Subdue - B_O_M_B - 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia (2024)

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

xXXThe man had a quirkless younger brother

This brother was small and fragile,

But he had a strong sense of justice.

And the deeds of his big brother pained him…

…so he opposed the tyrant. XXx

I’m cold.

That had been Tomura’s first thought, when he had come back.

He claimed a cape of some hero, the material resting warm on his shoulders.

Something was different, he was different, but…

Do… it…

Closing his eyes, he focused in on the strange sense of other that had melded with his being. It was familiar, as if he and his sensei had become one. But no- that wasn’t quite right either. It felt like the quirk itself- after years of being molded into the weapon of choice, had started to reflect the desires of Sensei’s heart.

And it wanted-

Frail. Flash of white hair. Weak. Determined gaze. Quirkless.

Shigaraki blinked, unfamiliar with the image that appeared in his head and yet knowing who it was. Or who they had been. All For One rose in his mind, a yawning need building within him as he thought of his little brother. Foolish boy- never listening to him, always desiring to be a hero.

But that inspired a different image; of green eyes, a trembling neck held in his grasp, power flashing over destroyed limbs. Kind, honest.

Vulnerable.

The other within him shifted, and suddenly the two images connected as one, no different than the other. The yearning to reclaim his family echoed towards a new target (the same target).

His concentration broke as Endeavor appeared like a flaming vessel of retribution, but Shigaraki was not dissuaded.

Activating ‘search’, Tomura looked out over the expanse of desolation he had created- seeing an all too familiar glimmer that caused a smile to break across his face. Surely, fate was playing right into his hands.

“Found you.”

Izuku raced across the crumbling city, heart pounding loud in his ears as he fought against dread.

He’s coming.

That’s what the first user’s voice had said only moments ago- along with the distinct feeling of Shigaraki’s focus fixating on him. He couldn’t explain it, he just understood instinctively that Tomura knew where he was. Endeavor’s words across their comm channels simply confirmed his fears.

He was after One For All.

You have to stop him.

Bakugo stayed close to his side as they put immediate distance between them and the innocent lives too near. Midoriya brought a hand to the comm, relaying his decision. “This is Deku- please excuse this use of a private channel!” Taking a breath, he leapt further into the air as the phantom feeling of Tomura’s focus continued to follow like a physical weight. “There’s a possibility that Shigaraki is after me!”

“What on earth are you saying!?”

“I’ll explain later!” Nimbly, Izuku kept leaping across the desolated city, Bakugo keeping a wary eye towards the epicenter of the destruction where the hospital once stood. Less than half the heroes that had been on the scene were accounted for right then- and who knows whether they had been buried in the rubble, or…

No. Focus on the present. Focus on what you can do for everyone! Less than a year ago, he was a quirkless nobody with dreams that were too big. Now, he a hero in training destined to fulfill All Might’s legacy.

And he would uphold that legacy. Whatever it took.

“This cloud of dust is too much! We can’t see Shigaraki from here!” Deku had to yell to be heard over the crashing and rumble of destroyed buildings. “Is there anything you can do to redirect him?” He called into the earpiece, knowing that the diversion would be all for nothing if Tomura didn’t take the bait. Not that he was too worried.

Izuku did not doubt that the crazed villain would come right for him.

Endeavor, who was a barely visible flicker of flame from their location, made to argue before being cut off, shouting in surprise. “He’s on the move- headed southwest!”

Good- he won’t move against the citizens as long as we keep him out of range! Even though this is exactly what Izuku wanted; what he needed to happen in order to protect the citizens and his friends still evacuating, he couldn’t help the growing buzz of unease in his stomach.

Endeavor barked out orders to the other heroes, providing what diagnostics he could on the villain’s new abilities. As one, him and Bakugo leapt across the falling rubble, staying one step ahead as much as they could. The idea of being caught in that monster’s grip, like what had happened back at the mall all those months ago, kept Izuku from feeling the strain under his constant leaps. We can do this- if we just keep everyone safe, take him on together until the other heroes arrive, we can stop him!

All at once, their earpieces filled with static. Izuku didn’t even have time to wonder what happened before a dark form appeared before them.

It felt as if the world slowed- the stale, painful emitting of Tomura’s quirk grew to a crescendo around him, threatening to eat away at their forms before they could even be touched. Red eyes narrowed on Deku while ghostly, chapped lips whispered words with surprising clarity among the deafening silence. “It echoes in my mind… ‘Aquire it’…” The deadly hand extended forward. “One For All.” Tomura’s appearance was so sudden, so fast, that it left the ninth holder too shocked by his nemesis to react as a hero would. “Give it to me, Izuku Midoriya!”

For a moment, the world shifted, and Izuku saw someone else standing in place of Tomura- a familiar shadowed silhouette, reaching to control his little brother.

Before his life could be ended by the touch of death, a gloved hand grasped his wrist, jerking him away from danger. Bakugo? But his friend was right beside him in the same situation, just as surprised. It wasn’t until he took in the yellow boots and elderly features that Izuku connected the dots. “Gran Torino!”

While he felt relief from being saved, he couldn’t help but wince as the senior began rebuking them immediately, careening through the air at a reckless pace. “You were going to try and fight that thing?! As you are now, he’s not an opponent you can even hope to beat!” He shook their held arms in aggravation. Bakugo opened his mouth to argue, but the bellow of a familiar dragon form had the boys looked back to see Ryukyo burst from the rubble, tackling the villain in a flurry of hard scales and sharp talons.

Izuku shouted, fearing any moment he would see the great hero fade to dust, but she stayed as strong as ever, tackling her opponent with unbridled intensity. A whoop from Katsuki brought the younger hero’s attention towards the ground, where they could see Eraser Head staring furiously up at the leader of the League of Villains, other pros moving to defend his position.

Torino’s right. Midoriya felt his heart swell with pride. There are heroes still standing- it’s not over yet!

Once Gran Torino deemed them safe for the moment, he set them down behind a sizable piece of wreckage. “For now, you’ll be fine here. I’m going back to be Eraser’s legs…”

“Wait- Are you saying we should just hide?!” Izuku raised his voice a bit higher than he should have, but there was no way, no way that they could just- just sit there waiting for Tomura to be defeated!

“It seems like that guy’s gotten All For One’s quirk transplanted into him…” The elder’s words stopped the first year short. The hero suddenly looked his age, expression resigned but determined. “If you end up losing One For All… consider that the worst outcome.”

Midoriya thought back to Endeavor’s transmission- the higher spread of Shigaraki’s ‘decay’, the accelerated regeneration, superior strength and speed…

The strange vision he saw only moments before.

(“Give it to me, Izuku Midoriya!”)

They were in more danger than he realized.

Izuku knew Torino was right- that the capture of his quirk would mean generations of bearers, the accumulation of nine heroes, would all have died for nothing. He had to consider the importance of being able to carry on All Might’s legacy; but if Tomura really did inherit All For One, then-

Black figures started to erupt from the ruins, and with a jolt, they recognized the gurgle and screeching of nomu. As if summoned by some unheard order- they now set their sights on the already harried defenders. The largest of them moved purposefully towards the familiar figure of Aizawa-sensei. He stood his ground, gazing up furiously at Shigaraki while his hair danced wildly about his head, unable to look away to defend against the oncoming attack.

Ryukyu and Rock Lock moved to intercept, several other pros doing their best to form a protective barrier around their vulnerable member. While Endeavor led the brunt of the assault. But Tomura took note of this-

And moved to take care of Eraser himself.

“Dammit!” Torino cursed under his breath. He flew off, looking back over his shoulder once last time. “You two, hide!!”

But the boys could already tell- Torino had taken off too late. Despite his best efforts, he was well past his prime, and the elderly hero couldn’t move quick enough to make it in time. Shigaraki dodged between the pros with inhuman speed, turning his focus on Aizawa, moving in to lash out and remove him from existence-

Izuku’s legs were moving before he even thought, his quirk igniting to match the determination in his heart.

One moment he was standing in the rubble, the next plowing into the Tomura’s back and throwing him to the side. The pale haired man turned, furiously staring him down for interrupting his kill. Izuku matched the glare with his own. I won’t sit by while you hurt those most important to me! Midoriya deftly leapt over the enemy- leaving an opening for Bakugo who had followed him back onto the field.

“LET’S GOOO!” Ground Zero released a succession of concussive bombs, sending debris and shrapnel flying in all directions.

Yet Shigaraki stayed where he was, allowing the powerful heat to engulf him and instead countering with a blast of ‘air cannon’, nullifying the Katsuki’s efforts. Tomura smirked, moving in to engage the firey student.

No! Not Kacchan! Still running high on the need to protect those close to him, he sent out black whips on instinct- the new quirk wrapping around his opponent’s arm and torso.

Izuku realized his mistake moments later though, as Tomura used the hold to pull him forward- straight to his out reaching arms-

Midoriya’s interception was blocked once more by the timely arrival of Endeavor.

Frantically correcting his landing, he leapt back towards Bakugo. Both were panting, realizing this ensuing brawl already had too many close calls. The world around them had now settled into a landscape of ruin- no streets or building recognizable from the proud civilization it once was. He destroyed all this in less than an hour, and still he’s going strong! Doing his best to settle his breathing, Deku got back in a ready stance. We have to stop him somehow!

The familiar shift of Shigaraki’s gaze fell back on him.

Whatever procedure Shigaraki had gone through to gain his inhumane strength had left a physical toll on his features, and the battle wasn’t helping. Despite accelerated healing, Izuku could see his skin cracking, literally splitting from the crown of his skull down to his right eye. The villain didn’t seem to notice or care. Tomura wasn’t even acknowledging the pros anymore- just staring Izuku down with that possessive grin crossing his face.

That smile was frighteningly familiar.

“Isn’t it about time you gave up?”

Midoriya blinked, the echo of his past vision of All For One dissipating in time for him to see Shigaraki pressing forward once more at inhuman speed- his focus trained solely on Deku. “One For All…” He leapt forward, grin breaking apart his face “Give it to me… Little brother!”

The pro heroes moved to intercept, but the head of the League of Villains once again dodged from their grasp. Deku reacted to the approaching menace on instinct, releasing a St. Louis Smash that would have caved in the face of anyone else.

But his fist merely hit air.

A dry, deceivingly strong arm wrapped around his waist, and within moments the world was blurring around them- Tomura swiftly moving to get away. Izuku twisted around, a yell falling from his lips as he tried to break the hold of his kidnapper. “Put me down! Let go!”

“Aww.” The teen only tugged the smaller body closer, expression giddy as he looked down at his wide green eyes. It unnerved Izuku how confident he had become with his new power. “Don’t be like that, little brother. It’s time for you to come home.”

Chapter 2

Chapter Text

Shigaraki had underestimated his little brother.

Before, even though his brother had been well into adulthood, he had been frail, helpless in a way that had constantly left him worried (their brother would never be safe, not if he left their protection. He had to be kept, for his own good.).

This version of his brother was smaller, unsure of himself, and terribly gullible based on the history of their interactions.

Tomura failed to consider how resourceful both incarnations were.

He hadn’t gotten more than a few miles away from the persistent heroes before Deku twisted under the arm confining him, locking his hands together so Shigaraki’s right arm was stuck between, then somersaulted forward. A sharp spike of pain went through Tomura’s arm as the momentum of Midoriya’s action twisted the trapped limb, and on reflex he released his hold.

He could only watch, shocked, as the wannabe hero threw Tomura forward by controlling the still locked arm. The next moment, the smaller boy was climbing onto his back, pinning the arm painfully between his shoulder blades while his fingers grasped at nothing.

Huh.

He could have pushed his free arm around to use air canon, but the momentum from the attack would spin him out of control even if it did manage to throw the little monkey off. He could only maneuver the free hand beneath him as they started to drop, preparing to slow down his descent with the newer quirk.

Midoriya had other plans, though. When the earth grew close, Tomura was swiftly released and leapt off of- the momentum of the takeoff turned him to face the sky until he crashed hard enough to leave a human sized crater.

That little f*cker. Shigaraki wanted to be angry, because even now some phantom part of him remembered the boiling resentment for this hero-worshipping brat. He should have been mad, but-

He was always such a clever boy.

Pausing only a moment to let regeneration kick in, Shigaraki smoothly stood once more, his confidence ruffling the hero who had landed several feet away. “Now, now. Don’t be so fussy. We can hash out things once we get home.”

The first year fell into a defensive pose, looking determined despite the evident tension. “I’m not going home with you- and I won’t let you have One For All, Shigaraki!”

Tomura felt his skin crack again from his wide smile. “Oh, but you will.” Izuku started side stepping, maneuvering himself apparently to better ground. Sensei’s apprentice humored him, turning to follow and keep Midoriya in his sights. “It’s been a long, long time. But I will reclaim that quirk. And then I’ll keep you with me, you’ll never get away again.”

The first year paused, expression confused. “K-Keep me? But you…” He trailed off, tightening his stance.

Shigaraki knew what he meant to say; you wanted to kill me.

He had- before. But knowing now who Izuku is changed things. It had been so long… so lonely to bear the most powerful quirk without his little brother by his side.

“Nii-san, can I stand by you? Can I be a hero even if I don’t have a power?”

No. While it hurt knowing that this little brother idolized All Might- the wretch who had gotten so close to destroying him- to taking everything away that he had worked so hard for. Even knowing this, he couldn’t hold it against Izuku.

After all, their little brother had always chosen his heroes poorly.

Izuku finally halted his movements. Whatever fear he may have felt earlier had been carefully masked. He now glared at the King of Villains, the glimmer of determination in his eyes wonderfully familiar. “I don’t care what you say. I won’t let you win!”

Shigaraki grinned at his naivety, opening his mouth to counter before freezing.

While they had paused, the heroes had still been pursuing.

There was a sudden amount of heat building towards his back- and it made the bearer of All For One realize something.

Midoriya hadn’t been moving just for stable ground.

He had been moving Tomura to look away.

Shigaraki dodged to the side on instinct, the air pulsing hot with the shockwave of Endeavor’s attack. Deku took advantage of the distraction enough to leap forward and send a kick directly into the assailant’s gut, tossing him aside. Reckless. He reached despite the pain, but Izuku twisted himself away just in time.

“HEY DICK HEAD!”

Ah. Bakugo had caught up.

Gritting his teeth, he activated ‘air cannon’ to negate most of the attack, but was still blown quite a distance, right back to a grimly attacking Number One hero. A quick glance showed that Izuku had been pushed effectively behind Bakugo, acting as a barrier. Well, guess a few heads will have to roll before I get my way. Something manic shuttered across the villain’s features- but the expression was quickly replaced by a condescending smirk as he fell into the motions of dodging the firey hero. “Hmm… Endeavor, you’re becoming a bad nuisance.”

Even though Endeavor pushed forward with all he had, Tomura kept slipping through his grasp. Worse, he was starting to move offensively, refusing to back off.

Izuku was trying to stay focused on the fight, but his mind was going a mile a minute. How to counter the attacks, how to limit the damage to the environment, Shigaraki’s words to him before the others had caught up.

“I will reclaim that quirk. And then I’ll keep you with me, you’ll never get away again.”

He took another focusing breath, trying to stop the absolute wave of dread that seemed to come with those words- he shouldn’t dread hearing something like that, it didn’t make any sense. More than likely, it was a psychological tactic to unnerve him and throw him off. Though, now that he thought about it, the behavior was somewhat off the rails and it made it hard to plan for a counter measure when Shigaraki was moving outside of the perceived goals he had set-

“Oi, idiot, stop mumbling to yourself!”

Jerking, Izuku realized he had zoned out. “S-sorry Kacchan!”

“Loser; don’t let him get to you! And don’t be such a f*cking easy target!” Bakugo shifted his focus back to the battle royale- Enji Todoroki wasn’t giving ground, but he couldn’t seem to get any closer to defeating Shigaraki. They both just kept attacking, over and over. How had neither of them weakened yet?

We have to help them! Midoriya moved forward, but the pyro shoved him back. “What the hell are you doing, dipsh*t.”

Deku frowned, not understanding Bakugo’s hesitation. “We’re the only heroes within the area that can fight him! Everyone else is still handling the nomu and rest of the league- if we strategize-”

“You were out of sight.”

Izuku blinked. “H-huh?”

“Think, idiot. You were out of sight. Gran couldn’t keep up while holding Aizawa- I had to carry Manual. That f*ckface briefly got away with you wrapped under his sh*tty arm.” His voice grew gravelly with his suppressed fury. “So think.”

(“I’ll keep you with me, you’ll never get away again.”)

(“If you end up losing One For All… consider that the worst outcome.”)

“Ground Zero, Deku!”

Both first years turned towards their teacher, who couldn’t look away from the fight taking place. Gran had settled him some distance away, though it appeared to be out of exhaustion rather than strategic location. “You’re going to have to leave this to the pros.” Shouta continued. “Our communications are down, so run back and get the other heroes that can still fight, as fast as you can.”

“Aizawa-sensei, no!” Izuku immediately denied. Hiding before, surrounded by heroes, had been one thing. But now it was just them- Endeavor was managing for now, but they needed all the help they could get. Leaving the remaining heroes alone was dangerous.

“Don’t argue with your teachers, brat!” Gran Torino was clearly starting to tire- he must have pushed as hard as he could to catch them up when Izuku had been snatched. “Even if you did have a full license, you’re too inexperienced to be placed in this situation; someone has to find more help, and you two are the only ones we can use!”

Midoriya opened his mouth to argue further- but felt the sharp impact of Tomura focusing back on him. Looking towards the fight, dread churned his stomach as his eyes met narrowed red.

Had he heard?!

The gaze flicked away from him as black tendrils of dark energy suddenly shot out of Shigaraki’s arms, red electricity moving over their extending forms as it raced towards the fire hero.

Midoriya had seen this attack before- from a different user back in Kamino. “Endeavor, don’t let those touch you!! It’s his forced activation quirk!”

“f*ck.” Katsuki cursed, the quirk also triggering his memory.

The hero acknowledged Izuku’s words, avoiding the threatening appendages as best he could while sending out his own attacks. Tomura continued to dodge, smile frozen on his face. His words echoed back to the first years. “You know, Number One hero… You’ve really pushed me- I think it’s time I took you seriously, yeah?” The dark tendrils increased speed, lashing out viciously in search of their target. Seeing that Endeavor couldn’t stop them with fire, he took to the skies, using his quirk to dodge between the lashing energy.

That’s not going to work! Izuku thought, desperate. He needed to place more distance, but the vines were merging together, lengthening their extension through the fusion. None of them had time to call out a warning before the energy reached him, lashing tightly around a leg.

Bakugo and Midoriya moved to interfere, realizing someone had to help Shoto’s father. Endeavor screamed, red energy shooting into him as his fire quirk was forcefully activated. Gran Torino had set Eraser down and was leaping forward to help-

Burning, blindingly bright fire engulfed the Number One hero’s form- exploding out in a terrifyingly powerful flash fire. Izuku reacted on instinct, dragging Bakugo down behind part of a collapsed building as the fire fell over their position. For several, painful moments, their world was nothing but blinding light and heat. When attack ceased, Izuku managed to pull himself up, paling as he took in the damage.

Endeavor had dropped from the sky- once his attack had ceased and the tendril retreated, nothing held him in the air any longer. Nothing about him was burned thanks to his natural immunity, but he was winded from the impact on the ground and using so much of his quirk at once. Carefully, he pulled himself up, favoring one leg. His expression was one of shock, like he couldn’t comprehend how his quirk had just been used against him. Shaking, he met Izuku’s gaze, mouth gaping a moment before he could find the words. “Deku, Ground Zero! Are you…?”

Bakugo dragged himself up, anger hiding how unnerved he was. “f*cking focus old man- we’re fine!”

With a nod, his gaze roved across the debris towards the other heroes. At his gasp, Midoriya scrambled up and out of cover, trying to see what had caused the Number One hero to react that way.

It wasn’t good.

Torino had been cast aside by the initial shockwave- he lay unmoving within the crumbled remains of some office building. Hopefully just knocked out, but here was no way to tell from their distance. Manual had clearly tried to erect a water shield against the attack- but it had evaporated in the wake of the powerful fire quirk. He was also unconscious, and Izuku could see that his face was red and blistering. Eraser Head-

Midoriya felt himself go cold, horrified.

Unlike Manual, Aizawa-sensei hadn’t been taken fully down. He knelt, still facing where Tomura had last been, burned hands clutching at his eyes while gritting his teeth against the pain. After a moment, he looked up.

His face was viciously red, cracked. His eyes had shut on instinct when the attack had first happened, but the skin had now melted the powerful eyes shut.

I-If we get them to Chiyo, if we hurry, maybe she can reverse the damage! Maybe-

“Endeavor!” Shouta managed to shout, voice raw. “I can’t see! I can’t erase his quirk!”

No. Izuku looked back to Endeavor, who was starring horrified at his colleagues that he had hurt, distracted from the danger in front of him. No no no! Shigaraki moved just as the young hero called out. “ENDEAVOR, LOOK OUT!”

The Number One hero reacted to the warning, dodging just in time as Tomura moved in with his hand outstretched. Crying out in fury, Enji lashed out with everything he had. The leader of the League of Villains was pressed to avoid the new onslaught of raging fire, but he kept his manic smile the whole time- clearly relishing the challenge.

Helpless, Bakugo and Midoriya watched from their vantage point as the two raged against one another. Shigaraki didn’t try to use his forced quirk activation again- he didn’t need to. They could see behind the fury that Endeavor was progressively getting sloppier. And yet Shigaraki stayed as strong as ever, dodging and flitting about like he was toying with the hero- turning him more and more aggravated as his fingers grew closer, dancing just shy of the flames.

We need to run. Izuku thought, faintly. Maybe, maybe if we go fast- but that would mean leaving Gran Torino, Manual, Eraser Head. They were all down; they all needed help!

“Ah man.” Tomura maneuvering out of range once more. “I was having a great time, ya know? It feels so good to let loose like this with you, Endeavor. But,” his eyes narrowed viciously. “You’re not my priority.”

Sensing the change, Endeavor threw out another powerful attack, the strongest he could. Webs of fire flared out, snaring the surroundings in a hungry embrace that scorched and burned away anything it touched.

But Shigaraki pushed through it, effortlessly, to shove his hand almost lightly against Endeavor’s chest.

Izuku gasped, Bakugo frozen next to him. At first Endeavor stumbled back, not comprehending, but his flames died as he looked down numbly, his uniform quickly disintegrating away to reveal cracking flesh. He moved his hands towards the hit, almost as if to test it was real, but stopped just short, unable to take his eyes away from death’s touch.

“You were a nice warm up, fire guy.” Shigaraki moved towards him once more, looking almost smug as the great hero collapsed to his knees. “Hmm. You put up a good fight. I guess as the villain I should ask: any last words?”

Coughing, blood splattered before the hero, the cracks now moving down his torso, but his neck. He looked up to the sky, seeing something none of them could. “S-Shoto… I’m sorry…”

Tomura shrugged, muttering “Huh. Weird choice.” Before bringing his hand forward and covering Enji’s face.

Izuku screamed, he knows he did, but he doesn’t remember much more than watching the remains of the Number One hero crumble to the earth, falling into a pile of dust and blood. The King of Villains stood over the murdered hero, gazing down with a manic expression.

He killed him. Todoroki’s father is- Todoroki. What would he do? He was probably still evacuating citizens and didn’t even know. Midoriya felt tears start to well in his eyes, as sob escaping him. He had started to tremble, and couldn’t stop- Endeavor’s death seemed to be on a static replay over and over in his head. How could he do this? The teen blurred before him, even as part of his mind knew he couldn’t cry; he needed to be strong. He killed him like it was nothing, like Endeavor was nothing.

As if sensing his gaze, Shigaraki’s head turned to look up at him, expression almost joyous. “Hey- All Might’s protégé. You crying over this dead guy? How foolish.”

“You f*cker…” Bakugo’s tone was banked with repressed wrath- but his eyes were too wide, his posture too tense to be mistaken for anything but fear. “You’re gonna f*cking die for this!”

“Now now, is that any way for a hero-in-training to talk?” He began moving towards them, pace slow and steady as he spread his arms wide. “Go on then, attack me. You think you can fight better than Japan’s Number One hero? You think you can survive?” His mouth opened to continue his taunts, but was cut off as a long, tough fabric wrapped hap-hazardously around his leg.

“Bakugo! Izuku!”

All three turned to look towards Eraser Head, who had staggered to his feet, capture weapon held tight in his grasp. He turned in the direction of his students, authority cracking with every word even as his blind gaze failed to land on them. “Run! Leave and find help; that’s an order!”

“S-Sensei!” Izuku took a step towards his teacher, hand outstretched. They couldn’t just leave him! They couldn’t-

“Listen to me for once, problem child!”

No. Izuku heard his heart pounding in his ears, terrified with indecision.

(“If you end up losing One For All… consider that the worst outcome.”)

“GO!” Shouta urged, pulling a short knife from his belt.

Terrified, knowing leaving now was sealing their teacher’s fate, both students fled quickly, dogged by the unfamiliar burden of fear.

“You really are a cool guy, Eraser.” Shigaraki tapped the capture weapon, watching the disintegration run back towards the underground hero. The moment the blind man felt his tape lose hold, he cut the fabric- not allowing the attack to reach him. “You really gave ‘Plus Ultra’, keeping your little students safe even while blind! Hey, maybe they’ll even get away?” Search flared strongly- not allowing him to lose sight of One For All. They were moving fast, but Tomura knew he could catch up.

And he would.

“I don’t know why you’re after Midoriya- but I won’t sit by and let you hurt any of my students.” Shigaraki smiled, openly admiring as he watched the UA teacher fight through the horrible pain he must be experiencing to listen for the villain’s approach, any small thing that could help him survive just a little.

Bit.

Longer.

“Hurt him? No no, I don’t want to hurt your student.” He scratched at his neck automatically, a reactive gesture even though his skin didn’t itch anymore. “To be fair, I did before. But-” He once again focused in on the strange symbiosis of All For One, the possessive instinct so ingrained in the quirk that it had melded to his own nature, his own thoughts. “-the game has changed, and I want Izuku to be on my side of the board. Even if that means having to snatch him back from you heroes.” He teased. “Before I can do that though, there’s one thing I need to take care of.”

He had come within range of Eraser Head, and the teacher acted in a well-practiced move to slice where he must have presumed Tomura’s throat to be. Gleefully, Shigaraki instead brought up his hand, letting the knife sink into his palm even as all five fingers fell over it. Through the pain, he watched Aizawa recognize the move and release the crumbling weapon. He sighed contently as muscle sinew and skin swiftly regenerated over his palm. Before Eraser could do anything else, Tomura’s recovering hand grasped him by the throat with only three fingers. The man grunted, but otherwise didn’t react. “You know something, cool guy?” He slowly let the fourth finger settle against blistering skin, lips cracking in protest of his smile as the fifth hovered closer.

“That’s a really nice quirk you have there.”

Chapter 3

Chapter Text

xXXThis power has been entrusted to the next generation by many people,

Praying that it would work for the good of all.

That all their hopes would become one.

It’s your turn now.XXx

Izuku and Bakugo were running as fast as they could- nothing about their actions subtle as explosions rang out and trees cracked under the weight up their leaps. They had only left their sensei to fight Shigaraki alone for a minute, maybe two. Almost immediately, Ground Zero had to blast Deku ahead to keep him moving in the right direction. (“We can’t go back, we’re not wasting Eraser Head’s help! So keep moving, sh*tty Deku!”) He had wanted to return so badly- to grab their mentors, to fight back. But Katsuki, of all people, seemed to acknowledge the truth Midoriya didn’t want to face.

There was no stopping Shigaraki. Not this time.

Izuku shook his head, pushing to keep pace with Bakugo as he fought hysteria. He couldn’t believe he was even thinking that, admitting such a terrible truth to himself. They didn’t have much time- the villain likely wouldn’t delay too long with their teacher (No! Don’t think about it, don’t think about it-) and would try to reach them before they found help. He didn’t want to doubt Eraser Head, but he was realistic. The confidence he had felt earlier was gone- the memory of Endeavor’s death playing over and over in his mind. The face of his sensei as he desperately ordered them to leave, the other heroes around him fallen.

(Don’t think about it. There’s nothing you can do, don’t think about it-)

What was the point of them going for help now? Shigaraki was too powerful; how could they even hope to defeat him with their numbers? Even now, as they moved back towards the hospital where hopefully the other heroes had subdued the nomu, he knew they wouldn’t have the manpower.

If we had Hawks, Edgeshot, Fatgum- we might have a chance!

But those heroes were hundreds of miles away- and even if someone had contacted them for help, they had their own villains to face; they couldn’t just break away- there were civilians to protect and consider!

He’s not attacking noncombatants yet. But he’s after me- and if I approach where the heroes are, there will be repercussions! Izuku pulled at his hair in aggravation, before catching himself and tearing his hands back down, trying to focus on their route.

(“Go on then, attack me. You think you can fight better than Japan’s Number One hero? You think you can survive?”)

He was the last bearer of One for All- if Tomura got him, killed him, then there would be no quirk strong enough to defeat him at any point; they would have utterly lost.

Which looped Izuku back to his realization: they could not stop Shigaraki. He would come after them- and without Aizawa-sensei to protect everyone from his newly long-range disintegration quirk, Tomura would most like kill hundreds, thousands without them being able to do anything. It would be the biggest massacre Japan had seen from any villain, ever.

We can’t stop him- but he will do whatever it takes to claim my quirk- I can’t defeat him- but I can’t allow him to win-

“What the f*ck are you doing, Deku?! We have to get to the others and bring back up!”

Izuku started slightly- realizing he had gotten distracted. He quickly caught up, watching Bakugo’s back. What can I do? Getting help would do nothing, that this point. They were holding out on an unlikely hope that Aisawa-sensei was-

Was-

What they were doing was pointless. They were running with no solution at the end. No chance. He looked down to his still clenched fists and a hard, painful thought struck him. He almost tripped on his next vault.

No. Not that- I can’t…

But the more he considered, the more he realized it was the only way. The analytical mind spun frantically, putting together a hazardous plan.

You know what you have to do.

With his left hand he searched until finally finding part of his hoody had gotten singed enough from the earlier fight that he could tear it off. After fussing with it a moment, he folded the cloth tightly over and over till it would carry the hidden item safely.

Now the hard part. He caught up to Ground Zero, maintaining a careful pace while trying to figure out how to say what he needed to. “Kaachan…”

Bakugo read his intentions immediately. He probably would have fired an explosion in his face under different circ*mstances.

“f*ck no, Deku-”

“If Aizawa-sensei and the other’s f-fail, Tomura will still be able to track me with ‘search’.” He briefly paused to focus on his next leaping point. His heart was pounding, aching with the decision he was making. Kaachan wasn’t even looking at him, expression bull headed. “Without Eraser Head, the heroes can’t safely engage him. But if I stay behind-”

“Shut the f*ck up, sh*tty Deku-”

“I- I can’t endanger the others like that.” He though of Ochako, Shouto. I told them I’d be right back. I guess I have to break that promise too. “If I stay behind, I can hold him off. Long… long enough for you to get out the message.”

“The f*ck you will! He wants you, nimrod! Are you just going to give yourself up on a silver platter?!”

“LISTEN.” Bakugo flinched in shock, and Midoriya was also surprised by the amount of force in his tone. “Please have faith in me, Kaachan. I won’t let him win.” He spotted a clearing and landed quickly, waiting as his classmate settled next to him. All Might’s legacy is what’s most important. It’s what can change the course of this battle. Brusquely, he grabbed his friend’s hand, ignoring the protests as he firmly placed the bundled cloth carefully in the gloved palm. “I-If something happens, you need to take this to Yagi-san.” His hand closed tight over the other’s, willing his focus into it. “Tell him that I gave this to you, I choose to give it to you.”

Bakugo looked frustrated, which was what passed for uncertain for him. “Why the hell are you giving me a sh*tty costume tear?”

There’s no time. “Protect it with your life, Kaachan. I’m depending on you. If you don’t make it back to me in time… bring it to All Might. He’ll… he’ll know what it means.” Will he understand why I did it? Will he forgive me? Midoriya blinked away the sudden tears that threatened.

Something passed over the hot head’s expression- something fearful in it’s understanding- but it was erased just as quickly. “…tch. You’re such a cry baby.” Deftly, he placed the balled cloth in one of his compartments, firmly shutting the case to make sure it was secure. “Man up- I’m gonna be back, and you better damn well still be alive so you can take your sh*tty rag back!”

Fighting to keep his lip from trembling, Izuku gave a firm nod.

Ground Zero took off without another word. He didn’t look back, instead aggressively igniting his quirk to push himself faster towards the remaining heroes.

Bye, Kaachan.

Izuku had maybe a minute to himself, and he surveyed the clearing to plan for the best course of action. He wasn’t as prepared as he would like- but if Bakugo succeeded in making it away, there was a chance this would all turn out alright. They’ll make it back in time; the heroes will come, and then it won’t even matter.

Midoriya felt the weight of Tomura’s focus well before the teen appeared. It was sharp, heavy, smothering against the comfort he drew from activating his quirk. It made him think back to the dream of the two brothers- of the first bearer’s confinement and isolation.

Shigaraki landed roughly within the field, manic red eyes scanning the field even while being carefully focused on Midoriya. “Well well well, what’s this? No Ground Zero hiding nearby- were you waiting for me to catch up, Izu-chan?”

Izuku ignored him, taking a step back as the elder teen moved forward. “Ah… I get it, you’re still playing hero. ‘If I stay back, the big bad villain won’t be able to hurt those people’, right?”

He gave the slightest of nods, thinking back to the others. With any luck Bakugo would be reaching them now.

“If you give me One For All, I can leave before they have a chance to be cannon fodder.”

Midoriya activated his quirk, the energy dancing across his skin. “It’s not your quirk to take, Shigaraki.”

The slight eagerness the villain was showing before cooled, a calculating look taking it’s place. “You think you’re doing the right thing, fighting against me. Why didn’t you do that earlier? It would have saved your precious teacher a lot of pain.”

Aizawa-sensei! “What did you do?!”

Tomura’s grin showed slightly bloodied teeth. “Oh, I think you know.”

Deku briefly imagined Aizawa-sensei- blind eyes looking up to the sky, mouth open in a silent scream like Endeavor’s had been as he faded away. Gritting his teeth, he fought against grief- his teacher had protected him to his last breath. And here I am, destroying that sacrifice. No, he couldn’t think like that. Heroes need to make tough choices. What he was doing was for everyone’s sake.

(Everyone but his own.)

“And there you go again, crying. Do you care that much, Deku? Were you going to be the best hero that saved everybody?”

The child felt fury build from that taunt, hating how close to the truth it was. “Shut up!”

Tomura sneered at the smaller figure. “You wanted to grow up and be just like All Might. But look how much help you were!”

“I said shut up, Shigaraki!”

“The Number One, the heroes trying to keep you safe, all gone. You weren’t any help at all, because you did nothing.”

Izuku felt the power of One For All explode across his skin. He dashed forward, crying out as he brought his fist up to wipe that smirk off Shigaraki’s face-

Only to feel One For All disappear from his grasp, a soft, dry hand trapping his before it could reach Shigaraki’s face. Pale strands of hair floated around the victorious red eyes.

He- he erased my quirk! Izuku didn’t feel horrified so much as enraged. He vaulted forward, smashing his skull against Tomura’s, barely feeling satisfaction when the villain released him. “I’ll never forgive you!”

Clutching at his head, Tomra’s expression became more subdued. “And I’ll never forgive anyone.”

Knowing he could only negate one quirk at a time, Izuku activated ‘black whip’, wrapping around the villain and then sending him flying into the trees. He briefly felt his quirk return, and leapt into the debris, using 35% to bring a smash down against the impact site. Peering through the dust, he tried to detect the villain’s location.

“Smart move. Let me try.”

One For All phased out just as he was blasted back towards the clearing from ‘air cannon’. Managing to send out ‘black whip’ to latch onto the trees, he caught himself before he could be accidentally skewered on a branch. Another air shot was sent out though, and his tenuous control was lost from the force, tumbling him away. He finally stopped, bruised and significantly scratched. Taking a moment to reorient himself and stand, he winced at the sharp pain in his left leg. I shouldn’t have lost my cool- I need to focus on distancing myself; if I can- a shadow appeared over his shoulder. Midoriya didn’t get a chance to turn before two pale hands grasped either side of his head.

“Hold still, little brother.”

Before Izuku could panic, or try to pull Tomura’s hands off, his body suddenly felt ignited by fire. Pain washed over him, growing and focusing on the point of contact between the two. Midoriya couldn’t stop the cry that escaped him; the pain was too much. Disintegration?! No- it didn’t feel like that. If felt like Shigaraki was clawing out his soul- like he was being ripped apart- something being taken-

Give… it…!

Give it back…!

Gasping, Izuku felt the light of One For All flicker within him. He’s using All For One to steal my quirk! He felt his gift flicker again, like being caught in a wind, before suddenly igniting with a ferocity, bursting over his form with a phantom chorus resounding

NO!

Tomura tumbled back, eyes widening in surprise. “I- I can’t take it?” He clenched his teeth, confusion settling over his features. “No- no, that quirk is mine. One For All is mine.”

“It’ll never be yours!” Izuku spat out instinctively. One For All could never be taken by force, only given. When Tomura registered his words, a look of absolute ravenous hunger broke across his face. It gave the boy a realization that he needed to place distance between them, to get away now. If I can blind him… Thinking fast, he crouched down, frayed gloves scooping up some of the loose soil. The villain had tensed at his action, reaching for him again just as Deku threw the dirt. The elder teen instinctively shut his eyes and turned to avoid most of the debris. Midoriya felt his quirk activate once more- he couldn’t lose this chance!

He made to leap away, but dark tendrils wrapped around his form, ignited with red energy. He grit his teeth against the pain as Shigaraki’s quirk attacked, forcing his own black whips to be conjured and tightly encircling him so he couldn’t move.

Couldn’t escape.

Wincing, he found that angry red eyes were focused back on him. Tomura’s expression was almost blank- nothing indicating his frustration save for the firm, angry line of his mouth. Izuku blinked, and the figure blurred to a taller form standing there, white curling hair cut short and not hiding the unnatural obsession of his brother’s gaze.

Do something… anything…! Familiar fingers wrapped around his neck. He didn’t feel the pain of Tomura’s quirk activate, but the killer wasn’t holding back his strength either. Gasping, Izuku struggled uselessly as he fought to claw against the one arm stopping his air flow. There was no escape- his body burned from the red electricity triggering his quirk, his lungs burning as he was denied air. Shigaraki just watched him struggle, teeth grit as his hair floated about his face, not allowing Deku the chance to escape through his quirk.

“You always fight me. Both times- every time. Why do you never listen?”

Izuku managed to let out a small sound of protest, but didn’t have enough oxygen to do much else- it was starting to get dark around the edges of his eyes, his body falling limp despite the pain.

The killer noticed. “No, no no no no- that’s thoughtless of me, you just can’t let go of those silly ideals. That’s okay, Izuku. You had to believe those stupid heroes. We weren’t there to protect you...”

