn't be able to set foot in this place at all."

"Ehh, quirkless?" someone whispers, but then they let out a light cry of pain as someone smacks them.

Izuku blinks, then turns more toward Iida, raising his line of sight enough to look at his belt buckle.

"Nice to meet you."

"Ah, yes! Likewise. Again, I apologize for misunderstanding you back then."

"Mmnh. It's okay. I'm aware I'm creepy."

A few people choke on a laugh. Oh. He hadn't meant that as a joke, but it didn't sound like malicious laughter either. Interesting.

"I wouldn't have said that much..."

"Oh! It's you! The curly-haired kid!"

He blinks, then turns, seeing a female uniform. His eyes lower down to her shoes, not wanting his gaze to be mistaken.

"Hello..."

"Oh, gravity girl!" Iida said behind him. "It's nice to meet you, I'm Iida Tenya from Soumei Junior High School."

"I'm Uraraka Ochako! I'm from Rozaryu Middle School."

"...Midoriya Izuku. Aldera."

Izuku listens as they start a conversation, somewhat talking about each other and also talking about him. He doesn't have much to say, but he responds a little where it seems most appropriate.

...Having a conversation with others like this feels nice. Their voices are melodic, even if Iida has a somewhat stiff and almost robotic demeanor about him. That's a lot more comfortable to listen to when not stern or confrontational.

Perhaps Iida isn't such a bad person after all. He apologized. So, Iida is nice. Uraraka also tried to help him when his leg was broken. She's nice, too.

As he thinks about how blessed he is to have two nice people in his class, he sees something wiggle into place behind Uraraka's legs.

He almost looks away reflexively, but he pauses.

The things don't generally have any colors to them aside from gray, white, red, black, and sometimes, other muted tones. They never seem to have any vibrant colors on them. But this is clearly a very vibrant yellow thing shifting along the ground.

Izuku shifts his focus.

Hm...it looks human. The strange energy he sees from others often takes specific shapes. The energy of those things never look complete, like its lacking something. But this one's energy is full. Human, then.

He shifts his focus back, and finds himself looking at a stubbled chin, tucked partially into what he now recognizes as a sleeping bag.

His eyes open all the way, and, following his impulses, he crouches down to look the stranger in the face.

Stubbled chin. Black hair. Tired eyes with signs of dryness.

He has searched and searched and searched this face enough to immediately know who it is.

Their eyes meet. He stares. The man stares back.

Izuku's heart beats, pumping his blood full of excitement and adrenaline. His hands curl on his knees, crinkling his pants.

"Eraser Head."

The man blinks up at him. Izuku continues staring.

Holy fuck, he's the luckiest boy alive. Who would've thought he would meet the hero he needed to on Day 1? U.A. banzai.

"...Eraser Head, hi."

---

Aizawa hadn't exactly expected the problem kid to end up in his class back when he first spoke about him.

First, he halfway had to eat his own words. "Not 'hero class' level", his ass. The kid aced the written exam and did well enough on the interview. With the rescue points, he was really a shoe-in. He just also hadn't expected so many potential students to have quirks and to just...either utterly flop on the written exam, slip up on the interview, or fail to gather enough points.

But he only halfway needed to eat his words. After all, the main reason he'd said what he did was because of the boy's poor record. It was medical records, psychiatric reports, and disciplinary marks down the board. With that in mind, he'd seriously thought the boy wouldn't be in A or B Class.

There were plenty of other less problem-causing students that could've made it into the hero course selection process, but they were a few points behind him one way or another. And so, Midoriya Izuku headed for U.A.'s hero classes.

Then, there was whether he'd be in Class 1-A or 1-B. For some reason, perhaps because of his commentary, Nedzu insisted he be in 1-A, his class.

So now, here they were. And he'd thought, maybe, the boy would be strange. He had a feeling he would.

He hadn't expected to be immediately recognized via his hero name, though. He also hadn't expected the intensity with which the boy stared at him, shaking slightly like some overexcited puppy fighting to sit still.

...So. Midoriya both knows and likes him. Both prospects are strange, considering he's an underground hero. He doesn't get the same fame or recognition as the others, so his fans have been few and far inbetween.

But the problem kid appears to be a fan of his. Great.

Hopefully that meant he was more likely to behave.

"...Eraser Head, hi."

"...Hey."

The boy finally breaks eye contact, but also immediately smiles just the slightest bit. It's a small, wobbly thing. Barely noticeable.

What's more noticeable is the way he's rocking side to side in his crouch, clearly excited and barely containing it.

"Are you our homeroom teacher? Are we in your way?" He stops rocking, the smile gone. "I'm sorry."

"Uh, what?" the girl, Uraraka, asks up above.

"He's probably our homeroom teacher. Eraser Head. He's cool. We should sit."

...Where exactly was the bad behavior with this brat? Sure, he came off as a tad odd, but he wasn't seeing anything particularly troubling. Maybe it would come later. He'd just have to watch.

---

As he'd planned, he took the students outside after they changed into their gym uniforms. Sure, they could go through new student orientation, but it would already be crowded with all the students from the other classes. Might as well do something different.

Moreover, he wanted to test their mettle. He wanted a good baseline for their physicality before they started training, giving them the chance to actually take advantage of their quirks...or to see exactly how they compared to someone without one, because, as he introduced the idea of using their quirks on their Apprehension Test, Yaoyorozu Momo raised her hand.

"Excuse me. We're allowed to use our quirks, but Midoriya-kun doesn't have one. Will there be a difference in our benchmarks?"

Some of the others seem relieved she asked, perhaps not wanting to ask themselves. A few look over at Midoriya, who doesn't react visibly to her question as his gaze flicking occasionally between the grass and himself. Several look toward Bakugou Katsuki, a kid from the same school and class as Midoriya, who grins and scoffs.

...Hm. Interesting.

"No, there's no benchmark differences. What you should do is complete as many reps or finish as quickly as you can. If you don't want to be last and kicked from the program, you'll put your everything into it. That's it. Quirk or no quirk, you have to give it your all, or you fail." He sneers playfully. "Plus Ultra, and all that."

Midoriya...doesn't seem to react positively or negatively. Even as the others worry over whether they'll be expelled, he either doesn't care or is generally good at hiding his emotions.

Regardless, the tests begin.

The 50-meter dash gives the opportunity for those with speed-related quirks to show out. Though, those who can use their quirks creatively also figure out some better ways to shorten their times.

When it's time for the next pair, it's Midoriya and Bakugou. Bakugou crouches slightly, but Midoriya gets down in a running pose.

"Start!" a measuring robot announces, and Aizawa watches in real time as Bakugou purposefully aims an explosion toward Midoriya's face before bursting off toward the finish line, flying with his explosions.

Midoriya squints and turns away from the explosion, wobbling and wavering a bit. But he doesn't stop running.

Bakugou, running a 4.13 pace, makes it to the end more than two seconds before Midoriya, but—

"Midoriya, do it again."

The boy looks him in the eyes again, halfway occupied by wiping some soot off his face. However, he doesn't complain or ask why, simply looking down and going back to the start line, getting back in position.

"You had a 6.94 pace. Ready..."

"Start!" the robot announces again. This time, he runs unimpeded.

