The familiar sights are blurring together, probably since he's upset. Maybe that's why he misses the villain, doesn't see it coming. He certainly feels it though, green slime wrapping itself around his throat in a chokingly tight hold. The sludge grips him, and the villain laughs.
"Just calm down," he sneers, "It'll only hurt for about 45 seconds, and it'll all be over." His voice reminds Izuku of Kacchan, for the briefest moment. He starts to fight back, then relaxes. The villain is fluid. He wouldn't be able to do anything anyway.
He lets himself go limp, lets the villain force its way down his throat. It feels like choking, like swallowing something down the wrong pipe but worse , like his lungs are going to split open. The villain smells vaguely like the koi pond, sludgey and swampy and green. Izuku's vision is starting to go black when he wonders which hero is on duty today. Would they find him in time?
He finds it hard to care as his vision cuts out completely, the sensation of choking replaced with a dull pain in his chest. It's not a swan dive off a roof, Kacchan, but maybe I'll get a quirk in the next life anyway, he thinks as his consciousness slips away.
--
Izuku opens his eyes, gasps for air. He reaches for his throat desperately, feeling nothing but clean skin. He's not outside in that tunnel, not surrounded by the fading afternoon light and green slime. He's in the classroom, and Kacchan has a hand on his shoulder. Izuku coughs, rubbing at his throat.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Kacchan asks, then shoves him aside. "Whatever. I don't want to catch whatever he has." He says, taking a step away from Izuku and sulking after his friends. Izuku watches his back move, watches him pause in the doorway and turn his head back, a sneer on his lips.
"I meant it about UA, Deku . If you show up there, I'll kill you myself." Kacchan spits, the fluid landing on the floor in front of him. Izuku keeps a hand on his throat, panting as Kacchan shrugs and leaves the classroom, slamming the door behind him hard enough to rattle the desks closest to it. Izuku stares.
I died. He blinks, looks down at his hands. They don't look any different. He doesn't feel any different. His chest doesn't hurt, doesn't burn. His uniform is clean and dry. His notebook is gone, probably in the koi pond where he'd found it before. Unless that was a daydream?
Izuku's never been the daydreaming type before, not like that anyway. He shoves his shaking hands in his pockets and listens for the sounds of conversation, but Kacchan and his buddies seem to have already left. He sighs in relief, then makes his way over to the door and opens it. He walks down the hallway, just like before. Walks to the koi pond. His notebook is there, floating as the fish investigate.
"No," he whispers, pulling it out and shaking it off, not bothering to wipe it off this time. "Not for you guys." The fish don't reply, but they do swim away from where the notebook was, drifting idly in the little pond. Izuku stares at his reflection in the water, stained grey from the concrete below. He looks tired. Scared. Nothing abnormal.
He doesn't know what just happened. He tucks his notebook under one arm and starts walking away from the school, taking a different route than before. Did he really die? The afternoon looks the same as before, warm golden light spilling across the ground from the sun, shadows angled and low. He walks along a brick wall for a bit, his shoes scraping on the concrete sidewalk, before he pauses. Is he under the effects of someone's quirk?
He takes a breath, pauses. He doesn't have a dry notebook to write in right now, but he can think like he would when he's writing. What does he know?
He knows he left school already once today. He knows he was attacked by a villain in the tunnel on the way home. He knows he didn't fight back, and as a result, he died. He knows he didn't actually die. He knows Kacchan reacted to him acting strangely. What doesn't he know?
He doesn't know if any of this is actually what happened. He doesn't know if he's under the effects of a quirk, or if he is, whose quirk that would be. He doesn't know if fighting back against the villain would make any difference.
Izuku does know one thing. If he wants to know if that was real, if that villain was actually there at the end of the tunnel, he's only got one way to find out. He turns on his heels and walks in the direction of the tunnel. His survival instincts scream at him not to; he's already died once! But Izuku doesn't want to leave this unsolved. After all, he'd already "died" once, if this is actually happening. Some small part of him doesn't mind. He wonders if he'd be missed, but then he shakes his head. Of course, his mom would be devastated. He marches onward, turning on a familiar side street. He'll approach from the end of the tunnel the villain had been waiting in last time. Or at least he thinks. He wishes he'd been paying more attention last time, but...