He’s unhinged! The younger boy managed to think, feeling another wave up panic as the arm slowly lifted him higher, feet struggling for purchase. J-just hold on a little longer! He couldn’t take my quirk, so I just have to hold on… a little… longer…

Distantly, he heard Shigaraki continue speaking, but his sense of self started to fall away- only able to make out certain things. Sounds coming as if he were under water- of roaring and trees snapping. The weak relief when fingers left and he could breath again. A pained whimper escaping his bruised throat. The vague impression of being released from his own quirk, being held by slightly trembling arms.

The heroes… they’ll come… “Heroes…” Izuku tried to say it out loud, but found he had no energy.

He was tucked closer to his captor’s body. “Shh, you don’t need them anymore.” He managed to make out amidst the increasing calls and voices in the distance, before he fell away once more.

“I’ll be there now, little brother.”

Chapter 4

Chapter Text

Izuku awoke briefly, his body sluggish and heart pounding at the blurry sight of Shigaraki above him. Red eyes met his before looking towards someone else. Muffled words were spoken, but Deku couldn’t connect what they were until a gloved hand came and tapped him.

All went dark.

The world suddenly burst back into being, and he fell to the ground. Wherever he was, it wasn’t well lit. He could see the sun setting through a high window, sirens wailing in the distance. He vaguely recognized those around him. Toga. That lizard and fire guy. But his focus was taken by the far side of the room-

A door, open and unguarded.

He managed to rise and move away, no more than a few running steps, before several hands grabbed him, restraining him. He called instantly on One For All, but felt nothing.

Confused, half panicked, he struggled as whoever was holding him cursed, demanding someone get on with it.

With what?

A sharp pain came from one of the restrained biceps- and he didn’t think about it. One of Toga’s knives? That sword from that half-lizard villain? But after a few moments, his thought process grew fuzzier, and he realized he wasn’t fighting to get away so much as sagging in the arms of whoever had grabbed him.

A new set of hands took over, and Izuku recognized the feeling of those dry arms. “Careful, now. Had to give Compress a break. Luck… octor had several supply stas… there, won’t be long now...”

Shigaraki kept talking, more to the people around him than to the figure slumped in his arms, but it became harder and harder to focus. Stay awake… don’t… let them…

This time he didn’t even notice going under.

Eventually, the world righted itself. The blur of colors when he opened his eyes eventually took forms he recognized- a cot near the far wall, blankets still folded on top rather than made. A dusty, empty desk on the opposite side. His arms hung at head level- already numb from however long they were without circulation. Grimacing, he turned, the shackles jangling as he tried to test them before noticing the quirk suppressing cuffs. These are government issued, how…?

The room was clearly a cell- the opposing wall to him steel bars criss-crossing to hold him prisoner. One part of the wall clearly slid along a track when not locked in place. A door, then.

How long had he been out? Where was this? What had-

He pulled reflexively on the chains again as footsteps echoed from outside of the room, approaching him. Weakly, he drew his legs under him and used the resistance from the chains to raise himself, glaring towards where the steps were coming from.

The weight of Tomura’s gaze was on him long before their eyes met.

He looked better- settled in a dark outfit with a rather dramatic trench coat. An attempt had been made to comb the hair, and it now lay gently around his face rather than a frazzled mess. As he stepped through the prison door (He placed his hand on a pad beforehand. User activated- no password.), Izuku could see there was some binding peeking out from the collar of the shirt, but otherwise nothing about him that hinted to the battle he had instigated.

“Please, don’t stand on my account.” The villain murmured; voice sly with enjoyment. “I can see you’re still not feeling quite yourself, eh?”

Asshole. It was true- he couldn’t seem to control the tremble in his legs, and he wasn’t sure if that was from their battle, or a side effect of whatever sedative had been used on him. Izuku only narrowed his eyes, not responding.

The villain gestured airily. “Welcome home. Or as close as we’re getting for now.”

Not their main base, then. One of their safe house locations? The facility was in good shape- but he could tell by the sparse furniture and dust coating that this section of the building wasn’t used in years, maybe decades. The chains keeping him restrained to the wall didn’t appear to be a new feature either- all the surrounding holding cells…

It must have been an old quirk habilitation facility.

There hadn’t been an active one in over fifty years- it was what Tartarus had been in it’s infancy. Historically, when people still feared a lot of the more dangerous and deforming quirks, civilians could get sent to the habilitation facilities to either learn to control their quirk better, or find ways to limit it’s effects. That had been the intention of them being built, anyway.

Too many of these places turned into nesting grounds for quirk trafficking, experimentation, and civilian abuse. They were decommissioned and abandoned by the government, so a friendlier campaign could be pushed to ensure the acceptance of all quirks, no matter how strange. Izuku remembered that part of history from middle school, because it also inadvertently made it so since anybody with a quirk had potential, then someone without a quirk had none.

Even when society tried to do something right, it inadvertently hurt another part of the community.

“Got this cell prepped especially for you.” Shigaraki continued, not privy to his musings. Izuku pointedly looked towards the bed, his expression dictating how he’d already observed his chains didn’t reach to the mattress- they didn’t reach any furniture within the room. Tomura’s expression only grew smug when he saw the hero had noticed. “If you decide to be more agreeable, I’m sure we can adjust accommodations.” He pushed off the door frame, head tilting to the side. “What do you think, goody-two-shoes? Think we can come to an arrangement?”

Midoriya looked away, biting back a retort. It wasn’t hard to guess what Shigaraki was asking- though why he wasn’t opening straight away with torture, the student wasn’t sure. In fact, he could feel the stretch and pull of bandages over his face and neck. He didn’t know if that was another manipulation; an attempt to help him feel grateful. This changes nothing- I’ve been captured, but hope isn’t lost. The force suppression shackles made his connection to One For All faint, but not extinct. He could still feel the flicker of warm, persistent energy within his core. How long have I been out? Did Kaachan reach Yagi-san? What is it meant to feel like when One For All passes on?

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Tomura move over to the desk, peering through the two drawers, as if his focus wasn’t still entirely on Midoriya. The high school student used that time to come to grips with his situation. He knows he can’t take my quirk by force; he’s already tried. Izuku wouldn’t put it past the villain to try again, if only because the first year was sure to cave eventually from the pain of something immovable within him being fought for. He had no plans to cave, though. If anything, as soon as he was sure his quirk was passed on, he’d have to find a way to either get out, or remove himself as a liability. Midoriya closed his eyes at the thought of what that entailed, fighting against the fear.

It’s not like this was the first time a thought of instigating the end of his life occurred.

But he had to be careful- he didn’t know what happened if his quirk wasn’t fully transferred before something like that happened. What if Kaachan lost it- is he even still alive? What if it doesn’t work since I’m not there, or Yagi fails to tell him? If someone else somehow took it away, would it work on them instead? And then where’d we be- A hand brushed through his hair, and the teen flinched in surprise, fear spiking as he opened his eyes and saw Tomura had made his way silently over.

“Easy, scaredy cat.” The young adult repeated the gesture to the other side of his face; exposing the frightened green eyes. “Where’s that hero’s spirit of yours, Izu-chan? Aren’t you going to tell me how sorry I’ll be for kidnapping you? How all the heroes are going to come stop me?”

They will stop you. Izuku agreed silently, stubbornly keeping quiet. Shigaraki’s lips twitched in amusem*nt, but he didn’t stop playing with Izuku’s hair, running his hands over the face, neck. The younger boy slowly lost his composure as the teen continued- threatening hands following when the hero unsteadily backed up till he hit the wall.

“You know… I haven’t been able to touch another human like this since was four. No, Five?” He settled both hands on Midoriya’s shoulders, seeming to relish the shocked expression on his face. “And now I that can control it, I can feel what it’s like to touch the warmth of someone’s cheek, the softness of their hair without worrying that it’ll disappear.” As if to emphasize this, he ran on hand through the still messy locks, tugging where they caught. “Everything promised to me is coming to pass. I have power- more than any other villain. I have you, which means I’ll have back my quirk, and then I can finally change this world to what it’s meant to be.”

Izuku wanted to shove the hands off him- at least throw a well-deserved punch to the man’s jaw. His vision wavered slightly, and the image of a tall, white haired man again appeared, face cast in shadow. He blinked hard, shaking his head slightly. When he looked again, the correct figure was back, but the red eyes were just as intense.

In the dim light he made out the realization, understanding.

“Oh ho. But of course, why shouldn’t it affect you too? What do you see, All Might’s protégé? What’s that meddlesome quirk showing you?”

He sees them too? It made sense though- where Izuku interacted with his quirk, Shigaraki seemed to have… almost developed similar views to what the quirk showed him. Like he had a part of his sensei more than he did a quirk inside him. One hand raised to the hero’s cheek, prompting a gasp.

“Don’t be coy, little brother. Tell me what you see.”

Feeling suffocated by the proximity, he tried to shove the villain away. He won’t kill you, not yet. You can get away with this- you can handle pain, he won’t kill you yet. Only, Tomura didn’t allow the distance, instead grabbing on to the shackled wrists and holding them. Izuku’s legs would give out if he tried to send a kick, and he didn’t want that humiliation on top of this.

“Always fighting me…” Came the villain’s mutter, though he didn’t sound surprised or offended. “I’ll tell you what I see, then. I see him- my little brother; you. The same different eyes; you’re both so sure of your convictions, so sure you’re right.” His posture relaxed as he spoke, brushing a thumb over Izuku’s cheek. The gesture carried a phantom familiarity to it that made Izuku’s eyes dart away. “You were both hurt… you wouldn’t let me protect you from the world…”

Some righteous indignation rose within him. “No. All For One kept him locked up because his brother wouldn’t help him!” He was shocked by the hoarseness of his voice. “He hurt his little brother; he told him-” Catching himself, he stopped.

Tomura’s gaze wasn’t his own. The room felt crowded by the figure before him, the intent frighteningly possessive. “So. Not only do you see as I do; you remember?”

“No.” Midoriya denied, maybe foolishly. It wasn’t a memory- not his. It was a dream; he had been there in that moment, watching the first holder of One For All struggle.

“Stop lying.” The room suddenly grew cold, and Izuku had a flashback to Kamino ward- the absolute certainty of his death, of the vile nature of All For One. He trembled- legs threatening to give out as the wrath was focused on him.

“All For One didn’t care about his brother.” Deku pressed, brazen on behalf of the first holder. “Your sensei just wanted to control him; to prove that he was the most powerful, that he was right to hurt others. When he couldn’t have been more wrong!”

Izuku saw Shigaraki’s hand tense into a claw, rushing towards his face. He couldn’t back away, there was no dodging. He had miscalculated- he could already sense decay building. It’s okay. The thought, resigned. You protected All Might’s legacy. It’s okay.

The hand covered his face, and he waited for the pain, for the attack, but it didn’t come. Instead, the tension bled out of Shigaraki, and he leaned forward, moving his hand to cradle the back of Izuku’s neck as he pressed their foreheads together. The sudden change from threat to care left Izuku fighting to control his staggered breathing, blinking away tears brought on by fear.

“You are not All Might.” Tomura admonished, his hand brushing softly over the nap of the boy’s neck in a soothing motion. “You try so hard to sound like him, be like him. But you are my little brother. I won’t let you trick me this time. Give me back my gift to you, and we can make things right- as they were meant to be.”

Something in the tone- there was a duality to it that felt less like Shigaraki and more like the memory that wasn’t Izuku’s. A pang of guilt hit him when he had no business feeling that way.

“You’ve run from me for so long, little brother.” Shigaraki continued, pulling away slightly and looking over Izuku’s exhausted form. “You’re trapped in a younger body, but it suits you. You two are the same, like me.”

Midoriya couldn’t meet his eye, still frightened. “I… won’t give you One For All, Shigaraki.” The chains clanked as he curled his hands into fists. “You’ll hurt too many people if I do- I can’t risk them. I won’t give it up.”

“… I didn’t expect sudden capitulation from 1-A’s second most stubborn brat.” The King of the villain’s rose, stepping backwards till he was at the entrance to the cell. “But you will give up, Izuku. Because you are my brother, and one way or another, I will have you join me.”

(“And now, I’ll rewrite the reality in which you refuse to yield to me!”)

Shivering, Izuku slid to the ground, leaving his arms to hang since there wasn’t enough give to wrap them around himself. Shigaraki watched for a moment, the arrogant grin too familiar, before he swept out to the room, the door clanging shut with finality.

“Dabi, Toga, Compress.”

The generals of his army straightened to attention as Tomura reentered the main lobby of the quirk habilitation center. Earlier, they had been in the middle of a meeting to discuss further plans when their leader had halted, standing abruptly and leaving them. They all knew that somehow, probably in regards to the terrifying changes he had gone through, that he was aware of the prisoner waking up.

Tomura’s interest in the All-Might wannabe was… predictable, honestly. What was surprising was that Izuku hadn’t been killed yet, or even maimed. They had waited with baited breath when he left before, expecting to hear the blood curdling screams of the student being slowly destroyed. They heard nothing, though.

And now he was back, the manic grin from when they’d first found him holding the unconscious hero once again returned to his face.

No one was sure what to make of this new version of their leader. Shigaraki was more powerful than ever, his goals still much the same- but there was an air to him, a thrum of other that instantly made them know, even if they didn’t speak of it to one another, that to go against him would be to call upon their own death.

Tomura looked to his hand, flexing it experimentally. “…We’ll figure out the rest of the strategy tomorrow. For now, go out and find some random NPCs- whoever you can snatch fast. Try to keep it quiet; there should be enough frightened trash running about that a few won’t be missed.” He looked about the room, gleeful. “I feel… hungry.”

Chapter 5

Chapter Text

xXX We are the same, though you’d never admit it.

Just as you longed to become a hero of justice,

I longed to be an all-powerful devil. XXx

Izuku didn’t really sleep- the chains were too uncomfortable for him to do more than nod off for an hour or so, before his arms grew painfully numb and he had to raise himself to get the blood flowing again. He tried to rest while standing, eventually, and thought he had finally gotten the hang of keeping his knees locked enough to relax.

He was jerked out of the feeble attempt by screams.

They weren’t close- but far off, muffled. One particular cry had pierced the night air with it’s terror enough to awaken him.

And then it kept going.

What’s happening?! The student fought against the chains reflexively, the frightened cries giving adrenaline to his weary form. “HEY!” He called, maybe foolishly. People were being hurt; he had to do something! It was the League- it had to be. Maybe he could draw Shigaraki back- the rest- maybe he could make them leave whoever was being attacked alone; give enough time through some distraction for them to escape. “HEY! LEAVE THEM ALONE! HEY!”

There was a moment where he could feel familiar red eyes on him, despite being along. And then the sensation was gone.

The screams didn’t stop.

Izuku didn’t give up, though. His wrists and shoulders began to ache terribly as he fought the restraints, but he pushed the pain aside. His voice cracked, breaking down as he tried to be heard over the distant wails. It wasn’t just one person, it was several. He screamed until his voice gave out- still no one came. Eventually, several screams became few, and few became one sad, hopeless wail before petering off.

Then Midoriya’s world was wrapped once more in silence.

Chest heaving, sweating from how much he had pushed himself to just get out, help them! But whatever had happened was over. There was nothing he could do- One For All couldn’t answer him like this. I’m useless. His arms flashed in pain as he finally gave up, trying to lean against the wall once more. No matter what position he put himself in, his arms wouldn’t stop hurting.

Shigaraki, what did you do… Izuku’s mind flashed back to Endeavor’s last moments, his last sight of Aizawa-sensei. Trembling, he fell to the floor again. No. He closed his eyes- trying to think of something else, anything else. No no no no…

What did he expect, being held by the King of Villains?

The absence of voices felt far more frightening than hearing them.

The next time he was jerked out of almost-sleep, the hallway outside his cell was lighter (a window facing east, high up based on the shadows), and the familiar feeling of Tomura had fallen over him.

He had just enough time to adjust his posture, to feel every ache in his exhausted body before the older teen appeared again. As he entered, Izuku saw him clutching a bowl of steaming food (fried rice, peppers, cabbage, corn). The smell of the well-seasoned meal hit Izuku’s nose, and his stomach grumbled immediately.

Shigaraki smirked knowingly. “Morning, little brother. Figured since I was starving for a good meal, you’d probably be too.”

Midoriya could already feel the headache growing. The chains wouldn’t allow him to hold that bowl comfortably; he couldn’t even reach his own face. You will die before letting him feed you. Deku promised himself firmly- more comfortable at the idea of starving than risking such an intimate action with the inheritor of All For One.

“Ah, of course.” Tomura set the steaming bowl onto the desk, throwing his hands up like a bad actor. “You can’t hold them like that, can you?” He grabbed the chair, letting the legs screech across the floor as he pulled it in front of Izuku and sat down. This behavior felt so familiar, so casual, that Izuku was starting to wonder if he had imagined the cries from the evening before. He wasn’t covered in blood, nor looking particularly manic today. In fact, every time Shigaraki came back he seemed more… controlled. “I could adjust them for a while; give you a little dignity.” He grinned like a shark. “You just have to do something for me.”

“Shigaraki…” Izuku’s voice wavered, still not recovered from last night. Did they have to go over this again?

“Now, now. I get it. All Might’s protégé must sacrifice everything to protect that silly quirk. Fine, keep it for now.” I already have you. Echoed unsaid. He leaned forward, “I want something else.”

Midoriya blinked, shrinking back slightly. “W-what?”

“I want something else.” Shigaraki repeated. “Just a little talking- nothing your stupid hero tendencies would be against. Do that, and you can feed yourself.”

It’s a trap. Obviously- he probably wanted to know the security around UA, or secrets to All Might’s quirk. Maybe pick his brain on the weaknesses of his other heroes. I can’t do that; I have to protect everyone- everyone I can!

The older teen sensed his hesitation, leaning back and feigning disinterest. “Oh sure- just be a stubborn hero about it. It’s not like you’re only making yourself weaker and reducing your chances of escape, or something.”

Izuku narrowed his eyes, silently reprimanding the sass. Tomura had a point, though. He looked between his captor and the food, biting his lip before reluctantly opening his mouth. “What… what kind of talk? Of questions?”

Almost immediately, the teen leaned forward again, red eyes gleaming. “What made you want to be a hero so bad?”

…what? “Huh?” Of all the things a villain could ask- of all the things he could have tortured out of Izuku, that’s what he wanted to know?

“You heard me- don’t act stupid.”

“I’m not. I-” Izuku paused, turning it over and over in his head before deciding, as far as he could tell, his answer wouldn’t endanger anybody. “… what kid doesn’t want to be a hero?”

“Sure.” Shigaraki waved his hand flippantly. “Everyone wants to grow up to be a stupid hero- but most kids don’t make it that far. They give up, they learn to be realistic about their lot in life. What makes you so different?”

Midoriya looked towards the ground, genuinely considering his words. “I- I don’t really think I am any different.” Before All Might, I never thought I’d make it this far. “But the dream of becoming a hero…” He thought back to the play games of heroes-and-villains he and Bakugo had with the other neighborhood kids. Of the devastation when he found out he could never be as incredible as the pro heroes, but how alive he felt watching them use their gifts- recording their fights and analyzing their powers so that constant refrain of uselessworthlessnothingdeku quieted enough so he could feel, even without a quirk, like he mattered. “…I guess it was all I had.”

“What makes you say that?”

He blinked, recalling his audience. “Uh, I didn’t really have friends before highschool… or anyone who cared what happened to me. Well, my mom, but nobody wanted to be a around a q- ah… a weird kid, like me.” Stop talking! He berated himself for the familiarity.

“Aw, mini All Might has a tragic backstory?”

He took a steadying breath through his nose, deigning not to answer.

Shigaraki let them stew in silence for a few moments longer before abruptly standing. “Well, good enough for me.” Izuku flinched at the sound of the chair’s screech, unconsciously leaning away as the villain crowded him. “Let’s adjust these so you can eat.”

The student’s arms were moved about as Tomura made the adjustments behind him. Midoriya was almost ashamed of the relieved sound he made, as one chain and then the other was lengthened to the point he could lay his hands in his lap if he was one the ground. He almost felt guilty for stifling the ‘thank you’ that wanted to escape. Almost. Now that he had more mobility, he examined the suppression cuffs. They weren’t actually a part of the shackles. He hadn’t realized it, but the metal cuffs had fit underneath and a small opening on the hard plastic tech allowed the restrains to fit.

“How did you even extend these?” Izuku didn’t want to admit how much he had been analyzing them the night before, but the chain appeared connected from the cuffs to the rings in the wall- there was no extra length that he had seen.

“I can extend and shorten inanimate materials, as long as I touch them.” He walked away, swiping up the bowl before coming back. “Pretty damn convenient, for a random selection.”

Izuku has a brief, naïve moment to think That wasn’t a quirk his sensei possessed before his brain connected.

The screams last night.

His hands stayed at his side even as Tomura extended the bowl. He felt sick. “You… you stole it from someone.”

Shigaraki shrugged, not even phased. “Well, it’s not like they’re around to miss it.”

Midoriya closed his eyes, gritting his teeth against helpless anger. He extended the chains- you have motion. Punch him. Hit him- now! But even as he raised his arm to do just that, it flashed in agony. He hadn’t realized how bad he had messed up his shoulder muscles while they were restrained, but the sudden mobility was too much. It threw off his attack completely, and with a sigh, Shigaraki raised one disinterested boot and kicked him in the stomach.

The chains jangled loudly as his collapsed against the wall, unintentionally yelling as his arms protested the action. He lay gasping against the wall, clenching his teeth and hating how useless he was.

“You need to stop getting so worked up over NPCs, kid. They got nothing to do with you.” The man crouched down, absently assessing as Izuku struggled to right himself. “If anything, I did them a favor. Who wants to go on living while being quirkless?”

(“Just pray that you’ll be born with a quirk in your next life, and take a swan dive off the roof of the building!”)

Midoriya clenched his teeth, trying not to think of where Bakugo could be in this exact moment. “You’re a monster, Shigaraki.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He once more extended the bowl. “You already knew that- don’t be shocked I hurt more people. Now here’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to eat this, and no more fussing about it.”

“Or else what?” Deku’s voice could barely raise to an aggressive level, he was too exhausted. “You’ll break my arm? You’ll leave the chains even shorter?” You’ll kill me now?

“Or else… I won’t tell you what other quirks I took, and you’ll be at a disadvantage.”

Once again, Izuku was struck dumb. “Wh- that’s not much of a threat?”

“Sure it is.” He nudged at Izuku’s arm with the extended dish, like trying to get a particularly dense pet to learn a new trick. “You don’t care if you get hurt; you’ve hurt yourself enough to prove that. I’d tell you to take it easy, but that would only goad you. You’re no good to me dead; but what about how useful you are to those heroes you value so much? You can’t help them if you don’t know all my new abilities, right? Don’t you want to have the cheat codes ready for when they come to fight the main boss?” Shigaraki grinned wickedly. “You don’t even know how many new quirks-”

“Six.” Midioriya cut him off, voice quiet. “You took six.” Six screams, six victims.

“Hmm… guess you could hear from all that racket.” He appraised him again. “Fine, six shiny new quirks. Now,” he grabbed Izuku’s hand, forcing it to hold the bowl. “Are you gonna act like that explosion brat and not take the opportunity to learn my quirks out of pride? Or are you gonna stay strong enough to fight me, while learning what you can about my new abilities?”

Izuku tried not to think about how good it smelled; how close the food was for him to consume if he chose. “…You could lie.”

“I’ll show them to you; eat your food.”

Hesitating only a little at first, Izuku finally started to eat in earnest; his stomach not allowing him to have qualms. The student couldn’t help but feel tears threaten again, though he kept his head down so Shigaraki wouldn’t see as he continued to eat. They weren’t flashy quirks, but they were useful to their previous owners. Surely those citizens had treasured their gifts, but Tomura wasn’t even impressed- if his scathing explanation about “That school teacher gave me one that could move small bodies of water, but not if it’s already too polluted with other substances. Unusable! Her friend could only change hair colors to things they see- rubbish.” or “Stupid utility man could turn his hands into any tool shape, but not more than one at a time. So what’s the point?” And on it went.

However, despite how much he didn’t want to cooperate with his captor, he couldn’t help considering all the possibilities these powers had. What if you could find a way to still move water that hadn’t fully mixed with other materials yet? Would that work as a purifying system? Or at least the start to a really good filter? Hair is technically dead, he could lengthen or shorten it while adjusting the color; that would work really well for going undercover. And is it really turning your hands into tools, or just familiar shapes that are helpful? Could a hand become a weapon if it was thought of as a tool? What different properties can it mimic- could it be a magnifying glass, or is it just the hardening and softening of skin? How does it affect the nerves?

The villain had continued talking, unaware of his musings. “… granted, lengthening and shortening any material has more potential than I realized; so that NPC wasn’t too bad a catch. Their sibling’s is only able to mold metal, see?” He grabbed at one of the loose chains, effortlessly moving the hardened steal into a raggedy triangle. “No good on the battlefield, unless someone maybe uses a weapon against me.”

“How fast would the quirk work if it was a sword cutting you?” Izuku muttered to himself. “If it was a sword, would you be able to shift the shape of it to prevent injury, or would the speed of the attack negate that?” Izuku ate another bite, thinking the math over in his head, before realizing he had spoken out loud. Freezing, he looked up to the captor.

The grin was way too familiar, too reminiscent of a dream. “Hmm, decent questions. Maybe I’ll have to test it before going up against your hero friends.”

The student swallowed, feeling the last bit stick in the back of his throat.

Shigaraki glanced down, easily snagging the bowl from him. “Good, you ate all of it.” He placed it on the chair behind him- Izuku hadn’t even realized the King of Villains had stayed crouched on the ground with him this whole time. “We’ll fix these chains back and be done.”

Izuku stood and didn’t fight while he worked, staying quiet in embarrassment for getting sucked into analyzing the new quirks. As Tomura finished and turned to go though, he realized something. “Wait! You didn’t show me the sixth quirk.”

The villain looked over his shoulder, disinterested. “So? You finished your food already; no incentive to share.”

Bastard. “T-then ask me another question. I’ll give you an answer for you sharing the sixth.”

That caught Tomura’s attention. He set the bowl down once more, posture confident. “You don’t want to see my sixth quirk, Izu-chan.”

“I do.” If it means giving my friends an advantage, if it means I know that much more so I can escape. “But you can only ask… ask questions about me- not my friends or the teachers at UA. Or One For All!”

“Ha, aren’t you demanding? Alright then.” He came close once more. “Hmm… one more question for little Izuku…” Blood red eyes looked him over before focusing back on his face. Tomura reached out a hand, resting it lightly over his hanging arm. “Why doesn’t it matter if you hurt yourself?”

SAFE. Came the sudden, overwhelming feeling. His body still ached, but the anxiety of Shigaraki being so close- of his circ*mstances at being captured- it all just fell away. He didn’t even think to censor his response. I am safe. “Because I’m nobody. All Might chose me; and that made me so happy. But before then- I was always just the useless kid who couldn’t do anything right. I wasn’t strong, I wasn’t smarter than anyone else. Now I have to uphold All Might’s legacy, no matter what. I can get hurt; that’s okay. I’ve been hurt lots of times by Bakugo and the other kids when I was younger- it’s not the same, but it’s not that different either. After being quirkless for so long, finally having something of my own-”

“Quirkless?”

Shigaraki’s voice sounded tight- shocked. But the SAFE feeling didn’t let up and Izuku didn’t mind. “It’s why All Might decided to help me; because he could see I had the potential to be a hero, and I just needed a chance to prove it.” Safe, safe, safe. He didn’t realize it, but he had started to sag towards Tomura, not necessarily sleepy, but more content than he had been in awhile. “I feel like I shouldn’t have said all that- I didn’t want you to know I was quirkless.”

The hand brushed lightly over his arm. “Oh?” His voice still seemed too tight.

“Yeah.” Izuku continued. “I mean, like you said- what’s the point of living? That’s what everyone thinks- they can’t imagine not having that part of them. I get that now though, a little. I don’t think I’ll like how empty it’ll feel without One For All.” He briefly thought to Bakugo. “I can’t do much about that, though.”

“I guess you can’t.”

Midoriya righted his head- not realizing he had slanted to the side. “This is the sixth quirk, isn’t it? I can’t seem to feel worried at all, or scared. But I’m not happy or excited either, I’m just…”

“’Safe’. That’s what the dumb NPC said. It was the first one I took- idiot told me it makes the person he uses it on feel completely at ease- even if they don’t want to be.” He paused for a moment, and Izuku didn’t interrupt him- he didn’t want to wake up from this feeling anytime soon. “… you were quirkless? Just like him?”

Midoriya knew what he meant. “No, not like the first bearer.” Izuku smiled dreamily. “I wanted this quirk, unlike him.”

That seemed to startle something within Tomura, and he finally let go. The SAFE feeling faded away rapidly, and Izuku felt his panic grow with each passing second. He can manipulate me through an influence quirk. I spoke too much. I couldn’t even think to mentally counter it. I talked about All Might! I had no inkling that it was happening. I spoke WAY too much!

Shigaraki didn’t pay him any mind as the hero silently freaked out. He simply turned around and picked up the bowl, walking away- not even saying when he’d be back.

Izuku was once again alone. He tried not to think about how vulnerable that had just made him feel (how much he wanted to feel that safe again).

After a few moments, he extended his leg enough to drag the chair closer, then sat heavily in it. It wasn’t the most comfortable, but it was leagues beyond trying to sleep while standing.

You didn’t expose your friends. He reassured himself, letting his eyes close now that the sensation of Tomura’s focus was gone. You didn’t reveal what happened with One For All. That’s what’s most important. But it wouldn’t take long, if Shigaraki tried again. He hadn’t any idea that he was saying anything wrong at the time, he was just being honest in those moments. If he couldn’t stop, he may slip up. And he couldn’t let that happen.

Izuku had to get out of there.

Chapter 6

Chapter Text

Izuku stood alone in the dark, unsure of how he got there. He looked down to his scarred hands, briefly wondering why they were free before the thought flit away. A whisper echoed near his ear, but when he turned, the was nothing. Yet it sounded again, and again, persisting. “H-hello?” Midoriya’s voice was swallowed by shadows surrounding him.

The whisper grew louder, dancing close enough for him to understand.

(Little brother.)

The voice echoed about him, growing in volume- but he couldn’t pinpoint where it was coming from. He didn’t know the voice, but it left him uneasy, afraid.

(Little brother.)

“Go away!” Midoriya shouted, backing up only to hear the voice echo again behind him- in front of him- above him. This feeling, this terror. He had felt it before- there had been people, a hand around his neck, a mean grin. “Go away!”

(Calm down… catch your breath… I just want to talk with you, that’s all...)

The world shifted, and he was suddenly looking towards a young man- younger than him, hidden in shadows. He was staring down at his hands, mouth open in awe. Izuku’s fear melted away, and he suddenly felt so safe. “Big brother!” Izuku heard himself call in a voice not his. “You have a power! You can be a hero; you can help people just like the stories!”

Midoriya started to run towards him, but faltered as the shadows briefly fell over the figure. The young man appeared again to his right, somewhat older. Unease filled the student as he took in the crumpled form next to the taller being. “Big brother… why did you take his quirk?” The words fell without his conscious decision- wavering. “He, he wasn’t hurting anyone- why did you take it…?”

The man look up, a smile crawling onto his face.

(He knew that smile.)

Izuku fell, suddenly feeling weak-kneed. When he landed in the dust, he realized his scarred hands had changed to thin, feeble arms. The body he inhabited wasn’t his own, and the darkness had given way to a landscape of destruction and corpses. Darker figures roamed the streets, their shouts and acts of violence muddled to the boy’s senses. He was struck by horror, realizing this figure wasn’t someone he should have felt at ease with. “Big brother- why didn’t you stop them?! They killed those people! Those innocent people…”

The figure approached, hand outstretched as the world dimmed around them, leaving it just the two. Izuku stumbled back, falling to the hard floor as the figure towered over him. “Stop! Get away from me- don’t you see you’ve become the monster you were fighting?!”

“Little brother.” The figure leaned closer, revealing Tomura’s gleeful eyes. “Give me your quirk, Izuku.”

Midoriya jerked awake, ears ringing as he fought to control his breathing. His neck ached from the angle it had been hanging over the back of the old chair, but he ignored it. He had gotten chilled, sitting against metal with no way to generate heat, so he shook himself to try and dispel the small inconvenience, listening as the chains rattled.

You’re okay, he assured himself, feeling foolish for getting so worked up. It was just a nightmare- it wasn’t real. It wasn’t…

No, he didn’t want to think about it. He could only recall flashes anyway- a foreboding figure, destruction, that horrible smile…

Catching his breath, he flexed his arms experimentally. They still ached but sitting in the chair had done him some good compared to before- he finally felt a little more like himself. A glance out of his cell showed the sun starting to set based on the waning light from the window.

Tomura had visited once more that day- briefly- to coax him into eating. Izuku had steeled himself, doing his best to not panic when the teen got too near. To his relief the elder hadn’t pushed for further answers, idly mentioning their scouting for the next base, the heroes’ lack of capability as they floundered to locate the League of Villains. The threat of ‘SAFE’ being used made him compliant to his mediocre dinner and company, much to Shigaraki’s delight. He had been beyond grateful nothing more had happened after that, but Midoriya knew the maniac’s lenience was temporary. It was only a matter of time before he decided to experiment with his new quirks more, to press Izuku to reveal what he couldn’t afford to.

The high school student would have liked to try and wait another day or so, to be sure of himself, perhaps to let the heroes rescue him properly, but there was too much risk in hesitation; he may not get another chance like this, thanks inadvertently to Shigaraki. I may not have access to One For All, but that doesn’t mean I’m helpless. The leader of the League of Villains clearly didn’t understand this. People who had quirks their whole lives couldn’t fathom someone being capable of protecting themselves once stripped of it.

It’s why he was pitied by teachers, ignored by most of his classmates before UA. To them he was helpless, useless, worthless. But that wasn’t who he was- which is why Kaachan had targeted him for so long. His childhood friend knew if there was one thing Midoriya was capable of, even when he wasn’t trying to, was to prove others wrong.

That, and Izuku loved to spite other’s expectations.

The boy had checked earlier to be sure, and found when he stood on the seat, it actually gave his arm more room to maneuver, to pull. He looked over to the mangled link that Tomura had molded without any effort earlier that day. It looked like a kid had treated the metal like playdough. And just like a child with clay, there were two thinned points of metal from careless fingers pinching the texture to show off to the prisoner.

Weakest link. He thought ironically.

Taking a breath, he slowly climbed onto the chair, careful of the noise and maintaining balance. He already knew how to tell when Tomura’s focus became trained on him- that sensation of being known was how his captor had found him on the battlefield.

But that meant it was a two-way alarm system. If he couldn’t sense anything, it means there was no attention on him. Not yet.

Leaning away from the other cuff, letting it support his weight so he could grasp around the links closest to the mangled one, he pulled hard.

The chain rattled and the weak link bent, but didn’t break. He paused for only a breath and to listen for any response, then yanked again. He continued this, pulling until he watched the link tremble, then twist apart. The sudden give jerked him, and he almost fell off the chair, but recovered enough jiggle the loose metal till it fell away, clanging on the floor and letting the separated chains fall. He didn’t bother to fight the grin as his right arm moved freely, still clutching his half of the chain. And still no sound of approach or sensation of Tomura. One down. If someone came in now, there’d be no way to hide his attempt, and no way to protect himself.

Now time was of the essence.

Hopping down with a wince, he positioned himself in front of the left anchor. This facility was old- these chains would break easily under One For All, but without his quirk, or Shigaraki’s foolish actions, there was no way to break the restraint.

He didn’t need to break it, though.

Buildings deteriorate overtime, and it hadn’t escaped him earlier that morning, when he had looked back, that a lot of dust had collected on the ground below the ring bolt in the wall from his previous night’s thrashing. Quirk habilitation facilities had been hastily formed to control the spike in quirks; they weren’t meant to be long lasting.

And after a couple decades, the concrete surrounding these bolts was deteriorating.

He reached about two-thirds of the way up, positioning one foot against the wall.

If I can clear a junkyard off a beach, I can move one simple bolt.

He heaved, arms straining and pushing with his feet against the wall to cause more tension. He watched, teeth grit, as the strip of metal groaned, moving ever so slightly away from the wall.

More! He didn’t let up, pulling from one side to the other as the concrete gradually eroded, falling lightly to the floor. Izuku hopped back down to the floor, panting from the strain and now familiar pain in his arms. The screws to the bolt were now visible, naked in the last remains of sunlight.

One good wrench aught to do it. He surmised, mind whirling as he fought to keep calm. With another hard yank, straining for all he was worth, he let out a soft squawk as the anchor broke free, clanging noisily on the ground. He dangled the remains in front of him, giving it an experimental swing. Well, better get their attention now.

Shigaraki was not happy.

He had sent Toga out to case their next hideout- unable to stay for a long period of time without risking the heroes finding them. Part of him was desperate to get out there again, to unleash the mayhem he had given only a taste of two days ago.

But he couldn’t, he couldn’t.

(Frightened green eyes. The familiar glow of his long lost quirk. Little brother.)

This… this boy was and wasn’t his brother. He saw their duality in his determination, in his intellect, his desire to see good and justice in a forsaken world.

A world that not once, but twice, left him quirkless.

(“Who wants to go on living while being quirkless?”)

He moved to the far side of the office where some of the doctor’s files had been stored, ignoring the brief bangs and thumps that fell from the above floors to his main headquarter. Foolish. Stupid. How could he have said that, knowing his brother as he does (the first-same as before). He had meant every word too- the disgust for the weak and useless civilians of his past alive and strong today. Another crash echoed in the distance, but he didn’t pay heed. Quirkless people, from his experience, would be the ultimate trash; too pathetic to protect themselves and thereby needing others, needing heroes. Even the weakest of quirks was better than nothing. Shigaraki couldn’t fathom not having the different lights under this skin, holding each quirk in his mind like a unique rock, a different texture and meaning for each. To have nothing, to be nothing…

His brother hadn’t understood; no matter how long he waited for his last family member to come around. His otouto couldn’t- because he didn’t know what it was to have a quirk (to have power). So he had given one to him, knowing even it’s meager nature would be enough to show him that to deny their gift was to be left empty, purposeless.

That mistake brought them to where they were today.

(“I didn’t want you to know I was quirkless.”)

Bang. The difficulty Tomura was facing, was that Izuku was different. He was still his brother, but unlike the frail and helpless body of the first, he had truly learned to be a hero. His power was too much, and even with the gift of good health, Izuku could only destroy himself through it’s use.

But his foolish brother didn’t care. Why would he? Izuku experienced exactly what he had tried to show his brother the first time- how in gaining a quirk, you learn that there is nothing worth going back to without it.

“Boss?”

He glanced towards the door to the office- his temporary room- to see Sako looking in warily. Understandable, seeing as he had ordered them to leave him be unless it was important.

Is there something suspicious on perimeter? Why didn’t Gigantomachia react? “What.”

“There’s… more commotion than normal within the third wing.” Izuku’s wing. Now that he thought about it, he had heard some crashing above; he had assumed his dolts were messing with the old facilities though. “Per your orders,” Mr. Compress continued, “We haven’t gone in ourselves to investigate, but without being connected to the security cameras…”

At once, Tomura activated Search. It was a necessary difficulty, keeping the security system off; as a retired government building, power resurgence would ping on some shmuck’s radar- and if they got even one identity in this building confirmed, it would bring the whole of what was left of Japan’s heroes raining onto their heads.