He crosses the finish line again.

"...5.62."

The other students hum and haw.

"Oh, he's not that much slower than Asui-chan! While quirkless, too... Wow!" Hagakure gasps.

"Shoot, he's faster than me," Kaminari murmurs worriedly.

"Keep in mind. I'm measuring what you all can do so you can see how you improve over time. That means giving your all." Aizawa turns a firm stare to Bakugou. "Unimpeded by any restrictions. So, don't get in each other's way. Saboteurs, intentional or not, can get out right now."

The Bakugou kid clicks his tongue and stuffs his hands in his pockets, stomping off to the edge of the crowd. Meanwhile, Midoriya just bows at him a little at him before heading to where Uraraka and Iida are standing.

Hm.

At the standing long jump, several kids use their quirks to clear the sandbox completely. Midoriya and a few others land inside the sandbox at varying places. His jump is closer to the other edge than several others.

At repeated sidesteps, few of them do exceptionally more than the others. Iida's engines don't let him do fast side-to-side movements, showing a limitation he could work on. There are no particularly exceptional people on this exercise.

At grip strength, Shouji clearly outclasses the others, using his quirk physicality to the fullest. Several others also used their quirks, with Yaoyorozu first trying on her own, then also using a clamp made using her quirk. Midoriya quietly grips a surprising 64.4 kilograms, again standing generally above those with quirks that didn't quite change their strength.

On seated toe-touches and sit-ups, few quirks offered any real advantages. Although, Satou shows some promise, his endurance allowing him to do several rather quickly. It's the post-sugar burnout that somewhat drags him down.

On pull-ups, most of the boys do better than the girls, but Asui is quite the star, bypassing several of the boys. Uraraka also bypasses several of them by tying five-kilogram weights to her legs and making herself weightless, substantially reducing how much weight she actually has to lift. Though, she gets exceptionally nauseous, not used to using her quirk on herself and experiencing some pretty bad vertigo.

Midoriya closes his eyes as he does his, seeming to purposefully stop after doing 30. For some reason, Aizawa feels a sense of disappointment from him as he wriggles his arms, as though shaking numbness out of them.

They go back outside for the rest of the activities, including the ball pitch and endurance running. Nothing much comes from Midoriya during the ball pitch, with Uraraka clearly winning after her ball exits the other side of the stratosphere. However, he shows exceptional promise during the endurance run, pacing himself to last longer than several others. Although, Yaoyoruzu creates a scooter on which she rides, not having to waste much of her physical energy at all.

As Aizawa displays the scores, he announces that he'd lied about anyone being expelled for being last. Their cries of surprise and dismay are, admittedly, very funny.

"...Still, I want you to take a good look at the scores here."

Despite him being quirkless, Midoriya is nowhere near the bottom, comfortably in the middle at 11th place. The one in last place is Hagakure, who lets out a deep sigh of relief, her gloved hands over her heart.

"Take a good, long look at where you are and think about where you want to be. You should've realized there's exercises where your quirk didn't really help. In some cases, they may have even hindered you. This course will help you iron out some of those restrictions, but keep in mind, there's some things you may never be able to fully cover.

"Consider what support you may need and how to get it. Anyway, your curriculum documents and such are back in the classroom. Give them a look."

He turns to leave the kids to their own devices, but he's only five steps in before a hand pulls on the back of his suit. When he looks, it's Midoriya, who is staring him in the eyes again.

"...Oi, if you need something, just call my name instead of doing this."

He lets go. "Sorry."

"What is it?"

The boy glances off to the side before his gaze shoots to the ground. He starts pulling on his shirt.

"Can I ask you something? Uhm. Soon."

"Soon as in...?"

"Mm..." His face starts to flush up. "Maybe...three days. Please. Or four. Would Friday afternoon be more convenient?"

Trying to set an appointment, huh... Well, if he's trying to talk about something at length, then yeah, setting an appointed time would be ideal.

"Sure. Friday after your classes."

"Thank you. And, uhm, can one other teacher be present?"

Aizawa frowns. "Why?"

"As witness, and, uhm, safety."

What?

"...Fine."

"Thank you. See you, Eraser Head."

"It's Aizawa-sensei."

"Okay, Eraser—zawa-sensei."

"Oi."

But the boy bows politely and scurries back over to the little group of friends he seems to be building.

#i keep making my blorbos autistic it can't be helped #au post 2 #bnha au #bnha #mha #static writes #dp writes #prey au

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scribblestatic · 5 days ago

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Oh shit, it's Friday the 13th.

Time to suddenly start a whole 'nother AU because I read something and decided to choose one of my main four blorbos to run with it.

Anyway, go read Prey by Cyclops, here's a wiki about it.

Ah, slight body horror mention for a line near the end. Starts at "An alarm sounds out as Izuku..." and ends at "...underneath its pressure, and he grits his teeth in pain." There's some kinda gore as well, but it's canon-typical.

---

Midoriya Izuku does not have a quirk.

He's a quirkless, gloomy nobody who doesn't even have the courage to look people in the eye anymore. His eyebags aren't dark, but they do indicate a fatigue and stress that doesn't seem to go away.

There's no reason for him to be tired.

He does well in school, being a bookworm. He doesn't participate in any clubs. He eats a small box of lunch in the classroom each day. He barely talks to anyone at school, and when he does, he doesn't look at them. What is there to be tired of when he says nothing meaningful and does nothing meaningful?

His teachers have given up on him, leaving a mark in his scholarly record for anti-social behavior. The students ignore him or pick on him, often garnering little to no response. All the while, he acts as though he's above it all, not even bothering to grace them with a look.

Alone, quiet, mumbling under his breath as he writes about heroes in his notebook. Some Aldera Middle students think he'll pursue a career as a villain once he graduates, going to whatever nowhere school he decides to go.

So, when the teacher announces to the class that Midoriya intends to go to U.A., the first response is shock. Then, it's raucous laughter and jeering.

"U.A. is allowing quirkless students to attend starting next year. They announced it a few weeks ago," he says, looking down and to the right.

He winces, then flinches and falls back as Bakugou releases an explosion on his desk, getting him cornered at the back of the room as the teacher watches on without a response.

"What good would a quirkless Deku like you get at a hero school? You just want to be a charity case, right? No effort, no tenacity, riding on my coattails, huh?! Well, I'll tell you what. I said I'm gonna be the only one of these losers to get into U.A., and you're sure as hell not gonna ruin that!"

When Midoriya says nothing back, still not looking at any of them, Bakugou clicks his tongue, stuffing his fists into his pockets.

"Spineless bitch."

Class calms back down, returning to their seats after jeering at him. He sits on the floor for a bit before finally getting up and returning to his, the top now charred with the aftermath of an explosion. He doesn't mind it, using a cloth from his backpack to brush as much soot away as he can so it doesn't stain his clothes and items.

After school, Bakugou grabs his Hero Studies book and explodes it, tossing it out the window. Midoriya still doesn't look at him. He doesn't even look out the window after his notebook.

That makes Bakugou grit his teeth, slamming his hands down on his desk and leering over him.

"No one's gonna do shit for you. Can't get in U.A. on some fuckin' handouts. So, how about this? Take a swan dive off the roof and wish for a quirk in your next life!"