He remembers Kacchan's words. (If he actually said them. Who's to say this isn't all Izuku's overactive imagination?). He remembers being told to take a swan dive off the roof . He remembers the sneer on Kacchan's face, the amusement of his friends. Izuku hopes that wasn't real, but something ugly in him twists and whispers that Kacchan would say that to someone like you .
He sees the tunnel entrance, and it looks a little odd to be facing this direction in the afternoon. Normally when he goes through it from this side, it's morning, with the sun behind him and not crowning the top of the bridge above in an orange-yellow halo. He squints against the light. Hopefully, the villain didn't leave in the time it took Izuku to make this decision. He's not sure what he'd do if he couldn't confirm or deny that he'd died and, well. Come back? He's not sure what to call it, to be honest.
Izuku sees the villain before it sees him this time. It's a mass of sludge already, meaning it likely didn't have a human form except for those eyes and that mouth. He gasps a little when he sees it slide out of the tunnel, and he covers his mouth too late, the villain's eyes swivelling to focus on him. The villain's mouth contorts into a wide, ugly grin, and Izuku hears a familiar voice.
"Perfect! A medium sized body to hide in..." The villain rushes forward at him at that point, and even though Izuku braces himself, the impact still hurts. He covers his mouth and nose with his hands, writhing as the sludge wraps around him, squeezing. It's oddly dry for a sludge quirk, not sticking to his clothes so much as enveloping him. Izuku takes a deep breath of air before the sludge wraps around his hands where they guard his mouth and nose, and his hands ache from strain as the sludge tries to push itself between his fingers.
"Smart fucking kid," the villain growls. "Stop resisting. It's only gonna hurt more if you make me wait," he says, and Izuku thrashes harder at that, remembering the horrible choking sensation. Holding his breath like this is better, so much better.
Even so, he can feel his limbs starting to grow weak. He can't pull his head out of the grip, even when he tosses his head back hard enough to make his neck ache. He thinks, hysterically, that he's going to die again. He can feel his eyes fill with painful ears, his chest burning from the lack of oxygen. His head starts to fill with fuzziness, and he realizes that the villain was right. It did hurt more to resist.
Just as Izuku feels his limbs go limp, he hears a familiar voice. "Fear not, kid! For I am here!" All Might's voice rings out, and the hero punches the sludge villain hard enough that Izuku can feel the force as the villain is knocked off of him. He keeps his hands over his mouth and nose, gasping desperately for breath. He watches two tears hit the sidewalk below, turning it dark in two little circles, before he hits the ground. He tries to get up, but he's shaking too hard, dizzy and weak. He recognizes that he's lying on his side, limp, but he's not totally unconscious. Is he going to die anyway?
"Hey, hey," All might says, voice quieter, and he taps on the side of Izuku's face. "Hey, kid!" He says, a little louder, and it seems to be enough to wake Izuku's body up, and he opens his eyes the rest of the way.
"Oh, thank goodness!" All Might says with a grin, standing up. Izuku pushes himself up onto his elbows, staring up at the hero. "You're okay! Excellent!"
"Wha--"
"I'm sorry for getting you caught up in my villain hunt!" All Might cuts him off, putting both hands on his hips. "But my success here is all due to you!" He says, grinning and holding up a bottle of familiar green sludge. "I've contained the villain!"
Izuku blinks, then feels his face split in a grin as he hops to his feet. "Wow! O-Oh," he reaches for the half-destroyed notebook where it fell on the ground. "C-Can I-I get...?" he trails off, staring at the autograph already on the notebook.
"Thank you!!" He shouts, bowing to All Might. He straightens up to see the hero walking away from him.