They weren’t ready for that just yet.

An emergency generator had been taken to support the power to Izuku’s cell, but otherwise they were doing without until they could move to a more fortified position. The familiar lights of his commanders were immediately apparent- Dabi and Spinner clearly waiting in the hall nearby. He brushed their presence aside as he honed in on the warm, golden light of the ninth bearer- up two floors and to the far left. He’s still where the cell should be, no movement away… “What kind of commotion?”

“I’d equate it to throwing furniture, perhaps something heavy hitting the wall.” The kind of thing you’d need super strength for. Hung in the air.

sh*t. “Have Dabi stay near the lobby, you and Spinner follow me to the stairway.” Sako inclined his head, replacing the mask as he left to warn the others. Shigaraki went immediately for the stairs the others had been forbidden to use, to keep them away from his prize. Let’s what our guest is up to.

He wouldn’t panic, not yet. Those quirk suppression cuffs were straight from the police truck they raided when getting revenge on Chisaki- there was no way he broke them. He skipped steps up the last flight, turning towards the lonely cell block on the top floor. This kid throws too many tantrums. He keeps this up, and we’ll have to- He paused before hurrying when he saw part of the desk- it should have been too far into the cell to see it this far away.

When came before the door, he realized he had been wrong. It wasn’t the desk.

It was part of the desk.

“What?!” His palm fell over the portal key automatically, the door swishing open as he stepped in. The mangled remains of the cell’s furniture was cast about, one chain dangling empty while the other was pulled from the wall socket entirely.

Like someone with unnatural strength had destroyed the place.

But how did he escape?! I just looked! He activated Search once more, scanning the lower levels. the door had still been shut, it’s not destroyed, so how did-

Search notified him of Izuku’s location right as All Might’s protégé dropped from the blind corner, kicking him straight in the cranium.

He hit the ground hard, head buzzing as he watched the blurred figure vault out of the room, quickly closing the door behind him. He tried to blink the child back into focus, but couldn’t see past the pain.

Izuku backed away, briefly assessing his figure- the chains held carefully wrapped in his hands to suppress sounds. They didn’t even clang as they stayed braced against the still active for suppressors.

Are you f*cking kidding me?

Deku was already running- not the way Tomura had come, but the opposite hall that led to the back stairs.

“COMPRESS!” He bellowed, staggering up and gripping the gate hard- not feeling any satisfaction as it crumbled too slowly away. How had the kid known to locate the back entry?! “SPINNER, get in here!”

They were already running to him from the first call, eyes widening as they took in the surroundings.

“He got away?”

The room spun briefly, and Tomura tried to stand straight. “He-” He gagged a moment before turning to the side, throwing up.

“Woah, sh*t!”

“Sir, are you-?”

“Shut up.” Tomura fought to breath, regeneration already lessening the ache. “I got kicked in the f*cking head. Are the outer doors still locked?”

“Of course.” Spinner asserted, having been the last to patrol. “We can spread out and search the accessible areas- though with his quirk, he may just break through a wall-”

“He doesn’t have his quirk; the suppression cuffs are still active.” Shigaraki already heading for the back stairwell, Search immediately catching sight of the fleeing form. “I wouldn’t put it past the sh*t to jump out a window if he could, so we need to-”

“Wait.” Compress kept pace, looking back to the cell. “He can’t use his quirk and he did all that?”

Spinner had lost some of his decorum as well, since he added- “He’s still restrained and got a hit on you?”

“He tricked me!” Tomura hissed. “He made it look like he had somehow escaped, and when I entered he jumped me, shutting the door and ran like a coward.”

He was livid, he was so angry.

But the more he thought about it, the more a rueful pride seemed to grow.

My clever brother, always surprising me. I shouldn’t have underestimated you, quirkless or otherwise.

His little brother shined brightly two floors below- almost to the lobby before the figure seemed to hesitate, before deviating. Dabi’s light appeared to be moving towards him, probably hearing the commotion.

It had been an ingenious ruse, but that victory would be short lived. Even now the boy was holing himself up, trapped as they converged on him. “He’s hiding in the backroom near the cafeteria.”

“Wait.” Compress briefly paused to hide his face from the dust of the door Shigaraki didn’t bother opening. “The security locker? Where the alarm system is set?”

“So what?” Shuichi pulled out his sword as they reached the far end of the cafeteria- Dabi coming down the opposite hall. “It’s all shut down, he can’t lock us out.”

“No.” Compress pushed, and Shigaraki realized what he was getting at right as he continued. “But if he turns it on and that alarm goes off, it’ll send an alert out to law enforcement.”

Double sh*t.

Dabi had begun blasting the door with his fire, trying to eat away at the material, but it was surprisingly reinforced, not that it would be a match for ‘decay’. Sensei’s apprentice checked with Search once more, assured that Izuku was right beyond the door. No tricks this time. “Dabi, watch your fire. If the electrical equipment fries, it’ll trigger the alarms anyway. Compress, grab him quick.” They knew excessive force wasn’t an option, he had made that clear when he’d first presented them with the unconscious figure.

Tomura touched the door before moving back, letting Dabi and Compress move forward as the door fell apart-

Only for the dusted barrier to be sprayed back at them, mixing in with the gray foam of fire retardant. Tomura watched in disbelief as both his commanders were coated in the substance. Dabi blurted a furious “What the f*ck” before instinctively dodging, just in time for Compress to be hit in the head with the fire extinguisher, knocking him out cold.

Holy sh*t.

Dabi was flung to the side as the smaller body ran out of the room, barreling him to the side like a quarter liner. Spinner reacted before Tomura, moving swiftly till he blocked the exit Izuku was running for. The kid was disheveled, eyes bright and smudged with ash from Dabi’s first attempt on the door. The Pyro stalked after him, trying to get his fire to light but unable. Still, he pinned the student between himself and Spinner, crowding him. Undeterred, Midoriya looked between the two with a critical eye before loosening the left chain he held, the one with the bolt still holding on the end, and proceeded to launch it, forcing the lizard meta to parry. Izuku used the momentum to spin and flick the shackle towards Dabi, who had to dodge to the side. Neither of his chosen could move further without using force against the improvised weapon, and it didn’t escape Shigaraki that the offense movements were very similar to Eraser Head using his capture tape.

The leader stayed back, shocked by the effectiveness of his handicapped prisoner. Where was this coming from? The Izuku he knew was a hero worshiping brat, sure. But he was fearful. Unsure of himself and subdued- at least he had been at their first meeting within the mall, even on the battlefield with Endeavor-

Then it clicked.

There was no one to defend here, no one he needed to protect.

What they were witnessing was his little brother without inhibitions, quirk suppressed and still able to hold his own with reckless abandon.

Why was Shigaraki grinning so much?

Dabi threw himself into the fray once again, managing to catch the chain and grasping it tight, sputtering what fire he could against the chain so that it would heat. It wasn’t enough though, Izuku merely ignored it. It did give Spinner the chance to leap in, though, dodging a kick before he could grab the other arm to restrain the boy.

“Do something already!” The pyro called, thoroughly pissed.

Midoriya’s head snapped towards him, an inkling of fear making it through that hardheaded determination. Interesting.

Tomura moved forward, reaching out as his eyes flashed in the rising moonlight. “Hold still, little brother.”

“NO!” Izuku thrashed, his calculated attacks gone in a wave of unbridled panic. He ripped his arm out of Spinner’s grasp, moving to punch Dabi and run right as Shigaraki grabbed the back of his uniform.

SAFE echoed through him, like falling out of a nightmare into a soft dream. Shigaraki focused his power into the connection, watching as the form unwillingly relax. “That’s it.” The elder coaxed, pulling him into his embrace. “No need to fight.”

“I…” The force Tomura was exerting through the quirk was making the captive almost lethargic. “I knew you’d catch me, but… I was hoping for more time…”

“Hmm.” He turned the boy to face him, careful not to let go. Shigaraki leaned close, his tone getting cold. “How did you escape, Izuku.”

Unfocused green eyes tried to meet his. “Well, you weakened the link… and left the chair nearby… I just leveraged my weight and force till I could at least get free, from the walls.” He seemed to be coming back to himself, at least enough to not stumble over his words. “I had to trick you into opening the door- I couldn’t myself. There was a fire emergency exit plan on the wall across from the cell- it showed the layout of the building. I know you can track me through search; actually getting out was, was if everything else worked out. I had to stick to the primary goal, though.”

The villain felt his expression becoming incredulous. He had planned all this- all from the moment of error on my part. “And what was your goal?”

“It’s an old building, you haven’t been using the lights though- only lighting is from the window. No main power; security panels would take too long to warm up.” He blinked as a small smile formed over his exhausted features. “But government issued facilities always keep landlines running.”

That got a start out of the group. Spinner raced for the security room, pausing at the entrance before drawing his sword, smashing something within. Shuichi turned back, looking grim. “He called someone- there was a voice on the other line still calling out.”

They all turned back to the green haired child, who stayed placidly next to his captor. “Well,” he muttered, a touch chagrined. “I don’t think I wanted you to find out that part.”

Chapter 7

Chapter Text

For three days after the ‘incident’, Izuku saw no one.

Part of him was still surprised he had made it this long, considering Shigaraki’s words after he had been caught again.

“I was too lenient with you.” Izuku had been in the process of being tugged along towards a back exit, the commanders gathering their things to evacuate the premises. “I thought a gentler approach would be better. But until you give me what I want, we’ll have to go about things a bit differently. I’ve learned my lesson. I promise, until you give me my quirk, you will regret this.”

Midoriya had regarded the seething elder before him, tilting his head to the side in consideration. “Are you going to kill me?”

Shigaraki appeared to focus on controlling his breathing. “I’m not- no, brat.” He replied, anger curling on the edge of his words. “I’ve fought too long to have you again. But we’re going to have to do something about that stubborn streak of yours.”

He had been inevitably transferred and placed in a much smaller room, bathed in flickering orange light and silence. No echoes from outside the door, no sounds of wind blowing branches against windows, nothing. This time the room was barren; and while he had given a few experimental tugs to the new restraints, he couldn’t find any real give to it. Though that didn’t surprise him- it had clearly been a pole of metal at one point, recently molded and shifted to shackle his hands together. The difference between this haphazard appearance and proper restraints, was these weren’t meant to be open, not unless it was by the maker. And it wasn’t made well, either- certain points of the metal pushed jarringly against his left radius, and no amount of adjusting or twisting his wrists could fix it.

He refused to call for anyone- not for food, or comfort against the dirty floor. Water occasionally appeared after he woke up, but the bottle was always gone by the next day. He did his business in the closest corner, humiliated but refusing to bend and be the one to end the stand off.

Midoriya hoped these days spent alone didn’t mean Tomura hadn’t figured things out and gone after his childhood friend- that somehow the heroes had pinned down the League of Villains and they weren’t able to do anything further in their plans. He wondered if they were any closer to finding him, rescuing him? Privately, he hoped the person he had called understood the message he had given; they were the only conceivable way to stop Shigaraki.

Until then, I need to be strong. If I can just keep holding on, no matter how they hurt me, Tomura won’t win.

As if summoned by the thought, he felt something zing through the connection of the elder’s focus, and Izuku shuffled closer to the wall defensively, already dreading what this meant. One moment he was alone, and the next the door was opening, showing a dark hallway briefly before the world was again closed off to him. The King of Villain’s paused for a moment, sizing him up, before moving forward.

Shigaraki crouched in front of him, deceptively casual considering the last time they had met, he had seemed ready to murder the boy. “It took me a few days to figure out the best way for you to learn your lesson, little brother. But everything’s ready now.”

Izuku’s heart sank, doing his best not to change expression. If he’s not going to kill you, then this is going to hurt. You can do this- you’ve been beaten before. You can handle pain, don’t be afraid.

“The thing is, Izuku.” Tomura leaned closer. “I was angry. Very angry. And I’ve thought long and hard about this- I can’t teach you the way I would normally for someone who’s stood against me the way you have. But the truth is, I don’t want my baby brother to suffer- and even if I did, you’ve risked your neck far too much for me to trust that pain would teach you.”

Midoriya’s stoic mask cracked, confusion leaking through. If he wouldn’t use torture as a lesson, how else…?

Tomura read his expression, and returned it with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “It took me a few days to figure it out- what makes you so different than the other thieves who’ve claimed One For All? Why did sensei’s quirk find you to be the missing family, rather than the latest of a long line of cheats? But then it came to me:” He spread his hands out, grinning wide. “Those previous holders- they held on to One For All, never giving it up to Sensei so that he eventually exterminated them. But those heroes weren’t you, Deku. They cared about their quirk, more than anything else. That’s why hurting them satisfied sensei so much; they chose protecting the legacy over being a hero. Not you, though. You care about doing what’s right and being a hero more. Than. Anything.”

If only you knew. He thought privately. Still, Izuku didn’t understand. “T-that’s not true. I will uphold All Might’s legacy.”

“Hmm.” The smile faded once more, and the student felt his stomach drop, unease growing. “Well on that note, little brother, I’ll give you one last chance. Be a hero; pass on One For All to me. You do that, and all is forgiven.”

Taking a shaky breath, the boy steadied himself. You can’t let him win. “No, Shigaraki.” That’s not what a hero would do.

“Hmph. So be it, baby brother.” He reached out, and Izuku tensed, ready for the inevitable pain, but his captor merely ensured that his restraints were secure, before standing and moving back to the door. “You have four strikes against you, so I will discipline you four times.”

All Might’s protégé did his best to control his breathing, not understanding why the villain was returning to the door, but determined to be strong. It didn’t matter what Shigaraki did to him; he wouldn’t give in, he wouldn’t submit!

Tomura knocked, and the door opened enough for Mr. Compress to slip in. Izuku stiffened, wondering if his discipline was to take place somewhere else, and the commander was here to move him. Instead, he maneuvered silently to the far corner, then with a flourish of his hand, showed a shining blue marble under the dim light.

Perplexed, Izuku still didn’t understand as he tossed the marble carelessly into the middle of the room, the prison popping open in a burst of smoke. Even with his unease, Midoriya couldn’t help feeling confused as an elderly man appeared; just as unsure as Izuku was, though clearly more frightened.

Shuddering, the weak senior came to grips with the distortion of reality that was a side effect from being released out of Mr. Compress’ hold. He finally seemed to take in the room, blinking a few times as his gaze connected with Izuku. “Hmm? Y-You’re the young hero that went missing! I saw you just this morning on the news…” He trailed off, trembling as he took in the rest of the company. “W-what is this?”

Izuku couldn’t help but wonder the same, though a terrible feeling began to build within him- he refused to consider it.

Shigaraki grasped the back of the man’s sweater, shoving him to face the captive. “Old man, tell this little hero your name.”

The man looked at the red eyed menace, then back to Izuku. “M-my Takahashi Ish*ta. Wha- AHHH!”

The hero instinctively tried to move forward, immediately yanked back by his restraints. The elder before him twisted feebly, his arm cracking to reveal angry red muscle beneath. He kept screaming, tears now falling.

“SHIGARAKI!” Izuku pulled futilely at his chains, panicking. “STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! HE CAN’T EVEN FIGHT BACK!”

The man eventually pulled away- because the spot where Sensei’s apprentice had held him was completely decayed. The man roiled on the ground, clutching at the now missing limb, fighting for air between his screams. Shigaraki stood beside him, not even looking at the hurting man, eyes only on Midoriya. “This is your first strike, for attacking your elder brother.”

“STOP!” The student pulled again, breaths heaving as he fought for any way to help. “SHIGARAKI, YOU CAN’T DO THIS! HE DID NOTHING WRONG!”

“You’re right, he didn’t.” The man’s cries had died off, there wasn’t enough left of him to make a sound. “But you did, and you don’t respond to pain. When others are hurt, though...” A gleam filled his eyes. “Well, you’d do anything to be a good hero, wouldn’t you?”

It suddenly sunk in, what he intended. The body had now disintegrated, nothing left of Takahashi Ish*ta but blood and dust. “No, T-Tomura, please…” What have I done? Izuku could not see clearly, his face awash with tears. What have I done? Shigaraki gestured, and again Compress presented another marble. The student gasped, straining as much as he could, but helpless to do anything. “Tomura, don’t do this!”

“Ah ah, little brother.” The marble fell to the floor, smoke dispersing to reveal a trembling woman in an office suit. “A lesson needs to be learned.”

He forced the victims to state their names, staring down the green haired captive. Just like the elderly man, the business woman and traffic officer had a spark of recognition in their eyes, looking at the useless hero just before Tomura started the process all over again. The woman started to disintegrate by her wrist, the officer by their ankle. He stood by, letting Izuku scream as loud as them, his pleas and begging falling on deaf ears. The villain never looked down at his victims, only watching Midoriya’s expressions. His face devoid of any feeling for the screaming citizens as he recited the reason for each demise. “This is your second strike, for attacking my friends.” You did this. His eyes seemed to say. You could have prevented this. You did this. He hadn’t even taken their quirks, that’s not why he had captured those poor people. It was all to teach Izuku a lesson. The King of Villains didn’t have to hurt Izuku to get his way. “This is your third strike, for reaching out to the people who would take you from me.”

They had cried for help, their eyes latching on to the only sympathetic gaze in the room, screams begging for the hero Deku to do something. But he couldn’t- not when he wrenched his arms, tried his hardest to activate One For All. He cursed Shigaraki, begged even louder than the dying to punish him instead, to hurt him instead.

By the time the officer dispersed, Izuku felt himself becoming hollow. Shigaraki hadn’t done anything since this began, but to force the chattel to look at Izuku and tell them their names. They were burned into his memory, now. They died because of him. He wondered if their screams would ever stop ringing in his ears.

Three deaths. He thought heavily. But he said four strikes. One more. There was nothing he could do- All Might… his legacy… he couldn’t risk…

“Now for our final guest of the evening, and your last punishment.”

Izuku didn’t move- hating himself even as he fought to remain strong. You can’t let him win- you have to protect All Might’s legacy…

With a flamboyant wave, Mr. Compress threw out one last marble, and in a puff of smoke, a figure appeared, their skirt and hands getting stained from the remains of the previous victims on the floor.

Time stopped as the disassociating part of Midoriya fell away, a panic unlike anything he’d experienced yet slowly crawling up his throat, through his limbs, like a wail he couldn’t quite release. Shigaraki stayed to the side as the woman rose, grabbing her arm to keep her from approaching when she spotted him. Tears from fear were already glistening in her eyes.

“Mom…” Izuku gasped, trembling in horror.

Chapter 8

Chapter Text

“Mom…” Izuku gasped, trembling in horror.

His mother was no better, shaking like a leaf as Shigaraki loomed behind her. She tried to pull away- not to escape, but to reach her son. “I-Izuku? My baby?! Izuku!!” The villain held fast, and she turned to him, teary eyes pleading. “Please, please let my son go! Stop this!”

“Mom!” Izuku didn’t know where he found the strength, but he rose, running in earnest forward until the chains again jerked him back. He held his ground though, pulling for all he was worth, looking for any give. Not her, please not her! “Tomura, let her go! You can’t do this!”

“Oh, but I can.” Tomura’s tone was not the least bit mocking. It was cold, distant, his expression mirroring his words. He glanced to Compress, who tilted his head in acknowledgement and then silently left the room. Sensei’s apprentice turned back, regarding his baby brother. “You had the power to stop this, Izuchan. You’re the hero, you have the power to save her.”

“Don’t! Please, please don’t!” He felt the skin around his wrists bruising, tearing, but he didn’t stop, willing to rip off his arms completely if it meant he could put himself between his mother and this monster.

Inko turned away from the danger, taking in her son’s desperation, her own expression crumpling. “Baby, stop, you’re hurting yourself, please…!”

“You both really seem to care for one another.” Tomura’s red eyes looked over the crumpled form of the distraught protégé. “But you know, oba-san…” He ignored her flinch as he trailed a hand softly through her loose, frazzled hair. Carefully, he held a lock of it in his fingers, stroking the delicate strands. “Even for all the love you give him, I don’t think he’s gonna cherish you enough to do the right thing.” The strands in his grasp dispersed into the air, the dust getting into his mother’s wide eyes.

“SHIGARAKI!” Izuku again yanked for all he was worth against his restraints, his right shoulder bursting in pain. “Don’t do this! You can’t!” The force of his pull caused him to lose his footing, and he fell to the ground, crashing face first. “Mom…” Izuku fought to control his breathing. “Please, she’s my mother…”

(“Oh help me!” Inko cried, grinning beneath the blanket holding her ‘prisoner’ as her son slid the door harshly open, mimicking the pose of his favorite hero. His happy little voice cried out in delight as he rushed to save her.

“I am here!”)

Something crossed over Inko Midoriya’s face; the fear of being taken, of seeing her son in pain, was briefly left behind as understanding struck.

“Izuku…” Her voice shook, but she kept her eyes on her son, ignoring any of the danger within the room. “Izuku, baby, it’s okay. I…” Her eyes filled with tears again, but she refused to look away, to risk losing sight of her son. “I love you, baby. It’s okay, whatever happens, it’s okay. Your mommy loves you so much.”

“NO!” He shook his head, horrified. “No, no that’s not going to happen mom!”

“What will you do, Deku?” Shigaraki settled a hand on top of the woman’s head, ignoring her trembling. “I’ll give you one last chance. What’s most important; protecting a quirk, or your own mother?”

Izuku couldn’t think, couldn’t move past the fear. He can’t give up One For All, he gave it to Bakugo. It was meant for Bakugo. But his mom- “Please, Tomura, not h-her. She’s not a part of this! She’s-”

The one who loved me no matter what.

“she’s-”

The only family I have left.

He fell to the ground, groveling, uncaring of how much he had to beg. “Please, p-please take my life, not her’s! Anything but her, please!”

“Your life’s not on the table, Izuku.”

His mother gasped, making a frantic sound that had her son looking up in panic, crying out again thinking Shigaraki had lost patience, only to see the man pulling his mother closer. Unthinking, Izuku reached out from where he was on the ground, and Inko did the same- both thoughtless in their desperation to hold one another. Tomura stopped just short of letting them reach each other, keeping a firm, painful hand in his mother’s hair that warned her not to press forward. He kneeled before Izuku, eyes still horribly cold.

There would be no remorse, if he did this. He wouldn’t hesitate, he wouldn’t care.

He raised his hand, close enough to for Izuku to grasp. “What will you save? You already failed those three NPCs, so if she really means so little to you, what’s one more? Choose; do you fail your mother, or All Might?”

“I love you, Izuku.” His mother was whispering, already resigned even as her arm reached out to him, to hold him one last time. “I love you baby, it’s okay. I love you.”

He sobbed, staring deep into her eyes before looking up at the menace who had wrought so much destruction. In that moment, even if he was the ninth holder of One For All, he couldn’t have been more helpless.

He didn’t even know if he could pass the quirk, he hadn’t known the familiar sensation of All Might’s gift in close to a week; what if it was gone?

But even as he considered that… what choice did he have?

Propping himself with what strength remained, he started to raise his scrapped hand up to Shigaraki’s, stopping just shy of reaching him and stared down the villain. “P-please… if I do… please l-let her go…”

Something finally stirred in those blood red eyes, a light of triumph echoing back. Shigaraki’s hand moved forward, his hold brutally tight against the stinging cuts. “You have my word, little brother.”

With a jerk, he watched as the restraints turned to dust, leaving his arms bare, bleeding and bruised. Relief warred with despair as he felt the familiar, wonderful sense of One For All dance over his being. Bakugo, why? Why didn’t you…?

A brief part of him thought of what it would take, to toss Shigaraki with his power, to crush him before he could hurt his mother.

And even as he thought that- the faces of terror, fear from the first three victims came to his mind. Begging Deku to save them, to protect them. That had been only moments ago- and he had been able to do nothing. His eyes briefly wandered to his mother’s, taking in her trembling form as she watched his and Tomura’s exchange apprehensively.

He… He couldn’t witness his mother die the same way. He couldn’t.

Chest heaving, Izuku closed his eyes, calling once more on the fire that still burned bright and unclaimed within him. I… choose him.

The room flashed with a sudden flurry of light and power- multi colors of electricity dancing around the two forms. Shigaraki’s eyes widened, awe turning the villain into nothing more than a mortal man. Izuku clenched his eyes shut, tears streaming down his face- feeling the eyes of the previous bearers on him, connecting.

No.

Not him.

Unlike before, Izuku felt the quirk within him fight, reluctant to leave his form. His memory flashed to the power they had given him- protecting Ochako in the beginning, Ida, saving Eri, Kaachan, becoming a hero. Please, listen! Izuku remembered the ones counting on him, trusting that he was going to return, not realizing he had left to protect them.

(“I forgot something! I’ll be back in a flash!”)

There was only one person he could protect, now.

I… choose… him!

It felt as if the phantoms of the past holders were clinging to him, unyielding. Some of their faces flashed through his mind’s eye- stern, concerned, reluctant. We chose YOU.

He felt Tomura’s presence, then. As if he could see the phantoms that resided within Izuku as well. Izuku blinked, and realized he was within One For All itself. The past users here holding to his form, just has he had felt, sincere in their desire to stay with him. Beyond them, he could see Shigaraki witnessing it all. Red met green, and the man raised his hand imperiously, beckoning. Give it to me, Izuku Midoriya.

The eyes of the past wielders were trained on him, the first gazing down on him, solemn. We chose you. The man repeated, words echoing all around.

(“Do you fail your mother, or All Might?”)

He screamed into the abyss, wordless even as his decision resonated around them. He threw into the command his will, despair, and focus.

GO

TO

HIM!!

They released him, falling further and further away, towards Tomura’s outstretched arm. The realm of One For All grew dark, a flash of light igniting as they reached the villain, sending a shockwave through the realm that tossed Izuku away.

With a cry, he fell back, opening his eyes to see an agitated flurry of energy growing around the pale-haired form. Tomura’s eyes were wide open, hands limp at his side as he looked into something only he could see. Inko, now released, immediately vaulted for her son, shielding him from the other form as the teen burst into tears. Izuku couldn’t speak, watching their captor in defeat as the familiar power of his quirk danced over the opposing form.

She tried to call out to him, to ask what had happened, but her voice was muffled over the resurgence of energy. He only shook his head, and his mother’s arms wrapped around him, pulling his fallen form into her lap.

Too soon, Shigaraki seemed to return to himself, the show of power dissipating with his awareness. He raised his hand, seemingly entranced by it. Slowly, he clenched his fingers into a fist, watching as One For All softly ignited, creating a glow from within. He grinned, letting out a huff of disbelief that turned into a laugh- and then he couldn’t stop. He just kept laughing and laughing, falling to the ground as Inko clutched her son tightly, her tears falling onto his head.

“I did it…” The villain marveled. “Sensei has fought for this for over a hundred years… and I did it…” He laughed again, long and hard before petering off, catching his breath as he rose to face Izuku. “Oh, little hero…”

It hit the boy, finally, what he had just done. Deku heaved, barely managing to push away from his mother’s lap as what little bile had been in his stomach rose.

He had betrayed All Might.

He had betrayed everyone.

His mother’s hands fluttered protectively at his shoulders, comforting but unsure what to do. His vision was blurred from tears, but as he saw the most powerful man alive stand and approach, he weakly pushed her back, hiding her behind him. “No… Shi-Shigaraki…” His hopeless green eyes looked up to red. “Y-you promised…”

But it hit him then, how stupid his action was, how fruitless this had been.

Tomura now has One For All. He’s too powerful to stop.

He has no need for me anymore.

Or anything I ask of him.

Helpless fear fell over him, and he’d never hated himself more than in this moment. “Please… you promised…”

For a long, painful moment, nothing was said. The trembling child stared up at the adult who had taken everything from him.

Then those dry, cracked lips spoke. “You’re right. I promised.” He barely glanced towards Inko. “Oba-san, for his sake, you should say good-bye one last time, don’t you think? He did, after all, lose everything to save you.”

The woman needed no further encouragement. Shigaraki had to sidestep to avoid her as she reached for her son, pulling him up enough to hug his form to her chest. She cradled his head, sobbing.

“M-mom…” He was so tired. Izuku didn’t know what else to do- he’d just ended the world because he was too selfish. Weakly, he held her, burying his face against her shirt and crying. “Mom… I…”

“I’m here, baby. I’m sorry, Izuku.” She trembled, holding him like she’d never let go. “I’m so sorry you were put in this position.”

“I-it’s my fault… all of it…” more than she even realized, “I-I…” he broke off, crying again.

“No, no baby.” She leaned close, he could feel her wet lashes brushing his cheek. “You did nothing wrong. None of this is your fault!”

“A-All Might- you, you have to warn him…”

“I will sweetie, whatever you need me to do. Just…” she hiccupped, the weight of their situation drowning her. “Just please come home to me, Izuku. No matter what happens, no matter what he makes you do, just come home to me baby, alright?”

Izuku only cried in response. He didn’t have the heart to correct her. “O-okay… I-I will, mom.”

“Promise?”

He opened his mouth to reply, but suddenly fell out of her grasp to the hard ground. Jarred, he looked up at her scream, seeing his mother dragged away. “NO!” He shouted brokenly, panicked.

Inko screamed, frightened as she clawed to go back to her son. Instead, the woman was thrown back, towards the door, and with a puff of smoke she vanished, turning into a marble in the now present hands of Compress. Izuku couldn’t even pick himself up- only reaching desperately towards the door.

“Please! Please don’t hurt her! Don’t take her, please!”

Compress melted back into the shadows with his mother, and Izuku yelled for him to come back, to not hurt his mother, to leave her alone until his voice was hoarse. Shigaraki watched from the side, waiting until he quieted.

Finally, Deku gave up, laying crumpled on the ground, unable to stop the tears that still hadn’t dried up. The building echoed ominously in its silence, so different from the screams and chaos that had been never ending before.

I’ve failed. I destroyed the world.

The boy listened as soft steps approached him, as the clothing rustled and Tomura kneeled next to him. He let out a quiet, shuddering sob as he felt the hands of his captor run carefully over his hair, stroking it back in soothing motions.

Safe, safe, safe…

“Ssshh, little brother. The worst is already over.”

No. He thought, hating himself for finding even the smallest solace from that physical touch. The worst is just starting.

“There, there.” Shigaraki continued, carefully pulling the boy up and propping him to lean against the wall, checking him over for superficial injuries. “The lesson’s over. You did the right thing; and as long as you keep doing the right thing, your mother will be safe, won’t she?”

Even with the power of SAFE fighting to influence him, he felt tears continue to fall. “Why? I… I gave you what you wanted. That’s all you wanted. You…”

“Aw, little brother. One For All is mine now, but you were always meant to return to me.” He brushed away the tears. “No more crying. It’ll be alright now, you’ll see.” His words were meant to calm, but through exhausted vision, Izuku could clearly see the maniacal grin, the smugness in his eyes. “Do you know why, Izuchan?” The tone, the barest hint of teasing in his words made the hero realize what he was going to say. “Because I. Am.

Here.”

Chapter 9

Chapter Text

xXXMaybe I failed this time, but I’m not giving up.

I’ll show them I’ve got what it takes…

I’ll become a greater hero than all of you.XXx

Go to him.

Shigaraki vaulted up from the bed, breathing hard as he blinked away his dream. He groaned, heart racing. Not again. He hadn’t felt this anxious since Sensei’s capture- damn nightmares were getting worse.

What had he even dreamed of? He recalled… sensei grinning, reaching out to him. That woman- his grandmother, saying something to him with a smile as she moved into battle. And Izuku- on the ground being mocked by voices surrounding him. He had towered over the boy, saying something, before the deku had looked up and the green hair turned white, the frightened eyes solemn, and-

Go to him.

He was out of bed and moving to throw the trench coat over his shoulders before he was truly conscious of it, but didn’t pause, moving instead to the doorway and starting the long process to the basem*nt. Little brother.

It was the middle of the night, and aside from the patrols outside, no one was likely to be awake at this point. He shouldn’t be awake, but he was starting to understand what had awoken him.

Phantom aches echoed softly through his lethargy, a sense of myfaultcouldn’tprotectdon’thurtthemdon’thurtmemyfault that he knew was not his paired awkwardly with the constant nagging in the back of his head of is he safe? Is he safe?

Damn f*cking quirk.

Ever since the… lesson. These past few days, he had moved Izuku into a more secure location where he could leave the boy unrestrained and unlikely to escape.

Thinking about that day, about the victory that came from it, still tugged a grin onto his lips. He had watched gleefully as the form of his brother shifted, from the young green-eyed child begging for his mother, to the man with white hair who looked up to him so brokenly, so desolate.

“Please, you promised.”

Watching his little one plead so helplessly, dependent only on his good will (just like old times, same times). It had been euphoric, basking in his regret after the woman was taken away, saying just the right words to satisfy his victory.

But he had been co*cky. His victory had unexpected… side effects.

The dreams, for one. He never fully recalled them, and only knew it was because of that blasted One For All since he’d never suffered this before. He also, inexplicitly, knew things now that he hadn’t even when ‘Search’ was in use. Where before he could locate Izuku by his quirk, now it was… more. Perhaps not always, but since he had been given the world’s strongest quirk, all of three days ago, the younger’s distress seemed to call to him like a beacon. Was it a side effect of sharing One For All? Or the quirk’s hesitance to have left the previous bearer? Shigaraki couldn’t control the connection, even if he had wanted to. And as the days wore on, it only grew more demanding, frantic.

Something needed to be done.

A sense of hopelessness roiled through him, and he shook it off as he approached the door, briskly entering the passcode before hearing a firm CLICK to then turn the large handle. A gasp as the metal barrier swung open altered him to the captive’s location in the dark interior of the vault.

Deku.

While there was a bed and several blankets, the boy had once again opted like a brat to curl up in the far corner, where he was currently trembling from the cold interior. He’d done that ever since being moved to this new location- refusing comfort, not touching his food and barely any water-

Tomura couldn’t let this go on much longer.

(Only he was allowed to punish his little brother.)

The fallen hero looked up- hair unkept and dirty even though Shigaraki had gotten him cleaned and settled into a new set of clothes the same night he was given One For All. A weak flash of anger morphed the broken expression as their eyes met. “G-Go away. Just…” His shoulders hunched as he ducked down. “Just leave me alone…”

Ah, little brother. He did so admire that determination, so familiar to before. “Distance hasn’t been helping you, Izu-chan.” Or me. Shigaraki entered the room as the younger forced himself up, bandaged arms seeking the wall for support. “Uh uh, it’s three in the goddamn morning. We’re not fighting about this.”

Except evidently, Izuku disagreed. Because when he got close enough, the captured hero tried to go around him. Tomura’s arm shot out, wrapping around his torso and pulling him against the other’s chest. Instantly, the constant barrage of hurtmistakefailuremyfaultmyfaultmyfault softened to nothing, a hum of false peace over-taking it. “Easy, Izuku..." He tucked the unresisting body closer, hands softly petting the sweat dampened curls. He’s too cold, he’s going to get sick at this rate. “What was it this time?” He prompted.

“You were ki… can I not talk about it? I don’t…”

“There’s not reason to keep it from me, is there? It’s fine.” You’re safe. He echoed through the quirk. You’re safe now.

“… You were killing everyone, again.” Came the dispassionate response, slightly muffled against his coat. “You kept saying it was my fault, they kept saying I did that to them. But when I got close to help, they turned to dust under my hands.” He looked down at the now limp arms in emphasis. “I couldn’t save anyone, and then you took me back.”

Knowing his brother would never share this without the influence of ‘Safe’ made learning these things that much more satisfying. When not under the quirk’s manipulation, Izuku clammed up, a wall refusing to lower despite his coaxing. And it was so simple to trick that wall, to have it lowered so he could know, so he could help this hardheaded idiot. “It was just a nightmare.” He eased, like he had the last three nights.

“I don’t know if waking up made it better.” The hero countered blandly.

Eyes drooping, Shigaraki knew from experience even if he had calmed him down now, this was bound to repeat in the next two hours. The punk had been slowly depriving them both of rest, and with the plans coming to fruition soon, Tomura couldn’t afford that. “C’mon, little brother.” He held firmly to one of his wrists, making sure to not pause the steady dose of ‘Safe’ being fed to his quirkless captive. “It’s late, we both need to go to bed. Don’t you want to sleep?”

“I want to go home.” Izuku made eye contact with him again, expression blank. “I don’t think being here is good for me.”

“Maybe not yet,” the elder consented, too tired to argue. “But give it time. You belong with me now, Izuku, there’s no changing that.” Slowly, he helped walk the boy back through several long halls and flights of stairs. While he was frustrated that most of the lairs through the Paranormal Liberation Army had been compromised, the League of Villains still had a few spots up their sleeve, and until he unleashed the final part of his plan, secondary locations would have to do.

Besides, it was a bit nostalgic, coming back to the place that had been his first home with Sensei.

Why did he take me out of that room?

This was a deviation from the previous nights- normally Izuku would fight for all he was worth to stay awake, pacing, counting, planning for things he could never act on. But inevitably, he’d succumb to exhaustion, and that would be when the nightmares started. The first night had been the longest, and the worst. Shigaraki had not been happy when he had come in to see Izuku’s hands clawed and bleeding, and only after forcing that awful quirk on him, bringing Izuku under control to explain that his hands had been dusting his friends, and he couldn’t stop it, and he just needed to get rid of the cause. He had settled then, an unfamiliar expression crossing his face.

Shigaraki had stayed awhile longer after that, tutting over the mess his hands had become, letting ‘safe’ influence just under the radar to keep Izuku calm. He had soothingly explained how that was never going to happen- not if Izuku behaved. He had said the same thing earlier, just before taking him out of the room to wash away the remains of his victims.

“It would only stress your mother more, to have to bring her back if you act out again.” Tomura murmured, holding the grimy child carefully, trying to sift bits of ash out of his hair. His tone was far too pleased to be comforting. “And all those little classmates of yours, that loud mouthed Kaachan, shouldn’t we keep them as safe as possible, little hero?”

Safe, safe, safe. Izuku had nodded, too tired to speak.

Shigaraki made a sound of satisfaction, and when he turned the child to look up at him, it was All For One’s red eyes smiling down. “I’m proud of you, little brother.”

For whatever reason- maybe he had gradually been lessening ‘safe’ and Izuku hadn’t noticed, but those words had rung painfully within him, digging at the very raw knowledge that his actions would hurt so many, because he couldn’t stop the villain. Tears had started falling once more as he curled into himself, wanting nothing more than to be alone and just accept his self-loathing surrounded by the sounds of his own quiet cries, and the sharp smell of spilled blood.

“Hey, now.” All For One’s large hands gently encircled him once more. “None of that,” He crooned, “no need for that.”

Tomura, to his shock, had continued to show an unusual amount of gentleness. When he comforted him from the nightmares, when he patiently urged him to eat, to sleep in the nice bed he’d provided for him. It was disconcerting- and not what he had come to expect of the man’s character.

Well, Izuku thought as the villain gently led him into a room, I suppose I did give him exactly what he wanted. Maybe he has a misplaced sense of gratitude. At least it had been- now? He couldn’t help but wonder if he was being moved because the other’s patience was at an end.