Midoriya breathes in sharply... But doesn't do or say anything. Bakugou scoffs, kicking his desk before turning to leave with his lackeys.

"Even if I did..."

He turns back, a scowl on his face. Midoriya stands from his chair, zipping up his backpack.

"Even if I did do that, do you really think it would be that convenient?"

"...Whoa, dude, he wasn't serious," one of the other boys say.

Pulling his pack on, he slides his chair in with a screech. Then, he turns, stepping forward quietly, but approaching Bakugou.

"You want to be a hero, right, Kacchan?"

"Want to be? You mean 'gonna be', you halfw—"

Midoriya gets up close to him. He's still facing down, but his eyes are, for once, gazing up sharply, looking directly at him.

His irises are, strangely, vibrant. Almost electric in a way, like they're glowing despite his back being to the windows. Centered in them, pupils shine with a faint white light.

"Then, never let that string of words ever leave your mouth again."

He steps around him then, leaving Bakugou frozen in place.

"...Don't tarnish the title of the heroes we love, Kacchan."

...

He only gets a few steps down the hall before a hand grabs the back of his head.

A few minutes later, when he's bruised and slumped against the wall near where his book had been tossed away, he still doesn't meet Bakugou's eyes again as the other kicks his leg one last time before heading off.

The other boys grumble to him about how he'd gotten too big for his pants, how he stepped out of line.

But with their backs turned, Midoriya finally looks at them, eyes gleaming brightly.

And sighs in quiet relief.

'...Kacchan's advice wasn't wrong for someone like me.'

Izuku doesn't have a lot of muscle or fat, so the punches and kicks definitely hurt. He's never really been the type to pack it on. Moreover, he definitely doesn't eat enough to maintain it. He generally doesn't eat much.

Back then, years ago, he'd let himself waste away quite severely. He'd definitely caused his mother excessive amounts of grief from how thin he became, up until he finally got his shit together. Maybe it's because of that time, but his stomach never grew very big after that.

What he lacks in strength, he tries to make up for in speed, endurance, and flexibility. He needs it, just in case he has the opportunity for things he needs to do. His endurance and pain tolerance are top-notch, considering he doesn't flinch when he resets his dislocated arm (Kacchan hadn't meant to do that much, probably).

Anyway, he gaze down at his right hand as he flexes it, ensuring he's not pinching a nerve by accident. ...Maybe he should build up more strength. Sure, his goal is definitely the General Education class, and for that, he likely doesn't need to try hard on the practical test as a person registered as quirkless. Even so, a part of him wants to try.

He had wanted to be a hero once.

What would happen if he perhaps did his best instead of coasting through?

Maybe the hero he wants to meet will pay attention to him or something. If there's a chance for that happening, then yeah... Yeah. He'll sign up for it. As long as he passes the written test, makes himself at least minimally likable for the interview, and at least shows a little something for the practical, he'll be a GE shoe-in.

If, by some miracle of fate, he gets into Heroics, he'll just...politely decline.

It'll be nice to know that he could if he wanted to.

But it's too risky. He's too risky.

All he needs to do is get into the school and find Eraser Head.

That's his main goal. As long as he can do that, he'll be happy.

Because maybe, just maybe, it'll answer a question that has been nagging at him forever.

And if the answer is what he thinks it is, then maybe they can help.

---

As part of his strength training, Izuku decides to do good deeds.

Cleaning up a beach is a part of it. He also involves himself in volunteer work around the prefecture. It raises his reputation around the neighborhood aunties, who finally start giving him less flack for how much he'd acted out as a child. Though, they're still quite displeased that he doesn't look at them when speaking or being spoken to.

He still manages to get most of the beach cleaned up by the time of the practical of the Entrance Exam, but not all of it. He supposes he'll get back to it after everything is done.

So, he enters and sits at his assigned seat beside a seething Bakugou who curses at him under his breath.

He mumbles quietly to himself as he writes his notes, listening to Present Mic's presentation. He's actually very happy to see the man—he listens to his radio show every week, and he quite likes his musical choices. Though, he usually listens to classical, it's not as though that's the only music he likes.

"And you, curly-haired student!"

Izuku blinks, not looking at the other person, but shifting his gaze.

"Can't you be quiet? Your mumbling is distracting! If you think U.A. is just a pleasurable jaunt, then you should leave."

He stares for a moment before closing his eyes and bowing while still seated.

"Excuse me. It's habitual and difficult to stop. Thanking you for your patience."

"Hmmh!"

"Okay, okaaaay, thanks for the segue, Examinee 7111!" Present Mic interrupts, getting everyone back on track.

It's, admittedly, embarrassing to be called out like that. But, in the end, the issue resolves quickly, so there's nothing to worry about.

Nothing to worry about...

Izuku wishes he'd stop shoving his foot in his mouth.

There's a girl.

He though he saw her out the corner of his eye earlier, but he hadn't paid much attention. People's faces and bodies blur together when he stares toward the ground, looking at nothing.

But now, his vision is focusing, because that girl isn't alone.

He can see one of them close to her. Too close.

It's waiting.

...He didn't think someone could get near fatally wounded at an entrance exam, but there's a first time for everything.

But why here? Why here of all places? There's so many people. So many eyes. If he opens up his box cutters now, there's no way he won't get tackled or thought to be a villain.

And, well, even if he gets rid of it, that won't prevent whatever's leading it to attach to her.

As he focuses on a leg, a hand grabs his shoulder and pulls him.

Ah. He'd been so focused, he'd lost sight of what was around him.

"I see what you're up to. Trying to break that girl's concentration?"

The voice is familiar. The same one that complained about his mumbling in the auditorium. He would focus on his face, but he really doesn't want to lose sight of the girl and the thing near her. So, he spreads his vision further, everything becoming a bit smudged, like watercolors.

"You're not trying to obstruct your fellow exam takers, are you?"

The hand on his shoulder squeezes. There's whispers from people around him, calling him weird. Calling him weak.

The person in front of him lets him go and stands with his arms crossed. He's waiting for an answer.

Izuku turns away without giving him one.

Before he can protest, Present Mic announces the start of the exam, and all the prospective U.A. students run in.

Izuku does, too. Though, by this time, he's given up on scoring anything.

Instead, he follows the girl, trailing her from a distance. He knows how to be quiet and to be slick when necessary. He lets out no mumbling this time, eyes focused on the ground, on her pink sneakers.

He stays close to the buildings when she ventures out to attack robots, but he doesn't lose sight of her shoes.

When a one-point robot bursts through the wall behind him, he slides his screwdriver down his sleeve. He doesn't have time for this, so he has to get rid of it quickly.

He turns around and focuses, his gaze sliding along the robot's body until he finds a weak point. With the screwdriver in his left hand, he digs under his jacket with his right, pulling out a hammer.

He dodges quickly when it swings an arm at him, then jumps on it's back. He places the driver in a slot, then slams the hammer down on the back of it, driving the sharpened tool through the metal and through its main powerline.

The robot slumps, and Izuku looks away, getting off and searching for the pink sneakers again. Once found, he simply follows after her at a distance once again.

It's still clinging around her, centimeters from her back. Waiting.

She seems to be getting tired. When he lets his vision haze, he can see her soul sparking with frustration.