"Now, I must get this to the authorities," All Might says, not even looking back at Izuku. He crouches down in what Izuku knows is his stance when he's preparing for a jump, and Izuku's legs move without him telling them too. He sprints at All Might, wrapping his arms around the hero's leg just in time as the hero shoots through the air. Izuku has to close his eyes against the rush of wind.
"H-Hey!" He hears All Might's voice, muffled by the wind. "I appreciate the enthusiasm, but this is too much!" He kicks his leg a little. "Get down!"
"I-If I let go now, I-I'll die!" Izuku shouts as a reply, his voice warped from the way the wind makes his lips and cheeks flap around.
"Right," All Might says, and Izuku sees him grimace. "Well hold on, and shut your eyes and mouth!"
Izuku complies, and he abruptly realizes that he's holding on to All Might's leg! He feels a rush of adrenaline push through him as they land on what looks like a rooftop. He opens his eyes and releases All Might, looking up to see his idol leaning on the railing of the roof, facing away from him.
"U-Um, I h-have something I n-need to ask you...." Izuku says, and All Might glances back at him.
"I don't have time!" All Might says, crouching slightly, like he's going to jump again.
"Can s-someone-- Can someone become a h-hero, even without a quirk?" Iziuku gasps it out, taking a step towards his hero and squeezing his eyes shut, not willing to see the look on All Might's face. He just-- he needs to hear this. He needs someone to tell him he can be a hero.
He starts to mutter about why he wants to be a hero, about All Might, saving people with a smile. He opens his eyes, and All Might is gone.
"A-An imposter?!" He shouts, taking a step back. "You're an imposter?!" He asks the skeletal form, and its dark eyes track to his face, grimacing at him.
"No," he replies, and Izuku takes another step back. "I am All Might."
"Y-You're all shriveled up..." he replies, his voice barely a mumble, and he sees blood at All Might's mouth.
"You know how guys at the pool are always sucking in and flexing and try to hold their buff? I'm like that." All Might says, and Izuku gapes.
"No way..." he replies, staring at the skeletal person in front of him. He does resemble All Might, but in the same way that chopsticks resemble telephone poles.
"I'm counting on you to keep your mouth shut. Don't go talking about this online or telling your friends," All Might says, and he turns his head away from Izuku and lifts his shirt up with one hand.
The scar he reveals is horrible, like he was grabbed at the chest and twisted . It's red and angry, with the veins visible under the thin skin, but the worst part is how sunken in it is. Izuku covers his mouth with a hand to stop himself from gasping at it, and All Might lets his shirt flutter back down with a sigh.
"Pretty gross, right? I got this from a big fight five years back. My respiratory system was basically destroyed. I lost my whole stomach. All the surgeries have pretty much worn me out and it can't be fixed. Right now, I can only do hero work for about 3 hours a day. The rest of the time, this is what I look like." He turns away from Izuku again.
"Five years ago?" Izuku mumbles. "D-Does that mean the fight with Toxic Chainsaw...?"
All Might glances back at him and chuckles. "No, no. You know your stuff, but Toxic Chainsaw isn't strong enough to do something like this. The fight with... with this person, it was never publicized. I did everything I could to keep it under wraps. I'm supposed to be the guy who always smiles, right? I'm the symbol of peace, people everywhere have to think that I'm never afraid. But honestly, I smile to hide the fear inside." He cracks a painful-looking smile. "It's just a brave face I put on when the pressure is high. This job isn't easy."
He frowns. "Pro heroes are always having to risk their lives. Some villains just can't be beaten without powers. So no, I honestly don't think you can be a hero without a quirk." He meets Izuku's eyes, and Izuku tries not to cry. He feels the tears rising, biting at his eyes, but thankfully All Might turns away from him.
"If you want to help people, there's plenty of other ways to do it. You can become a police officer. They get crap because the heroes capture most of the villains, but it's a fine profession. It's not bad to have a dream young man, just... make sure your dreams are obtainable, realistic, understand?" All Might rambles on, coughing a bit when he finishes, but Izuku can't process the words. He can't be a hero. If All Might said it, it must be true, right? He can't be a hero.