The room appeared more lived in than he was expecting, for a prison cell. Not exactly fit for torture, either. The bed looked slept in, and there were a few books and things lining the shelves; there was even a picture framed on the wall. The desk was covered in papers and blueprints. A handheld gaming system was tossed on the bed as well-

Oh.

It wasn’t initially a prisoner’s room, then.

Tomura watched from the corner of his eye as Izuku passively took in the messy desk, videogame set up, and cluttered floor, but ‘Safe’ was still going strong and he didn’t care. “Alright, Izu-chan.” Numbly, the boy turned to regard him, noting how he adjusted their connection so Shigaraki’s hands rested on his slight shoulders. “I’m tired, I need to sleep. You need to sleep. I’m gonna let up on ‘safe’; can you stay calm?”

Izuku thought about it. “…Probably not.”

Sighing, Shigaraki began releasing his hold regardless. Izuku blinked a few moments, absently having his emotions connect to thoughts without registering them, before they connected once again. He’s changing patterns. This is it, he’s fed up, he’s going to hurt me and there’s nothing I can do about it-

“Ssshh, we just talked about this.” The villain’s tone was clearly exasperated. Izuku tried to pull away, and he held firm. “No, brother mine. I’m f*cking tired, and need to sleep. If you’re going to keep waking me up, then we’re at least reducing the amount of sh*tty walking I have to do.”

He’s bluffing, diverting. Also, he couldn’t help but notice; “Since when do you swear so much?”

Red eyes narrowed, but Tomura didn’t respond. It took Izuku a second, but he realized the elder did look worse for wear. He had assumed there was some trigger in the vault room he hadn’t yet found that notified Shigaraki of his movement, and that’s why he would come down for the nightmares- but why didn’t he just ignore it? Why was he losing sleep over Izuku’s situation too?

Seemingly satisfied that Izuku wasn’t going to push his luck, Shigaraki nudged him, directing the smaller being to turn towards the soft green sheets. “W-wait.” Izuku tried to push back, suddenly connecting the dots. “I’ll sleep on the floor-”

“No you will not. It’s a bed, numbskull. I’m not asking you to parade in front of the heroes pledging your loyalty, just sleep on a damn mattress and stop making my life more difficult.”

Midoriya peered over his shoulder accusingly. “Yeah? And if I’m sleeping here, where are you sleeping?”

The villain looked honestly dumbfounded, and the younger realized the King of Villains hadn’t thought of that part. Maybe he wasn’t bluffing about being tired. His expression pinched into something decidedly done, and pushed Izuku aside. Fussily, he grabbed at some extra blankets and sheets, angrily slamming them onto the bed to build a haphazard wall that left a small section tucked into the corner, and the rest open presumably for himself. “There. Shut up and go to bed.”

While a childish part of him wanted to press his luck, he finally clamored over the barrier and settled, back firmly against the wall as he glared down the elder. “Brilliant, you’re letting the prisoner sleep next to you. Genius.”

Letting out a sigh, Tomura regarded him for another moment before his expression flickered again, the irritation deflating. He settled on the other side of the barrier, boxing him in, before yanking one of the blankets up and over them both. Petulantly, Izuku kicked his end off. “Little brother, until I think you can handle being by yourself, get used to it.”

“I could strangle you to death.”

“I’m sure you’ve thought about it, goody-two shoes.”

“Sharing your things doesn’t make you any less of a monster.”

“And denying yourself basic needs does nothing more than hurt you.” Izuku opened his mouth to argue, startling slightly when a hand covered his mouth. Safe, safe, safe, once again settled over the kid, Shigaraki’s hand moving to settle atop his head.

Midoriya relaxed unwillingly, watching the pale long hair turn short, the figure grow tall. “You keep turning into All For One.” The mastermind behind so much evil tilted his head to the side, a smirk tugging at his lips, but Izuku pressed on, even as his eyes grew heavy. “It’s because you bonded to his quirk, right? Or maybe because I had One For All, and my quirk perceived you as your sensei. Oh, well, not my quirk…” His head settled against the pillow, dazed. “My body feels really empty.” The figure shifted back into a solemn looking Tomura.

The student was sure his captor was going to poke at the fact that he feels empty because he hadn’t been eating, but instead replied “I see him too, you know.”

Izuku blinked, taking a few moments to understand.

“My little brother, as he was before.” Shigaraki continued. “I saw him when I caught you, and when you first woke up in the cell. When you were begging for the lives of those NPCs…”

Do you still see him? Now that you’ve taken One For All? He wanted to ask, but couldn’t find it in himself to.

“It was fate that brought us together, Izuku. And unlike before, I won’t let us be separated. No matter what, I want you by my side.” He shifted his hands through the green hair, and Izuku’s eyes fluttered closed, relaxing into the sensation. “I know that’s going to be difficult for you, I know you want me to be the enemy. You did before it was us, too.” Before? Did he mean when All For One forced his little brother to take the quirk? When he had been locked up with his freedom taken just like this? “I didn’t make the right choices then… but I will now.”

“How can this be the right choice, brother?” Izuku didn’t notice Shigaraki’s sharp intake. He felt so tired…

The room stayed quiet after that, fingers continuing to stroke his hair in a way that was reminiscent of his parents. Despite himself, he had almost fallen under, before Tomura’s soft words reached him. “It is. It has to be.”

Because if it’s not, then what else can be done?

Chapter 10

Chapter Text

Tomura looked around, watching the world before him crumble slowly away. He grinned in satisfaction, happy to watch the work of his decay as the formless shapes of civilians fled only to be inevitably caught and destroyed. His little brother stood at his side; eyes blank as he looked out over the world he had wanted to protect.

Mine. Echoed a voice. All mine.

It was the world he had desired for so long- finally, people were left afraid, no heroes to protect, no hope to look for. Now they know. He thought gleefully. Now they know how fragile a world they had.

“Well done, Tomura.”

Shigaraki turned, eyes widening in awe as his mentor stepped out of the shadows. “Sensei, I did it! I defeated One For All.”

The grin was all teeth, beguiling as he threw his hands wide in a grand sweep. “So you did. You’ve fulfilled my dream.” The elder paused, before one hand came forward, extended towards his protégé. “Now, give it to me.”

Tomura froze, unsure. “S-Sensei?” The world dimmed around them, the success of his take over falling to shadows. Izuku started to disappear as well- he reached out to him, to keep him from leaving, but his arm just fell into suffocating darkness. Sensei remained unchanged; hand outstretched.

“Return my power to me, Tomura.”

His heart began to pound, and he didn’t understand. “Why? You gave your quirk to me Sensei, so I could fufill your dream- and I’ve succeeded!” This wasn’t right. Why this happening? “This is mine!”

“Oh, little one.” Tomura realized he was small, now, trembling and coated with the dried blood of his family. “It was never yours to keep. It was all for One. ”

At this, his sensei lashed out, hand gripping Tomura’s face just as his first father had done. Fear spiked in a way unfamiliar, and Shigaraki gripped the arm instinctively, heart pounding worse when the attacker wasn’t dusted. He could feel it- he could feel his grip on the quirks fading- leaving for his master. “No,” He hissed, betrayed. “NO!”

“Return my power, Tomura.”

Sensei’s apprentice startled awake.

Something in him instinctually stayed still; in fact, if anyone were to see him, they would have only noticed a particularly sharp inhale as his eyes shot open. He paused a few moments, not quite seeing as he focused on getting his breath back.

Again? What the f*ck. Already the strange dream was escaping him- sensei had been in it, and little brother had been there, but- what had happened?

There was a murmur behind him- incomprehensible, and still the fog from sleep broke enough to realize there was a small, scarred hand on his shoulder.

Turning, he felt a bit shocked at the sight of a peaceful, sleeping Izuku. The face that had been so haggard, so fearful and angry was soft, serene. He absently counted the freckles, reaching out his hand to stroke the green fluffy hair before halting as the kid retracted his arm, burrowing more into the pillow with a sigh.

For once, One For All stayed silent within him. He was grateful- it meant this brat wasn’t falling apart through his own self- sabotage. Tomura had dragged him up here under the assumption that it would be less work for him to constantly go down to the vault, but Izuku seemed genuinely… comforted… by his presence.

Now if only he acknowledged that while he was awake.

He realized, though, that he didn’t want Izuku waking up just to see Shigaraki creepily staring him down. Feeling like he wouldn’t get more sleep at this point, he turned back, carefully sliding out of the bed and padding over to his desk to review the blueprints that laid there.

They still had to figure out whether it would be best to go in from the north side or west. Their informant stated that the best chance for the attack itself would be in three days. At this point, the hero society was at a third of their power. According to news, there was some talk of other nations sending their heroes to take them down; but his actions had spurred several other networks of villains around the world. Crisis was everywhere- those who had been repressed for so long were now emboldened- soon there would be no way to stop it.

He was facing two main dilemmas for this mission, though. The first was that he was having significant difficulty using and controlling One For All. After he had succeeded in making Izuku give up his power, Tomura had chosen to be patient, and learn the boundaries of his gift rather than throwing himself straight at his enemies.

The quirk did not respond easily.

He had tried to initially summon strength, which had come, only to fade. Black whip came more easily, and he had more control than what he had seen Izuku use of it, but it too would cut out on him. Once, furious, he had tried to summon it all at once; and his little brother’s injuries within the Sport’s Festival made a lot more sense- he wondered what the consequences would have been had he not held regeneration.

It was so frustrating. He had claimed One For All, and yet it wouldn’t do his bidding. He’d even argue that it only seemed to give half the power of what he’d witnessed Izuku using. It could be a learning curve, he’d had it for less than a week after all, but something wasn’t right.

His second dilemma was, of course, Izuku. Or rather that he would have to be left behind for the final mission. But just the thought stirred an uncomfortable wave of nokeephimclosekeephimsafehemustbesafe that he couldn’t discern whether the notion was his own or otherwise. It was foolish- at best, the boy would sit placidly by, waiting for them to finish. At worst… he wasn’t sure what else the child could try, but it would probably be something impulsive and stupid.

Shigaraki had to complete this mission- it was the only true way to fulfill his dream- it was all he had to live for, now. Before he had won (before he finally had his little brother back), it had been centuries of raining terror upon the filth that had touched his brother, that had taken what was only his to give. Like a twisted game of tag, he would hunt them over the years, never resting, terrorizing the bearers till they escaped through death. Every time, he had failed to reclaim the last thing he had ever given his little brother.

Now he had both- the tide was finally in his favor.

And he wouldn’t repeat the mistakes he made the first time around. His brother would live, would stay. He wouldn’t be taken by the ‘heroes’ due to negligence.

(He wouldn’t leave Shigaraki alone once more.)

Which meant keeping him where he had always belonged, safe and protected within the belly of his empire. The vault wouldn’t allow any detections from infrared or radio waves, and the walls could survive the strongest of attacks without hurting the precious cargo within.

A whisper of is he safe? Is he safe? Started within his head just as he registered the sound of a small, frightened whimper. Instantly he was up, silent treading back to the bed and resting his hand carefully over the head of curls. You’re safe. A weak projection of his quirk helped settle the child once more.

As he relaxed, the smaller hands came up, pawing at his arm. He tensed for a moment, sure the boy was going to wake up and lash out, but instead he pulled the arm closer, curling into it like a security blanket.

Tomura jolted that the image- the gesture so reminiscent of… of when he was Tenko, with Hana. She had done the same thing…

“Why are you up?”

Ah, apparently he hadn’t been lulled back to slumber. “Because you kick in your sleep, sh*tty nerd.”

“No I don’t.” He was still holding firmly to Shigaraki’s hand, and Sensei’s apprentice realized ‘Safe’ was likely keeping him from reacting negatively to the interaction. “You were whining earlier about not getting enough rest, and now you’re up?”

The villain sputtered, pulling his hand away. “Whining? You brat, I don’t-”

“Y-yes you did.” Izuku blushed in embarrassment as his emotions were no longer suppressed. “You absolutely did.”

Tomura opened his mouth before closing it, letting out a breath with a hiss. “You’re the one that’s been keeping me up! Don’t throw blame on other people, Hana, it’s not-” He froze, realizing what he’d just said.

Izuku, who had looked ready to start another sass fest, paused, almost appearing concerned by whatever expression Shigaraki was wearing. “Uh, who’s H-”

“What do you want for breakfast.” He deftly turned away, stalking over to a mini fridge and pantry that Twice and Toga had helped him install awhile ago. Without bothering to listen for the kid’s answer, he rummaged through until he found some energy bars. Good enough. He chucked one over his shoulder, listening as the kid caught it with a yelp. “Eat that.”

He moved back to his desk, sitting decisively and trying to focus back on his notes. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched the kid stay where he was, not moving to unwrap the food. Tomura waited another few moments before he felt his temper spike, and turned with a sharp glare. “Got something to say?” He kept his tone volatile, daring the boy.

Izuku didn’t back down, though. Instead, the green eyes considered him long and hard before glancing down at the bar. “I… I’ll eat this, if you answer a question.”

The counter surprised Shigaraki, until he recalled their previous arrangement. He wanted to scoff, pointing out that wasn’t how the system had worked, but he considered the boy’s constant reluctance towards food the last few days. If he didn’t play, would the deku just keep refusing to eat? “Alright twerp- tell me the question first.” What if he asked who Hana was? Or if he had used One For All yet? He could probably get away with lying-

His little brother bit his lip, looking unsure. Taking a breath, he met the other’s gaze, “What… what made you decide to be a villain?” He shrunk away slightly when Tomura frowned at him. “Y-you had asked me why I wanted to be a hero first! I just… for me, it was always so important to protect others with a smile. Even before All Might… I guess I want to understand why, Tomura.” The figure shifted, growing thinner as one eye peered through the long strands of hair. “Why would you hurt all those innocent people?”

Why would you hurt me? Echoed a thought painfully clear, in the other’s voice. Shigaraki looked away, hoping Izuku didn’t see the shock on his face from hearing it. He wasn’t comfortable with this. He didn’t do vulnerable. But- he glanced out of the corner of his eye- he wanted things to be different for him and his brother this time around. Before he was always too proud, too defeating to truly let his brother feel there was a reason outside of their kinship to care.

He needed Izuku to care.

“…I wanted to make the world cower. I wanted to leave them frightened and alone, with no one coming to rescue them. I want all those stupid NPCs to feel how I did.” He looked over, eyes narrowing at the kid’s expression. “Take a bite, dumbass.”

Obediently, he finally unwrapped the protein bar and took a too-small bite. It wasn’t out of spite, Shigaraki could feel how hard it was for the kid to eat. After chewing slowly, he met red eyes once more. He didn’t spout how terrible a reason that was, or how horrible Tomura was for wishing it. Instead he asked hesitantly, “Um… when did you feel like that? Frightened and alone with no one coming to rescue you?”

sh*t. Was he really talking about this? Pursing his lips, the student took another small bite, as if to show he was still adhering to the deal.

Tell him.

Damn, how many voices was he going to keep hearing in his head?

Tell him, Tenko.

Hissing out a breath, he stood up, coming to sit next to Izuku. Surprisingly, he didn’t move away, apparently curiosity getting the better of him. “Take another bite.” He demanded, petulantly. After the younger did so, he clasped his hands together, trying to figure out where to begin. “…Do you remember when I told you, that I had not touched a person without inadvertently using my quirk since I was a child?”

Izuku stilled, and Tomura felt intensely aware of his attention, the thoughts a racing murmur in the back of his head.

Shigaraki stayed silent for a few moments, staring off at the far wall. “I was five when I got my quirk…” He trailed off, horrified to be bringing this up. But he felt the boy shift, felt his brother’s soft thoughts of ohnoohno and ofcoursehisquirkthedidn’tknowhedidn’tknow, and he had to keep talking. “I… no one in my family had a quirk like this. I had been upset, I had been holding my dog when…”

Izuku stiffened, his expression worried.

Tomura clenched his hands, feeling pathetic for even sharing this as he turned to meet the green eyes. “I got scared, I-I grabbed by sister, asking for help. She fell a part though, just like Mo-chan. I thought a villain was attacking. It wasn’t until my mother raced out, falling to pieces before she could even reach me, that I realized the villain was me.”

Izuku’s eyes were wide, now. Shigaraki wanted to shy away, or maybe lash out for the brat’s audacity to look at him like that. He didn’t need sympathy from the wannabe hero. He didn’t need…

But maybe, Izuku needed to know this, to understand.

Red eyes looked away. “By the time my father came out of the house, everyone else was gone. He… was never a good man. Hated heroes long before I did. But after all the years of me being afraid of him, he was the one scared. He tried to hurt me then, so, I killed him.” A bitter smile curled over his features. “And it felt so right. I destroyed him, and the home he built. But after that…” He gazed towards the door, refusing to look down at the small figure he’d grown so fond of. “I wandered, barefoot, not knowing what to do. I did that for days- and no one stopped to help me. Everyone was afraid of me and they didn’t even know what I did.” And maybe I deserved that. He thought absently, vaguely remembering how he couldn’t even talk then, how it wasn’t until Sensei found him that some of his humanity returned. “I thought, if someone had lent out a hand at that time, if they had even cared…”

Izuku fell into him, and at first Tomura was perplexed. The kid grabbed him around the waist, and he was half ready to wrench him off, thinking he had used Shigaraki’s distraction to try some other hair brained attack, when he realized what the trembling figure was doing.

Hugging him.

“Hey, I never said you could squeeze me. Brat.” He gruffly tried to shake out of the hold, not having much luck. Oh God- his side was getting wet. There were tears. “You made me monologue, sh*tty nerd. That story was worth way more than a protein bar!”

Izuku didn’t react to his outrage, still firmly holding him from the side. “I’m sorry.” And it sounded like he didn’t quite mean the monologuing. “Tomura, that’s horrible. Why didn’t- why didn’t the heroes save you? Why…” He finally retracted some, and Shigaraki was horrified to see a significant amount of empathy directed his way. God. Was he getting teary again? God. “If there needs to be more of an exchange, I could tell you something about me, maybe? I-I don’t want to tell you any information about the heroes, but-”

“Stop. Just, stop.” With the face. With the eyes. Holy hell the anger was easier to handle.

“You… you deserved to have someone save you, Tomura.” He looked away, pained. “I-I don’t know why All For One helped you, but… but I’m glad you did have someone.”

That… that was actually, not what he would have expected Izuku to say. Maybe to mop and defend the heroes that would have helped, or how it was his own fault for using his quirk in a villainous way. But… defending his relationship with Sensei?

Maybe there was hope for them being brothers after all.

“Sensei was the best thing that ever happened to me.” Tomura agreed, feeling a mix of relief and disappointment at the face Izuku made. “He’s helped a lot of people, people that your perfect heroes forget about.”

“I think he hurts more than he helps.”

Thinking of Izuku’s experiences with the League of Villains, he couldn’t exactly argue. “Well, that was still worth more than your sh*tty protein bar.”

The boy looked at him sharply, suspicious. “And what do you want me to answer to pay for it?”

“No more feely questions.” Looking around, his eyes finally landed on the stark papers littering his desk. He refused to look at Izuku, putting a hand over his hair and shoving him to the side. “Don’t move.” He didn’t do emotions, and that damn history lesson was- was way too much. After a few moments he looked back, taking his hand away as green eyes peered up warily at his satisfaction. “There. You’ve paid me back. Take care of your wrapper.”

Izuku’s expression turned bemused. “Wait, what-?”

“There’s a trash can in the adjoining bathroom.” He threw out, moving to sit back at the desk and looking pointedly at the contents. Keep a straight face. Wait for it. He could sense the other’s puzzlement, but his little brother went where directed. He heard the steps freeze at the entry, and idly rifled through papers as an uncharitable smirk crossed his features. Izuku’s strained, infuriated call could probably be heard in the hall.

“Tomura, what did you do to my hair?!”

Chapter 11

Chapter Text

xXXWhen the enemy becomes certain of their victory,

That will be our chance.XXx

Izuku glared at his reflection once more. You’re fine. Don’t be a baby.

The softly curling white strands wouldn’t be offensive normally- in fact he’d always been a little curious about dying his hair. But Midoriya hadn’t planned on the change being out of his control, nor done for such a humiliating reason. He understood exactly why Tomura had changed his ‘little brother’. It felt exploitative, leaving him anxious about his own identity.

Since when does it matter how you feel? You’re a prisoner, you don’t get a say in how they treat you!

More than anything, it was embarrassing. Izuku had been too angry at first, yelling and ranting at the satisfied villain after the initial discovery. But apparently Shigaraki had failed to notify every last one of his team members that he had snuck the student up to his living space. So naturally, with that bastard villain leader sitting smug in his seat, they had barged in ready to defend.

Tomura had raised an eyebrow at them, but they had been distracted by Izuku’s… change.

(“Oh my gosh, you dyed his hair to make a mini Shigaraki!!”)

Izuku painfully recalls how heated his face felt, and how that had apparently just drawn a higher contrast to the color. Even Dabi, who he was positive planned to burn him alive at some point, had stared at him like he’d grown a second head.

Discretion is the better part of valor, but there was nothing brave about quickly turning and slamming the bathroom door in their faces so he could hide in shame. His face had only grown hotter when Tomura’s laugh had echoed back to him along with the raised voices of the villains. It was just hair, he knew that, but changing it to that was just… just…

(“But you will give up, Izuku. Because you are my brother, and one way or another, I will have you join me.”)

Once Shigaraki got the others to leave, his glee stayed strong, even while urging the younger to come back out. “Little brother, don’t be like that.” He’d wheedled through the doorway. “Fair’s fair, after all. It suits you!”

In a brief flash of anger, Izuku had been very close to scrounging for something to pour over it to change the color or cut it, even if it looked worse, just so it wasn’t what he wanted. But the room was bare of useful materials, and he belatedly recalled that not only could the villain change the color back, he could lengthen and shorten non living objects. Hair was compiled of dead skin cells, so…

Evidently, there were other things Tomura needed to do, because eventually he left the younger to his devices rather than force him out. He’d stayed in there for hours, more out of spite than anything else. To his chagrin, he realized the villain was humoring him, treating him- not quite like an equal, but… like he had the right to distance himself if he wanted to. Like it was okay to indulge in his petty (childish, call it what it is) behavior.

Like he really was a little brother to Shigaraki.

He once again touched the white locks, still not used to the appearance. This is wrong, it’s all wrong. And it wasn’t just the transforming of his hair and unusual treatment, either. It had been weird, initially, to have Tomura’s intense focus, to have his tainted obsession brought on by the sharing of the two oldest quirks. But Shigaraki had taken One For All. So why hadn’t the obsession died right after he had given it? Why did he still treat Izuku like a connection to One For All?

What was he missing?

Eventually, he had caved and came out, slowly opening the door a crack and peering through hesitantly. Deciding there was no risk, he opened it further, stepping out to see Tomura glance at him, then turn back to his work and gesturing at a steaming bowl of Okayu. Since there was another bowl empty by his left arm, presumably the other was for the prisoner. Izuki ignored it, instead moving to examine the shelves. He noted the titles absently, mentally compiling the different gaming cartridges and cases, seeing a pattern for how the lowest shelves were dusty, unused for a while and clearly from several years back.

Were any of these Tomura’s before All For One brought him here? Held him captive here? Were they a part of his home, did they mean anything to him before coming under the villain’s thumb? He wouldn’t risk asking, even if part of him was desperate to know. He didn’t want… Shigaraki was already acting like Izuku had conceded, like he had accepted this weird game of house.

Playing along would appease him, make him let down his guard. Which was something to consider, of course. To an extent he would do just that. But as he idly picked up an old school workbook, flipping the pages, he felt guilty at the idea. Why?? I’m a victim of circ*mstance, heroes would expect nothing less from a different hostage in my situation. More than anything, the world needed the new incarnation of All For One subdued. And after everything Tomura had put him through, what did it matter if he was hurt by the boy’s actions? It doesn’t matter, and you’re only hindering yourself for considering him. He’s not someone to pity, he’s-

Oh.

The book he had been holding dropped at the realization. He stared at it, contemplating the fluttering ache in his chest. No. Are you kidding me? The man had destroyed countless lives, murdered heroes right before Izuku’s eyes, murdered people and promised to do the same to his mom. And he wasn’t about to show kindness on the rest of the world, eager as he was to destroy it.

So why did Izuku want to help him?

He startled as hands landed on his shoulders, whirling to see Tomura had apparently gotten up and approached him. Why? He asked himself, looking over the threat. He doesn’t care about me- Why do I want to help him?

The villain’s expression softened, hands more firmly gripping him. “You can play with my stuff later, Izuku. For now, you need to eat.”

“I-” All Might’s protégé dug in his feet, suddenly feeling apprehensive. No. You’re fine, stay calm. It’s fine. “I can’t. T-Tomura, I’m not hungry.” I shouldn’t have eaten that protein bar in the first place. I shouldn’t have accepted to sleep on the nice bed. I shouldn’t have-

“What did I say last night?” Safe, safe, safe. “You’re only hurting yourself when you don’t eat.” He guided them over to where the bowl was still waiting.

“Please?” Izuku moved forward regardless, settling at the edge of the bed as Tomura passed the dish to him with one hand. “I’m worried I’ll throw up again. I don’t want to; it was so gross last time. If I throw up all over your stuff, that would be even worse, you’d probably kill me.”

“No.” He assured; attitude again far gentler than Izuku had come to expect. “I can never kill you, Izuku. That’s the last thing I want.”

Midoriya paused, looking at him dazedly. “Does ‘Safe’ affect you too? That was a weird thing to say, not at all logical…” Maybe it’s an over exposure from using it? Surely he can’t mean that. Shigaraki is the bad guy, and yeah, he’s been rather insistent before on not needing to hurt me, but that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t. Tomura would definitely kill eventually, it’s only a matter of time, of boredom, of me failing to do what he wanted-

“You’re mumbling. Focus on eating.”

Oh. Izuku blinked, looking back to the porridge. So he had been. Huh.

“I don’t want to hurt you, Izuku, because I’m your big brother. I just want to protect you, even if that’s not what you want.” Safe, safe, safe echoed a little more strongly, and Izuku didn’t even notice that he had taken the first bite until he swallowed. But when his body didn’t immediately react, no voice in his head condemning him, he decided it was okay. Shigaraki seemed to hesitate, before continuing. “Tomorrow night, I’m going to have to leave you alone for a little while. There’s… something I need to do, and I’ll have to leave you behind. You’ll be safe, though. Once I’m done, nothing will be able to stop us ever again.”

Izuku took another bite, leaning a bit more on his brother’s shoulder as he enjoyed the steady buzz of contentment. “So once you do this, will it be enough that you don’t have to hurt anyone ever again?”

Tomura stayed silent, letting him eat a few more mindless bites. “… Don’t be naïve, Izuku. Even once I take over the world, people will try to oppose us. There will still be NPCs that I’ll need to remove from the board.”

Wait- “What about my mom?” Izuku didn’t see anything wrong with asking, but noticed his brother tense. He looked up to see the red eyes assessing him. “Or my friends? I’ve been good, brother. I’ve… I didn’t try to run, or break out, or even destroy your stuff. And that would have been very easy. So they’ll be safe, right?” Huh, his brother grew taller again, eyes cast in shadow with an unreadable expression. “You promised.” He tacked on, remembering.

“Izu-chan, it’s not that easy-”

“What the f*ck?”

Both their heads turned to regard the person at the door- apparently Dabi had entered without either realizing. Midoriya took another bite, looking at the newcomer blankly.

Dabi looked more uncomfortable than Izuku had ever seen him. “Boss, that- that’s really creepy. He called you- Why is he just… sitting with you like that?”

“Because I’m safe.” Midoriya answered, unprompted. The Stain fan just stared harder, before finally shaking his head in dismissal. There was only about a quarter of the Okayu left, but Izuku hadn’t noticed it was about to fall out of his grasp until his brother snatched it, setting it irately on the desk.

“You better have a good reason for bothering me right now, Dabi.” Tomura pulled All Might’s protégé closer, shifting slightly so the smaller body was partially hidden from the scarred commander. Izuku blinked, brow furrowing as he gradually struggled to hear- his surroundings becoming muffled. Safe, safe, safe…

The pyro- when he blurred back into focus- looked unimpressed. “You called a strategy meeting at noon.” He held up his phone, showing it was quarter past. He said a few more words that sounded underwater, before briefly surfacing. “No one… uts to disturb y… have things to do, so is this stil…”

Shigaraki rubbed at Izuku’s shoulder soothingly, and the captured student became so focused on the sensation that it wasn’t until the third time he heard the villain say his name. “Izuku?”

Safe… safe… “I think… I’m tired…?”

“You are.” Tomura agreed, his appearance fluctuating in and out of focus. Carefully, he maneuvered so Izuku stopped leaning so heavily on him (when did that happen? When had he grown so heavy?) and fell back on the bed. And oh- that made the blur and dizziness feel so much better, if he just closed his eyes to stop the world from being so difficult…

“He’s… oesn’t want to eat… took too lo… sedate wi… go now.” He couldn’t see anything anymore, but he felt those familiar dry hands brush back his hair one last time, before retreating.

It was kind of nice, he didn’t even notice that ‘Safe’ was gone.

But of course it didn’t last.

“Izuku?”

The green haired boy turned, once again trapped in a void. Where was he? How could it be so dark? He heard a sob and turned, finding the owner of the voice.

“I love you, Izuku.” His mother whispered, her hand extended towards him and already crumbling as she cried for her little boy. “I love you baby, it’s okay. I love you.”

“MOM!” He raced towards her, only for the figure to fade away, a second too late. “No, no, no, no!” I saved her. He thought wildly. I saved her, I gave up All Might’s quirk to save her! He tried to activate it, and found nothing. How had he lost both? How had he messed up so much?

“Tenko-“

He looked behind him, to see another woman. Her long hair was elegant, her attire well off. She would have been beautiful; had she not been fracturing apart. “Tenko-” She repeated, her eye splitting down the middle.

Izuku backed up, frightened but knowing, knowing this person, this woman, this- “Mommy?”

“Do you still want to be a hero?” She asked, smile sad and voice cracking.

She fell apart before Izuku could answer.

Terrified, he raced away, falling deeper and deeper into the dark, desperate to escape these nightmares.

Eventually, a light came, and he chased after it. It was a group of figures, in varying forms of solidity. At once, he knew who they were, ached for what they meant. But his body stopped, and instead of reaching out to them, a yell tore from his throat. “Go away!” His eyes burned, but he didn’t cry. His palms were smarting, smoldering, wishing he could release his ire on these ghosts. They turned to him, solemn and seemingly unconcerned, and it stoked the fire in him again. “Save him, you useless quirk! Go back to him already! I don’t want you- I never wanted you! You know who he is, I give you my permission! Help him, damn you!” But the figures did nothing, only stared. He couldn’t fight the ache in his heart, the sense of wrongness having them near him. Yelling, he raced towards them, hand raised high to execute an attack. Go away! He thought, hating the ache that increased in his heart. Go to him- go to him!!

But the figures disappeared before he could do anything.

Panting, he fell to the ground, feeling a bit more like himself. What was- what was going on? Why was he seeing these things? Feeling like this. Wake up. He repeated to himself. Just wake up, you’ll be fine. Wake up.

“There you are, little brother.”

No. He knew that voice. Stumbling, he managed to get up, fleeing while it felt like every part of his body was fighting against him. He had to get away.

“Help!” He yelled into the void, his calls echoing back as footsteps hounded him. “Help! Anybody, please!” It was so dark, he couldn’t see, he couldn’t know where the monster was lurking. His body refused to cooperate, and he tripped, tumbling to the ground as the steps steadily grew closer, ominously echoing. Wake up, wake up, wake up!

“Don’t fight me, brother. It’s time for you to come home.”

Izuku looked behind, seeing the form of All For One. Tall, intimidating, a predator’s smile.

“Here you are, Izuku.” His eyes were bright red, but still so cold. “Time to join the rest of the holders, child. Then, you can be with One For All, always.”

He raised a hand over the fallen child, seeming to grow as Izuku stayed frozen on the ground. “No…” He whimpered, petrified and tearful as he watched ‘Air Blast’ slowly be formed to decimate his helpless form. “No, no, no, no, no-“

“NO!”

Izuku fell out of the bed, legs tangled in a blanket as he fought to escape. His face cracked against the side of the desk as he hit the ground with a THUMP, and he fought for breath, half wild from the pain and nightmare.

He felt the phantom of the man’s hand lingering just above his head, and only had a moment of warning from his body before nausea came over him. He ran instinctively to the bathroom, spewing before he could quite make it. Knees crashing to the ground as he heaved the sad remains of the porridge into the toilet. Izuku stayed huddled there well after the vomiting subsided, shaking. Idly he watched as blood dropped in, mixing with the disgusting mess. He touched the back of his wrist to his forehead, wincing as he met an open gash from hitting the corner earlier.

Get up. You’re done throwing up, don’t stay down. Wash up, you can’t afford to be seen like this. Carefully controlling his breath, he used the facilities to stand once more, heavily supporting himself against the sink as he slowly washed his hands, rinsed his mouth- another insistent sting telling him he had also split his lip. He grabbed for something to dab at his injuries, and cautiously washed around them, looking once more at the broken reflection. You’re fine. It was a nightmare, this was a nightmare, but you’re fine.

He’d have to clean up that mess, but his body still seemed half asleep, unable to properly wake up. He recalled the last moments before falling under, and realized that probably wasn’t just porridge he had been fed.

He started towards the bed once more, part of him finding humor at how pathetic he looked. The trail of blood leading from his mouth- it was like when All Might had pushed too hard in the past.

I wonder if Yagi-san is okay. The thought came out of left field, and Izuku’s mind stilled for a moment before comprehending. His breath hitched, tears forming in his eyes almost immediately. He had been trying so hard to not think about his mentor, about his hero who he had let down.

Stupid. He berated himself. Idiot. Why would you think of him? He probably wishes he never met you, now.

He fell just short of the bed, collapsing next to it rather than on it. Izuku knew he didn’t deserve forgiveness for what he’d done. Logically, even if he escaped, Midoriya was sure the ones he cared about most would hate him for this failure, for the pain he’d caused. Bakugo, Aizawa-sensei, Todoroki-kun… He trembled for a brief moment, fighting the ache in his heart, before breaking. Tears slid down his cheeks as he curled into a ball, whimpering quietly into his arms as he fought to stay quiet.

Help, please. I know you can’t forgive me, but please, please help me. He’d never get out of here, no one was going to come for him. It had been more than two weeks, and no one had come. He couldn’t escape, he couldn’t fight back, he was just slowly but surely falling apart, playing these sick games with Shigaraki. He was useless. “Please…” he murmured out, struggling for breath. He missed the comfort of One For All. He missed knowing he had a purpose. He missed feeling whole and having the support of his friends. “Please forgive me, please help…”

He buried his head between his knees, eyes screwed shut as he tried to regain the calm he had been faking before. Crying won’t fix this. Don’t be a baby. You’re fine. You’ll be fine. Just one day more, one step more. You can do this. But he couldn’t. He just kept thinking about his friends, how he missed them, how they might be hurt, how they may hate him now, how he had failed them all and was going to die from All For-

Izuku hadn’t heard the rushed footsteps outside his door, but the heavy barrier slammed open suddenly enough to startle him, revealing a wild-eyed King of Villains.

“One For All is freaking the f*ck out- What are you doing?!” the man thundered indignantly, papers he had been carrying fluttering across the floor.

Both froze at the sight of one another. Sharp eyes took in Izuku’s tear-stained cheeks, injuries, trembling limbs. Are you kidding me? Izuku felt his face redden, mortified all over again. How did he-? Here he was once again, caught bawling in front of his enemy. Before all this, Izuku would have become flustered, maybe irritated. But watching the villain slowly close the door, leaving them alone, made Izuku realize how afraid he was to be trapped while vulnerable once more.

“Izuku,” Shigaraki’s voice had lost its frustrated edge- instead testing the waters. “What’s going on? Why are you upset?”

Why was he- how could Tomura ask that? After everything he’d done? After everything Izuku had gone through? He realized the elder was approaching, and immediately panicked. He’d use ‘Safe’ on him, he’d make him tell, make him forget, he’d make fun of him. Izuku’s hand reached out, finding the gaming handheld that had fallen to the wayside at some point. Scrambling up, he threw it at his captor. “Leave!” His voice cracked, the volume echoing through the room. Shigaraki caught the electronic instinctively, staggering, before settling it on the desk, and continued to approach. Izuku cursed at himself as more tears formed in his eyes. This asshole- this villain didn’t deserve his empathy. He tricked him, drugged him. “Get out! I don’t want you here!”

The figure stopped, and through his blurry vision Izuku watched the figure grow tall, intelligent red eyes looking down at him sadly. In the next blink, Shigaraki was back. Taking a shuddering breath, Izuku felt the fight leave him. He sat back on the bed, head being cradled in his hands. “I don’t want you here.” He repeated, the words barely comprehensible. He couldn’t stop his tears, now more humiliated than anything.

Tomura had thought the day progressed well. It had been funny, feeling the indignation and embarrassment from Izuku after he had tricked him into revealing his past like that. He’d barred himself in the bathroom, which gave the leader enough time to lace his lunch so he could actually step out without concern for the younger acting out.

He should have known.

It was several hours before One For All had begun tugging on him, trying to gain his attention. But Izuku should have stayed under enough to not be affected by dreams, so he had grit his teeth and continued finalizing their plans. Right towards the end though, the connection between him and his brother SURGED. He barely remembers dismissing the others, careening back to his room as the link to his brother screamed, the sensations of helphelpforgivemeithurtshelpI’msorryI’msorry overwhelming him. He had felt half wild once he entered, ready to chew out the little sh*t, but realized his error too late.

Why are you upset?

The onslaught of emotion from THAT almost bowled him over, and made him realize something he had conveniently been ignoring.

Izuku may have been the protégé to the world’s strongest hero, but he was still a child. A child who was hurting.

Who Shigaraki was hurting.

Concern and guilt coiled uncomfortably in the villain. Hesitantly, he moved forward- before realizing he was the one in charge, and then moved more confidently. Izuku only curled more into himself, sobbing quietly.

He reached out a hand to curl around his little brother’s shoulders, needing to do something.

“Please don’t use it.”

He froze at the meek, broken voice. Lightly, he laid his hand over the exposed neck. The boy’s breath hitched, but when realizing he could still discern, looked up with reddened eyes, surprised. Of course he didn’t trust you to listen. He thought with disgust. His hand moved to Izuku’s face, gently cradling the side with fresh, still oozing cuts. The marks were minimal, thank god, but he realized with a pang that they mirrored his own. The acid smell of vomit also told him that any progress they had made today for his eating was gone.

(“I didn’t make the right choices then. But I will now.”)

Except he clearly wasn’t, his brother was only getting worse.

Something in his expression must have triggered it, but the green eyes suddenly filled with new tears, and Izuku let out a pathetic whimper before falling forward, grabbing at his clothes and curling against the older figure.

sh*t, sh*t, sh*t- Instinctively, he wrapped both arms around the boy, barely stopping himself from using ‘Safe’. Izuku was mumbling something incomprehensible against him, and it took several seconds of it repeating before Tomura discerned the phrase:

Thank you.