He's been seeing these more often. Ones that can affect people without them being seen. They always seem to pop up around Mustafar. Around him.

That's why he must meet with Eraser Head.

Soon enough, the Zero-Pointer shows up, cracking and collapsing buildings in its wake. A harbinger of destruction.

He already knows that this is it. The trigger.

He doesn't have to look at it to know it's smiling.

He knows he can't turn off his feelings, so he slides the hammer back down into his right hand and runs.

Keeping low to the ground, he sprints toward her, knowing this will be tricky. Surgical.

But as soon as he saw the thing, he knew inaction would just lead to a terrible fate. Even though him acting could just make things that much worse.

So now, he looks up, and focuses.

The girl has brown hair and pink cheeks. Her skin is pale with nausea and panic, turning away from the robot to run. Rubble is already collapsing near her, lots of smaller pieces already blocking her running path.

The thing behind grins gleefully.

Then, its gaze snaps to him, their eyes meeting.

With a heartful laugh, it starts reaching up to its own mouth, ripping it at the seams to make it larger.

An alarm sounds out as Izuku rears his right arm across his chest.

With his left hand, he grabs the girl's arm, hearing her shout in surprise.

With his right hand, he smashes his hammer into the thing's face, flattening its nose against it.

The momentum traps its head between the hammer and the debris.

It's head smashes open in a bloody explosion, and Izuku uses what's left of his strength to shove the girl forward and away from him.

Both of them fall, and moment's later, Izuku feels a crushing weight against his right leg. His bones and skin give underneath its pressure, and he grits his teeth in pain.

With the alarm from earlier having sounded, the Zero-Pointer froze in place, its arms spread out to keep other debris from falling. All the others had stopped in place as well, startled by the sound and by the strange happenings.

Up above, Present Mic stood from his crouched position, already having prepared to make his way down to the students. However, it looked like he was mistaken in the end.

With a grateful sigh, he breathed in.

"The Test is Oooooover!!"

---

"Midoriya Izuku, 15. From Aldera Middle School in southern Mustafar. Quirkless."

"He has good grades... He also did well on the written test."

"His school records have nothing nice to say about him other than good test scores, though."

"When I saw him trailing that girl, I seriously thought we had an issue on our hands..."

"Look. He doesn't even look at the camera in his photo. So they're probably right about him having severe anti-social tendencies."

"But he saved that girl, didn't he? Even injured himself to do it."

"And he's quirkless. Just look at his records...test after test after test, all at various ages. All say quirkless."

"Still, that hammer was too close to that girl's head for comfort."

"He hit the debris, not the girl. And it cracked after he hit it, making it smaller. The piece that broke his leg could've pinned that girl something fierce if it had been a solid chunk."

"Look at that screwdriver though. Who sharpens a screwdriver into something like this? It's more a weapon than a tool."

"He still didn't hurt anyone, honestly. And the way he came in like that was cool. He could work on the ending execution a little better, though. Breaking a leg at the end cut off five points for me."

"It wasn't just a leg. His right arm got a hairline. It was pretty minor, all things considered though. His leg was basically in pieces."

"Ah, add a point back. He grits his teeth and bears it. Never seen a kid take a broken leg like this kind of champ."

"He's got no respect for authority. He doesn't even look at Recovery Girl at all. Someone like him shouldn't be at U.A."

As the other teachers murmur in consideration, Eraser Head stares at the kid's picture.

He's plain. Pale, with freckles on his face. Looks tired. And as the other hero had said, utterly uninterested in looking at the camera, even for a school photo.

His records showed him to be a problematic child. Frequent hospital visits in his youth, constant quirk exams, outlandish and troublesome behavior, the works. Possibly a quirkless child who just couldn't accept that he didn't have any powers.

Except.

"Let him in."

The other heroes stop talking, surprised by his assertion.

"Huh?"

"He passed the written exam, and though his interview didn't have much to give us, he's done well enough on the practical. Not 'hero class' level, but enough."

After all, the interview was mostly about quirks. As someone without one, he answered most of the interview questions with a simple, monotonous, "I am quirkless and cannot answer that question." Very enlightening as to how they'd need to better accommodate quirkless applicants in the future.

Another hero snorts. "That's rich coming from you, Mr. Expelling Extraordinaire. Besides, if he's not 'hero class' level, shouldn't it be up to the GE teacher?"

"True. But I think it's better to keep an eye on him."

"For what?"

Eraser Head put his photo back on the table and tapped his photo.

"He stalked another applicant instead of focusing on the practical. If anything, the robots and the points were a bother to him. Sure, he saved her in the end, but why stalk her in the first place?" His eyes narrow. "He's on record as a problem. Want to let a tumor go unchecked?"

The others murmur, some nodding their heads.

"But we have nothing to bring him in custody on."

"That's why I'm saying we should have him attend. Keep an eye on him and watch for deviant behavior. Not sure why he wants to attend here, but since he does, we should make the most of it."

Hesitation...

"Not to mention, stalker or not, he fended off a potential lawsuit with his rescue attempt."

"Ah, well. Hm. Yeah, that's right," a teacher suddenly said.

"I guess he was kind of cool, then."

"What, will we teach the stalker out of him, then?"

Eraser Head shrugs.

"Worth a shot."

"...Fine. Good enough, then. Let's vote on how many rescue points he gets."

As the voting begins, Eraser Head's eyes trail back to the boy's photo.

...As antagonistic as he made the kid out to be, there was something there. Something that seemed...exhausted.

Perhaps asking for help.

...Maybe that was just him being unusually softhearted.

Damn. It was always the problem children, wasn't it?

#prey au #au post 1 #bnha au #bnha #mha #static writes #dp writes #this au is dadzawa flavored

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scribblestatic · 6 days ago

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Just a heads up, I don't have a lot of money left this month, so I may advertise my Kofi. Medical is kicking my ass lol.

Most things are $5.

#dp speaks #static speaks

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scribblestatic · 10 days ago

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The Cang Qiong Peak Lords thinking that perhaps Shen Qingqiu was possessed. They did all these tests, but nothing came up. So, perhaps the qi deviation really did turn him into—

A visitor to the peak says something incredibly rude during the meeting, and though Liu Qingge prepares to draw his sword, Shen Qingqiu stops him.

And then proceeds to read the visitor to absolute filth.

"Ah, so he really is just himself," they think, their ears burning from the slew of the most thorough insults to man they've ever heard.

#svsss #shen qingqiu #shen yuan is an internet gremlin and no one can take that away from him

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scribblestatic · 14 days ago

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Whuh wuoh

Prev Masterpost Next

---

Izuku stops, turning around to see a blond boy with his hands clenched, glaring at him fiercely. He stiffens.

He'd seen the boy at the beginning, but the longer he talked with the others, the more irritated that one boy seemed to get. Eventually, he'd walked off, so Izuku thought that maybe he just hadn't wanted to make friends with him. Which was fine! No one was obligated to like or get along with him!

But... How does he know that nickname? It's not something he's told anyone but Aunt Nemuri, and she wouldn't have talked about it to just anyone...

Unless... Was this boy related to someone from...there?

He approaches, his quirk popping with little fireworks in his palms.