An explosion rings out from behind him, probably a few blocks away, but still loud enough to make him gasp. All Might turns, grits his teeth.
"I have to go check that out," he says, not even looking at Izuku. "You knock on the door and I'm sure the people downstairs will let you in if it's locked." He doesn't make eye contact, just puffs back into his muscle form and coughs before jumping away. Izuku just stares.
Izuku wonders, briefly, if he could have said something different. If he'd worded it differently. Maybe if he'd taken down the villain himself, instead of waiting. He wonders if he'd get a second chance, if he died. He looks around. The building is taller than the others around, and all of the other roofs are empty. All Might probably landed here because it was tall.
The only thing stopping him is a chain link fence around the perimeter of the roof. Izuku walks up to it, climbs it. The metal digs into the flesh of his hands, and he pauses at the top. What if he doesn't wake up, like last time? What if he doesn't die ?
He looks down, and his head swims sickeningly at the distance. Oh, he'll die. He doesn't stop to let himself have more time to think about this. He scrambles over the edge of the chain link fence and steps onto the thin ledge between him and the (ten-story? More? He can't tell.) fall. He takes a deep breath and jumps.
As he falls, he lets himself think about it. He lets himself think that if he wakes up, if things go back again, it means that he does have a quirk. It means he really can take a swan dive off a roof and hope for better luck in his next life. It means that all along, he's been useless and worthless because he hasn't died yet .
He hits the ground.
--
Izuku opens his eyes, expecting Kacchan's hand on his shoulder and the fluorescent lights of his classroom, but instead the wind blowing across the roof whips against his face. He's staring at the chainlink fence, from where he was standing when All Might jumped away. He sees the clouds drifting across the sky, high above the buildings, tinted orange with the setting sun. He blinks.
He has a quirk. The thought is foreign to him, and he doesn't know what to think other than he has a quirk! It didn't make sense, really. He'd been diagnosed quirkless at age five based on the fact that despite him lacking the extra toe joint, a battery of tests hadn't revealed any evidence of a quirk. He was told that this just happens, sometimes. It's caused by two quirks canceling each other out completely, or by having a latent quirk so weak it was undetectable. Sometimes, too, genetics regress. A quirked family might have a child that lacks the genes for a quirk but kept the evolved toes. He should pick a different dream. Nobody's quirks had ever manifested past the age of six, anyway.
He'd held out until his sixth birthday before he had let himself believe it, and here he was, 14 and learning of his quirk for the first time.
Izuku couldn't die. He sits down on the concrete rooftop, breathes. If he does, he's taken back to shortly before the event. He's not sure how far back it will go, though. Does it depend on what killed him?
He starts to take out his notebook to write in it when the sound of another explosion catches his attention. He looks in the direction it came from just in time to see another one, bright and flashy. It looks kind of familiar.
Before he knows what he's doing, he's rushing in the direction of the blasts. He doesn't think he wants to analyze the heroes working the rescue, not after what just happened anyway. It wouldn't feel right. But he still finds himself running along the streets, towards the sounds of a struggle. He feels his heart beating fast in his chest as he rounds the corner to see that same sludge villain. He gasps.
He recognizes it, and he stands on his tiptoes to see over the crowd. There's a shock of blonde hair in the villain's grasp, and Izuku feels dread gather in the pit of his stomach. Did he make All Might drop the bottle when he grabbed onto him? If so, this would be his fault.
He sees the boy in the villain's grasp twist, grabbing a breath of air just as another volley of explosions go off. Izuku finds his breath taken away when he recognizes Kacchan, his face red from exertion and damp from sweat. Why weren't the heroes stepping in?
Izuku glances around desperately, only to see a hero working to put out the fires and another gathering civilians, but none of them helping Kacchan. He doesn't even think; his legs carry him on his own as he pushes through the crowd and runs at the villain.
He doesn't know what to do, though, and when he gets to the villain, it's ready for him. It slams a mass of thick sludge into his face, knocking him into the asphalt. A burst of red hot pain erupts on the side of his head, and woozily, he pulls himself up. The villain is right in front of him, Kacchan's struggles making the sludge writhe and bubble. The villain lurches towards him, and a flash of an explosion is the last thing he sees.