Sighing, realizing he wouldn’t be going back downstairs for the night, he shuffled his grip a bit till he could pull out his phone, sending off a text to alert the others not to barge in to check.

Hesitantly, he trailed his hand up and down the smaller boy’s back, noting how cold he seemed. “I’m sorry.” The worlds spilled before he could stop them, but realized he was sincere. “Just hang in there a little longer, Izu-chan. I’m going to make this better, I promise. You’ll be alright.”

Over the next several minutes he kept repeating himself, surprised by his need to sooth and patiently calm the younger down. Tomura adjusted their position so the curly white head rested against his shoulder, and he could nuzzle into the soft mass. I’ll make this better, I’ll protect you Izuku, I will. In just another day, once the mission is complete, this will all be over. Feeling a drop of blood plop onto his shoulder, he decided it was time to move. “C’mon, I need to take a closer look at those gashes.” He tugged Izuku up, moving them both over to the dresser next to the bathroom door.

Shigaraki was so focused on fixing the wounds, hoping that it could be one small step to making things right, he never noticed Izuku grow subtly tense, nor how the puffy eyes widened as they finally caught sight of the papers scattering the ground.

They were blueprints, clearly originals, and proudly labeled for the Special Prison for Villainous Criminals, Tartarus.

Chapter 12

Chapter Text

Izuku was quiet the remainder of the evening.

It set Tomura on edge, not being able to do something about the anxietynotgoodcan’tstophimfear that saturated the air around his little brother. They had been doing better, he thought, and then he’d clammed up all anxious and silent! He’d sent the boy to the bathroom, picking up his dropped plans and settling them face down at the desk, knowing in a little over a day, they wouldn’t be needed any longer.

Briefly, after Izuku had come back, he entertained the idea of leaving the mini Might to his own devices, see if maybe the kid would calm down on his own, or actually take him up on the offer to play some of the videogames available. But when he went to leave, the panic spiked worse even as his brother stayed quiet by the bed, and fearing another round of ‘One For All’ freaking out, he deviated to coaxing the other into playing a game with him.

In the end (and to the accompaniment of acceptdistractiontoostressedunsurehumorhim), they broke out a barely used board of chess. When he had first arrived, Sensei had tried to get Tomura to play, but he had turned his nose at it- videogames were mindless, you could place yourself in a brand new world. Chess was a mind game, and while he enjoyed strategy, he had dusted a few pieces when losing his temper, and Sensei had tactfully dropped the attempts.

Izuku was familiar with the game, though hadn’t played it much. They used odd ends to stand in for the missing pieces, and took a few rounds to fully recall the game. To Shigaraki’s delight, he felt the turmoil filled brain gradually settle into a low thrumming of his little brother’s focus on the game, the quick tactics and strategy drawing his attention.

It was probably cheating to lean on the impressions his brother gave off to know where to maneuver and conquer, but, he was the King of Villains.

They played three rounds, Izuku only winning the last. In Tomura’s defense, he had become distracted. Izuku’s mind had started to mull over something, the words too quiet and blurred together to quite catch on. So he was rather blindsided as the younger moved forward in defense and asked “Do you really see me as your brother? Check.”

Shigaraki eyed the younger one, pensive, before faintly smiling. “As much as you see me as one, Izu-chan.” He moved his knight over, capturing the bishop to leave his king out of danger.

“I don’t…” Izuku immediately started, before petering off. Shigaraki followed the trail of thought with some fascination as All Might’s protégé realized somewhere between being taken, and Tomura claiming his quirk, he had grown to see him that way. “I shouldn’t.” The boy amended, looking away in shame.

The villain shrugged his shoulders, keeping his face neutral while glowing inside at his brother’s indecision. It wasn’t much, but it was a step in the right direction. He could encourage this, build on it. He’d win his brother’s trust, then his loyalty.

“Check.”

Again? Shigaraki blinked, looking down at the board and realizing Izuku had taken his knight with a pawn he had forgotten about. What a clever little brother I have. “I know you think you shouldn’t see me as… family,” He quietly moved his king forward, capturing the pawn. “But I care about you- you’re the most important thing I have, now. I will prove that to you.”

“…more important than your Sensei?”

Red eyes looked up, a bit too late in hiding his surprise at the question. Izuku’s thoughts briefly flared with bequietdon’taskdangerousnotgoodofcoursehimbequiet before he seemed to force himself to focus on his next move. Did he suspect…? Well, it was possible. “You don’t need to worry about my master. Sensei gave me his power to fulfill my dream, so he’ll accept you because I accept you.”

“I… saw him once. At Kamino.” Izuku elaborated. And now that Shigaraki thought about it, he was there, wasn’t he? Lurking in the shadows as his mentor was almost defeated to oblivion. The student moved a different pawn, and the elder moved his king back in defense.

“What did you think?” Tomura pressed, fighting the impulse to use ‘Safe’ to satisfy his intrigue.

Izuku stayed quiet, looking over the board once move before moving his rook three spaces closer. “I knew that if I did anything to reveal where I was, he would kill me. And I’d have no way to stop it- he was just so powerful.”

Shigaraki nodded, gut twisting slightly at the thought of how he could have lost his brother before all this. I would have been delighted, back then. “All For One is a quirk built on years of experience and master’s intellect. Victory is inevitable with it.” He moved one of his bishops across the board, lurking just out of reach of Izuku’s king.

A brief flair of glee echoed through the connection. “Well, not inevitable.” He moved another pawn forward, capturing his other knight. “Check mate.”

The villain started, scrutinizing the board and realizing that it was true- he’d grown lax in his cheat code, and hadn’t paid close enough attention. Izuku had moved his pawn forces forward without him caring due to their lack of threat, but now he was surrounded, his little brother had out played him. He looked back up to see the green eyes twinkling, even if his voice was solemn. “One For All has been around just as long, but with many different people. I think each of them gave something important to the quirk, that drive that’s helped All Might so many times. So,” he shrugged, looking away sheepishly. “Not inevitable.”

Unfortunately, from there his anxious mood seemed to return and nothing Tomura did could shake it. Dinner was a predictably sorry affair- though Izuku did genuinely try for him. But the bites were weak, and he didn’t manage a fourth of his portion before starting to look green. While Shigaraki wanted to press it, the earlier disaster was still fresh in his memory, and he figured a good night’s rest was more important. There would be time to get his brother in better shape, after all. Patience was key. But when he’d started to drift off that night, Izuku was still awake facing the wall and only growing more concerned. He’d reached a hand out, ignoring as the small shoulder tensed under his touch. “Hey.”

Hesitating, his captive turned until green eyes met his.

He debated for a moment, feeling this was a stupid thing to say, but recalled the earlier warmth of Izuku seeing him as an older brother. Build his trust, earn his loyalty. “My quirk, ‘Safe’.” Izuku’s eyes widened, trying to shrink away from his touch. Shigaraki didn’t allow it, keeping his expression open and honest. “I won’t use it anymore.”

It took his little brother a moment, before comprehending. “W-what?”

“It’s what’s been making you anxious, right? You’ve been off all evening, that anytime you know I’m going to use it…” Tomura brushed a few whisping white strands out of the other’s face. “You don’t like the loss of control.”

The barrage of inner turmoil that had steadily grown loud again after their game seemed shocked silent. “No, I don’t like it. I hate it.” His little brother admitted over a quieter mantra of awfulnotincontrolnocontrolpowerless.

The elder heaved a sigh. “I… I liked using it on you. It helped you calm down, it gave me a chance to make you-” give me your trust “feel better, after everything that’s happened.” After everything I did. “But I won’t, not if it’s not helping you.”

To his chagrin, the green eyes were turning glassy. “That… why? That doesn’t benefit you, Tomura.”

Red eyes trailed along the thin, pale face. What I’ve gotten from it wasn’t worth repeating my mistakes. “Maybe I want to do what’s best for you, this time.” The brief spike of Aizawa-senseiwhymomcryingmyfriendshurt pushed him to continue, “I meant what I said before, little brother. I’m going to make this better. If not using my quirk on you is what helps, then… I can do that.”

The other took a brief, shaking inhale before therightthingmybrothersafenowrelief “Okay, thank you.”

He grunted, this time being the one to turn and face away. Thanking me twice in one day, ridiculous. “Go to sleep now.”

After a few moments, he heard the other turn away once more, and eventually the breathes relaxed into slumber.

Satisfied, he focused on his own sleep, knowing the next night, his plan would all come together. Already half-asleep himself, he turned over, tugging the smaller form close until he was sleeping soundly in his brother’s arms.

“Izuku?”

The green haired boy turned, once again trapped in a void. Where was he? How could it be so dark? Had the League of Villains moved again? “Hello!” He called, worried who would answer as he walked further along, seeing nothing. “I’m here! Who called for me?”

“Little brother?”

It was a different voice, but this time he knew it. He froze, suddenly indecisive. “S-Shigaraki?” He could see him- now. Just off in the distance, the familiar pale blue hair stood against the shadows. Midoriya moved forward, but only managed a few steps before screams sounded from the dark. He jumped, heart hammering as they didn’t slow down, familiar and horrible. He covered his ears desperately, finding it made no difference.

Mr. Ish*ta’s face broke through the shadows, aged face creased in unfathomable pain as his body disintegrated. “Help me!”

The traffic officer crawled into view as well, legs gone as he reached a hand out. “Stop him! Please, mercy!”

Feeling tears threaten, he yelled back at the frightened cries. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! There’s nothing I could do- I tried, I did try!”

“It hurts!” He whirled to see the business woman, her ribs already exposed to the light as her face stayed hard and desperately focused on his. “Make it stop! Make it stop!”

Breaths coming faster, he ran towards his brother- frightened of being alone with the decaying victims as screams continued to echo. “Tomura! Tomura, help me!”

“You trust him now?”

He turned, seeing the disgusted faces of his classmates appear, one by one.

“N-no, I don’t- I just want him to make it stop!”

“You gave up.” Muttered Shoto, who continued to glare even as his form began to dust, the others following suit.

Ochako shook her head from the far side, falling apart but seemingly unaware of it. “You didn’t come back. How could a hero not keep their promise?”

“Wait!” He raced forward, trying to stop her, but the class dispersed right as his hands reached, melding into the cries from the dark.

“Traitor.” He turned, seeing Tomura had finally gotten close enough. “Traitor.” He repeated gleefully, before his expression slowly morphed to anger. “Traitor, traitor, traitor!” He leapt forward, arms outstretched to destroy his little brother.

The fallen hero flinched back, landing on the ground and covering his face defensively, curling into himself more and more as he remained untouched but the voices didn’t slow down.

“Help us!”

“Some hero you are.”

“Make it stop!”

“Failure.”

“How could you give up your power?”

Traitor

“Izuku?”

Gasping, the boy uncurled, looking up at the sound of the original voice, much clearer and calmer than the others. Before him stood a tall, thin man with whispy white hair. He appeared tired, but gentle. “Izuku?” He repeated, eyes looking sadly at him. The world was gradually melting into a soft grey, like the sun was rising somewhere in the distance.

It clicked- he knew this man- “F-First?” All For One’s brother? Realizing who stood before him, Midoriya looked down, shame overwhelming him. Would this figment blame him too? Would it reject him?

Barefoot steps padded forward, their soft falls echoing louder and louder until the screams faded away. He knelt before the boy, covering scarred hands with his own. “Izuku?”

“I’m sorry.” Tears rolled down his cheeks as he stared at the sickly hands below him. “I- I know this isn’t real. But I failed you, I failed All Might, I failed everyone. I… I couldn’t do it.” He hunched his shoulders, desperate to make the creator of One For All understand, even if only in a dream. “If I had l-let my mom- if she had- h-he would have grabbed someone else, and then someone else, and, and I didn’t want more people to die!” He pressed his forehead to the ground, ashamed. “I’m sorry One For All; I-I was scared! I’ve failed you, I’ve failed as a hero! And now… now I’m not sure I can go against Tomura. I don’t want to fight him!” He stayed as he was, crying and trembling, until the hands backed away. He’s leaving. Deku thought, both devastated and unsurprised. Nothing I say will make this right. I’ve betrayed their trust.

The empty void didn’t return, though. Instead a hand softly fell over his head, and a lightness, a familiar warmth, fell through him.

“Izuku.”

Sniffling, the boy looked up, shocked when he saw not only the first vestige, but all ten of them in varying degrees of clarity, each regarding him with a serene expression.

All For One’s brother smiled softly, understandingly. His words echoed all around them, through him. “You have not failed us, Izuku. Don’t give up. We are here with you, all who bear One For All.”

Midoriya’s lower lip quivered, processing the words. This was real? And they… they didn’t blame him? “But… but your legacy… I gave up…”

Hands pulled him into a hug, and he felt peace come over him more powerful than any fake sense that ‘Safe’ had ever managed. “You are our legacy. And our gift is not what made you a hero.” Carefully, the younger brother looked down to the child. “We chose you, have faith in us as we have faith in you. Don’t give up, not yet.”

They… surely this was a dream, and yet. “I- I won’t; if you still believe in me, I won’t!”

One For All nodded, still smiling, before letting go of Izuku, him and the others fading away as he did so. “Trust yourself, Izuku. Don’t give up- we will watch over you…”

“I won’t give up.”

Izuku looked up blankly at the ceiling, realizing he had spoken out loud. He glanced to the side, realizing he was alone in the room. Feeling familiar wetness around his eyes, he brushed the tears away. He must have had another nightmare; though he didn’t feel jarred awake. What had happened? The screams, he’d seen Tomura-

One For All.

He had spoken to One For All.

Or had he? Wasn’t it just another dream? And yet…

Don’t give up, not yet.

He didn’t realize how much of a relief those words were, the idea he wasn’t rejected for what he’d done.

That he could still be a hero.

Okay. He thought with more determination than he’d had before. He looked to the plans laying on the desk. What would a hero do?

After a few moments of overlooking the contents, he claimed a red marker left on the desk. He moved back to the old schoolbooks Tomura no longer bothered with, pulling out several, and placed them strategically around himself, so if Shigaraki came back, it would look like he was glancing through several rather than focusing on one. The second the door started opening, he’d simply flip to a different page and work on one of the actual math problems- he even worked halfway through one so he could show his work if needed.

But now, now he needed to fall back on his old habits.

Midoriya found one with relatively blank pages, empty math equations that he could easily write over. He scribbled furiously, aware that he needed to focus on the main points and elaborate later when he had time.

He reacted twice to false alarms, ever careful even as he felt a spark of enjoyment for indulging his old habit. It had been so long since he could write his thoughts down, rather than gumption on an impulsive plan. He sketched out Shigaraki’s character and those of the rest of the League, potential weaknesses worth exploiting. The muttering under his breath grew, as page after page was filled with red strategies, contingencies.

Eventually, a few hours had passed and no one had returned. With more energy than he’d had previously, he staggered to the bathroom, managing a quick shower and using the soap to scrub through his hair. By the time he’d redressed and exited, Shigaraki still hadn’t returned. Part of him wanted to see if he could pry some of the gaming consoles apart, verify if he had the right motherload fuses and IC chips; but that would be even hard to explain away. (save for option five, disregard till failing of option three)

He’d narrowed it down to three main plans, in his head. There were eight options in total, but several were reliant on things he didn’t have at his disposal (not yet).

Shigaraki returned in the afternoon, food laden and very happy to see Izuku up and active. The hero could almost feel the delight from the elder, watching raptly as he ate more promising bites than yesterday.

Stay calm. Izuku told himself as the hours passed, doing his best to interact and engage with his brother. Act like a hero.

Tomura didn’t want to be suspicious of the sudden change in attitude, he wanted to believe Izuku was genuine in his attempts to extend the olive branch.

Shigaraki was hopeful. But he wasn’t an idiot.

While it was a relief that the heavy fog which seemed to constantly plague Izuku had lifted somewhat, there was certainly an undercurrent of urgency; of planning.

He recalled the last time his brother ‘planned’ something.

“So.” Tomura started, glancing at a clock that almost read seven. “Tonight’s going to be a bit different. I’ll need to leave you in the other room.” He waved a hand, pretending not to watch his brother’s thoughts flash more frantically, determinedly. “You can bring any of the bedding or games, I know you don’t exactly like the safe, but-“

“Could I come with you?”

He paused, suspicions only growing. “Come with?”

“On your mission?”

“… with the League of Villains.”

Izuku hesitated for a moment, before pressing. “I… I don’t want to be left behind. Please?”

“Hmm.” He stood up, making a show of stretching before turning back to his little brother. “Do you think you can answer me honestly, Izuku?”

Paling slightly under the scrutiny, the boy still nodded.

“Then tell me; are you wanting to come because you still think you can be a hero?”

Don’tgiveupyoucandothisprotecttheothersprotecthimI’mnotalone. “…Yes.” He admitted, quietly.

Frankly, Tomura wasn’t expecting honesty, which is why he stayed quiet as a very nervous little brother tried to fill the void.

“I-I’m not giving up on being a hero. You may have,” hurtmeattackedmemadmenothing “taken my quirk, but I still believe in my dream. In doing the right thing. And I know what you’re going to do- what you’re planning.”

“So you’re going to go against me?” He didn’t mean for the edge to slip into his voice, but childishly, he was disappointed. He’d half hoped Izuku would just let him march him to the safe room, or agree to stay by his side. Idiot. He berated himself. You know better.

Izuku paused, looking down as he remembered Shigaraki’s lesson. “I… won’t endanger others, not if I can help it. But neither will I roll over and let you make me something I’m not.”

That answer was actually surprising. It wasn’t an outright denial, but it did sound a bit like… he didn’t want to fight? Tomura appraised him, a smile tugging at his lips. Surprisingly, instead of infuriating him, Midoriya’s promise seemed to put him more at ease. In a different time, I would have dusted him for that naïve zeal. It suits him, though. He reached out and pulled the other closer, making sure their eyes met. “Fine, I’d rather you keep that fire in your eye. But remember little Izuku- you’re mine, and trying to change that, escape that, will get you nowhere pleasant.”

Gulping, the younger nodded once, eyes determined. “So, so you’ll let me come with?”

He grinned, perhaps a touch smugly. “No. I can’t risk you being hurt Izuku. Use your brain.”

“I don’t care about me! If you break All For One out of Tartarus,” Izuku pressed, frustrated. “Then a lot of people are going to get hurt! Isn’t it enough that you won?”

“Almost.” His red eyes narrowed, tone dipping in warning. “I’ve almost won.”

He probably shouldn’t have enjoyed the anger that coiled from his little brother. “You said you were going to do what was best for me- this isn’t it!” He watched, feeling a touch embarrassed when tears welled in the kid’s eyes. “So I guess you lied.”

You’renothingyoudon’tmatterselfishstupidPlanAdumbyoudon’tmatteryoudon’tmatter-

“You do matter.” Shigaraki almost snarled, gripping the younger’s shoulders as if ready to shake the words into him. “But I have to rescue Sensei from Tartarus first. With him here, nothing will be taken from me ever again. I’ll have the criminal underworld at my beck and call, the heroes on there knees begging before me, I’ll-”

“I didn’t say that.” The words fell faintly from his lips, his green eyes wide as he stared up at his brother. “I never said I didn’t matter out loud.”

Oh sh*t.

“This isn’t the first time…” Izuku’s eyes grew distant, mind whirling. “That time you barged in yesterday, you had said ‘One For All’ was freaking out. What had-?”

They both looked up as the light went out, both frozen.

“What…?” Izuku looked back to him in the dark, askance.

The power flickered back to life, if weaker.

“The power grid.” Shigaraki looked over his shoulder to the door, eyes narrowed dangerously. “Why would the power grid short circuit-”

They both realized it at the same time.

“The heroes.” Izuku whispered, daring to believe. “They came? They’ve come for me?”

“They’ve come to die.” Tomura corrected, reaching out a hand and quickly dusting the contents of his desk, grabbing Izuku by is other hand and strong arming him towards the bathroom. If the heroes were here, he didn’t have time to drag him to the safe. He needed to act now. “Stay in here, do not. Move.”

“Wait!” He immediately wrestled with the grip, slipping out only for Tomura’s other hand to wrap around his chest, bodily lifting him towards the small lavatory. But the panic was already starting to set in. “D-Don’t hurt them! Shigaraki, you can’t hurt them!”

“Anyone who tries to take you is a threat, Izuku. Get in.”

His brother continued to protest, yelping as he was thrown in and Shigaraki threw himself against the door, shutting it. He ignored the continuingly frantic calls, morphing the metal frame against the door like someone swiped their hand through putty, pinching points of the door so it blended into the wall for good measure.

How did they even find this place? He thought furiously, pulling out his phone as he shut the bedroom door and raced to where he’d left the others earlier that day. Pick up, pick up, pick up-

“Boss, you need to get out here right now!”

“Obviously, dumbass.” He snarled, leaping down the flights towards the main entrance. “Give me a report!”

There was a roar that reverberated through the building itself as well as the cell.

Gigantomachia?!

Tomura rushed outside, half relieved when the constant stream of connection between him and Izuku seemed to dampen. His commanders had abandoned their posts, it seemed, but he eventually found them at the lawn line, staring up to the sky in bafflement. He shoved them out of his way, tracking where Toga and Dabi were looking. “Are we under attack? What the hell are you-” the words froze on his lips, expression mirroring theirs.

It was… Gigantomachia. And while normally it was natural to have to crane your head to see the monster of a being, today was even more of an exception. He was flailing about, squawking in confusion that the rest of the League mirrored as he gradually rose into the air. “Master!” He screamed, his voice echoing across the landscape as he twirled helplessly, trying to grasp the tops of the pine branches and failing. “Master, there are intruders!”

Floating? Why was that familiar- wait.

A black, bright-eyed mass of darkness rose into the sky, growing larger and taking the shape of a bird in the waning light. With a screech, it hit the mountain of a man, sending him skyrocketing into the stratosphere.

Well out of reach, even if he fell to the ground sometime soon- and that didn’t look promising.

“What the f*ck?” Dabi summarized the situation.

Except he had been looking towards the tree line, and Shigaraki saw that there were several small, glinting objects floating steadily closer to them. It wasn’t easy to see, and he gestured for everyone to back up, getting into defensive positions as the blinking objects came closer. “Dabi.” He commanded, not wanting to take risks. Immediately, the pyro set of a jet of blue flames to the closest threats. But the fire’s light showed them what was coming closer, and Dabi didn’t have time to cut off this attack before it activated the approaching objects.

Concussion bombs.

Tomura didn’t even have time to scream as the blasts threw him off his feet.

Izuku fell against the far wall as the building shook, dust falling onto his head. Then another explosion, and another.

And another.

It was like a series of fireworks going off, feeding off eachother. The thought started a familiar ache in him, a memory of what caused those sounds. Could it be?

“HEY!” He yelled, banging on the door. There was a fight taking place, there was no other explanation, but maybe, maybe- “IN HERE! HEY! I’M IN HERE!!”

He was in luck, because he realized the morphed metal that Tomura hastily messed with looked worse than it was. Hitting the door solidly as he was already started to cause a give. If this is a rescue mission, then it won’t do anyone any good if I just wait. Taking a breath, he backed up slightly, bouncing on the souls of his feet before letting out a yell and rushing at the door.

The SLAM From his impact wouldn’t be heard over the fight, but he grew excited at the sliver of light streaming from the other side. Time was now of the essence- he had to get out of there, to warn somebody of what his brother-

He shook his head furiously, backing up once more. What Tomura planned to do. What All For One planned to do.

With a yell, he ran at the door, his battle cry morphing to a squawk as the door broke against his attack, and he fell face first to the ground. Grunting, he rose as the sounds of battle continued to rage on in the distance, heading for the bedroom door. He was rushed- please have forgotten to lock. Don’t be locked. God, don’t be locked-

Dammit. Of course.

He jiggled the resisting handle, a furious shout falling from his lips. The first four options were definitely out the door. “HEY!” He yelled again, banging for all he was worth. “OVER HERE! IN HERE!”

All the yelling and breaking down the door had apparently winded him. He couldn’t say he was surprised- being unable to eat or feel motivated to move would slow down any hero. You have to get their attention. Izuku thought through gritted teeth, hitting against the door once more even as his palms ached. They won’t know to look for you here; there’s other sounds going on. If you give up, they may not find you, you have to-

Footsteps, footsteps racing down the hall.

For a second he froze, stupidly, half panicked that it was Tomura coming to check. But the feet raced passed before slowing down. Listening? Biting his lip, he beat against the door once more. “IN HERE! IN HERE!”

He heard a muffled exclamation, both steps hurrying back. Something hard banged against the doorway. (“Midoriya-san?”)

No way. He’d recognize that voice anywhere. “K-Kirishima!”

(“Get clear of the door!”)

He ran back into the room, ducking under the desk and calling that he was clear. Izuku listened as the hardened hero ran at the door with a cry of his own, the BANG of his body against the door covered by the explosions in the distance. It took him three times, but suddenly the door was lying dented on the ground, and Izuku was crawling out just in time to be bowled over by the crimson hero. His friend was practically crying, and Izuku was ready to throw down his own questions. How did they find him? Did they know what was happening tonight? Where was Tomura?

But Midoriya froze as the second figure emerged from the shadows. Izuku’s eyes widened as sleepy, unusually serious eyes met his. Despite circ*mstances, he couldn’t help the sudden, sure sensation of relief.

Option eight it is, then.

Hitoshi nodded his head casually, like they had crossed paths at Yuuei. If the mask hadn’t been covering his mouth, Midoriya could guess there’d be that familiar lopsided grin.

“Hey. Got your message.”

Chapter 13

Chapter Text

xxX Aren’t you embarrassed to lose to a child?

For God’s sake, you’re adults.

Put up a real fight! Xxx

Shigaraki couldn’t have been out for more than a minute, but when he recovered, he was lying on his side, half encased in ice like the rest of his team. The groans and colorful swearing told him they were also awake, if only just.

Regeneration was coming in handy- within moments his struggling vision focused once more to look around. He couldn’t move his head; a shard just shy of piercing below his right eye. Gritting his teeth, he took a moment to try and comprehend what was happening.

Gigantomachia had been taken out of the equation; several concussion bombs had been released to unbalance them. It was a bit sneakier than what he’d expect from the pros, but the villain supposed he’d thinned their numbers considerably.

Why haven’t they cuffed me yet? Not that cuffs would hold him, but no hero had approached, no police officer was relaying their rights. The uncertainty almost kept him down- what kind of operation was this?

Finally, from out of the corner of his eye, three figures materialized from the twilight. Faces he recognized-

Oh.

For f*cks sake.

“Why the hell are you toddler heroes here?”

The gravity girl took a step forward before Todoroki held her back, her expression fierce. “We’re not helpless first years at USJ anymore! We’re here to stop you!”

“Where are the damn pros.” Tomura demanded, infuriated that they’d dismiss him like this. After all the destruction he caused, those useless ‘good guys’ send a team with children in it?! “Sure is cowardly of them to throw you to the wolves like this.”

“We all came to face the darkness for our friend.” The bird boy’s quirk manifestation loomed closer over the three, hissing down at his trapped group.

“Yeah!” Shouted someone from the tree line. “We’re here to give our ‘Plus Ultra’!”

“’Plus Ultra’, huh?” Shigaraki immediately activated decay, ice fluffing to snow as he leapt up and ran for the space girl; his closest problem.

Except moments later he was pushed back, ‘Decay’ not reacting fast enough as he was suspended in the air, impaled.

On a very sharp icicle.

Gasps echoed from the tree line, float girl backing up in horror at Shigaraki’s situation more than the fact that he had been halted mere feet from her. “Shoto!” She cried out when more ice impaled the villain, holding him still.

“He’ll heal.” Intoned the ice wielder, pitiless. “Pain is good at slowing people down.”

Damn. Coughing blood, he couldn’t help but laugh. “My my, didn’t think you kids had it in you.” Despite the sheer agony, he couldn’t help but be impressed. No certified hero would dare behave in such a reckless manner. Well, none still living. “Are you planning on getting revenge for your dear old dad, little Todoroki?”

The younger boy’s left side burst into flame, his expression fierce.

Tomura sent him a bloody grin, then scanned the surrounding forest- making out three or four others just out of reach of the light. All small and familiar, but none of the pros were making themselves known. Which was very unlike the busy bodies.

Unless…

Red eyes narrowed at the trio in front of him, tilting his head to the side. “You know, I can’t put my finger on it. The number two definitely isn’t leading this mission. Can’t be your cool guy either, the way I left him.” His expression relaxed into something mean. “No traitor Hawks, Fatty Fat Gum, slu*tty Midnight or Pathetic Mic. The more I think about it, the more I think you don’t have a heroes’ permission to be here.”

While the others seemed to recoil at his discovery, Shoto- Endeavor’s little beacon- merely narrowed his eyes. “Easier to handle you, then.”

“Holy sh*t.” Came a call from behind them- and everyone glanced to see Dabi rising from the earth, soaked from the melted ice. He stared up at his suspended leader, then looked back down at the ice wielder in barely repressed glee.

Spinner was shaking water dropplets out of his hair, steam coming off his scales from being a little too close to the pyro. “Boss!” He called, up, having the decency to look concerned. “Are you okay?” Compress was subtly collapsing chunks of ice around him and Toga, careful not to slice off any body parts.

“You serious?” Dabi continued, blue fire lighting that manic edge in his eyes. “Your old man gets dusted, and you turn straight to villainy? Gotta say, thought you were made of better stuff. Guess you really are his knock off protégé.”

Before anything more could be said, one of the students staying back cried “Phase Two!” Instantly, The giant mass of darkness rose, as before, letting out a shriek that made Shigaraki’s hair stand on end. ‘Decay’ sifted out, releasing him so he barely landed on his feet. He leapt back just in time, large and deadly claws slashing down to leave the earth overturned and loose. A teammate intercepted him midfall, settling them both behind some rubble. Dabi at once set a fire wall, giving them a brief respite.

Wincing at the pain from his still very present wound, he met the gaze of Compress and Dabi. “Well.” He grunted. “If there are any pros with them, they’re certainly unethical.”

“We’re being attacked by a troupe of children?” Spinner looked disgusted.

“Looks like the little heroes needed to blow off some steam.” Joked the magician.

“Did you see how serious Ocha-chan was?” Toga squealed, licking her lips as she raised a dagger. “And maybe Tsu-chan came to play as well?”

“We don’t have time to play- the operation is in less than an hour.” Dabi glared at his leader. “Where’s your damn Nomu?”

“You shouldn’t need Nomu to stop kids, loser.” Tomura glanced out, watching as the golden babies melted back into the shadows, preparing. He couldn’t risk mobilizing his army and actually triggering a real hero assault. They’d have to handle this themselves. “How many are even in that class? Thirteen? Fifteen?”

“Their movements are coordinated.” Compress reasoned. “One of their classmates must be acting as leader.”

Spinner nodded, sword at ready. “We find the leader, we cut the party short.”

Shigaraki was already activating ‘Search’. At once, the night light grew dim to reveal a delightful sparkling of shiny quirks. Most were congregated before them, but he saw two, three? About a mile out. “That way.” He pointed, a grin crawling back onto his face. “Dabi, smoke ‘em out. I’ll handle the rest of these toddlers.”

“Oi, assholes!”

All three looked up just in time to be smacked in the face by a large strip covered in purple blobs. Dabi and Toga were on the far end and just got out from under it. The purple globs stuck to Shigaraki’s hair, tugging it down with their weight. Growling, he moved to grab on, only to get four fingers stuck in it, his thumb tacked onto a different sphere. “What the hell?!”

“Y’all are rude.” Intoned the helmeted hero being upheld by a floating Uravity. “All yours Anima!” He sent out another strip from his elbow (tape?) and shot off.

The more they struggled, the more stuck they became. Shigaraki couldn’t activate ‘Decay’ in a radius while his comrades were stuck so close, and he couldn’t unstick his god damn hands. A low droning sounded from nearby, but he ignored it. “Dabi, barbeque them!” He ordered once more.

“Happily.” The blue fired quirk user moved beyond the barrier, spreading out a field of fire at anything in his path. Toga worked quick to help cut them lose as some of the hero protégé’s screamed, fleeing the flames. The pyro grunted, and the rest of the League watched as he was forced to role to the side when a wall of ice collided with his attack, almost entrapping the tail ends of his jacket. Dabi had to limit his outward attacks, focusing on the remainder of Endeavor’s legacy.

The droning grew louder, but Tomura didn’t realize what it was until Spinner let out a pained yelp, then another. Something buzzed by his face and landed on his left shoulder. Turning, there was just enough light from the fires to recognize the Giant Hornet that made a low buzz at him before stinging through his jacket. He yelled, letting out decay on instinct and only managing to cause alarm to his teammates who’s clothing connected to him started to disintegrate. They seemed to zone in on Dabi and Toga- the latter who was distracted from freeing them and focused on increasingly frantic knife slices through the air, cutting the huge suckers down as fast as she could and still not doing enough. Where did these even come from?! He thought, furious.

It was the most unorthodox attack he had ever seen from a group of do-gooders. And while part of him wanted to be impressed; UA certainly had their members level up pretty quick to take on his League- but now there was likely a chance his plan, his last goal would be hindered. With Gigantomachia gone who-knows-where, their ride to Tartarus was missing, meaning getting his raiding party to the final boss would be next to impossible. And that pissed him off.

These kiddies were going to pay.

“What are you guys doing here?” Izuku warbled out, blinking the tears out of his eyes while he refused to let go of Kirishima’s hug. “To- Shigaraki hasn’t let me see much, but it- it’s not near the cities, or the roads, I looked for that. So how-?”

“Hey, give us some credit!” Red Riot poked his head playfully. “You’re not the only one with a big brain in the class, after all.” The red eyes scrutinized him. “So, your- uh, what’s with-?” He caught Hitoshi’s eye, something passing between them. “Ah, never mind. It’s so good to see you!” He squeezed the thinner form again, a touch more gently.

“We should head to the rendezvous point.” Added in the ex-general studies student, coming forward to help them both get up. “The sooner we get out, the sooner everyone will be safe.”

They found me. Izuku looked up at the purple haired boy, not quite hearing his words. Before Shinso could get away, the smaller boy staggered over and wrapped him in a hug, chin wabbling. Hitoshi stiffened, apparently taken by surprise. But Midoriya couldn’t find it in himself to apologize. They came for me. “Thank you.” The white-haired boy hiccupped. “I wasn’t sure…” that you’d even come for me “I didn’t know…”

Shinso relaxed at his words. A hand went up, fussing with his mouthpiece dial before the perfect mimicry of Izuku came through. “’Listen carefully, no time! Go to All Might, your quirk may be the only thing to stop Shigaraki long enough’.” He readjusted the dial on the last word, his voice returning to normal. “Those were your words, then you just ended the conversation and all I could hear were sounds of a battle. You never came back.”

The green hero shrunk a bit, realizing how brash his actions had been. He had recalled Shinso’s number instinctively; he remembered all his friend’s numbers, and of all the quirks he knew that could counter Tomura, his was the first that came to mind. But that had been far too impulsive a decision; look what it had led to. Midoriya opened his mouth to apologize, explain, but was cut off as the other gently wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

“You sure like to show up the rest of us hero wannabes, don’t you? Managing to escape just long enough to send out a message like that. Of course I had to do my best to help find you.”

Oh. He thought, vision blurring. He… he’s not mad at me. “I- I shouldn’t have. The conse- Shigaraki wasn’t happy with me.”

“Hey.” He jostled the smaller form, playful in his scolding. “He’s not the only one that’s lost a battle to that brain of yours. You did exactly what you needed to do, don’t doubt yourself.”

I can’t cry! Midoriya’s lip trembled. I make him uncomfortable when I cry! He buried his head back against the other’s chest, so grateful for his friend.

“Let’s get moving- there’s a lot of people that have been missing our resident analyzer!” The crimson hero’s tone was light, but they could all hear the ongoing battle in the distance.

That reminded Izuku though. “Wait- I need to grab something!” He rushed back into the room, pulling off the books in his mad scramble until he located the one containing his notes. He went back to them, Hitoshi raising an eyebrow but not commenting. Kirishima took the lead, Izuku ending up situated between the two heroes.

“S-so what’s the plan?” He asked, trying to keep his voice quiet as the other’s led him down an unfamiliar hallway.

“We’re meeting up with the other search parties at the rendezvous.” Hitoshi kept his focus forward, pausing every now and then as he listened. “The majority are keeping the League of Villain’s busy while we searched the base; hopefully the others didn’t run into any trouble. With any luck, Present Mic and the others will have found the note and arrive in time.”

“Note?” Arrive? Izuku followed after obediently, slightly confused. “You mean at the rendezvous? Are they a part of the main attack? That diversion that Tomura went to?”

Kirishima gave him a weird look, and Izuku bit his lip, realizing he had used the villain’s first name far too informally. But more than that, neither were answering, in fact they were avoiding eye contact…

“… Guys? What… what is it?”

“Well, the pros aren’t going to be at the rendezvous.” Threw out Shinso, still avoiding eye contact.

“Oh.” Izuku narrowed his eyes, sensing they were still withholding information.

“We didn’t… ah.” Kirishima paused, clearly reluctant. “This is going to sound bad. We sort of didn’t bring any of the pros? It’s just the class, and a few others.”

Midoriya felt his stomach drop, stopping in the middle of the hallway. “What?” Their class? 1-A against, against Shigaraki? “No way. No. Why aren’t the pros with you?! What will our teachers…” But then he recalled- their teachers had been a part of the first attack. The battle that went so, so wrong so quickly. He’d been so wrapped up in his own struggles, he hadn’t even thought- and the last time he saw Aizawa-sensei…

“What’s… what’s been happening?” Izuku asked, almost afraid to know.

The other’s had stopped with him, though clearly anxious to continue. “It’s, it’s been really bad. Bakubro said we shouldn’t talk about it much till we evacuate you to a safe house, but…” Kirishima tugged gently on Izuku’s arm, and he automatically resumed following them along the corridor, towards the opposite end of where the fight was taking place. “Shigaraki’s forces have hit almost every city; we’ve managed to take down some of the Nomu, but not all- and we keep losing…” He paused, grim. “There’s been a lot of casualties.”

“It’s why they took so long to find you.” Hitoshi put in, clearly indifferent to what Kaachan had wanted. “All Might tried to press for immediate action, but we didn’t have the manpower to locate you. Hawks has been down since the initial attack, so’s Rumi and Fatgum.”

“A-Aizawa-sensei?” Izuku whispered, heart pounding. “Gran Torino? Did they…?”

Hitoshi’s expression shuttered. “They’re alive. Which is a lot better than most heroes right now.”

Izuku was going to ask more- about if Shigaraki’s forces were following some kind of pattern, if UA had been attacked- but his words were cut off with a yelp as someone came around the corner. No-

Through the corner.

Kirishima and Hitoshi, who had immediately placed themselves protectively in front of him, were not able to catch him as he fell in shock, book landing with a thump.

He didn’t hear their words, watching as a hero clothed in his signature red cape strode to him, bending on one knee and unceremoniously pulling him close. “Little Kohai, you’ve given everyone quite the scare!”

“L-Lemillion?!” Izuku returned the hug instinctively, looking to the far corner. “You- your quirk… !”