"You're just gonna act like you don't remember me? What, got full of yourself with that quirk of yours or something? Fucking Deku--how dare you, huh??"

Izuku clenches his shirt at the yell, ears falling back as he steps away, the other growing closer.

"U-Uhm--"

Before he can say anything, the blond, wild-eyed and furious, reaches forward. Izuku squeaks in fear, raising a front hoof reflexively. He changes its movement to simply blocking his way.

The boy grabs him by his leg, then by his shirt, both hands clinging to him.

But the sparks that had been popping in his hands are gone. Even though his palm feels warm against his fur, it doesn't heat any further.

"Bakugou."

Izuku peeks his eyes open, glancing back toward the bench. Despite being wrapped up, Aizawa's eyes peek between the bandages with a red-pupiled glare.

"Either you went deaf from your quirk or you want to get a mark on your record for using your quirk against a civilian. No matter the answer, get your hands off him."

The boy, Bakugou, clenches his teeth. "But this bastard--"

"Now."

Bakugou clenches harder, as though he's trying to crack his own molars apart. But he still obeys, reluctantly releasing Izuku, who immediately backs up several steps.

He's not done yet, though. He points at Izuku, his face curled in a scowl.

"This bastard—you don't know how long he's been missing! He just fucks off to nowhere, and all of a sudden," he turns, facing him, "you think you can just pop back up and everything's fine?! Piece of shit—do you know how fucking worried my mom was for an ungrateful bastard like you?!"

He stomps a step forward, and Izuku steps back again, holding his arms to his chest tightly.

"Planning on playing the long game, but you forgot I was aiming for U.A., didn't you?! Well, A-fuckin-plus planning, shitty Deku! You not only hid your fuckin' quirk, but you and your mum have gotten all cozy with heroes! Must be nice to pull the wool over our eyes for this long, right? Well, guess that means all those nights my parents worried and cried over your worthless asses means jack shit!"

Aizawa steps between them. Although it looks like Bakugou wants to explode again, he doesn't, hands curling angrily, like he's going to find a way around the hero in front of him just to bite him.

"...Bakugou, you need to cool your head."

"Why the fuck should I?!"

"Because you don't understand nearly as much as you think you do."

Suddenly, Kayama runs out from a nearby building.

"Izuku!"

Izuku's fright doesn't fade, but he does redirect it, turning tail and running over to her. Despite being taller than her, he quickly moves to hide behind her, eyes filling with tears. She quickly turns to soothe him, shushing him and rubbing his cheeks, grounding him. He still hides his face against her shoulder as much as he can.

"What's happening here?" she demands.

Before Bakugou can answer, Aizawa, not turning away from him, does.

"One of my students lashed out at Izuku. But I think I know why."

The boy balks at hearing Izuku's first name come out of his homeroom teacher's mouth.

"I only vaguely remember it, but maybe you know it. The name of the one who put in his missing person's report."

Kayama's eyes narrow. "It was...Bakumi...something, I think. But it was a woman."

"That your mom?" Aizawa asks.

Bakugou grunts, frustrated. "What's it to you?"

"Ah..."

The answer clicks for the heroes. Kayama sighs, leaning her head on Izuku's as he still hides against her.

"It's my fault. I hadn't considered this would happen," Aizawa says.

"It's not on you. Neither of us thought about it before approving a meet-up."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

Ignoring him, Kayama eases Izuku away from hiding against her shoulder, holding his cheeks as she looks at him. He gazes back with watery eyes, ears pinned to the sides of his head as he anxiously shifts his weight from foot to foot.

"Izuku, sweetie, I have a question for you. Do you know the boy over there?"

Izuku shakes his head, and Aizawa wraps his capture weapon around Bakugou's mouth, wrists, and hands before he can start screaming expletives again.

"Do you know the name Bakugou Katsuki?"

Izuku starts to shake his head again, but then he pauses.

"...Bakugou...Katsuki?"

"Yes. Do you know that name?"

"I..." He frowns. "...I think... I think I do? Uhm..."

"Look at the boy over there again. Think of the name, and look at him."

Izuku doesn't turn his head, eyes peering over cautiously as the boy struggles fruitlessly against the capture weapon, clearly angry and probably saying things he shouldn't. His tail flicks, unsure, and he starts looking at him more.

Aizawa watches as the cogs turn in the boy's head, and, perhaps against his better judgement, he releases Bakugou's hands. Immediately, without Erasure acting on him, his hands spark and pop.

This makes Izuku jump and cower, but he suddenly freezes, eyes widening.

"Bakugou... Bakugou Katsuki..."

No longer hiding, Izuku walks over, ears forward as his nose twitches with each sniffle, trying to get as much sensory data as he can. He keeps his head low, but now it's not to hide away. It's to get a better sense of how the boy smells. This time, Bakugou leans away, especially when Izuku gets really close to him.

It's surprisingly sweet. Like caramel.

He knows this smell.

In his mind, he's suddenly lower to the ground. His senses are muted, and he has fewer legs. He's in a forest, holding onto little see-through boxes with sticks in them for beetles to crawl on. He's following after a crowd of children...no.

He's following after the leader of the crowd of children. The powerful boy with a quirk that was loud like a popping back of popcorn and sweet like caramel. That boy grins back at him as he leads the way, calling him that nickname Izuku's held onto for reasons he'd long forgotten.

But now, he remembers.

"...Kacchan?"

By this time, Bakugou has finally stopped trying to reel and force his way out of the bindings, glaring fiercely at Izuku. However, the longer Izuku had looked at him, searching him, the more confused the exploding boy looked.

Finally, hearing that stupid nickname, he scowls all over again. The capture weapon loosens from around his mouth, so he sticks out his tongue as he gives the bastard the middle finger with both hands.

"Oh, so now you know who I am, fuckin' Deku!"

But instead of getting upset, Izuku finally smiles, his cheeks turning red with excitement. Katsuki stiffens, surprised by his response.

"Kacchan!! Kacchan!!" Izuku turns to Aizawa, his hands balled and shaking excitedly as he huffs and puffs, nearly dancing. "Uncle, it's Kacchan!!"

Aizawa sighs, closing his eyes upon feeling Katsuki no longer struggle.

"So it is."

Izuku turns back, ears up.

"Auntie!! It's Kacchan!! Kacchan's here!!"

He looks back at Katsuki with tears in his eyes, his smile bright and wobbling. His body can't contain his energy, and he dances around in place.

"Ohh, ohh! It's Kacchan!! It's Kacchan!!"

And despite his excitement, or maybe because of it, he starts to sob.

"It's...It's Kacchaaaan!!"

He starts rubbing at his eyes, breaking down into tears. He cries openly, stuttering between his deep-breathed sobs.

"I'm sorry! I didn't remember you, but I remember now! Kacchan!! Oh, I missed you so much!! I missed you!!"

Katsuki stares at him, all anger gone from his face. It's completely replaced by utter confusion and a sense of being very, very lost. He glances over at Aizawa, eyes wide, but the man just shrugs.

"Can I hold your hand? Please? Please, Kacchan! Can I?"

He doesn't answer for a good minute, watching Izuku continue to sob and cry. Eventually, he stiltedly raises his hand, which Izuku gratefully takes and cries against, rubbing his cheek against his knuckles.