--
When Izuku blinks his eyes open, he's back on top of the roof. He swears he can still feel the heat of the explosions, but this time he doesn't hesitate to run down the stairs, through the streets. He rushes at the villain again, this time from the side, but Kacchan's quirk kills him before he can even get close.
--
On the third try, he takes a second to blink the sunspots out of his eyes before he moves. The roof is as quiet and windy as ever, and Izuku can hear the sounds of Kacchan's quirk, like before, but he doesn't rush. He sits down and opens his notebook, flipping through the pages.
He's delighted to see that it's all still legible, at least for him reading his own handwriting, anyway. He flips through the pages, looking for anything he'd written down about villains similar to this one. His heart thumps in his chest, and he wants nothing more than to get down there, to save Kacchan, but he doesn't. He doesn't get up, even though he remembers how it felt to have the villain choking you while you fought back, remembers the desperate plea in Kacchan's eyes. He doesn't move, because he knows from personal experience that he will die if he doesn't go in with a game plan. If he takes too long, well, he'll just kill himself and rewind.
Izuku finds a page in his journal, just a half filled one, but it's what he needs. It's over an intern, a hero-in-training who can turn herself into water, all except for her head. It's a good power, but he's written down the weaknesses, including the fact that her head clearly being solid gives it away as her weak point. Seeing it, written so plainly, Izuku feels dumb. He gathers up his bag and his notebook and runs to the scene, hoping he'll get there in time and won't have to die to make this work.
The scene isn't any different from last time, except there's more fire and the crowd watching has grown bigger. Izuku feels a swell of anger at that as he pushes through the crowd. The heroes are right here, and they haven't done anything. They're watching Kacchan choke and die, and they aren't moving because they aren't a good match . Izuku bites his lip to stop himself from making a face. He forces his way through the barrier, ignoring shouts behind him, and lobs his backpack at the villain's eyes.
He sees it hit out of the corner of his eye as he whips around to glare directly at Kamui Woods. "The eyes," he pants, pointing at the sludge villain and praying Kamui listens to him and moves before the villain recovers. "Hit it in the eyes."
Kamui's eyes widen slightly and he nods, whipping out two wooden branches to smack the villain in its eyes, right as it opens the one Izuku's backpack had hit. The pain seems to be enough, and Kacchan struggles free, dropping onto the ground gasping for air. The ground around him crackles with the force of the explosion he lets off, and then he's on his feet, stumbling towards the police officers that are grabbing onto Izuku and pulling him back.
Kacchan makes eye contact with him as the other heroes jump into the fray, apparently spurred on by Kamui fighting the villain. Without Kacchan setting off new explosions, it looks like the fire isn't a big issue for them. Izuku stares as Kamui wraps a wooden tendril around the sludge villain's mouth like a gag.
"Hey, kid," the officer next to him says, nudging him. "You alright? You really shouldn't cross police barriers."
Izuku looks up and nods. "I'm okay. Sorry."
The officer shrugs. "You had a smart idea." He looks back over at the fight, and Izuku slips behind him, pushing back into the crowd. A couple of people say something to him, but he ignores it, walking away from the scene. He'll get his backpack later, when the fires have gone out. His notebook is plenty burned already. For right now, all he wants to do is sleep.
A hand on his shoulder stops him, and he turns to see the skeleton form of All Might.
"Kid," All Might says. "You've got a good head on your shoulders." He sighs. "I know I was harsh earlier, but... you'd make a really good detective. Don't let your dream get in the way of your potential." He smiles at Izuku, but it looks creepy in this form.
Izuku smiles back, but it doesn't reach his eyes. "It's okay. Thank you, All Might," he says, then brushes the hand off of his shoulder and walks away.
He doesn't need All Might's approval, not anymore. He isn't quirkless. He has a quirk, and he isn't going to let it go to waste.