“Eri-chan was able to help me; I had my powers back just a little after the first battle when you were taken.” He pulled away, smiling disarmingly as he patted the younger’s head. “And what’s this? Now you and her match!”

It took Izuku a moment, before he realized. He hadn’t considered it- in the rushed reunion and escaping Tomura’s room; but they hadn’t known about his hair change. Now that he considered, he realized how he must look: scabbing cuts on his face, ugly fading bruises on his arms and wrists, how his hair hangs in an almost shaggy way like-

“Oh my gosh- Midoriya-san?”

His eyes widened as he recognized the voice, the boys were forcefully parted and he felt a presence invade next to him and Mirio. “H-H-Hagakure-san?!”

He felt a petite hand grasp his shoulder. “It’s really you!! What happened to your hair? Are you okay? I can’t believe we found you!!”

Izuku managed to crack a smile, saying something reassuring, but his mind was going a mile a minute. It had been so long- Tomura was a constant in his life now, and his victims aside, there were suddenly so many voices. He’d missed them, desperately, but he kept thinking back to his appearance, to the fight still faintly heard, to all their relieved faces and back to how impossible this all was. What about Todoroki? He wanted to ask. Where is Ochako? Do they know what happened? Do they know what I did? Does anyone?

“So not to be that guy, but this isn’t the rendezvous.”

“We all completed our searches and met back; you guys were the last group- and there was an impatient certain friend, so Earphone Jack checked your progress. When she said there were three voices…”

Izuku tuned them out as he watched the final team round the corner, Jirou and Shoji joining the excited group and confirming loudly that there were no nearby enemy forces. He didn’t pay mind, though. The last member of the search party was rounding the corner.

Kirishima followed Izuku’s stare, giving a sharp grin as he raised his hand. “Bakubro, we found him!”

Ground Zero was dressed in his winter costume to blend better with the evening, but the attire looked like it hadn’t been washed in weeks, torn and grimy from battles. In fact, now that the glow of being found had settled, he realized they all looked a bit worse for wear. Midoriya’s wide eyes connected with Kaachan’s, watching something pass through his oldest friend’s expression. (relief, shock- if Midoriya didn’t know any better, sadness)

None of that mattered though- not now.

“K-K-“ He stood up with Mirio’s help, taking a few stumbling steps forward. “Kaachan, I-“

The other placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from coming closer. They both glanced down at the barrier, Bakugo equally surprised. His hand twitched once, as if to test he was really feeling the shoulder of his oldest friend. Then he let go, abruptly turning away and heading back down the hall. “We have to get moving. Creati just called in Phase Two, we need to be well out of range before the League starts connecting the dots.”

Izuku felt a stab of hurt at his friend’s dismissal, before shoving the emotion aside. “Kaachan.” He called, voice more controlled. The other paused, and his classmates watched the exchange curiously from behind. “I’m sorry.”

“Ha?” The blond whipped around, irritation igniting so easily. “The f*ck you sorry-?!”

“I didn’t keep my promise, though I tried to.” Izuku rushed, expression firm. “I’m sorry for the trouble I caused because of it.”

Ground Zero gnashed his teeth, seething. “Idiot.” Deku heard the others protest behind him at the behavior, but he was watching his friend’s trembling hands, frame held too stiffly. “That dry-ass bastard was just climbing onto the giant f*ck by the time I got back. I couldn’t see you, you were gone, and he…”

Midoriya understood how hard it was for the fellow hero to admit feeling helpless or out of control. “I appreciate that at least you kept your promise even if I couldn’t.” He gestured to the others behind him, the smile almost feeling strange on his face. “You brought the rescue party.”

“Damn straight I did.” Asserted the explosive hero, relaxing ever so slightly. “And we’d better keep moving. I’m going to crush that dusty bitch, but after we get you back to your mom.”

Did… did he just say- “… Mom?” Izuku couldn’t stop the crack in his voice. “S-she’s okay? She made it home?”

She’s safe?

Bakugo’s expression fell into a grime line. “Auntie was… really upset, when she was brought back. But she’s okay, the old hag is taking care of her. Till you get back and apologize your ass off for putting her through that.”

“Bro.” Kirishima admonished, but Izuku just shook his head, knowing the other hero was right.

“Thanks, Kaachan.”

He tsked at the tears forming, once again turning forward. “Invicible Girl, Earphone Jack, Lemillion. Move forward for recon- we need to have a clear path to the woods. Tentacole, Hypno, give them back up.”

“H-Hypno?” Izuku looked up to the purple haired hero, trying to pull himself together. Somewhat to Izuku’s shock, the others moved as instructed. “You picked your hero name?”

Hitoshi ducked further into his capture scarf as he moved ahead, passing over the recovered math book. “It’s a temporary code name- wouldn’t do to have people shout my civilian identity.” With that, he moved ahead and away.

Izuku settled between Bakugou and Kirishima. It was still several more minutes at a pace that left Izuku shaking from being far too malnourished and out of shape before they reached their original entry point. The door was open, letting the sounds from across the compound echo frighteningly back to them. The others crouched, hidden in the shadows. Jirou was giving the all clear, ear jacks pressed into the earth. Invisible girl had apparently moved onward to verify their getaway was ready and unhindered. According to Mirio’s murmured reassurance, she would reach out once she made safe contact.

At one point, Shoji spotted something approaching and forced them all back into the building. They all watched, wide eyed, as two bears lumbered on by, heading towards the fight.

“Ears?” Ground Zero prompted, eyeing the lumbering mammals.

“Anima.” Jirou responded, frowning as she leaned in. “That fire guy is trying to head for Creati and Chargebolt. Froppy is enroute to help move him, but-” she paused, cursing. “Invicible Girl’s hit a snag; she’s tapping for reinforcements to clear the escape.”

The explosive hero looked to Lemillion and Tentacole, jerking his head. The multi-limbed hero headed immediately out to aid Hakagure, Mirio giving Izuku one last side hug before disappearing into the earth.

The quiet of their space resumed, though the tension remained high. “Dammit.” Bakguo muttered, angry. “We’re getting spread too thin. Evacuation’s going to be hard if we can’t stay at our designated locations.” Something seemed to occur to him, and he turned to regard Izuku, frowning. Admittedly, the previously captive hero didn’t look too good. This was more exercise and adrenaline that he’d had since his first escape attempt, as much as he was trying not to show it, he was trembling from the slightly cool breeze, as well as exhaustion. Wordlessly, the hero grabbed Izuku’s arm and tugged him back into the building, ignoring Deku’s quiet protests, the book falling out of his hands next to Jirou.

“Ears, I need you to disengage for one minute before plugging in again, depend on coms.” He called over his shoulder, rounding a corner. “Start in five.”

Midoriya wasn’t sure what was going on. Why were they returning inside the base? For privacy? Surely if Kaachan needed to say something, it could wait? He brought them two more halls in before stopping, then proceeding to tear off his glove, throwing the material on the ground.

All at once, Izuku understood what was happening.

He took a step back, suddenly frightened. “Wait, Kaachan.” He kept his voice at a whisper- Bakugo had placed distance because the other’s didn’t know. And he couldn’t risk speaking heard.

“Don’t complain, it’s better to do it now so you have some kinda self-defense if things go to hell.” He winced as he nicked his middle finger against the sharp edge of his support gear. “Show me that cut on your forehead.”

Izuku shook his head, backing up more as he held his hands defensively in front of him. “No. We can’t.” He remembered the screams, the helplessness as people died. “You can’t give it back to me.”

Red eyes stared at green incredulously, realizing Izuku was in full out denial. “The hell I can’t?!” His voice was just shy of being too loud for the other’s to hear, and Izuku knew he was limited to how much privacy they had. “All Might told me how this works, I can shove this on anyone I need to- take the damn quirk!” He outstretched his hand, intending to smack Izuku in the face complete the transfer, but the boy managed to duck, eyes terrified.

“Please Kaachan- I can’t!”

“f*cking take it Deku-“

“I’m not strong enough!” All Might’s protégé blurted, causing the other to freeze his attack, hand inches away. Midoriya felt his face burn in shame as he scrambled back, the memories of what he’d gone through surfacing and leaving him feeling vulnerable. “You don’t understand- I still had it, somehow.” Why didn’t you take it? Why didn’t you accept it when you were supposed to? “Because it hadn’t left me, I failed protecting All Might’s quirk.” He looked down and away, hating to admit this. To Kaachan of all people. “I caved and gave it away to protect my mom. And… and I know he’ll do it again, if I have it. I can’t stop him, he’ll just kill someone else! You didn’t hear them screaming, begging me to just be a hero and-” Izuku hid his face, hating how his shoulders shook with repressed sobs. “I’m not strong enough to watch him kill people for my failure again. I can’t take it back, not yet.” He risked looking up, eyes glimmering in the faint light. “Please, Kaachan.” I have to protect everyone. Everyone I can.

Even if that meant not having One For All.

For a long, horrible moment, Izuku feared what he said would not matter to the other. Finally though, the other sighed; leaning down and retrieving his gear. “Knock it off.” He stepped forward and picked the other boy up, hesitant to release his grip. “Quit being self-conscious of things out of your control. I know about…” But he paused, gritting his teeth together and stopping himself. Izuku was going to prompt him to continue, but he realized; time was up. Whatever His friend had wanted to say, it would have to wait.

When they rounded the corner, LeMillion and Tentacole had returned, presumably with Invisible Girl, and appeared to be discussing with the others. They all turned at their approach, expressions grim. For a moment, Izuku feared they’d listened in, that they found out, but instead Earphone Jack reported that things weren’t looking good for the main team. “The escape route is compromised. We’re going to have to do the contingency.”

“Contingency?” Izuku asked, looking worriedly between them as Mirio passed him his book.

“In the event that the main body can’t pull away in time, we all agreed to at least get you out of here. There’s a second escape route, but it’s a smaller space, and longer trek.” Kirishima supplied, looking with concern to Ground Zero.

Katsuki looked more torn than Midoriya had ever seen. “I can take him.” Kaachan volunteered, continuing when no one objected. “We can send Lemillion and sh*tty hair to cover the others; they have the most field experience. Hypno, Ears and I will move to the retreat point then break off from there. Where do you want to be extras?”

“If Earphone Jack is with you guys, then I’ll be more help back with the others.” Insisted Hakagure. Midoriya had never heard her this serious.

“I will return to Tsukuyomi.” Shoji nodded, solemn. “They’ll need someone to help provide cover for the injured to fall back first.”

It took the smaller boy a moment before the words finally registered, what they intended. “You… you’re going to leave everyone else behind? To face Tomura?” He looked between them, feeling more frantic by the moment. “W-what about the pros?! I thought you were waiting for their arrival? We can’t leave without reinforcements coming to help!”

Ground Zero’s eyes flashed, but LeMillion stepped in first. “Waiting any longer is too dangerous. They’ll leave when they can, but if we try to draw back now, we’ll have the whole League following after. The rescue parties didn’t encounter any traps, so we’re still pretty fresh for a fight; we’ll provide them with the help they need!”

Bakugo could see the words didn’t get through to him. “You’re the priority Deku. This whole operation is a wash if we can’t manage to rescue the one stupid classmate we came for.”

Midoriya shook his head, horrified. Reality finally kicked in- he was being rescued, saved from Shigaraki. And he wanted that, but this was a blood bath waiting to happen.

(The victims he never saw- the three from his punishment- how many others? How many more people would die because of him?)

No. He couldn’t leave with them, not without abandoning them to their deaths. “I’m not leaving until our classmates are safe.”

“Deku.” Earphone Jack urged, worried. “We all knew this was a possibility, we’re willing to take the risk.”

“I’m not willing to let you.” He raised his voice, too loud. “We can’t just leave them.” Izuku brusquely passed off the book to Kirishima, who fumbled with it for a moment. “You all risked your lives to come here, and you-” shouldn’t have. “You shouldn’t leave anyone else behind after this!”

“Use your brain, sh*tty nerd.” Katsuki’s voice was scathing. “You’re the only piece in this fight that matters to that bastard!”

Izuku rounded on him, his own inner fire blazing out despite fear and exhaustion. “Exactly! And if you think my big brother is going to just leave everyone alive once he finds I’m gone-” Bakugo’s face went slack, looking sick. “What?” It wasn’t until he saw the other teammate’s paling behind him that he realized his mistake. “W-wait. That’s not- I didn’t mean it-”

Bakugo glanced at their sempai. “We can’t wait; we need to get him out of here now.”

“Kaachan,” Izuku felt frustrated tears forming, hating how he couldn’t get through to them. “Just listen to me, you can’t do this! T-Tom- Shigaraki doesn’t care who he has to kill; he’ll do it, he wants to do it!” But he’d lost them, he could see it in their expressions, in Mirio’s pity.

Hitoshi’s voice came from behind, “Why do you care what that monster does and doesn’t want? He’s the enemy, Midoriya.”

“I know-” The words died on his lips. His whole body relaxing even as his panic spiked- suddenly shoved to the side in his own mind. Seeing but unable to control, voiceless. It’d been so long since he’d experienced Shinso’s quirk.

This was worse than Safe.

“I’m sorry, Izuku.” Tired eyes looked at him apologetically, regretful. “We’re doing what’s best for you. Stay close to Bakugo, he’s going to lead you out of here.”

No. He thought, feeling like a scream was building within him that he couldn’t let out. No no no, they can’t do this, they’ll all die, he’ll kill them just like the others! I have to break this hold! But he couldn’t- belatedly, he realized that without his quirk, there was nothing to interrupt the control, to stop them from taking him while leaving the others behind.

Mirio relayed something through his communicator, an alert for the others to press harder, that help was on the way. Even as his hand was tugged, steps haltingly following forward, Izuku couldn’t help but yell into his mind, desperate to be heard. Don’t do this- you can’t do this! Please, they’ll all die, they’ll die and it’ll be my fault! I have to help, I have to stop him! Just let me go- Let me go-

LET ME GO.

Tomura knew that heroes underwent years of training to ever be worthy of their career.

It wasn’t just a ‘do good attitude’, it was learning the limits and strengths of your quirk so you could use it responsibly, limiting the casualties and damage. Popular heroes were able to get away with it more, but the majority of hero society had to adhere to one rule: control the amount of damage you create.

He was a little exhilarated to discover that aside from protecting one another, these munchkins were not interested in adhering to any rule whatsoever.

After they’d escaped from the tape and purple sticky trap, they’d been immediately bombarded by several vicious wild animals from giant hornets to boars, bears and snakes. When that wave had died or retreated, they had just enough time to dodge another round of concussive blasts before a hissing dark matter quirk came at them again. ‘Decay’ and ‘Regeneration’ were in constant use, but the barrage limited his chance to expand, especially when taking into consideration his team. The League were playing defensively, knowing if they grew too injured it would hinder tonight’s plan. As it was, Toga was half-delirious from blood loss, and Spinner was limping from a bear bite.

I need to end this. He thought, furious that it had gone on for so long. Dabi had been tasked with exterminating the key players, but he seemed to have forgotten all about that, currently at a stalemate with the Todoroki brat- who took every opportunity given to glare balefully at the King of Villains like he’d somehow taken everything from him.

Suddenly, their attacks seemed more honed in- some hidden strength he didn’t realize they had driving them to attack quicker, meaner, truer. He bit back a cry as Endeavor’s offspring managed to send out a flame that extended against his legs. Tomura knew enough strategy to understand something had shifted, had given them an almost desperate edge-

LET ME GO!!

The call- suddenly breaking through to his mind so fast and powerfully that it felt like a physical blow, left him dazed a second too long, acid hitting his back while his feet were taken out from under him. Izuku? He thought sluggishly, trying to comprehend what just happened even as One For All seemed to shuffled and disperse the sensation, muddling the connection.

“Stay down.” He heard a cold voice from above him, glancing to see it was the Todoroki brat. What the hell happened to Dabi? “You’re forces have all but lost. Surrender.”

Not all my forces. He thought angrily. But he couldn’t call on the Nomu; it had taken days to hide them, one by one, tirelessly waiting for his command. And he was not wasting his power on bite-sized heroes. “Why stop here?” He goaded, brain still frantically trying to make sense of the sudden panicked need that was now being strangely muffled in his connection to One For All. What was going on?! “Afraid my little brother is going to be disappointed in you for killing someone?”

The younger’s face was confused momentarily before comprehension came in, leaving his tone disgusted. “You are no brother to Midoriya. You’re just the nightmare he can finally wake up from.”

While Shigaraki didn’t care what some trophy child thought he knew, the words made him realize.

Izuku.

This was about Izuku. He’d seen a lot of Eraser Head’s class, but not all of them. Why not all of them? Where was the red haired one- string ears- Bakugo? He didn’t recall hearing about their deaths in the latest reports, and surely that would have come up. Wait; that moment- when all the little sh*ts became more focused, more intent on defeating them instead of just fighting- no, they hadn’t been just fighting- delaying. How could he be so stupid?

They were after Izuku.

Panic started to set in, like he was slowly drowning. He would know, right? He would have known if Izuku had been found, One For All would have-

One For All was silent, it had been since he first raced out to face this pathetic distraction, right up until-

(LET ME GO!!)

He acted before their attackers could react- grasping the late pyro’s quirk, he let out an engulfing flame, barely registering as some of the children screamed, falling back as he leapt backwards, deftly tossing aside one of the brats that tried to intercept him while he raced into the building. Little brother, you better not have moved, you better not have-

He activated ‘Search’ without thinking. There was no point, Izuku wouldn’t show on his radar now that he was quirkless. But his rescuers would, the supposed fools who would try to take Izuku. They couldn’t have hi-

Tomura skidded to a halt, staring.

He had been looking to his room, where he had left his precious brother. Nothing glowed, nothing near, and that was fine (hopefully, desperately, please be there). But through the iron and concrete and wood, he could see several quirk holders- a larger team branching off while in the distance, glowing bright and powerful was a powerful quirk. His quirk- the quirk.

One For All.

“Impossible.” He muttered out loud, jaw slack. He looked down to his own techni-array of lights, back up to the glow he knew. How…?

Even if he had doubts, though, All For One did not. The quirk roiled within him, a yawning need rising above his panic for his brother in a fierce, vicious demand.

GIVE IT TO ME.

He raised one hand towards the ceiling, activating ‘decay’, the world above him dissolved in a flurry of ashes, floor after floor decimated until he saw a burst of evening stars. His other hand pointed to the ground, activating a small ‘air canon’ that sent him skyrocketing to the skies. For a few, brief moments, he was suspended above the chaos watching the lights in the distance, the ice and fires from earlier shimmering in the moonlight. His team were holding back the other party from pursuing him, barely. There was a chance they’d be over run.

But that wasn’t important.

‘Search’ showed One For All and a few other quirks about to skirt into the woods. Escaping.

It’s mine. He gnashed his teeth, raising his hand into the air to produce another blast of air and trajected himself towards his quarry. One For All is M I N E.

Tomura started to flash down to them, but the closer he got, the more time slowed.

While ‘Search’ was still in play, he finally saw that the small blank spot in their center wasn’t empty space. A flash of moonlight played over the white hair, the pale skin.

Little brother.

For a brief second, his focus was diverted, and a pang of betrayal foolishly ran through him. He had locked up his brother himself, of course the boy was still willing to leave if someone came to rescue him, he knew that, he knew that, he shouldn’t be-

Then the bearer of One For All, as if sensing him, turned around. The golden light danced around widening red eyes.

Bakugo Katsuki.

Him? How had he-

“I won’t let you have One For All, Shigaraki!”

“No Ground Zero hiding nearby- were you waiting for me to catch up, Izu-chan?”

No.

“I don’t think I’ll like how empty it’ll feel without One For All. I can’t do much about that, though.”

No no no no no-

“You care about doing what’s right and being a hero. More. Than. Anything.”

The explosion brat grabbed Izuku around the waist, vaulting them out of the way as Tomura crash landed. He didn’t even realize he was screaming in rage until he’d left a crater in the ground, his voice dying out in the impact. Heaving in air, he looked up to see the rescue team looking at him with wide eyes- struck dumb in fear.

It did not matter. How could he? How could he?

“Little brother.” His voice came out growling, menacing in a raged duality. The earth within his immediate vicinity wafted up to the air, ‘Decay’ responding to his ire. Tomura felt his face begin to crack from the ferocity of his quirk being held just within control, not lashing out yet. Not yet. Bakugo shoved himself in front of Midoriya, and it was just as well, because in this moment, All For One was out for blood.

“What. Have. You. Done.”

Chapter 14

Chapter Text

“Everybody MOVE!”

Izuku was aware of the call, but too lost in the fog of his own panic to understand before Kaachan was bodily picking him up and leaping to the side, a projectile crashing right where they had been previously.

He remained pliant against his will, the explosive hero moving in front of him and obscuring this vision. Was it debris from the building? What was happening?

“Little brother.”

The voice, dripping with malevolence, answered his question. No. Izuku felt like he was drowning. No no nononono-

“What. Have. You. Done.”

He didn’t get a chance to react, frozen as he was, before Ground Zero cried. “GET CLEAR!” And threw his hands forward, releasing the pin to his left grenade bracer. Immediately, an explosion ten times the power of any Deku had seen previously erupted. Tomura, gaze focused on Izuku, did react quick enough to dodge.

The other’s screamed from the hurricane winds resulting from attack, but the rescued captive could only stare off and away, eyes watering from the debris. Is this Kaachan’s quirk with the power of One for All?! It was hard to focus, to see beyond the ‘fog’ that lay over his existence, but he could make out the chunks of pine and cedar bursting apart from the explosive impact, the smell of scorched wood immediately filling the air.

Out of his control, his body sluggishly tried to move back to Kaachan, who was stalking into the tunnel of destroyed forest. Jirou tried to block him, bursts of her frantic call not dissuading his body until a larger hand grasped his bicep.

“Stay with Me, Izuku.”

Immediately, his body relaxed, allowing Hypno to keep him close while Bakugou unleashed another hit of power, screaming something Izuku couldn’t make out.

Not that it mattered- there had been too much disruption to his initial planning- he could no longer control the outcome, but he could predict it. Tomura’s going to murder my friends. He’s going to destroy them, and make me watch. His thoughts echoed all around him, amplifying his panic. He’s going to kill everyone and it’s all my fault.

(“-if you think my big brother is just going to leave everyone alive once he finds I’m gone-“)

Why could he not have been stronger? Should he have accepted the risk of taking back One for All? At least then he’d be able to escape Hitoshi’s control. How had he not seen this coming the moment they rescued him? Should he have kept quiet? Just never spoken up when he heard them outside his door?! And why hadn’t he spoken up sooner about the plans? The dangers!? I didn’t know! I thought the heroes would arrive, that others with more experience would come! I couldn’t have known-

But he was Izuku Midoriya, inheritor of the greatest quirk on earth, and he should have. This was his responsibility, all of it.

He needed to stop this.

“What are we going to do?” Earphone Jack was somewhere to his right, but he couldn’t see clearly in the haze of Hitoshi’s quirk- Bakugou had backed towards them once more, waiting for a sign of movement. “Isn’t Shigaraki, like, more powerful than that villain All Might had fought before? How do we combat that?!”

“By blowing his f*cking face off!” Growled Katsuki from up front. “This bastard has had it coming since day one. I’m sick of holding back! He can try to take Deku over my dead body.”

Don’t say that! Izuku cried inwardly, mentally clawing for any way to have control once more. He can’t kill Kaachan, I can’t let my brother kill him! He can’t he can’t he can’t-

Creaking came from the woods, trees toppling briefly before fading off into ash on the evening wind. Izuku felt Shinso’s hold on him tense in dread. Bakugou snarled, bringing up his other bracer to send another blast. “Stay down, you piece of sh*t!” He pulled the pin, palm extended.

Nothing happened.

Izuku’s classmates froze, a malevolence that was familiar to Izuku falling over them, gasping at the overwhelming force of it. They could only watch as the bloodied but unharmed villain marched his way back into the clearing. This time, Hypno failed to block his sight, so Izuku could just barely make out the glowing red eyes, the swirling hair. Tomura clawed at the curve of his neck, the motion almost a frenzied spasm while his lips stretched in a skin cracking leer.

The scene spasmed before Izuku, the villain’s body flickering from one All for One holder to the other, both looking less than human as they stalked forward.

“You…” The phantom hissed. “Do you have any idea what tonight is? What you’ve done?”

“f*cker.” Bakugou cussed out, again trying to thrust his hand forward.

“He’s using Aizawa-sensei’s quirk!” Jirou sounded far too shaken. “H-he really can…?”

Her words drew his attention, and even without being able to react, Izuku felt dread as those once familiar eyes focused back on him.

“Foolish little brother. Did I not say I won’t let us be separated?” The elder hissed, his hand scratching and scratching, like he was imagining digging into his prisoner’s own skin. Tomura dodged to the left as Bakugo unleashed another blast, but was not dissuaded, his eyes never leaving the blank green ones. “And here you are, abandoning me for a bunch of nobodies. Betraying me.” He howled as part of his arm got caught in the next blast, turning back and raising his hand, activating ‘air canon’ and sending the dynamite hero clear across the lawn, crashing into the building’s side. “Why did you do it, little brother? Why did you have to cause so much trouble?”

I’m sorry, I’m sorry, please don’t do this! Izuku felt his heart jackrabbit, helpless. I couldn’t risk All Might’s legacy- I had to protect everyone! It’s your power now, just leave the others alone! This is all my fault, I was so stupid- The screams that haunted his dreams now echoed all around him, the faces of Tomura’s ‘lessons’ morphing until their shrieks were coming from the lips of his friends. Nononono that can’t happen- that won’t happen! I have to stop this, I have to stop this-

“Well, Izuku? Why don’t you answer me?” While the King of Villains stopped before them, breathing heavily from his barely controlled rage. He glared between the chattel and his little brother, as if trying to process something. But gradually, the fury grew confused, eyes narrowing dangerously as he watched the boy’s expression stay serene, blank.

Red eyes widened, then. “Oh, oh.” A raspy giggle broke through, Tomura baring his teeth in a mean grin. “You can’t answer! They won’t let you answer!” He staggered back, laughing harder even as the dangerous miasma in the air didn’t albeit. “He’s waited for his precious heroes to come for so long!” His voice rose in mockery, the laughter between words getting worse. “And here you are, his little friends, trapping him like villains!” Chest heaving, he looked back to Izuku once more, eyes wild with something unhinged. “Is that why my baby brother called for help? Were you trying to come back to me, little Izuku?”

“He called for help?” Hitoshi’s voice came from next to him, sounding horrified. “He couldn’t have- he woudn’t- how-?”

I didn’t do that! Izuku thought, thrown by his brother’s words. When had he called for help? The red eyes were staring far too knowingly at the white-haired child, and amidst his own confusion, Midoriya remembered their conversation, just before his friends had arrived.

“Youdomatter.” Shigaraki almost snarled, gripping the younger’s shoulders as if ready to shake the words into him. “But I have to rescue Sensei from Tartarus first. With him here, nothing will be taken from me ever again. I’ll have the criminal underworld at my beck and call, the heroes on their knees begging before me, I’ll-”

“I didn’t say that.” The words fell faintly from his lips, his green eyes wide as he stared up at his brother. “Ineversaid I didn’t matter out loud.”

He could hear Izuku. Somehow, somehow he was able to hear Izuku’s thoughts, he could hear-

(LET ME GO!!)

I… I did call. If All Might’s protégé had any control, he would have collapsed right there. He’d drawn the villain right to them, he hadn’t known of Izuku’s escape until he had panicked, had cried out.

What had he done?

The villain smiled, all but confirming Izuku’s horrified conclusion as his frantic thoughts skyrocketed. I’m sorry, Tomura I’m sorry! He wished he could break free, no way to control the situation but desperate to get through to the elder. Please, please forgive me, please don’t hurt them! I’ll go back with you, I’ll go back, I’ll listen this time brother, I will!

His words didn’t seem to have any affect, in fact Shigaraki only seemed to grow angrier. The killer looked over the group, eyes connecting with the purple haired student standing behind his brother, alighting with recognition. “You.” The tall boy tensed, his hold on Izuku tightening in fear as the King of Villains slowly raised his hand. “You’ll be the first to die.”

“I think the f*ck not!”

Izuku didn’t see where Mina had come from, only watching as a wave of acid erupted over the villain, dropping down on him with an instant hiss of the ions destroying molecular bonds, most of Shigaraki’s back and arms taking the hit.

The pink haired girl skated just out of the man’s radius, looking half wild as she made a run for them. “Move back, move back!! Go for it Uravity!”

Hitoshi obliged immediately, dragging the confused boy away just as Iida rushed forward, Uraraka in his arms. Regeneration had kicked in immediately, and Shigaraki looked up at once hearing their approach, but focused on Ingenium, activating ‘Erasure’. Tenya stumbled as his speed was cut, but Ochako leapt from his hold, managing to briefly tap the man’s shoulder as she fell. Tomura started as he rose into the air, realization hitting. “You little wench.” He couldn’t use ‘Air Walk’ to counter if ‘Float’ was already in play. He activated ‘Spear-like Bones’ and sent them against the earth to ground himself, the round-faced hero just missing being impaled by an inch. “You’ve caused a lot of trouble tonight for such a simple quirk.”

Uraraka didn’t lose her nerve, glaring up at him as she focused on keeping ‘Float’ active. “Now, Ground Zero!”

“f*ckIN’ DIEEEEEEEEEEEE!”

Izuku barely saw as Bakugou reappeared, Kirishima and Mirio following close behind. He aimed a smaller blast against the bone spears, shattering them. Bringing his hands together, he executed a large blast, sending the villain skyrocketing into the night.

“Round up the others and get ready to evacuate!” He yelled, making eye contact with the green-eyed boy one last time before taking off, leaving everyone else to watch from below as he blasted after the villain.

“Midoriya?!” From the far back, a now weaker line of ice appeared, the dual element user shaking from the effort he had put in all night, but unmistakably relieved. “We’ve been so worried; you never came back!” The relief turned to confusion as Izuku stayed placid. He turned sharply to Hitoshi. “He… he’s under your quirk? Why?”

“We’ll talk about it later.” Hypno looked over to Uravity, who was already looking queasy. “How long can you keep him from coming down?”

“Nn- I’m not sure. I’ll go for as long as I can. Bakugou’s our best shot at taking him down.” She winced hands trembling.

Izuku, still trapped in his own mind, could only listen as the explosions sounded overhead, not sure who he was terrified more for.

It was hard for Shigaraki to focus, All for One baying for blood while he tried to determine how much time was left. Of all the nights for this to happen, for them to try and steal back his little brother.

Tomura was livid.

The captured hero was so frantic, so desperate to protect the people that had trapped him under their control. These useless fools who had recklessly attacked the villain’s hideout, breaking protocol left and right in their attempt to save Deku.

And how did they even know to find us here? To that, he was starting to have a growing suspicion- and it looked a lot like the demon child that was blasting towards him. Spinning wildly, he listened as the steady sound of fire detonation drew near, unable to control his position.

“I’m going to blast your brains till you look like a Nomu, f*cker!”

Shigaraki managed to create ‘air canon’ and throw out a shot. It was compressed, meant to take out of chunk of the boy’s body, but he couldn’t control his trajectory and missed. Still, the kinetic force moved him out of the way of the blast, stabilizing him enough to get a focus on his main target.

Give it to me.

Give me back my quirk!

Spurred on by the sentient power within, he activated ‘Rivets’, trying to turn the offending hero into a kabob, snarling with each missed swipe, each blast that managed to eat away at his regenerating skin. “So this is how the great Ground Zero makes his debut? Going behind the Commission’s back to kill? Izuku was foolish to ever admire you. When I get my little brother back-”

“He’s not your sh*tty brother!” Bakugou blasted around him, not coming in for a punch or kick like the villain had hoped, making to stay out of range of a potential ‘Decay’. “You’re never getting him back- you’re never sending him to that stupid vault, or cramped room ever again.” The blond’s eyes flashed. “That’s right dickwad. Ever since you took that f*cking quirk- I’ve seen everything.”

Tomura froze at that revelation, even though he had begun to suspect. He didn’t get a chance to react in time before being blasted once more.

“Don’t act like you f*cking care about him- that he means something to you!” The tenth holder of One for All pressed on, his rage growing to match Shigaraki’s. “Every damn day since I did what the sh*tty nerd asked, it’s been a constant f*cking home video in my god damn mind of Deku crying, Deku afraid in a corner, Deku hurt because of you!” Bakugou managed to get another blast in, destroying the last shreds of Tomura’s coat. “You’ll die before you get your hands on him again. Then I’m going to give this f*cking quirk back, and get you both out of my damn head!”

The King of Villains managed to spin out of range, feeling a sense of weight return before quickly activating one of his quirks, a plan building in his mind. “HA! That’s a bit ironic coming from you, don’t you think?” Shigaraki sent him a nasty grin, blood leaking from his mouth. “All those things you just described, I think my little brother’s experienced with you.” He tossed out several blasts of ‘Air Canon’- forcing the pyro user to dodge the deadly air strikes. “Kaachan rejecting Izuku’s friendship, Kaachan acting like a bully, Kaachan the villain. We’re more alike than I realized.”

“WE ARE NOTHING ALIKE!”

“No?” He dodged out of the way of another detonation. He briefly felt out the connection he had with the boy, sensing the indecision and distress for them both. Foolish little brother. “Izuku didn’t give you One for All out of fear? Out of a desire to protect people he thinks he cares about? He’s never forgiven you at his own expense for being a monster?” He relished the flash of shame that crossed the child’s face. Oh, this end was going to be satisfying. It made him realize something, the thought steadying All for One to coil quickly back in it’s place, waiting. “My little brother never should have given you that quirk. You’re worse than the predecessors, you treat it like an accessory to your feeble gift, not even using it the way it was meant to be!”

“Like what? Destroying scumbags like you?” The explosive villain went silent, and Tomura could just barely make out the frantic sound of the gravity girl, coming from the boy’s earpiece.

“No.” The villain couldn’t help the smile crawling over his face, savoring the look the fake hero gave as his little friends relayed the truth via his comm system- that ‘Zero Gravity’ had been release awhile ago, and Shigaraki had been keeping up the façade to distract him with ‘Air Walk’. “It was meant to protect little weaklings like them. And how stupid are you to think that you had an advantage fighting me from the sky?”

Sensing the change, Bakugou started to blast himself out of range, but his explosions stopped, right as Shigaraki’s eyes went red with Aizawa's quirk.

I already have One for All. I don’t need him alive.

“sh*t!” The boy started plummeting towards the ground, trying again and again to reactivate his quirk, but Tomura had activated ‘Air Walk’, and was able to calmly watch as the pathetic tenth holder fell to his doom.

He listened as some of the remaining children cried below, seeing the boy’s predicament. The familiar white head stood compliantly nearby, his thoughts a steady stream of dread and concern, not fully comprehending what was happening with his limited scope. The bird boy activated his quirk, the half-mad creature bouncing the falling hero rather than catching, barely able to be kept under control in the moonlight. The weaklings rushed to his fallen form, unconscious for now.

And of no use to the remaining sheep.

He dropped, their attention being brought back to him too late as he landed in the middle of their group, activating ‘Search’ till he found a quirk suitable to his idea.

Perfect.

He reached within his collection, bringing forth ‘Spring-like Limbs’, ‘Spear-like Bones’ and ‘Rivets’ in a combination that created his jagged black vines, sending them out into the mass of unprepared students.

Most raced out of range- none his initial target. He felt a rush of satisfaction when he heard a scream, his spears connecting. Quickly, he curled them back to him, drawing the glowing light of the quirk closer. The girl must have been in shock, she wasn’t even calling out, though his spears flexed uncomfortably as she struggled.

Only one- the monkey tailed boy- appeared to understand what had happened. “HAGAKURE-SAN!”

The light grew closer, closer. He reached his hand out, feeling wet skin beneath his palm-

A young girl appeared before him, costume torn and rumpled, her eyes wide with shock as he met her gaze.

“My- m- my-“ She shook, looking at the hand grasping her exposed, bleeding arm. It was broken in at least two places, being dragged to him by an imbedded spear had done her no favors.

Callously, he gripped the arm tighter, causing her to shriek before he threw her back across the field, caught just in time by her horrified companions.

“Oh my god.” The girl with a black pony-tail looked ready to puke. “T-Toru? Are you…?”

“My quirk…” Tears started to fall down her face, the monkey-tailed hero holding her close. “He took my…”

Everyone immediately turned back as Shigaraki chuckled. “What did you expect, heroes? You cheated your way to the final boss without gaining any XP… ” He cast a bloody smile around the clearing, watching each student tense as he looked to them. “And I’m going to make sure you regret that decision. Let’s play.”

And then he disappeared.

Izuku came back to himself just as chaos seemed to strike the group.

Everyone was screaming, whether for people to calm down, or because they couldn’t. He tried to discern what they were running from, but couldn’t see anything. At one point, Creati let out a shriek before falling to the ground, clutching at her stomach where a hole had formed. Ochako was on the far side of the field, tapping Anima and an unconscious Jirou to try and send them further away, but she froze before being shoved to the ground, the others tumbling back to earth. Ingenium was crumpled on the ground by Tsuyu, who couldn’t seem to stop quaking, looking around frantically as Mirio tried to coax her to stand and move.

Chest heaving as he finally reconnected with his form, it took the hero-in-training a second longer to process what was happening. He realized it right as his gaze landed on an unfamiliar girl, unconscious in Ojiro’s arms. Shoji- who had been rushing to them- arching his back as if in pain, crying out when his extra arms receded, body shrinking to that of a normal human.

Quirkless.

“Holy f*ck…”

Izuku looked over his shoulder to Hitoshi, who looked more panicked than he had ever seen him. “Shinso, what’s happening?!”

“H-He took Invisible Girl’s quirk. He’s taking all our quirks.” He instinctively grabbed Izuku, trying to pull him back as he looked around wildly. “f*ck, f*ck…”

“Dammit!” Kirishima was in the process of reviving a disoriented Ground Zero, who had a fresh gash across his forehead that was bleeding enough to alarm Izuku. “Bakubro, what’s the plan?!”

The blond winced, gritting his teeth as he stood up. “We need to get the hell out of here- f*ck, I’m so stupid. That dusty bitch knew. He let me drag his ass up so everyone would get close enough!”

Of course- his teammates were still down, and the previous fight he had needed to take them into account. It made him realize something even worse, too.

No one had died yet, he hadn’t unleashed a wave of ‘Decay’ yet. He was toying with them, winding them up until they went mad with fear. “Tomura!” Izuku yelled, not even thinking. He pulled out of Hitoshi’s grip, racing forward to look out over the chaos, his nightmares coming alive as he looked at his classmates, either unconscious, crying, or running in terror. “Tomura, please stop it! Stop!”

Hitoshi raced back, gripping Izuku’s shoulder. “Are you crazy?! Don’t call for him! We need to get you out of here, we need- aurgh!”

Izuku had pushed his friend away, and though it hadn’t been hard, he could feel the body under his palm spasm terribly. “We’re not leaving them- we have to help!” His brother had turned into a literal boogie monster- and Izuku had caused it. They were here because of him. Shigaraki had made them quirkless because of him. “Tomura! Tomura, please-”

He froze as his own voice seemed to echo from behind. “Kaachan, why didn’t you protect me?”