"I missed you so much, Kacchan... I'm sorry, I'm sorry... Kacchan, it's you...! Kacchan..."

Katsuki, stiff as a board, looks back over at Aizawa.

"What the fuck is happening."

---

After calling Bakugou Mitsuki and informing his family that their son was still at school and seeing if they would pick him up, Kayama, Nedzu, and Aizawa sit across from him in a small meeting room. Some of his usual demeanor has returned, what with his wide-legged slouch, but he doesn't look as angry. Instead, he seems contemplative, lost in his thoughts.

"Well, your parents will be here in a few minutes. In the meantime, I suppose you have a few questions for us about Kayama-kun," Nedzu hums.

"It's Midoriya, ain't it? What do you mean 'Kayama'?" he gruffs back.

"No, it's Kayama. I adopted him," Kayama answers. "So, he's taken on my last name."

"To be clear, he's a ward of U.A., though Kayama-kun's psyche has benefitted greatly from having a single person he can find trustworthy and reliable as well has having others. So, to fulfill his needs, Midnight has taken up the mantle as his official guardian while the staff here help take care of him."

This seems to unsettle the boy. "What about...his mum?"

"Midoriya Inko? We still don't know of her whereabouts."

"...Eh? What do you..."

Kayama sighs. "I found him alone, without his mother."

"You found him."

"Yes."

Aizawa watches the boy think, processing. Brash and loud as he is, the boy's smart. Being found by a hero has certain implications to it.

That doesn't mean he's letting him off the hook.

"What was your relationship with Kayama-kun?" Nedzu asks.

"...We knew each other as kids. Were in the same class. Our parents were friends. Up until they fucked off somewhere. I thought they just ran away cause Deku was quirkless. But now he has a quirk."

"Mm. I'm not at liberty to talk about his health records, but the quirk is his. Not all people's quirks awaken at four years old."

"But—but his dad. They always said his dad breathed fire. And his mum... Aunt Inko, she could attract objects or something. How's that got anything to do with being a fuckin' horse?"

Kayama's eyes narrow slightly. However, Katsuki's a teenager, a foul-mouthed one at that. There's other ways to broach the topic.

Nedzu's smile widens. "Well, variant quirks can appear, regardless of the child's parents. In Kayama-kun's case, his variant quirk, while not altering his humanity, has certainly altered his appearance. I would also implore you to not call Kayama-kun anything other than a human animal, if you wouldn't mind."

"I'm not tryna—" But he quiets.

A minute later, he stiffly nods.

"Good, good. Now then, while we're here, I would also like to address the rather alarming report I received of you intending to use your quirk on a civilian."

"I've always used my quirk. No point in not doing it. It's a part of me."

"You're not wrong. Now, I'm assuming you thought he had lied to you about being quirkless and that you felt a strong resentment toward him for the worry and pain your family has felt due to his family's disappearance. Am I right?"

He nods quietly.

"To outwardly express your resentment against a person you thought caused it, you intended to, perhaps, beat him up, using your quirk as a bludgeon."

"That's not—I wouldn't'a burned him too bad—"

"According to reports from a previous class incident, you used the full power of your quirk during a training exercise with All Might, collapsing parts of a building during a papier-mâché bomb exercise as well. While we know that quirks can have some influence on the person as it is, as you said, a part of your body, we also live together in communities. To make living among each other more accommodating, the law has made it quite clear that you should not use your quirk to harm others.

"Yet, in addition to showing poor judgement for the use of your quirk in a potential heroic setting, you also threatened a civilian with your quirk out of spite and anger, despite him not causing you any physical harm. And now that you're at least somewhat aware that he truly didn't know you or about the presumed sin his family has committed against you, exactly how much satisfaction do you think you would've gotten from burning and beating an innocent person, Bakugou Katsuki?"

Unable to say anything, the boy grit his teeth, his hands clenching his pants.

Nedzu leaned forward, his thick fingers crossed over each other.

"U.A. intends to raise heroes. A hero must take responsibility, not only for their actions, but for the wellbeing and safety of others. Having a brash, headstrong attitude is not a sin worth punishment. However, disregarding safety protocol is. Still, that is something we can teach against, and I've heard that the feedback you received from that incident has served to be quite the learning experience.

"But raising your quirk as a weapon to harm an innocent civilian? That is something quite different from a classroom mishap, Bakugou-kun. It's immediate grounds for expulsion. And, if so decided, Midnight and our school could take legal action against you for intent to harm."

The boy's expression crumples, and for the first time since any of them met him, he looks utterly crushed.

"I... Didn't mean to. I..." His eyes shake, looking down as he desperately tries to string words together. "I don't..."

They let him flounder in that discomfort until he shuts his eyes tightly, his breathing picking up.

"...Well. We could do that. However, you received a vote of confidence."

Speechless, his head still facing down, he gazes up at them suddenly. Nedzu smiles kindly, but it's Midnight who speaks, the woman sighing as she fans herself, crossing her legs.

"Izuku's started remembering more about you. He said you've always wanted to be a hero, and that, with your strong quirk, you could definitely do it. It's not often I've seen him that excited, and certainly not waxing poetic about someone he's only just remembered existed.

"Though, you should know by now that having a strong quirk means nothing if you don't use it properly. As a hero, you should be using it for the good of others, not to get even with someone you think has wronged you. Whatever Izuku thought of you in the past, I can't help but wonder if he's misremembered something..."

Aizawa stares cooly at Katsuki.

"I stopped you from using your quirk before it could cause harm, so without any injuries, making a case against you for using your quirk against a civilian would be more difficult. Assault, though, could still be on the table.

"I have absolutely no intent on helping someone strengthen their quirk in a hero course, only for them to turn around and use what I taught them against the populace. So, if it was entirely up to me, this would be your one and only strike."

As his commentary sinks in, Katsuki seems to almost get smaller, even as the frustration on his face grows.

"But, you're in luck, Bakugou-kun," Nedzu cheers. "Kayama-kun has somehow managed to convince us to give you one more chance. So, this time, you'll be facing a week-long suspension. You are also barred from participating in the Sports Festival.

"Instead, you will write up and submit a resume for us to give to attending heroes. From there, they can decide whether or not to send you an invitation for workplace experience with their agency. This is a much more pleasant result than facing a potential lawsuit and jail time, isn't it?"

The most he can manage to do is nod.

They watch through the window as Katsuki leaves with his family, his parents aware of his suspension and Sports Festival ban, as well as why. Though, Izuku was not named as the civilian Katsuki had threatened, and it seemed Katsuki had no intent on revealing that information either, much to their relief.

"Well, telling him to be careful about Izuku's information seems to have not gone over his head," Kayama sighs, turning away from the window. "Still, it's a potential leak."

"That's why I believe it's imperative to keep him at U.A. for now." Nedzu smiles up at her. "At least, until Izuku is more emotionally and socially stable. Besides, as long as Bakugou-kun gets his act together, perhaps he could serve as a good influence for Izuku. He seems to quite like him."

"Right..."

"Now, now, Kayama-san, Bakugou-kun is a young boy. We know well that he very likely didn't learn that using his quirk on others is okay just on his own."