The white haired prisoner saw Bakugo turn to hip sharply. “Deku? What the hell-“ the tenth vestige jerked once before relaxing, going pliant in a way that was terrifyingly familiar. Red Riot looked at his friend in confusion, shaking the now submissive form, calling out his name.

No.

Izuku turned, feeling his trembling increase as he briefly took in the sight of Hitoshi’s eyes rolled back in pain, the air around him glimmering for a brief moment. Then, a familiar black spike with red energy showed itself imbedded through him, piercing the shoulder of the hand grasping Izuku. Directly behind, Izuku’s eyes met the devious red, a wide grin stretched across the elder’s face. No no nononono-

“Bakugou.” Hypno spoke again, Izuku’s voice in sync with the silent movement of Tomura’s lips. “Use that flashy quirk on yourself.”

In a daze, Kaachan lifted his hands, turning them to face his chest.

“KAACHAN, NO!” Izuku moved to rush forward, far too late.

Everyone flew back from the resulting explosion.

Chapter 15

Chapter Text

xxX Don't worry about what other people think.

Hold your head up high and plunge forward.Xxx

When the world came swimming back into focus, it looked like hell.

Flames were eating away at the remaining trees that had survived the blast, muffled sounds of pained screams and crying occasionally rising above the insistent, high pitch whine that came from Izuku’s eardrums being too bombarded.

Kaachan. He forced his quaking limbs under him, staggering towards the epicenter of the blast. The name repeated in time with his heartbeat. Kaachan, Kaachan, Kaachan.

Having control of his body once again, he could feel every stinging cut from the debris, every aching muscle from the night’s events. He was weaker than he had been for a long time, and part of him feared he’d fall over any second and not get back up. But he couldn’t afford to do that. He had to find him, he had to see for certain. He’d just gotten his friend back; Kaachan and the others had searched, had found him and because he tried to fight their plan-

The hazy air made breathing that much harder, and he could discern what remained of his class coughing, trying to get oxygen. They’re hurt because of you. All of this, you could have prevented. Deku gasped as his foot caught on loose rubble, sending him back to the ground. No, I have to get up. I have to find Kaachan. Groaning, he rose again, bleary eyes finally focusing on where he had last seen his friend.

It really did look like a bomb had gone off- the crater cut into the earth at an angle, lines from the literal force of the blast dug like trenches into the formation. A weak breeze blew the lingering smoke away briefly, and Izuku felt himself freeze.

There was blood, and the smell of cooked flesh. Pieces of hero uniform were half buried along the radius, half melted. But somehow, there was also Bakugou- in bad shape, but whole. He’d clearly been knocked out by the blast throwing him back, and Izuku couldn’t tell if he was breathing, but he was whole. It took him a moment to connect the dots- Kirishima laying wrapped over top of the prone form, his ‘Hardening’ quirk still activated despite appearing unconcious. His back looked as if it was put through a meat grinder, with two painful depressions that had blood seeping through the cracks of the neigh impenetrable texture.

Red Riot must have tackled Kaachan right as the blasts went off. It could have destroyed him…

The sheer, bull-headed bravery that action must have taken for his loyal classmate left Izuku speechless, but incredibly relieved. Alive. He hadn’t lost his oldest friend. He’s alive.

The respite was short lived.

Even as he staggered forward, Izuku saw he wasn’t the only one making their way back to where the blonde now lay. Tomura wasn’t bothering to hide under ‘Invisibility’ any longer- Hypno cast side on the ground. No one conscious tried to stop him as he moved towards the crater (no one could). He had the look of someone who’d swallowed something unpleasant, red eyes glaring down at the still intact forms. “My, you UA brats really are something else; how very clever.” He paused at the foot of the crater. “Cleverness won’t save you now, though.”

Terror crawled over Izuku once more. Terror and anger. No. No, they didn’t survive that just to be killed now! Gritting his teeth against the pain, he rushed forward towards the danger. Bursts of light sparked in his vision as he jarred the cuts and wounds on his bare feet, his arms and face. Push through it. The surrounding destruction fell away, his focus caught on the imminent danger. Your friends need you Izuku! You can’t let it happen again.

(-The elder before him twisted feebly, his arm cracking to reveal angry red muscle beneath. He kept screaming, tears now falling.-

-They had cried for help, their eyes latching on to the only sympathetic gaze in the room, screams begging for the hero Deku to dosomething.-

-Inko screamed, frightened as she clawed to go back to her son.-)

Not again.

Chest heaving, he thinks he hears Todoroki shouting for him, but the sound is muffled, unimportant. Shigaraki is muttering something he can’t hear, hand lowering towards the forms as chunks of surrounding wood and stone crack and crumble around his vicinity. The freed captive didn’t know if Tomura reacted to the increasing sounds of the screaming students behind him, or the pounding of Izuku’s feet, but Deku only pressed forward in determination as the villain turned with a roar, arm outstretched to meet the attack.

The flash of recognition sparked in those red eyes, though, and he pulled his hand back as if the younger had burned him, the terrifying power of decay cutting off. “Izu-?!” The elder can’t get the full word out before Deku barrels right into him, leaving them to tumble away from the vulnerable forms.

Izuku’s head is at once screaming and spinning when they stop. Still, he rolls a bit further away, body trembling as he maneuvers himself to shakily stand between the killer and his friends. It was hard to focus, to think straight, but he knew one thing for certain; the only real defense he had for his friends now that he was quirkless. Shigaraki had said it himself.

(“Killing you is not an option.”)

“Little brother.” All for One rose before flickering back to it’s second user, the scars along his mouth stretching painfully with a snarl. “Get out of the way.” The elder seethed, stomping forward and grasping the loose shirt to toss the younger away. But Izuku hung on, protective anger giving him strength.

“No! Leave Kaachan alone, Tomura!” He clung as best he could, not even caring as his classmates were watching and crying out in horror.

“I. Said. Move.” The villain managed to throw him to the side, listening as Izuku yelped, tumbling over the battleground. “Even at half power, One For All will be mine, and mine alone.” He turned away just as his little brother staggered up, missing him careening back until the smaller body ran full tilt into him, pushing him away while holding firmly to his waste. Some of the students screamed in horror, sure they were going to see their friend turned to dust.

“I won’t let you!” Deku screamed, tightening his grip around the unhinged villain’s waist. “You said you were going to make this better, that things would get better, this isn’t better!”

Growling, Tomura struggled to escape the embrace, unable to move forward. “And you said you wouldn’t endanger others; you were being such a good boy, Izuku. You had to go and try to leave me.” Seeing a larger cut on the younger’s bicep, he purposefully pressed down. Izuku gasped, biting his lip too hard to keep from crying out, but refused to let go. It only seemed to make his brother’s ire rise. “Always wanting to be the hero that saves everybody.” He lifted his hand again to face the unconscious heroes, a small hole appearing on his palm in preparation for ‘Air Canon’. “You need to learn that not everybody gets to be saved.”

All Might’s protégé could already see the air currents compressing together- there was no time for strategy, for carefully laid plans. Give him what he wants- whatever he wants. “Big brother! Please big brother- don’t do it.” Exhausted tears formed in his eyes. Deku was taken back to the moment he had lost his quirk, at the mercy of the villain who had slain three people and threatened his mother. Whatever it takes. “Don’t kill them big brother, please, please!” The villain paused, hand outstretched, and Deku latched on to the hesitance. “I’ll lever leave you again. I’ll stay with you, I can- can be good! Please big brother; don’t kill my friends…”

Tomura look down at the crying child. Something in his expression settled, the anger cooling but no less manic.

Izuku met his eyes, fighting back sobs. It didn’t matter what the others thought, how embarrassed this made him. He was the only one who could stop Tomura. It didn’t matter anymore as long as he could protect them. “Big brother.” He heaved in another breath, refusing to look away. This is what the elder wanted, right? He’d give it to him, whatever he wanted. “I-I was wrong. I shouldn’t have tried to leave. I’ll never try to leave again, I belong with you.” His voice broke off in a painful hitch, arms trembling as he refused to lesson his grip. He had to get through to Shigaraki, he had to before everyone was lost in his fit of rage. “It c-can be just like you want it. I won’t fight anymore. I’ll be good! Just please, please don’t kill them.”

The battered form of Tomura shifted, All For One turning to watch Izuku for a long moment, his expression finally lighting to a smile that was all teeth. “You’ll be good, little Izuku?”

Sensing a chance, the fallen hero nodded frantically, tears still streaming. “I’ll stay by your side, I want to! I promise!” His words stumbled off into desperate mumbles, saying whatever he had to. Finally, the pale hand was retracted, coming to rest softly in his curls. He leant into the touch, unconsciously settling at the soothing action while tuning out the gasps from his friends. “I promise…” he insisted, voice weak from screaming.

Please let them go, please let them go.

“Let’s do a test, then.”

Izuku looked up again, confused as he was pried off of Tomura, carefully brought to stand in front of his older brother and facing his classmates. It wasn’t until both hands landed softly on each shoulder that he started to understand the villain’s intentions. “W-wait.” He tried to pull back, falling deeper into the elder’s embrace. “You promised! You said-”

SAFE

The child almost physically recoiled, never having been hit so strongly. The night’s terrors and stress fell away, and he leaned more naturally into the hold, overwhelmed with relief as his panic was sent drifting away.

“Deku?”

Blinking slowly, he turned to look at a girl- Ochako. Her and his classmates who were aware all looked so… pale? Frightened?

“Little brother.”

He looked up, glazed green eyes connecting to a mean red.

“Tell us where you want to be, Izuku.” The hands gripping him dug a touch painfully, but he couldn’t even react to that. “Go on.” The older prompted.

Vision blurring, Izuku looked out over the group of dirtied, frightened faces. Safe, safe, safe. “I want to be with my brother.” He told them, honestly. He didn’t comprehend their gasps or protests, looking back up to the red eyes that were frozen on his form. He reached up a hand, absently, briefly feeling the cracking angry skin under his touch. “It’s important. I need to help him.”

“No!” The call came from Shoto, and Izuku couldn’t register how torn the cry was, even as he met the face of his crying friend. “He’s controlling you Izuku! He’s a monster, he was going to kill you!”

He blinked, and couldn’t understand why he felt tears in his own eyes. “It’s not like that, Shoto. I just… I…” He tried to find the words, the connect, anything to express what he needed to, but couldn’t. “I feel safe…”

They were horrified, all of them- and he faintly felt that he should be too, even if he couldn’t make sense of why. But his view was obscured as Tomura turned him away from them once more, some of the manic dying from his expression as he stared at Izuku almost desperately, demanding. Safe, safe, safe. “You do choose me. I knew- I knew it was hard for you to understand, but you still picked me over them.” The expression on his face was one Izuku wasn’t familiar with- but it made him think of the story Tomura had told him; about losing his family, about wandering until he found his ‘savior’. “Well done, baby brother.”

“Izuku…” Ochako sounded so hurt, and the white haired hero tried to turn back to her. “Please, he’s hurting you. He- he’s lying, you’ll die if you stay with him!”

While he couldn’t connect to the emotion of it, Izuku realized why his friend would feel that way. She had been there- all those months ago, when he’d first met his brother properly (before he was a brother).

The hands on his shoulders grew a bit tighter, possessive. “Shut your mouth! Izuku is right where he belongs, at my side-”

Shigaraki started, slightly, as his phone alarm started to go off. He kept one hand on the younger until he dug the electronic (what was left of it, cracked and singed as it was) out of his pocket. He had paled, eyes growing wide with disbelief.

Oh. Izuku hadn’t even realized- “It’s time.”

The hand holding the phone trembled, a few more cracks forming along the glass. “So it is… How terribly convenient.” Izuku met red eyes once more, suspicion clear. “Tell me, little brother. Did you try to drag this out on purpose? To keep me distracted?”

Slowly, the green-eyed child shook his head. “I only wanted to protect everyone. I want to keep my friends safe.”

The elder scoffed once more. “That’s a habit we’ll need to break fast.” Growling, the elder looked around, scanning the trees and cursing when he didn’t find what he was looking for. “Those useless idiots are still trapped by your little playmates? f*ckin’… fine. Fine.” He grasped the front of Izuku’s shirt, releasing ‘Safe’ as he lifted him up. “Congrats, baby bro. You get to come on the fieldtrip after all, and earned these pathetic heroes wannabes some time.” He dragged Izuku closer, red eyes blazing. “But if you try anything else, anything against what I say- when we get back, I’m making you pick, one by one, who will die. And if you still haven’t learned your lesson, there’s always your dear mom.”

Izuku felt the weight of his words, and stayed quiet, fearing his voice would tremble too much if he tried to reply. I promised; it’s the only way- I’ll stay by his side.

Snarling, Tomura focused back on his phone- switching apps and speaking into it. “NOMU, it’s time. Number three deviate to my location, the rest head out. No more waiting.”

The UA students shifted nervously as unnatural shrieks sounded in the distance. The sound of trees snapping and falling grew closer, and even Izuku yelled along with some of the others as a terrifyingly large Nomu from their original fight broke through.

Shigaraki paid no mind. His head dropped, and Izuku watched as four new arms sprouted from the villain’s back, skin webbing in between each appendage identifying it as Shoji’s quirk. “No more games, Izuku.” Swiftly, before Midoriya could event think to fight back, Tomura tucked him against his back, the new appendages wrapping to hold him in place as he rose with a combination of ‘Float’ and ‘Air Walk’. “Tonight, we finish this once and for all; endgame.”

They settled on top of the Nomu, which let out a shriek before swiftly going back the way it had come. The boy managed to turn his head back, seeing Ochako and Shoto rush forward in vain, eyes desperate as they called after him.

I’m sorry. He turned away from them, head resting against his captor’s neck, his tears falling into the pale hair. I’m so sorry, everyone.

One way or another, once they reached Tartarus, it would all be over.

Chapter 16

Chapter Text

It’s all going wrong.

Tomura stayed perched atop the Nomu that was moving swiftly to Tartarus, mind in turmoil. The moonlight was waning, a storm coming in from the east, but there was still enough light for him to glance back and see the curly white hair of a head resting against his shoulder. His little brother had passed out a few miles back, a mix of exhaustion and his captor choosing to enact ‘Safe’ once more to keep him calm. It had been selfish, breaking the promise he had only just made to Izuku. But hearing the soft cries as they drew away from his friends had annoyed (hurt) Tomura. He could not afford the distraction. Even now, the fallen hero’s tears were still wet against his stinging neck- the wounds constantly opened from his renewed scratching. It was a balance, maintaining the new quirk that provided extra limbs with ‘Search’, ‘Safe’ and ‘Regeneration’ at play. It was stressful.

He hoped when Sensei was free, he could teach him more for combining and maintaining All for One.

They would reach Tartarus in a little bit, but for now there was time to regroup, strategize. Though at this point the villain had very little by way of a plan- not after everything had been so thrown off. His raiding party had been all but demolished before they even started because of those baby heroes, and their rescue attempt would surely bring real pros in, undoubtedly allowing the capture of his home base and surviving crew, further limiting his resources. And he had to carry a helpless party member while attacking the enemy prison before winning the game. This was a nightmare.

But he would do it, he had to.

While the Nomu did not know what it was to be tired, the villain had to wonder how he was supposed to succeed with less than half of his intended attack group. They couldn’t afford to miss this window; he would free his sensei by that evening. In a perfect world, he would have brought his master back to base, Garaki there to help with any medical necessities, and then aide Tomura in conquering the world with his newfound power, Izuku by his side, while what remained of the heroes rotted away.

How had it all fallen apart so quickly? He’d taken every precaution, staying out of the main battles to avoid detection, keeping his main leaders close and his little brother contained. He was the bearer of All for One and One for All. This should have been easy; this should have been flawless. It left him restless, uneasy. The longer he considered, the more his plans did not seem to help the one person who had come to matter most.

Even though he cared for his little brother, he’d never expected to feel so… protective, with another life. Careful. And it wasn’t just Izuku- He had just fought an entire group of heroes, their very presence at his base was a death sentence. And yet… why hadn’t he killed them? At the time, he had wanted to, would have been happy to. So why didn’t he dust any of them as he claimed their quirks? As he tossed them away?

Even that brat Bakugou was still living. Of all the enemies present, he had been the one Shigaraki had been most eager to destroy. Yet he’d allowed Izuku to talk him out of it, for now. Why? It would have been logical to destroy the threat, to teach his baby brother another lesson.

But feeling out the warm power of One for All dancing under his skin, almost unconsciously along his back where the ninth bearer rested, he realized he might not be led by logic anymore. One for All was clearly just as sentient as All For One. Bearing the two most powerful quirks in the world, spanning generations, it wasn’t that much of a leap to connect that this power came with aspects most born to their quirks wouldn’t feel. He’d hazard a guess that the quirks shaped him more than he did wielding them.

But with them combined like this… what would they turn him into?

Shigaraki knew he had been losing himself gradually- ever since he woke up in the rubble of Jaku. But he couldn’t find it in himself to loathe the change. Having his-their brother settled an ache he hadn’t known existed. Tomura never realized, even with Kurogiri and Sensei at his side in the past, how alone he had been. But now- as he recalled the glassy but honest green eyes looking up to him- now he would never have to be alone again.

Izuku had chosen Tomura. Over his friends, his freedom. Not even Sensei had made that kind of sacrifice for him…

You gave him no choice. Came a hissing, nasty thought. He’ll abandon you, just like everyone else has, when he gets the chance. You destroy everything in your life not stronger than you. You always have.

“I won’t.” Shigaraki grit his teeth, swallowing against the guilt. “Not this time.”

The reality was his little brother was sick, and only getting worse. Clearly, he had been holding himself up on adrenaline and desperation, nothing more. He felt too small against the villain’s back, tucked as he was in the curled limbs and shivering feebly against the cold rainfall that had started. Just a little longer. He told himself, ignoring the way his gut twisted. I can protect him, I can help him. Just a little longer, and it will all be over…

The villain felt One for All stir, again dancing over the limbs that embraced his precious cargo. Make this right. He heard First’s voice, quiet but strong. You have to make this right.

“You don’t get a say.” He murmured darkly. It seemed foolish to feel betrayed by One for All, but knowing what he did now, what else could he conclude? A sentient quirk. It had been fighting him from the start. No… that wasn’t quite right. More-so, it had forced it’s priorities onto him. The connection to Izuku that had worked in his favor was a clear sign of it’s attention, it’s desire. He’d hazard that to an extent, that’s what it had done to the explosive hero as well, from his earlier ranting. No matter how he saw it, the power desired to be with his little brother. He’d said it himself in the earlier battle- One for All was a quirk meant to protect.

But it couldn’t be- not in Shigaraki’s hands.

“…don’t…”

The villain paused, absently realizing the Nomu had gotten them to the outskirts of the government facility. He ordered it into hiding, turning as Izuku murmured again, his struggles increasing. “Izu-chan?” He reached back, stroking the soaked hair as the younger murmured into his neck. Shigaraki nudged him, insistent. “Ssshh, it’s okay. Wake up, Izu-chan.”

The boy’s features scrunched together as he fought for consciousness, bleary green eyes finally opening to blink at Tomura. “Big brother?”

He ignored the warm sense of right hearing that title gave him. “Hey. Bad dream?”

Izuku shrugged, but winced as it aggravated his wounds. He finally took in the distant fortress, eye widening as the Nomu congregated around them. His trembling increased, and not from the wind. “You’re really… we’re here?”

Tomura looked out over the final level, lightning starting as the storm kicked in. “That’s right. One final boss, and then we win the whole game.”

He felt the child swallow, One for All starting to react to his fear. “Tomura… please, please don’t do this. I know he raised you, that… that you care for him too. But All for One is dangerous, he’ll-”

“Sensei has given me everything.” Two of the Nomu growled in response to his ire, and he raised a hand to silence them, eyes trained on his little brother. “Once I free my master, he’ll help me destroy what remains of the heroes, and the world will finally know what I felt.” He tightened his hold warningly. “Do you remember your promise? What’s at stake if you choose to fight me again? Because if this rescue fails, it’s your little friends who will pay the price.”

Lip trembling, Izuku looked away, eyes downcast as he gave the smallest nod.

Tomura viciously fought against the ache that expression gave him; now wasn’t the time. “Sensei will fix everything; and when he does, I’ll have no need to punish you for trying to leave me. So stop looking like that.” When Izuku failed to respond, he turned away with a scoff. “Fine. Stay quiet and don’t struggle, little brother. It’s time to raise hell.” Tomura stretched out his hand, eyes narrowing on the bronze gate in the distance. “Now, my Nomu! Go free our Sensei.”

With a shriek, four Nomu converged on the guarded entry, two diving immediately into the raging waters. From above, Tomura watched as the scene was lit by the sparks of fired bullets, the watchtower lights centering their blazing light onto the dark forms now tearing apart the night guard.

It had been systematic, over the last week, to have some of the guards caught in ‘accidents’ from villain unrest. A few more catching some illness, and two going ‘missing’ altogether. It all led to this night- the normally thirty strong guard is down to twelve, and no manner of relief due to the chaos reigning already in Japan. Heroes can’t be called in for support, nor can the commission spare any recruits for an already fortified station.

In his peripheral vision, he watched Izuku turn away, ducking his head against the screams of the guard below. They mean nothing, little brother. He activated ‘Search’, turning his attention to the levels far beneath. Until I have my family again, until I see my dream fulfilled, nothing will stop me.

The familiar-same light of All for One glowed up at him, at least five hundred meters deep. Tomura cursed, allowing the flying Nomu to level closer once the surveillance tower fell into the sea, destroyed. He’s too far down- if I try to break through the outer wall to him, the pressure will flood everything too quickly, and he’ll drown!

As if sensing him, he watched the light of the quirk flash, then blinked with his real vision as the sirens and electricity suddenly cut short. He listened as the guards cries escalated, the gates and passageways no longer sealed.

“What happened?” Izuku called, voice tight with fear.

Shigaraki couldn’t help but smile. “Sensei was expecting us!” He watched as All for One began to move, the other lights of quirks starting to move erratically, a few going out as guard vs villain classed, All For One absorbing some of the lights as he went along. “Nomu!” He yelled over the chaos, pointing at the already broken tower. “Tear an opening into this fortress!”

The largest of his soldiers dove in, crushing anything in it’s path as the mutant creature tunneled down, floor after floor laid bare to the torrential downpour. The King of Villains watched as the creation stalled on All for One’s floor, letting out a shriek they could hear from above as the broken and bent lights disappeared into the powerful being.

Then, he was rising.

He suddenly felt like a kid again, leaping down and landing on the outer wall, ignoring the criminals that were streaming out like rats on a sinking ship. He felt Izuku tremble, but ignored it, waiting with bated breath as beeping machinery floated into view, attached to the familiar form of his master. Lightning flashed across the wide grin, his prison attire doing nothing to diminish his size and authority.

“Ah, Tomura.” That voice, a familiar rumble of charm and control that Shigaraki had long missed. Oh, he had forgotten the power in that voice. “My prodigal son has returned,” He spread his arms grandly, the gesture taking in all the destruction and screams surrounding them. “And what an entrance you’ve made!”

“Sensei!” All the exhaustion, the frustration, melted away at the sight of his teacher, smiling and in control. It was finally over. “I’m sorry it took so long; Garaki wouldn’t work any faster, and then the heroes tried to stop the process.” He leaned to the side, carefully settling his little brother on the ground while the mutant quirk receeded. The boy was trembling, unable to look away from his master, distress clear. One for All started to spark under his skin, wanting to be close to it’s chosen heir once more. But that could not be helped, now. What mattered was Tomura finally had his family together again. “I’ve missed you- so much has happened while you were away!”

“And I you, my young student.” The man’s tone charmed the air around them, making everything warmer, bearable. “My old foe has told me a few things in his efforts to locate you; but with your arrival, it’s clear he’s been foiled. Just as I knew he would be, with you leading the League.”

“Not just the League, Sensei. I’ve gained even more followers under our cause, an army of people ready to answer to our command.” Shigaraki stepped forward, feeling almost smug in his victory. Everything was turning out just as he wanted it. “Gigantomachia, too. I’ve readied the world for your return, and I can’t wait to show you.”

“It would be my pleasure to witness it, young one.” Another flash from the storm illuminated Izuku’s hair, and he seemed to suddenly focus on the smaller teen. “And you’ve brought a trophy from your success, I see. Isn’t this All Might’s little protégé?” The grin seemed to shrink, somewhat. “He is… a bit changed, from what I remember.”

Tomura looked back to the crouched form, watching the green eyes dance between them underneath white fringe. He didn’t flee, as the elder had half expected him too, instead staying quietly where he was placed. The sense of victory softened, warmed at the sight of the young hero finally listening. “This is little brother, Sensei. He’s Izuku. He’s my Yoichi.”

All For One turning to him with a frown, the air around him growing heavier with warning. “Yoichi?”

For the first time since this had all taken place, Shigaraki felt a shiver of doubt run through him. He was right- he knows he is, Izuku feels the connection just as he does. “He’s my little brother, now. I’m his protector, his aniki.” He felt a swell of pride, saying it out loud. It returned his confidence to him. He’d done it; he’d fulfilled the dream of his Sensei. This world was at it’s knees, his master returned, and most importantly- “I found him, searched for him and kept him just like you did, master. And I finally had what’s ours returned.” Lightning flashed, briefly illuminating his red eyes against the grey storm. “I took back that pesky quirk- I took One For All!”

The man stilled entirely, a statue against the wind and rain. Unseeing eyes stared at Tomura, disbelieving. “What?”

This was it, the moment he had so longed for- to reveal his greatest triumph to his Sensei! “After years of fighting against those unworthy thieves, of it being passed down before we could claim it, it’s ours again! I have One For All, Sensei. There’s nothing, no one that can stand against us any longer!”

The villain said nothing, and somehow the storm’s sounds only grew more ominous in the absence of a response. Tomura felt the faint, crawling sensation under his skin, tempting him to raise his hand to scratch at his neck. What’s wrong? Why isn’t he-?

All For One finally moved, his whole form seeming to swell, a dark, slow laugh filling the void around them. All at once, Tomura is hit with the feeling of familiarity- like he’s seen this moment before, knows what happens now.

And even as he senses that, as his neck crawls with the need to itch and his stomach turns with the sure sensation that something isn’t right, his master gives a slow clap, his smile positively predatory. “Well done, well done, my student! Never in my wildest dreams did I hope that you would achieve such a feat. By far, you are my greatest accomplishment- my future king.”

Something within Tomura weakly grasped at the words, the assurance that he had done as his father wanted. This is right, this is what it’s meant to be, this is what I-

“Now, then.” The villain extended his hand, large palms facing the dark clouds as lightning and thunder crashed all around them. “Fulfill the wishes of your Sensei, and give them to me.”

Shigaraki stayed motionless, an ache slowly constricting his heart. “S-Sensei?” He knew. He didn’t want to know, but he knew. At his feet, Izuku straightened, the expression of fear palpable. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. This wasn’t-

All For One’s teeth flashed, sharp in the prison lights. His expression was beguiling, even while disfigured, his tone made the request feel light, reasonable.

Inevitable.

“Return my power to me, Tomura. Give me One For All.”

Chapter 17

Chapter Text

All For One’s teeth flashed, sharp in the prison lights. His expression was beguiling, even while disfigured, his tone made the request feel light, reasonable.

Inevitable.

“Return my power to me, Tomura. Give me One For All.”

Rain fell down Shigaraki’s face, the pelting cold one of the few things grounding him in that moment. The world had tilted on it’s axis, his confidence and assuredness draining down into the roiling sea below. His master, his once-savior, stood at ease. Like he hadn’t just destroyed all of Tomura’s well laid plans with one simple request.

Sensei couldn’t mean it; not truly. The King of Villains had imagined this moment ever since losing his teacher to that damned All Might; since accepting the good Doctor’s requirements to undergo his transformation. This was supposed to have been the end of the game- one final boss, and then that was it! He’d limped across the finish line, most of his raiding party destroyed in the prequel fights, but he’d freed All for One; this was supposed to be where the credits rolled and they went home victorious!

It didn’t make sense- Sensei wasn’t supposed to ask for something like this.

He couldn’t just give up the quirk. After everything he had gone through, all the actions he’d taken to fulfill their dream- no, no. It was his. His goals, his destiny. Sensei had given him All for One to carry on where he had fallen short. Tomura was the one that destroyed the Number One Hero, Tomura was the one who had brought Japan to it’s knees. He’s the one who reclaimed his little brother and took One for All; he kept them both.

Izuku. One for All was his connection to his brother; how he could help, understand, protect him without it? He couldn’t relinquish this power, this connection, it was his.

One for all was his.

And even as he felt the phantom claws of the quirk All for One sink into him, hissing and threatening against the idea of releasing their claim, he flinched as his master’s beguiling smile faltered, just slightly, the extended hand curling inwards.

“Tomura, why do you hesitate? You must return to me what is mine.”

The student saw movement to his right, and briefly looked away from his teacher. Izuku, still kneeling on the ground, was looking up at him with pleading eyes, his shaking frame illuminated by a crack of lightning. He looked at him the same way when he’d given up One for All, his green hair ash coated as he begged for his mother’s life. Please, don’t do this.

Our brother. Quirkless, helpless, vulnerable.

“Tomura.” An edge had entered the devil’s voice, impatient. “It’s time that we claim this world as ours, give me One for-”

“No.”

Izuku gasped as the unseeing face of All for One fell, his arm remaining outstretched as Shigaraki squirmed.

He shouldn’t have said that- he should have explained, but that tone, like his teacher was chastising him, like he wasn’t the King of Villains in his own right! “…No. I can’t. I- my little brother gave it to me.

It’s mine.”

The rain abated somewhat, grey curtains shifting away on the winds towards the mainland. The machinery behind his Sensei let off the soft glow of red and yellow against the dark, giving him a flickering halo. The devil’s large hand finally lowered- sedately, but dread only grew for Tomura when his lips curved up once more. “Oh, my young apprentice. I had thought you were ready for this power.” He tilted his head to the side, an air of understanding falling over him. “It’s my quirk, isn’t it? All for One, it’s tricking you.”

Tomura blinked, the pity in his master’s voice throwing him off even more. “I-It’s my quirk now, Sensei. You gave it to me.”

“Because I knew that you were the one meant to inherit it, the greatest power on earth.” The elder glanced down to the prison below, a few stragglers still lingering. “I knew it may be difficult to bear, but…” He looked back over to his protégé, regret in his voice. “I never thought the quirk would overpower you.”

What? Flashes of the last few weeks sped through his mind, and Shigaraki backed away slightly. “Sensei, what are you trying to say? I control All for One, One for All, they don’t-”

“Oh, don’t be coy. You’re a smart boy, Tomura. Surely you’ve noticed a gradual shift in your choices and desires, an inclination towards things you’d previously dismissed.” He tilted his head slightly when Tomura stayed silent. “Perhaps you’ve heard it?” Tartarus’ most dangerous prisoner stepped forward, his words soft, deceivingly gentle. “A voice in your head telling you what should and shouldn’t be? Has there been a call to make you do things you otherwise wouldn’t?”

“It’s not like that.” Tomura’s breath quickened, the hissing of All for One to fight and to not listen making it hard to focus. “No, that’s not what happened-”

“Then why is he here?”

Tomura froze, fighting the instinct to stand in front of Izuku as the villain’s focus turned onto his little brother.

“Go on, my apprentice.” The grin grew wide again, mean. “Why did you pick your ‘brother’, the chosen one of our greatest foe, if not because you were compelled to?”

He’s wrong! The red eyed villain looked back to the weak form, feeling One for All flicker within him. Izuku was his brother- he had to be, he was-

“I’m sorry, my young student. It’s my own fault.” The man took another step forward, mere feet from them both. “I had such faith in your strength, in your ability to handle this. But it’s easy to forget just how inexperienced you are- of course the power would overwhelm you. And when those heroes interrupted the process, once again destroying your future with their decisions- you survived, but it seems All for One has been slowly changing you, rather than you controlling it.”

The protégé fought to keep his hands from shaking. “So your quirk spoke to me- who cares?” His voice turned sharp to hide how unsettled Sensei’s words left him. “’All for One’ was the reason I was able to find Izuku- to find One for All- and now I have it! The quirk did exactly what I wanted it to; it fulfilled our dream- my dream!”

“You reclaimed my foolish little brother’s quirk.” The eldest Shigaraki agreed, pandering. “But once you had the quirk, why bother to keep the vestige alive?”

Because he’s my little brother! Tomura wanted to yell, but the words wouldn’t come. Izuku was… he was his brother- the samedifferent as Yoichi. The intense need he’d first had in finding One for All, how Izuku had instinctively become ‘brother’ in his mind.

Before gaining All for One, things had been different. He can still recall it; the phantom remnants of the hatred he’d felt towards the protégé of his master’s enemy. He’d wanted Midoriya to die, painfully. He’d imagined it, over and over.

But that was before- now he knew his little brother was more than just a mindless, hero-worshipping brat. He was-

(“I’m nobody. All Might chose me; and that made me so happy. But before then- I was always just the useless kid who couldn’t do anything right.”)

He was-

(“No, not like the first bearer.” Izuku smiled dreamily. “I wanted this quirk, unlike him.”

“You… you deserved to have someone save you, Tomura.” He looked away, pained. “I-I don’t know why All For One helped you, but… but I’m glad you did have someone.”

“I want to be with my brother. It’s important. I need to help him.”)

“Hmm.” All for One took a careful step forward, still the understanding teacher as he watched the indecision clear on his protégé’s face. “Tomura, it’s alright. This is not an error you could control, and I forgive you. How could I hold such a tragic accident against my heir? No, once you pass One for All back to my keeping, we can seek out Garaki, whomever we need, to ensure that my legacy is properly transferred on to you. Then everything will be as it was meant to be.”

Tomura blinked away the rain, feeling his earlier confidence fall apart. Finding his brother was an error out of his control? He’d thought his actions a success, but if somehow the transference of the quirk was a malfunction, perhaps Sensei was right. And he could fix this- just like he always did, he would make things right…

“Tomura.”

The older brother was startled out of his panic, turning to face the smaller teen, who shook, rising on unsteady knees. Swallowing, the green eyes connected to his, refusing to look to All for One.

(“I need to help him.”)

Tomura recognized that expression- he hadn’t seen it properly since the initial capture, and there was still a lot of fear, but Izuku was planning. And he was looking to his brother to help in the plan. Listen. He heard through One for All. Listenpayattentiontryingtohelphearme “Maybe…” Midoriya wiped the rain from his face, lightning illuminating his determination. “Maybe we should play it safe.” With his rain plastered hair hanging heavily over his right eye, Tomura felt like the phantom and physical forms had merged into one.

“Little hero.” All for One’s voice had lowered, the soft understanding hardening into menace. “This does not concern you. But rest assured, I have not forgotten your presence.”

Tomura wanted to reach out, the fear on his quirkless brothers’ face palpable. But Izuku remained firm, not backing down. Havetohelplistenpayattentionmybrotherneedsme. “Tomura. Y-you said you trusted your Sensei, right? If you trust him, then he should feel safe.”

The final statement felt like a physical hit, finally hearing what his brother was saying.

Izuku, you maniac.

“I’d assumed ‘All for One’ had tricked Tomura. But perhaps you were so foolish as to easily believe?” All for One’s attention was far too focused on the younger teen, too dangerous. Does he know? “Has my apprentice subdued you so well that you won’t fight against his strange claims?”

Izuku was trembling from head to toe, but his gaze sharpened on the escaped villain, his words echoing in sync with his inner thoughts. “What I know, is that my brother needs me.”

All for One scoffed, even as Tomura was again shaken by his little brother’s resolve. The conviction in his expression, Tomura belatedly realized, it was the look of someone who cared for him.

“My greatest creation has never needed help from a whelp like you. I’ll give credit where it’s due; All Might’s savior complex was passed on successfully to the younger generation.”

In a surprisingly dismissive move, Midoriya turned away from the threat. “Tomura… I know we don’t agree. But,” The look in his eyes spoke volumes. “I trust you.”

All for One seemed to sense something was off. He was stepping forward, reaching with a frown towards Izuku-

“Sensei-”

Tomura reached out, belatedly realizing he had moved to intercept his teacher, his hand now wrapped around the one outstretched towards his little brother’s face.

All for One’s head turned minutely, aura becoming dangerous. “Yes, Tomura?”

Well, in for a penny.

“Sensei… you don’t have to do this.” As if slowly letting out pent up breath, SAFE crossed through their connection, creeping in unassumingly over his master’s form. “He’s mine, and you always said I could have whatever I wanted.” He felt like a child, looking pleadingly to his father even as he kept ‘Safe’ gradually increasing. “You trust my judgment, don’t you?”

“Of course not.” His Sensei’s voice had lost the beguiling nature it had held previous, calm importance oozing from his tone. All for One didn’t suspect a thing, didn’t seem to realize how jarring his words were. “Your perception is obviously clouded. You were meant to trust me blindly, but here you are, questioning my authority.”

The response, given so blandly, almost made Tomura flinch away from the contact. It was only a wild-eyed look from his brother that he held on. Izuku’s honesty under the influence had… not been like this. “I don’t want to argue, Sensei. But this is my choice, my right. You have to respect that.”

The villain shook his head, dazed. “Respect? You’re clearly choosing the child of our enemy over the will of your master. He is nothing, should mean nothing to you.” The younger villain felt frozen, eyes wide as his Sensei continued obliviously. “I’ve built you from the start into what you are now. And yet you stand there, denying me the last part of my baby brother…”

“Izuku is not nothing.” Tomura couldn’t keep the edge out of his voice. “You may have taken me in, and I had your help, but I’ve walked my own path!”

The villain mastermind smiled, lazily. “Oh Tomura. You’ve never asked the questions you should. Have you ever wondered how such a powerful quirk ended up in a small, quirkless child? Tomura, you were chosen by me well before we met. Your father’s hatred for heroes left you almost gift wrapped for me.”

The world seemed to fall away, worse than before. This wasn’t making sense. “I… I wasn’t quirkless. When would you have-?”

“Tomura, stop.” Izuku whispered, urgent.

All for One brought his free hand up to rub at his head, a frown appearing. “This… this sensation is a distracting, it- never mind. I’m tired of hearing your complaints, Tomura. I have been patient, I have behaved as you see fit for a mentor figure. Now you will give me back what is mine or-“

Tomura felt ‘Safe’ snap back to him, and he immediately took several steps back, grasping Izuku on the way.

“Oh.”

All for One looked down to where their hands had touched, bemused. As if he didn’t understand how he had gotten to this point. “Oh.” He said again, tone quiet in its threat, it’s understanding. He looked back to the very pale form of his apprentice.

f*ck. Fuuuuck.

“Tomura... you foolish, foolish child.”

One for All blared within him in warning, and he leapt back while holding Izuku just as a mutated arm snatched for them, claws breaking apart the concrete. His brother’s thoughts panicked- but Tomura caught the tail end of one worthwhile idea. Can’t get any worse, right? Raising his bare arm, he ignored the discomfort as his elbow morphed to allow ‘Tape’ to spring into action, connecting to the beeping machinery and pulling them forward. Twisting to reach forward, Shigaraki grabbed and dug in with ‘Metal Putty’, morphing the inside till the machines started to shriek in warning. He threw the smoking remains right into his shocked master’s face, activating ‘Engine’ and escaping from his Sensei’s roar of outrage.