"He went to Aldera Middle. A public school in Musutafu. Not in the richest part of town either, it seems," Aizawa mumbles from behind his bandages. "Transfer documents from the school reported no disciplinary actions on his record. Just high grades and glowing praise."

"You're saying he's a product of his environment," Kayama grumbles, rubbing her fingers against the bridge of her nose. "Of course he is."

"Might makes right, doesn't it?" Aizawa scoffs derisively.

"Well, it's the job of a school to guide their students on the right path. It's even more imperative we do so as a hero school, who has accepted Bakugou-kun despite having seen glimpses of his potentially problematic behavior before. Leaving students behind to face punishment without giving them the chance to learn simply isn't part of my vision as a principal.

"Besides, each and every one of us caved when Kayama-kun insisted on giving him another chance."

"What can I say? Izu-kun made such a compelling argument!" Kayama sighs, utterly bullied.

Aizawa glared.

"He basically just made teary eyes at us."

"Like I said, compelling argument!!"

"It was more than that, of course," Nedzu chuckles.

Upon remembering Izuku's plea, the other two calm.

"I didn't think he had put that together." Kayama smiles sadly. "I underestimated him."

"...Self-defense. Doesn't count."

"Ah, but it does where it matters, I suppose. After all, we're still giving Bakugou-kun a chance, are we not?" Nedzu hums, his arms behind his back. "Let's see this through. In the best case scenario, Kayama-kun is right, and Bakugou-kun learns and grows from this. Otherwise, Class 1-A ends up with an empty seat, potentially for a Sports Festival participant to fill."

#see? he's not so terrible #still an asshole tho #static writes #dp writes #centaur izuku au #au post 5 #bnha au #bnha #mha

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scribblestatic · 15 days ago

Text

So, I was going to start the fourth post of Centaur!Izuku off in the same sort of chronological order as most stuff, but you know what?

Nah. I don't think I wanna do that right now. There's a lot of "future" stuff that I wanna write, and it's not like this is an official sort of story thing. So yeah, I'm gonna write what I immediately want right now.

Also, when I think of Izuku's body proportions and the chest hair I mentioned, I'm thinking of this art by carol_cao_ on Instagram. Really my favorite centaurs of all time.

Prev Masterpost Next

Izuku wakes up between 5:15 and 5:45 AM on most days. He has a little barn-style house nestled away in the forest within U.A.'s massive borders. Over the time of his habitation, little wildflowers have started blooming around it despite Izuku not recalling having ever planted them.

He has a naturally soft personality and voice, with an easy-going attitude that becomes less unsure and wary with time. Had he had a fully humanoid body, he would probably be considered a small yet kind individual, but he's a gentle giant the fact that he's quite big.

In just three years of better food, exercise, and care, he's become much healthier, with a glimmering sheen to his hair and fur and a thickness to his whole body. Despite having speckles and spots, his equine side looks more Friesian, being light but bulky, with thick legs and firm cloven hooves peeking out from the curls around them.

Though, the fur around his body and the wick of his tail are both strangely long, more akin to a Borzoi than an equine being.

Being an adolescent, he's still not as big as he's going to be in the future. Through his stretching exercises, he's also quite flexible around both of his waists, and, with the help of his upper equine body, he can reach his back hooves. Even still, if allowed, at least one person could ride on his back (though that's not an offer he's given anyone, nor something anyone has suggested).

He keeps his hair long, past his shoulders, in a look not to dissimilar to Aizawa. However, his hair has more curls and he does more with it, like braiding it, weaving flowers and ribbons into it, and trying out various hairstyles.

He doubts himself a lot because he didn't get the same sort of education as other kids his age. And, admittedly, he still gets a bit spooked by lots of human contact. So, despite living on U.A.'s grounds since he was 12, he has yet to actually approach other kids, preferring to watch them from a distance, and usually only if they were travelling to other locations than the main school building.

That is, until the USJ Incident.

The days before, when the press breaks in, Izuku is quite startled. He's not usually near the school anyway, so the League doesn't realize his existence yet. Even so, Izuku has a feeling that something is going to go wrong and feels anxious about it.

In his anxiety, he starts straying closer to areas students and teachers may be around. He listens to where the buses go when he's near a paved road and peeks at the them sometimes.

(He's unaware that this habit, something he's done every once in a while when feeling anxious or wants to go people watching, has started a small school rumor of a cryptid living in the forest among older students. His greenish black fur blends quite well into his surroundings, actually, so few students get a good look at him.)

On this particular day, he's close to the USJ. His heart feels so unsettled, causing his stomach to twist in discomfort. He keeps pacing around between collecting herbs, doing homework, and exercising, constantly passing near the road to that building.

During one of his passes, he stops. Listens. Hears someone approaching.

Looking out from the trees, he sees a boy with purple hair running with every cell of his body down the road toward the school. He looks like he's out of breath, but that doesn't stop him from pushing himself past his limits to keep running.

Izuku follows him from the trees, watching him while looking back toward the building growing further in the distance...

Something is wrong.

He isn't sure how to do this...talk to people who aren't adults. Who aren't heroes or police. He's gotten accustomed to his bubble.

But if there's a student running from class so desperately...

Tentatively, he steps out just a bit from the forest a little ahead of where the boy is running.

He stops, tensing up, his legs and arms shaking with the strain of his effort. He gasps with each breath, trying to get more oxygen in.

"Uhm..." Izuku looks down, feeling sweat bead on the back of his neck. Hasn't he gotten better at talking with new people? Maybe he hasn't after all... "A...Are you..."

The boy grits his teeth, his fists balling.

"I--" gasp "don't have..." wheeze "time for this!!"

Balled fists. Defensive stance. Blown eyes. He smells of fear.

The boy is afraid of him.

Izuku's front legs fall to a kneel as he brings his body to the ground. His head lowers between his shoulders as much as comfortably possible, his fingers latticing as he brings his arms close to his chest.

He is now smaller. His fingers are intertwined, so he can't grab quickly. His hooves are tucked under him, so he won't use them as weapons. This usually gets wary animals to calm down around him.

He could roll onto his back and expose his stomach, but he's not sure that's necessary yet. After all, his current behavior seems to confuse the boy, whose determined yet frantic expression turns more apprehensive than confrontational.

"...Help?" Izuku manages to ask. "...Need help?"

The boy's breathing is becoming more steady, but his legs twitch. He grits his teeth, and Izuku realizes that he probably can't run away as he is now. He starts lowering further, bringing his human chest as close to the ground as possible (his human chest can't touch the ground; his equine chest won't allow it, much like how a horse's neck can't touch the ground unless the horse is on its side).

He blinks up at the stranger from near the ground, pressing his cheek to the concrete.

"Do you need help?"

The boy stares, incredulous.

"...Are you a villain?"

"No--"

As soon as he answers, he feels a slight fog wash over his mind...

He blinks, and the fog is gone.

The boy flinches, backing up a step before falling onto his backside. Izuku twitches, wanting to have stopped him from falling, but remains low and unmoved. Trying to help him by touching him would do more harm than good, probably.

There's silence between them.

Eventually, the boy speaks, huffing but no longer breathless.

"...Villains. There's villains in the USJ. We're being attacked."

Izuku's eyes widen in shock, raising his head off the street.