“W-What the hell was that?!” Izuku clung to him, eyes watering as they leapt between pieces of debris, flitting like lightning across the abandoned terrain.

“I thought you said you trusted me!”

“Are you insane?! You just antagonized the villain stronger than you!”

“You do not get to criticize me on impulse decisions! This was your idea!”

Izuku looked at him like he was crazy. “Incapacitating his machines, sure. But before I was telling you to use ‘Safe’ so you could neutralize him; not argue why you’re right and he’s wrong!”

Oh. “Great. Then we die because you’re bad at helping.”

“That was not bad at- oh sh-!” GoaroundcornertakethecornerGO!

Instinctively, Tomura followed the train of thought, feeling the wind stir his hair as the entire second tower passed them to collide with a deafening BOOM!against the far barrier, breaking yet another hole in the prison wall.

Okay, so destroying the machines didn’t knock All for One out for the count. It’s fine.

AnnoyedcorrectnotwrongTomurawrongidiot-

“Hey!” Tomura shook his cargo, jostling the thoughts out of place. “We can play the ‘I told you so’ game later; focus!”

Izuku blinked at him, giving a small nod. “Right. Well, One for All is enhancing your quirks, and Regeneration is keeping you stabilized, so we have that advantage.” Izuku started muttering into a frenzy, grasping Tomura’s arm like a lifeline as he continued to maneuver away from the threat. “His health is still his greatest limitation; your attack should have affected that at least somewhat- If we could somehow contain him once more; neutralizing him so there’s a chance for more reinforcements to come; as long as we work through quirks that allow distance, there’s a chance-”

“Great. Good plan.” Tomura leapt down onto the wrecked main floor, quickly setting him down. “Now stay here.”

“Wha- I’m not leaving you!” Izuku scrambled to get up, only for the villain to shove him down again. “We have face him together! You can’t fight him alone!”

“And you can’t fight! Look at you!” (Look at what I’ve done to you.) “Just- I need you to stay hidden, stay out of the way until I come get you.” Tomura leapt away before he could hear anything else from the younger, frantic to put distance between them so All for One would give his focus to his old student.

If you leave your brother now, he’ll abandon you. Hissed All for One. He’ll run and never come back.

Then it’s a good thing that I want him to do just that! Tomura reminded himself in turn. This is my fault; I need to keep him safe. His world, his dreams were falling apart. But if there was one aspect of this that wasn’t a nightmare, it was having his little brother. And Shigaraki wasn’t going to risk the one thing he still cared about.

Leaping high onto one of the remaining towards, he murmured into his communicator before surveying the area. “Sensei, show yourself!” He scanned the fortress, the rain having stopped and leaving the surroundings eerily quiet. Singling out another quirk he felt his ears stretch, newly formed cords plugging into the building below and scanning for vibrations. Where are you…

Even using the stolen quirk, the warning almost came too late for him to act. Moving on instinct, he leapt into the sky, the building previously beneath him exploding apart from an air cannon. Turning to activate ‘Air Walk’, One for All danced aggressively over him, itching to attack.

Smoke and debris cleared, revealing Sensei moving over to him, a hand held out warningly with it’s black hole waiting to issue another attack. His machines appeared to have been abandoned, and Tomura noticed a slight tremor in his breathing. “A bit rude of you, to demand I show myself after fleeing. I see you’ve hidden your little plaything.”

“I won’t let you hurt him.”

“Give me what is mine, and I’ll consider allowing the child a painless death.”

Snarling, the King of Villains tilted forward, ‘Engine’ emerging once more send him flying at his adversary. His arm sent up flashes of pain as he forced several quirks into it, watching his Sensei do the same. Fist collided with fist, the burst of air from the collision sending more debris into the sea.

“I had so hoped to have this be a happy reunion. Are you truly so set on the preservation of a hero’s life, dear student?” All for One unleashed another blast from ‘Air Canon’, smirking as his protégé dodged. “Come now, don’t keep me at arm’s length- it’s unbecoming for the head of the League of Villains to cower.”

Eyes narrowing, Tomura moved forward as if taking the bait, racing through his quirks until one was called forward. “You know Sensei, I always thought your confidence was impressive. But it turns out you’re just as arrogant as the worst heroes out there.”

“Impudent. I am not-” The man froze in surprise, mouth going slack as he lost control under ‘Brainwash’.

“Hold still, Sensei.” Shigaraki pointed towards his master, furious. “Now, my Nomu.” From below, the shadows wavered to reveal the experiments that had been stalking closer. The mad beasts responded to his command, immediately jumping the figure, becoming a squirming ball of inky black flesh as they sought to destroy their target.

Tomura realized his mistake as they all seemed to collectively freeze, the ones still with working mouths shrieking out, arching from sudden, immense pain. The bodies seemed to spasm, contorting and struggling until the fell to the earth, bloodied and lifeless.

Quirkless.

All for One, black blood splattered across his face, gave a vicious grin as he raised his hands once more. “That, my boy, was not one of your best strategies.”

The fight quickly turned against Tomura, combining ‘Engine’ and ‘Air Walk’ could only move him for so long before he started to overheat. The same quirks that had helped him infiltrate and attack Tartarus had now been turned on him, All for One creating combinations of them at terrifying speeds. I can’t keep this up! I need to regroup; I don’t know enough about these damned quirks! The King of Villains managed to create a shield of ice for himself, the barrier spanning over half of the facility. Taking advantage, Tomura dropped back to the base level, ducking into the shadows. In no time at all, another blast echoed through the deserted prison, ice shards falling like shrapnel as the demon prowled closer.

“You know, Tomura. When I was trapped within this miserable place, I started to have these… dreams.” All for One walked at a leisurely pace, as if he had all the time in the world. “It was most peculiar- Flashes of things beyond my memory coming to me during the night. I recall seeing All Might’s protégé, begging me to spare his mother…”

Shigaraki felt his heart pound, realizing where this was going.

“There were others, too. Of me before the defeated All Might, listening as he wept for his missing boy. Of you approaching me within my brother’s vault- I had felt so horrible, watching you behave so much like me in your satisfaction…”

No. His dread grew worse as the steps paused, turning in his direction. No, dammit. There’s no way.

“And I find, dear student, that not only do I see these strange premonitions, but I heard things as well. Hearing you, specifically. Your doubts, your determination, your rage. How is it that now you’ve turned against me? After all that devotion I felt, that loyalty from years of serving at my side. All over this whelp who’s poisoned you against me. Once I get you under control, this brother of yours will have to be dealt with.”

His Sensei drew nearer, head turned away. Here’s my chance- I need to take it! But before he could unleash his next attack, the villain turned in his direction, his grin triumphant. Tomura let out a blood curdling scream as something pierced his legs and arms, immobilizing him. Struggling to overcome the pain, he watched through narrowed eyes as the villain came to a stop several feet away.

“Tomura, I had such visions for you, such plans. All you had to do was obey- to listen to your Sensei. Now look where we are; why did you have to be swayed by someone so useless, so worthless?”

The student shook his head, teeth grit against the pain as the segments of metal burrowed into his arms, forcing him to remain still. Furious, he activated ‘Decay’, falling into the cloud of rust as sinew and muscle tried to regrow so he could stand. “He’s none of those things. He’s shown me more compassion than you’ve managed in a lifetime.”

“Come now, did I not just say that I’ve been a part of your little game of family? I should think a victim appeasing his abuser isn’t exactly a model to aspire to.” All for One gave him another grin as he raised his mutated arm, sending chills down Tomura’s spine. “Don’t fret, my young disciple. Clearly, I must make the choice to return my quirk for you. While this will hurt, I would never dream of killing my future vestige. So with that said; hold still.”

Tomura, exhausted, couldn’t bring ‘Regeneration’ to work fast enough. He only heard a brief escalation of he’sfoundtherehurtdangerLOOKOUT! before being body checked by a flash of white. The King of Villains tumbled several feet, listening as Sensei activated his quirk, the world bursting with lights and spinning even after he stopped. The flashes of pain froze him, before he realized he wasn’t the one experiencing it.

The villain looked up when he heard a whimper, freezing in alarm.

Izuku stood where Shigaraki had been, shaking with the effort to remain upright. Eyes shut painfully tight, he managed to open one, then the other. Incredibly, he let out a sigh of relief. “Y-you’re alright.” he spasmed, blood escaping unchecked from his lips. “I’m so glad…”

Tomura didn’t hear him.

Three, there were three rivet spears through his little brother.

Red eyes remained unblinking, terrified to look away. He seemed to be trembling almost as much as Izuku was. The attack, the attack was meant for him-

The world seemed to slow down. Tomura scrambled to his feet, watching as the spears ripped away from the quirkless, unusable body. He managed to catch Izuku before he collided with the hard stone, his knees taking the brunt of the hit. He tried to sort through the jumble of thoughts coming from the kid, frightened. He laid him carefully on the ground, hands hovering between the various gashes. “You idiot, you idiot. What were you thinking-? You reckless-”

Hurtshurtsmom?hurtshelpbrotherplease-

Tomura’s mouth shut with an audible clack.

“S-Sorry…” Izuku winced, and Tomura realized with a pang that he was trying to smile, comforting his stupid, useless older brother. “I… didn’t mean to disobey… I just c-couldn’t leave you… alone like that…”

The villain clenched his teeth, eyes burning. “Why? All you had to do was stay safe. Why?”

He was paling fast, the blood loss excessive. “T-That’s s-such a dumb question… Why?” Izuku struggled to draw in breath, eyes slowly closing. “It’s because… be, cause…” With a sigh, his eyes fell shut, head rolling to the side.

No, no. Not him. Not after all this. Not him.

You destroy everything you touch.

“Well, he certainly made that easier than expected.”

Tomura froze, his Sensei’s voice bringing him back to the present. The man took a step forward, expression solemn. “Let him go, Tomura. The ninth will follow his predecessors, the last to oppose All for One. He was an obstacle; a quirkless child who was unlucky. Nothing more.”

The frantic panic, the phantom itch inside him shut down, something darker and voracious expanding in it’s wake. “Izuku.” Gently, he brushed the grimy white hair out of his little brother’s closed eyes. “His name’s Izuku. Just like Yoichi, he wanted to be a hero." Red eyes clashed against it’s opposition. How had Tomura never seen it? How had realization come so late? Sensei wasn't looking out for the boy who decayed his family. (He had never cared, not truly. Maybe not at all.) "This quirkless 'child' was smart, kind, and good. But more than that,” the air began to swirl about the pair, slowly and then gaining speed, “he was,” debris began to slide across the concrete, being picked up as lightning danced protectively about the forms. Shigaraki stood, glaring balefully at his Sensei. “My brother.”

Sensing the change, Sensei outstretched a hand, in a parody of reaching for his student. “Tomura, I’ll give you one last chance-”

Shigaraki didn’t let him finish.

One moment, they were on opposing ends. The next, Shigaraki was sucker punching his mentor into the air- through the far wall. He raced after the figure, coming before the villain who had scrambled to his feet, both activating air cannon at the same time.

The bridge beneath them shattered, but they were already moving beyond that, titans devastating the earth in their wrath. From a distance, it looked like two forms were controlling the air around them, warping the very nature of reality as they threw everything they could against the opponent. Shigaraki activated black whip, a furious array of inky, violent strings lashing out and attempting to wrap around the villain. He countered it with Hypertrophy, enlarging his arms to then add Rivet Stab, slicing through the threat. Roaring, Shigaraki unleashed flames across his form, ignoring the pain as regeneration worked furiously against him. Mimicking the final actions of Endeavor, he unleashed a barrage of fire, merging air canon so it threw a giant wall of flame.

Before the inscinerating heat could reach him, All For One collapsed into himself, warping out of the path of the melting heat. Shigaraki activated Search, finding his adversary a moment too late above him. He dodged, barely, as spear like bones swiped for his head, decorating the grotesque arms like scales. Gritting his teeth, Tomura activated One For All, the quirk answering immediately to his call for blood. He swung at his teacher, the air currents knocking down trees back on the island, but All For One remained steady.

The oldest villain alive activated his own enhanced strength, countering with his own swings and absorbing what he could through Impact Recoil.

“I gave you everything, Tenko.” The villain’s words echoed around the hovering forms, his attacks deadly accurate even as his voice remained controlled, languid. “And this is how you repay me? Siding with All Might’s failed apprentice? I held nothing back from you, child.” Tomura dodged, struggling to find an opening. He activated ‘Decay’ once more, the power emanating from him so the debris nearby crumbled to dust even without his touch. Yet the monster’s body barely shifted, any decay reaching his form immediately regenerated. “I gave you an army to command, free reign to destroy as you saw fit, never hindering your progress. Why do you deny me now?”

Before Tomura could stop him, his mentor sent a powerful Air Blast. Spiraling from the sky, he fell through the reinforced wall of Tartarus, barely feeling as the ruble disappaited around him. Get up. He thought, half desperate. Get up before he-

A hand fell over his face, the placement familiar to his father’s.

“Hmm. You shouldn’t have awoken so early, my dear student. I’d put the strain of your body using All For One at, oh, seventy-five percent?” The grin turned mean. “I have no such limitations. If you won’t give me One for All, then I’ll simply take everything else I’ve given you. And when I do pry that miserable quirk away from you, I’m sure there will be another sad child to give ‘Decay’ to, one who won’t fail me as you have.”

Before Tomura could respond, a searing pain ripped though him, like a knife was under his skin, cutting muscle from bone, attempting to rip him apart by layers. He let out a strangled cry, pain overwhelming him, and recalled the first time he’d done this very action to Izuku weeks ago. No! He thought, weakly. You can’t have my quirk, you can’t have any of my quirks!

One for All let out a furious blast of power, viciously denying the attempt. Sensei staggered back from the hit, teeth grinding. “Impossible. No quirk outside of One for All has ever been denied to me…”

Kneeling, Tomura struggled to comprehend what had happened as well. He’s taken quirks himself; it’s effortless, like plucking a leaf from a tree. It didn’t matter how powerful a quirk was, All for One was a force onto itself, only it’s counterpart able to deter an attempt.

There was something to that- it wasn’t about All for One; it was about One for All. The power was able to be passed down through generations, absorbing quirks as it went, which is what caused the relatively harmless quirk to grow so powerful over the last several decades-

Absorbing quirks. One for All…

All for One was meant to take quirks, bringing it under an umbrella of control where the owner could give or take them.

But if All for One and One for All were combined, then… then One for All would have overtaken All for One. It was now living as a singular quirk, absorbing and carrying what the latest generation had given it, including All for One. And that meant-

That meant nothing could be taken from Tomura now. Ever.

But Sensei has no such protections, especially from someone that shared his power.

His master seemed to come to the same conclusion, moving to back up right as Shigaraki caught him by the neck. “Tomura!” He wheezed. “Wait-!”

“You took the one person who mattered to me, Sensei.” The need to itch bloomed across his skin once more, but he ignored it, giving a mean smile as All for One tried to activate his quirks, not recognizing his danger until Tomura’s hair began raising against gravity, eyes glowing.

“Eraserhead’s quirk? How-?”

“I think, All for One, that the world’s in for a change. A shift in perspective, if you will. And you, you hollowed out old prick, aren’t part of the future.” He dragged the struggling man in, staring into the eyeless face. “You’ve always gotten to be the taker, why don’t we see how you like it on the other side?”

Within Tomura, he could feel the sentience of the All for One quirk grin, activating to drag in it’s precious cargo.

Multiplier, Rivet Stab, Forced Quirk Augmentation-

“T-Tomura.” ‘Decay’ began to bleed from the hand holding him, no quirks able to help prevent the damage. “TOMURA!”

Spearlike Bones, Infared, Radio Waves-

“Let go! You can… still drag your precious little brother to a hospital-”

“Not before I make sure that you can never hurt him again.” Tomura grit his teeth, fingers digging into the cracks forming in the skin.

“I made you, you ungrateful-”

“Then admire your monster’s work, Sensei.”

Impact Recoil, Muscle Augmentation, Air Cannon, Transforming Arms, Springlike Limbs, Air Walk, Life Force-

The scarred tissue crumbled, the oldest villain alive releasing a sound terror that Tomura would relive till his own death. Briefly, the old eyes were revealed under scarred flesh, shriveled and milky white in their sockets.

Then it was over- the remainder of the form fell into a pile of grey, his yell still echoing off the prison walls.

Breathing heavily, Tomura fought to regain control, struggling to comprehend. Shaking, dry hands blurred in and out of focus. I killed him. A sharp, barking laugh burst somewhere from deep in his chest. All this planning, sacrificing, and I killed him. Oh, this was too ironic. He felt just like the boy who had been Tenko, all those years ago, left numb in the wake of his own ruin. He’d done it. He’d surpassed his master, and all in the name of-

His mind startled to attention, recalling what had drove him to this moment.

“Izuku!” The villain stumbled up, his leap causing a burst of air that sent the dusty remains of his former master away- swept out to the sea. He didn’t notice, he didn’t care. “Izuku!” Racing, he finally saw the sole body left on this barren space, red almost hallowing his brother’s fallen form. Petering to a halt, he felt bile rise in his throat as he looked on the broken form. “Izuku?”

The boy was too still. Shaking, Tomura collapsed next to him, one hand reaching out, feeling the clammy skin. “Izu? I did it. Y-you were right; I did it Izuku…” His words started to crack, like somehow Decay was activated and ruining his voice. “Wake up, brat. I just said you were right; now you need to wake up and, and give some damn hero speech.” He nudged the unresponsive figure, heart breaking. “…Otouto, please…”

It was too much- Izuku, he’d been put through too much; he hadn’t had enough time to heal, to recover. His wounds were too severe, it had been too much…

“Izuku? Can you still hear me?” He carefully gathered the child into his arms. “Don’t leave me alone.” He whispered. “I can’t; I can’t keep facing this f*cked up world if I have to do it alone, please little brother…”

He wasn’t responding- he couldn’t feel a breathe, and his own heartbeat was pounding too loud for him to tell if there was a pulse or not in the younger teen. He’s lost so much blood. Even if I could fly us, the closest hospital is twenty five kilometers away. If I could stabilize him somehow- He couldn’t, though. He had no medical supplies, and ‘Regeneration’ only worked on the bearer.

A quirk that…

That had been absorbed by One for All.

The world fell out from underneath him all over again. Not that. Tomura closed his eyes, fighting against the burning itch running all over him. After all this, all I’ve sacrificed for my power…

A soft, frail hand curled around his shoulder. He looked up, already knowing he would see the samedifferent eyes of Yoichi. Slowly, Shigaraki shook his head. “I can’t.” His voice barely made it out, shaking as he held the fading figure. “What will I have left? I can’t…”

You’ll have him. The empathy in his eyes left no room for doubt; Yoichi knew what he was asking of his bearer, what the little boy who had been hurt so long ago had to give up. One for All was a quirk meant to protect, and in this moment, he could finally use it for what it was meant to be. Please, he needs you.

Taking a shaking breath, then another, Tomura rested his bleeding hand over one of the open wounds, right near Izuku’s heart.

Make this right.

“I know.” Tomura didn’t even notice as tears fell from his eyes, for the first time in years. “You trusted me, Izuku. So I’m going to trust you, now.”

When Midoriya had transferred his power to Tomura, it had been in a moment of conflict, the power fighting both sides as its will had been ignored. Now, there was little showmanship. Just the gradual, empty feeling that Tomura had never experience before- never realizing how full he had felt until he was left without.

As the lights of One for All activated over the smaller body, forcing ‘Regeneration’ to build and bring broken skin back together, Izuku took one weak, deep breath. Tomura let out a wet laugh, the strange emptiness softening. His brother would live- his little brother would be alright.

The energy danced over his hand once more, briefly, and he allowed a small smile at the image of his crying grandmother. “Look after him for me, okay?”

The heroes arrived just as Izuku was stirring, green eyes blinking open. Tenko gently lay him back on the ground. He’s safe. The older brother reassured himself as the calls started to ring out, giving the boy a parting grin before turning to face his fate.

You win, baby brother.

Chapter 18: Epilogue

Chapter Text

xXX I forgot to mention this,

but this is the story

of how I became a great hero. XXx

2 Years Later

Izuku looked up at the daunting fortress they were fast approaching across the river. He’d been waiting in anticipation for this day for so long, but now that the time had finally come, he didn’t know what to feel. Apprehensive, mostly. And it was strange- this area had been dark and storming when he’d briefly seen it- nothing about the scenery was familiar to him. More-so, it was hard to reconcile the restored goliath of Tartarus with the ruins that Shigaraki’s final battle had left it in.

He gulped as they passed into its shadow, reminding himself to stay calm. What this place represented, what he’d been put through due to its inhabitants, still left a shiver running down his spine.

I can finally see him again.

It had been so long… what would he even say? What could he? He hasn’t felt this tormented by a meeting since waking up and being sent to the hospital-

“Izuku!” The paramedics had barely entered the hospital emergency wing before the small, crying form of Inko Midoriya came scrambling around the corner, Yagi-san and Bakugou’s parents following close behind. “Izuku! Izuku!” Medical personal quickly moved out of the way, only the nurse near his gurney slowing her just enough so she didn’t cause any damage. “My baby,” she sobbed, grasping his arm like a lifeline. “My baby. I’m so sorry- I’m so sorry-”

“Mom?” Izuku struggled to speak, his throat choking up. He reached out, trying to calm her. “I’m okay mom, I’m okay.”

Inko couldn’t hear him though, the relief in pulling her son into her arms too overwhelming. Since Izuku’s injuries had healed, the medical personal stayed a respectful distance, looking away as the mother rocked her child like he was ten years younger, her wails muffled against his shoulder. “You came h-home!” Inko clutched her son tightly, tears soaking his neck. “You came home, my sweet baby. Oh, my baby…”

Losing against his own tears, Izuku looked up to see Mitsuki covering her face, Masaru holding her while sending Izuku a relieved smile. All Might, still standing towards the back, was clutching at his heart, the look in his eyes painful enough that Midoriya had to look away.

He should have felt relief, happiness. Instead, all he could think was that while he was being met with love and care, somewhere else, Tomura was alone.

“You sure you want to do this?”

He glanced over to his driver- who looked as composed as ever. Shoto had been pretty busy since their graduation a few months back, but despite the commentary from the public on their ‘legacy rivalry’, they texted almost weekly. Nothing seemed to band people together like trauma, and in the wake of ‘The Great Change’ that left thirteen percent of the hero population dead, and another twenty-five percent resigning from their positions, Japan was shocked by the resolution of the following years of graduates. They’d all seen too much too young, but banning together, those with conviction moved on to take the country’s hero agencies by storm.

When he’d let the old 1A group chat know his plans, he’d received a lot of critique about the decision. In the end, Todoroki had been the only one willing to drive him. The others didn’t understand why he felt so compelled to visit the person that, in their eyes, destroyed his life. But Shoto had his own ghosts living in Tartarus, and knew it was more complicated than just seeing a defeated villain.

The Number Ten hero was used to visiting the facility by now. Unlike Izuku’s mother, his family had worked hard to ensure visits like these, after Dabi’s capture. As far as Midoriya knew, nothing much had come from their attempts to reconcile.

He hoped it wasn’t the same for him and Tomura.

“Deku?”

Izuku realized he hadn’t given an answer. He nodded his head, a determined frown on his face. “Yeah, I’m sure.” He glanced out as they passed the first check point. “He’s… been waiting for me. I don’t want to make him wait any longer than I’ve already made him.”

“Still.” The Number Ten hero parked where directed. “It’s a weird way for you to spend your 18^th birthday.”

That first night, Izuku woke up screaming.

It had been a nightmare, like the one’s he’d had back at the villain base. But unlike then, there had been no older brother to wake him up. Izuku dreamed he was in a room, chained and locked away. He’d been alone- so alone and the pain in his heart knowing that it would stay this way for good now-

The hero team assigned to his room managed to be tossed into the walls before getting him to come around.

It had been Yagi calling to him that had finally brought him back to the real world. But once his mentor had calmed him down enough to stop yelling, he’d only broken down into tears, clinging to the man as he kept repeating the same things he’d been crying for in his sleep.

“I want my brother, I want my brother, I want my brother…”

Izuku followed the guards as directed down the hallways, trying to pretend like he didn’t notice several of them speaking in hushed whispers, a few pointing. Both heroes looked up as they were intercepted by the head of security, who looked less than happy to see them.

“Alright. You’ve both been briefed on the rules. Mr. Midoriya, as it’s your first visit, I want to remind you that even if prisoner 1TS237-“

“Tomura.”

The woman narrowed her eyes, jaw stiffening when Izuku’s glare didn’t back down. “… even if Tomura is quirkless, he still poses a greater danger to everyone present. When the light blinks red once, wrap up within the next minute. If it stays red, get up and walk to the door immediately, no further action taken.”

Izuku nodded. “I understand. Thank you.”

They followed their escort deeper into the belly of the beast. At one point, Shoto broke off to his own visitation room, giving Izuku a small wave as he left. It was a pristine, white room. He’d been allowed a space without a two way mirror, but could see a security camera nestled into the far corner, positioned towards the chair where the prisoner would sit.

You can do this. He encouraged himself. You’ve waited two years for this opportunity.

This was a victory, getting this chance. He’d had time to grow, and he knew better now to recognize and appreciate his own hard work. Like his friends had reminded him, after things had settled and he was able to see them again, everyone recovering with their parents at the UA dorms to allow privacy from the world.

Bakugou, of course, had been the first one to track him down.

The others had been briefed about his… condition. And while they wanted to support him, they were encouraged to give him space, to allow him to reacclimate.

It was a week in to his freedom, and all Izuku wanted to do was lay in his bed. He didn’t know what was wrong; he should have been happy, he should have been getting on with his life. But what was he supposed to do? All for One had been defeated, One for All had been restored to him. But what kind of victory was it to abandon his older brother? What sort of hero could he be after now holding a quirk built on ruined lives?

It was easier under his brother’s care. He had no control, his mistakes couldn’t be confronted.

But now he was free- and half his class was quirkless. Maybe it would have been easier if-

“Oi, Deku.”

The familiar voice startled him- he hadn’t even heard his door open. Turning, he saw the grumpy, bandaged form of his oldest friend. “Hi, Kaachan.”

Frowning, the explosive teen carefully closed the door, coming in and settling on the ground near the bed. Neither of them spoke for a time. Bakugou looked down at his still blistering hands, his face a storm. Izuku half expected him to erupt into cursing him for being a lazy baby about the whole thing.

Instead, the blond said “When you went missing, All Might told me what your stupid rag hair meant. He said how you were sacrificing yourself to protect everyone else by giving me your quirk. He said… that we needed to respect your wishes, and I needed to take on One for All.

I refused.”

The haze over Izuku’s mind abated somewhat, and he sat at attention, watching the other.

“Some of the heroes were saying you’d been dusted; that there was no sign of you, and he’d probably killed off another hero. I didn’t believe that sh*t. I knew you were alive, and if I took on your quirk, you’d have no way to fight back. Sure, you could scuffle with one or two- but if you hadn’t been killed yet, I’d be taking the only bargaining chip you had to stay alive.”

Izuku noticed that his hands were clenching, far too tight for the tender skin still healing. But he kept quiet, hanging on every word.

“Then… then your mom went missing. She had been so upset, the old hag had invited her to stay with us. But she’d gone to get something from your place and just… a witness saw her be grabbed by that marble freak- she didn’t even see it coming. And I knew, the second I heard that, what they were going to do.”

Bakugou still refused to look up, but Izuku could catch a glimpse of his eyes, and how they shined against the sunlight coming through his window. “And so I f*cking asked myself- would you be able to protect All Might’s legacy if it meant seeing your mom killed? And I… I knew you couldn’t. The sh*tty nerd I went to school with couldn’t stand when I beat up a random extra, even if it meant he’d take the beating instead. There’s no way you’d refuse if it meant protecting your mom.” He finally looked up to Izuku, teeth grinding as he struggled to keep composure. “So I accepted the quirk, knowing it probably meant the death of you both, but at least there’d be a way for me to pound the dusty bitch into the earth for what he'd done.”

Izuku was staring with his jaw dropped now. He’d… he’d never considered, from Kaachan’s perspective, he’d never…

“I couldn’t sleep… but I must have passed out at some point, because I was having a f*cking crazy dream- I was back in middle school, bullying you as you trembled in a corner. Then I was throwing a weird white haired guy into a vault, mocking him. Then I was looking up at Tomura, screaming at him to stop destroying the bodies of those stupid civilians who were begging-” He cut himself off, biting his lip. Izuku must have made a sound, because he made an abortive gesture, looking away again. “I was freaked out- then your mom came back. She was hysterical, and it took awhile to understand what had happened. But when she described the room, what had happened… I recognized it. And as the days passed, I realized what I was seeing wasn’t dreams. It was your damned life.” He shook his head. “I could only talk to All Might about it; no one else understood. And your mom… I didn’t want to explain what I was seeing. Through you or that sick freak. But I was damn near helpless, no matter how much I tried to get the quirk to go back to you through the connection, or, I dunno, f*cking give me a reason for why it kept showing me all that sh*t.”

Izuku hesitantly turned, so his feet were dangling off the bed. “All that time… you were there? Through One for All? That must be why…” He trailed off, recalling some of his own moments through the quirk’s connection.

“I’m still there, nerd.” Bakugou looked back to him, beginning to settle somewhat. “You need to stop beating yourself up. You took down the bad guys that literally none of the professional heroes could.”

“I-It’s not like that!” Izuku held up his hands defensively. “I-I didn’t get a chance to fight them; I just wanted to change Tomura’s mind.”

“Hey.”

The white haired boy quieted, Bakugou now frowning at him. “Did the dusty bitch and ancient dick go and terrorize Japan after that night at Tartarus?”

“N-no, but-”

“Then you f*cking won. Quit acting like that’s not a big deal, sh*tty nerd.”

Swallowing, Izuku nodded. “Yeah… yeah, okay.”

“Good. You’re a hero, Deku. Even before all this- before you even got that damn quirk. So keep looking forward so you can grow even batter.”

Midoriya tried to blink away the sudden tears of gratitude. “You- you think…?”

“Now,” Bakugou stood up, looking down at one of his hands with the now bleeding blisters before extending it to Izuku. “Shake my hand.”

Izuku looked down to the open wounds, back to his face in confusion. “K-Kaachan…?”

Red eyes narrowed- back to their normal ire. “I am not spending one more day dealing with your sh*tty quirk. Shake my goddamn hand or I’m shoving my f*cking hair down your throat.”

Izuku smiled fondly at the memory. Kaachan never really did soften; not in a way people could see. But he was always the one there when Izuku had his setbacks, even without the quirk’s aide, he’d seemingly know when the bad nights happened. He’d bother and bully Izuku into hanging in the lounge with the others, or drag him to Eraserhead to demand a training room. Having that normalcy, more than anything, helped him eventually recover to where he was today.

The hero blinked at the sound of the far door opening, coming back to the present. Izuku hurriedly stood up as two people entered, automatic words of greeting dying in the back of his throat.

There he was.

Midoriya froze, staring at the familiar, intent eyes as the guard entered the room with Tartarus’ most notorious prisoner.

He looked… better than Izuku remembered. Smaller- though that was probably because they were the same height now. Yagi-san had kept him updated on what Shigaraki was comfortable sharing; that he’d gotten more physical care for his skin condition (which had gradually cleared on it’s own, even if the scars remained). Tomura sat, wordlessly allowing the guard to connect the chain to a bolt in the floor, watching Izuku just as fixedly.

His hair had been cut, still shaggy around his ears, but better kept than the shoulder length tangle it had been. Even his posture seemed improved, his body having forgotten how to carry the weight of the hands that used to decorate his villain uniform.

Izuku jolted as the guard stepped out, closing the door firmly behind him.

His jump seemed to break the stare down, Tomura smirking in a painfully familiar way. “Please, don’t stand on my account, goody-two shoes.”

For some reason, the raspy tone calmed Izuku’s racing heart. He sat back down. It was strange- how easy this suddenly was.

“Welcome to my new home.” The prisoner raised an eyebrow. “Or as close as it can get, now.” He paused, a sly smile cracking along thin lips. “Oh come on, no hello? Maybe you’re too scared to talk- where’s that hero’s spirit of yours, Izu-chan?”

Izuku gave him an equally unimpressed look. “Didn’t realize we were going to do the hero-villain quipping. I get plenty of that from my day job.”

“That’s riiiight. You’re a big shot hero now- they wasted no time making you their new symbol.” He suddenly perked up, leaning back. “That reminds me, Deku. I heard you announced your new quirk. ‘All in One’, was it?” Tomura drawled. “Pretty pretentious, if you ask me.”

Izuku, Number One hero at the age of eighteen, blushed in embarrassment. “I-I know. And of course, even if I hadn’t returned what quirks I could, it would still have it’s limitations. But ‘One for All’ and ‘All for One’ really don’t exist outside of each other, so-”

“Good to see you still mumble like an idiot.” Shigaraki gave a sharp gesture as the other apologized bashfully. “You really haven’t changed that much, have you? I keep hearing these security guards’ gossip about the great ‘Deku- the can-do hero who saves everyone, no matter what’.”

Izuku turned even redder, thinking back to the murmurs he’d received on entering Tartarus. He knows he’s developed a bit of a reputation- it’s hard not to, in his position. A few weeks after things had settled again, he’d thrown the world into chaos by quietly approaching his friends and heroes, one by one restoring their lost quirks. The uproar only grew when he started to locate others who’s relatives had lost their lives to All for One, killed for the sake of their powers, and passed those quirks back into the family.

Deku had found that not only could he pass any quirks individually now within All in One, but that, unlike the original owner of All for One, quirks could be given with little consequence to the holder, if they were a blood relative. The daughter to the woman who’s quirk could change hair colors was able to merge, so she could now adjust her entire form to various hues. The utility man’s brother was now able to create complex shapes that could then be separated as its own item. He’d even been able to offer ‘Safe’ back to the quirkless mother of it’s original owner, who’s family line had originally carried that ability.

Making up for the mistakes of Sensei and Shigaraki had been trying, but Izuku was determined. What he hadn’t expected, was for older heroes to then come to him, asking that he carry on the legacy of their quirk when they were too old to put it to use, or for those ailing from theirs asking him to take it away.

In a way, All for One’s legacy had come full circle as well.

Shigaraki glanced up, unaware of his musings. “Managed to undue my trick, then.”

“Hmm? Oh, my hair!” Izuku’s hand automatically flew up to the green locks, the shade now closer to his mother’s darker green than his original color. “I kept it for a while, but in the end, I wanted to be more Izuku than… Yoichi.”

Tomura got quiet at that. “…Do you still see him? When you look at me, is… he there?”

“No.” Only in my nightmares. “No, I haven’t seen any of the shifts like before. I can still talk with the vestiges, but they’re not as intent as they once were. … Do you still…?”

Tomura gave him a long look before shaking his head. “Nope. You’re just a hero worshiping brat, now. I guess that means we’re just two messed up individuals, all on our own.”

At that, Izuku looked down. “I’m sorry, Tomura.” He suddenly felt all of sixteen again, helpless in his circ*mstances. “I tried to visit sooner, I did. But… my mom had the final say, and as a minor, I had to wait. They also insisted that I… sort things out, before trying to approach you.”

Tomura didn’t look to him, shrugging. “I know, kid. That damn shrink they keep trying to send me said the same thing.” He started to reach out, before seeming to think better of it. “Hey.” Izuku looked back up to him, expression guilty. “I said I know, Midoriya. I mean that. I got the nightmares just as much as you did, that first year.” He gestured to their surroundings. “Kinda made an interesting case, sparing the villain so the beloved hero student didn’t suffer. That All Might relic kept showing up, put the fear of god into every one of these NPCs to try and make it easier on you.”

“He did it for you, too.” Izuku corrected. Shigaraki still wasn’t in the place to hear it- but after knowing what Nana’s grandson had been put through, and then his efforts to save Izuku from All for One, Toshinori had dedicated most of his spare time in retirement to advocate for the villain. Izuku understood his health was a big part of why they relented, but it was Yagi-san’s ongoing dedication that ensured even after the connection started to waver, that Tomura would be alright.

“Guess heroes never really retire from being obnoxious.”

“Tomura- do you… do you ever miss your Sensei?” Izuku only knew what was in the official reports; that Tomura had defeated the villain. But knowing how much Shigaraki had idolized him, desired to have his father figure back- it had been a question long on his mind.

The prisoner seemed to think about it, mulling it over in his head. “Sensei… he rescued me, he gave me purpose. But in the end, he only saw me as a weapon. That’s all the world really sees, even though I’m powerless now.” He shrugged, the chains clanking against his metal chair. “At least you gave me the chance to be more than that.”

Izuku nodded, biting back the words he wanted to say. How researching ‘Decay’ had proven Tomura to not be the original owner, combined with the implications of their final battle… there was very little Izuku could give to him, at this point. But it would be even worse to take away what he had left. Instead, he pressed on with a question that had been haunting him for the last two years. “Tomura. I… I didn’t want to presume, and maybe I shouldn’t ask this. There’s a chance you even regret doing it, but- why did you save me? Even knowing it would cost you your dream?”

“The dream I had wanted floated away with the remains of Sensei.” The fallen King of Villains muttered, looking away. “I saved your life… because you were just a stupid, hero worshipping brat. You looked so pathetic- just lying there pale and weak and- well. You looked like you needed saving.”

“Hmm.” Izuku nodded his head in agreement, scarred hands fidgeting. “I know I’ve said it already, but, thank you for saving me. Without you, so many more lives would have been lost.”

Tomura shook his head, expression unimpressed. “I would have killed them several times over and felt no different, you know that. I only did it to save you, not this deku world you insist on protecting.”

Izuku’s shoulder’s sagged, just slightly, at that statement. “I understand. I, I hope one day I can help the world become one that wouldn’t have turned you away, when you needed help.”

The prisoner scoffed, though there wasn’t much bite to it. “If you’re as relentless out there as you are here with me, who the hell knows? Maybe you’ll make some progress after all.” Both glanced up when the green light flickered red- a soft notice that they were out of time. Tomura watched as the other got up, unable to stop himself as Izuku turned his back. “Hey brat- that final battle, you never got to finish what you were going to say. I told you why I saved your life; answer me before you leave- why did you jump in front of Sensei like that? Why protect me after everything I did?”

Izuku paused, turning around to regard his once captor. Green eyes softened, extending his hand to lay unflinchingly over the villain’s. “Because you’re my brother.” Something passed between them, and Izuku’s smile ticked into something closer to what the hero Deku would wear. “Oh, we can talk about it more next time, but, Nana says ‘hi’.”

He walked out after that, not giving any farewells. Security moved in to take Shigaraki away once more, shuffling him back into the maze of Tartarus. The guards stayed quiet, taking the fallen leader past cells holding familiar figures of his commanding officers. They eyed their leader as he was led away, stopping before his own room. He stepped in obediently, waiting until the door locked behind him before moving further in.

Going to the far bed, he passed the array of comics that had been sent throughout the years to him. The prisoner sat carefully, looking down to the hand Izuku had touched. He felt warmth, a light where before he’d been hollow.

“Because you’re my brother.”

Tomura smiled.