"I need... I need to get the teachers. All Might didn't come to class with us today. They were looking for All Might. I have to... I have to try to get to the school."

"Oh! Oh, uhm...I... I can run. Fast. Yes. We need to be fast."

He stumbles up to his feet, still reeling from the fact that there's villains attacking his uncle and unntie on U.A. property. Being less careful than he could've been, he plops kneels down again in front of the boy, showing his back to him.

"Please get on."

Understanding what he means, the boy quickly climbs on and--

Oh.

Oh, he hates this.

His back legs want to buck to get him right off. The skin and fur of his withers flinch and jolt, being taken back to those times the farmhands would try to ride him.

But now isn't the time for that.

"Where should I--"

Sweating with discomfort, Izuku grabs the boy's hands and pulls them around his human waist. He can feel the sweat on his skin and the exhausted tremble of his muscles. The boy probably won't be able to hold on unless he does it for him.

He opens his mouth to apologize for grabbing him suddenly, but bile is rolling up his throat, so he swallows and stands up instead.

He knows the way to the school, despite rarely ever approaching the building unless it was utterly devoid of students. So, without input from the boy on his back it's not them it's not them it's not them, he ensures he's holding on tightly and eases into a full-tilt dash to his family.

Unlike horses, Izuku has the benefit of a good chunk of his human body being taken up by lungs. Moreover, his hearts, having more areas to pump to, are quite large, enough to thump almost audibly when put under pressure. He also exercises frequently and tends to push himself to get stronger.

As such, he's faster than a horse, and he can sustain his speed for much longer.

It's that quick and sustained speed that gets them back to the school in record time.

Although he slows down upon arrival, it's not to stop, but to make not smacking into walls and doors that much easier. Because, in truth, he doesn't stop running until he's at the teacher's lounge, quietly thankful that the school's halls have always been on the larger and taller side.

"Villains!" he gasps out, shoving the door to the teacher's lounge open with one hand while holding the boy's hands in place around his waist with the other. "Villains are attacking the USJ!"

And the teachers know well that Izuku is not one to lie or say such things as a joke. Having one of Class 1-A's students desperately clinging to the front of his shirt, looking absolutely windswept, also motivates them to act fast.

After that, things are a bit of a blur.

Having heard the commotion, All Might forced himself to beef up once again and head out, as he should've from the start. The other heroes prepped vehicles to get them out there to the USJ. As they did, the boy, Shinsou, watched as the boy who had helped him shivered and shuddered, hugging himself as he's comforted by Midnight, his art history teacher.

He can't hear what he's saying to her, but she's offering comforting words as she holds his cheeks in her hands.

It's curious. But more than that, he's curious as to why his quirk didn't work on him.

He felt when his control, barely established, broke apart like wet paper. All it had taken was a single little blink for what little settlement he'd made to be completely eradicated. And he really wasn't sure what to make of that.

But, at the very least, seeing how this stranger boy was familiar with the heroes, he hadn't lied. He wasn't a villain. But he didn't look like a hero either.

Who was he?

They would've sent Iida Tenya to do the run to the heroes. However, he had been swept away by the warp villain's quirk, joining Asui and Mineta in the flooded zone. He'd struggled with some water clogging his engines from the sudden drop, but he was able to burn it away with air pressure, helping the other two defeat the submerged villains as quickly as possible.

Even so, none of them had been fast or strong enough to keep Aizawa from having his face smashed in. None of the students were able to prevent No. 13 from dissolving some of their skin and muscle into dust, having their quirk turned against them.

But Shinsou had been able to temporarily force the warp user to pause so the others could let him escape and run for help before other villains came to attack. Then, by some stroke of luck, he happened across the Cryptid of U.A., who was strange but amicable enough to help. And so, the school was able to avoid any casualties, although the teachers present for the class sustained severe injuries.

When asked how Shinsou was able to get to the teachers so quickly, well, there was no reason to hide that he'd gotten help. At least, that was how he saw it.

And so, their curiosity piqued, Class 1-A began asking more questions about the strange horse man amongst themselves.

So, a few days before the Sports Festival, while they're outside at the end of that day's training, Aizawa calls them over, his body still mostly wrapped up in bandages.

"Since you brats won't stop yapping, and he agreed, there's someone we'll introduce to you."

Class 1-A stare wide-eyed as a person carefully walks up beside him. They look to be young, but of course, from his waist down, he looks to be a horse. He's a head and a bit taller than Aizawa, but he has his fingers latticed as he smiles nervously at the others, with large eyes and soft features indicating his youth.

One of the kids watching on stiffens.

"This is Kayama Izuku. He stays at U.A. He's not a student, essentially a civilian. As future heroes, remember to treat him as such."

"I-It's nice...to meet you," he murmurs, bowing politely at the human waist, even as he sways side-to-side on his legs.

"Don't crowd him and be polite. Well, get on with it," Aizawa sighs, turning and stiltedly walking away to give the kids space to associate, going over to rest on a nearby bench.

Nearly immediately, Ashido raises her hand, making the stranger boy blink as his ears shoot straight up.

"Hi, I'm Ashido Mina! It's nice to meet you!"

"Asui Tsuyu. Call me Tsuyu."

Several of them say their names before the questions start coming.

"Are you the one who helped Shinsou-kun?"

"Uhm. Yes."

"Oooh!!"

"You really saved our butts there, Kayama-kun! Thank you!"

The boy immediately starts blushing through his tan, his face visibly turning more red as he smiles and sweats nervously.

"I-It's my pleasure."

"Waaah, how polite!" Hagakure cheers. "And your hair is so cute!"

"How old are you?" Ojiro asks. "Most of us are 15."

"Oh! I'm, uhm, 15, too."

"Cool! Are you in the general education course?"

Izuku freezes up a little, ears flattening.

"Uhm...no. I, ah...I don't go to school here. I mean, I do. But, uhm, I'm in...a special education course? I think that's what it's called."

Some of the kids got what he meant while others didn't, asking what sorts of things he learned in it. Asui interrupted this line of questioning with the question others were going out of their way to avoid despite constantly looking at his waist and legs.

"I have a habit of saying what's on my mind. Kayama-chan, is your quirk related to your body like mine is, or is your quirk something else? My quirk is called Frog, by the way."

"Nice one, Asui-chan!" other members of the class think.

Izuku perks up. "Oh, uhm, I don't have another quirk."

He walks forward a little so he can turn to the side, showing off more of his curling coat of fur, cloven hooves, and tail.

"It's called Centaurus. Uhm, like a centaur from...Roman? I think...no...Greek? Mythology. Or something...it's related to mythology," he concludes sheepishly. "I don't have much else than this."

They keep talking like this for a while until it's time for them to leave. Izuku waves goodbye to them, thinking of everything overall being a good time. Sure, he was anxious with all those people looking at him, but they seemed nice enough.

Feeling a little exhausted, he turns to find Aizawa napping on the bench, so he goes to rest with his uncle for a while, but--

"...So that's how you're gonna play this. Huh, Deku?"

#static writes #dp writes #centaur izuku au #bnha au #mha #bnha #au post 4 #don't worry #katsuki isn't going to be a complete asshole #but he is about to be very frustrated

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