Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A few days had passed since Izuku’s session with the therapist, and he already looked noticeably better. There were still moments of hesitation, but he smiled more often now; his eyes were brighter, and there was a new lightness in his step. That morning, Kenji was leading him to the training room.

“You’ve made good progress in just a few days, Izuku,” Kenji said with a proud smile.

Izuku gave a shy grin. He wore a simple T-shirt that said, in large kanji letters: ‘Gym Clothes.’

Kenji glanced at the print and muttered,

“And people say I have a bad sense of humor…”

When they entered the training room, Izuku was surprised to see all the members of the Vigilante Guild already gathered. Harumi, Toya, Yoko, Hana, Aoi, Yoshi, Kaina, and even Despero were there.

“Today’s training will be different,” Kenji announced, looking at Izuku. “Before we start the physical part, I want to test something important — one of the reasons we brought you into the Guild: your analytical skills. I want to see what you can do through observation and deduction.”

Izuku blinked in confusion.

“What do you mean?”

“Simple. I want you to try to figure out each person’s Quirk just by watching them. No direct questions — only observation and reasoning.”

Izuku hesitated and looked around at everyone.

“You’re all… okay with that? No one’s ever asked me to analyze people before…” he said nervously — people usually intimidated him into stopping his analysis, not encouraging it.

Harumi smiled softly, her feline ears twitching.

“Go ahead, detective.”

Yoko crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow.

“We’re curious to see if it’s true you’re some kind of analysis genius.”

“Hit me, kid,” said Toya, leaning against the wall.

Kenji cut in, grinning slightly.

“Start with me.”

Izuku nodded, focusing on Kenji carefully, murmuring to himself as he pieced together the possibilities based on what he’d seen so far.

“You don’t have any visible mutations. When you comforted me, I felt warmth coming from you. Maybe something thermal… but I also remember you lifting a couch with one hand like it was nothing. Maybe a strength-based Quirk?” he reasoned. “No… that doesn’t explain the heat. What if it’s an accumulation-type Quirk? You absorb heat and convert it into physical enhancement?”

Then, remembering Kenji’s vigilante name — Solaris, the Shining Knight — Izuku’s eyes widened.

“You have an accumulation-type Quirk! But you don’t generate your energy, do you? The heat I felt wasn’t from your body… it was from the sun! You absorb sunlight and turn it into strength!”

Kenji clapped, genuinely impressed.

“Very close — almost perfect, actually. You only missed one small detail.”

Izuku blinked.

“I got it right? What detail did I miss?”

Kenji smiled.

“My Quirk’s called Bright Sun. I absorb solar radiation, not heat, and I can convert it into strength, endurance, energy blasts… and flight — though, uh, steering is still tricky.”

Izuku’s eyes lit up, and in a blink, he pulled out a notebook from who-knows-where and started writing furiously, pencil smoking from speed.

Everyone stared in disbelief. Hana, Harumi, Yoko, Toya… all watching the scrawny green-haired boy fill page after page like a man possessed.

Yoko, intrigued, asked, “Where did you even pull that notebook from? You weren’t carrying it when you walked in.”

Izuku blinked, confused.

“I don’t know what you mean. I’ve had it the whole time,” he said, still scribbling without looking up.

Kenji raised an eyebrow but shrugged. “Never mind. Next — Hana.”

Izuku turned toward Hana Shimura, codename Entropy. He noticed her gloves, the way she avoided touching things, always keeping her pinky finger slightly lifted.

“Your Quirk must activate through five-point contact. Something destructive… you wear gloves and never touch things directly with all five fingers. I don’t know the exact effect, but I’m certain it’s destructive.”

Hana nodded, not surprised.

“Nicely done. My Quirk is called Entropy. And I can accelerate the aging process of any solid matter by touching it with my five fingers. The gloves prevent accidents.”

Izuku’s eyes sparkled as he jotted everything down.

“Fascinating…”

Then, he turned to Harumi Ito — and immediately noticed her feline ears, eyes, and tail.

“Clearly a feline mutation. But…” — he pointed at a light burn scar on her arm — “that doesn’t look accidental. Maybe a complementary Quirk — something with fire? In Greek mythology, the Chimera was a creature that breathed fire. Do you breathe fire or manipulate it?”

Harumi chuckled, crossing her arms.

“Close. I don’t breathe fire, but I have a complex mutant Quirk with feline traits — agility, sharp senses, claws, tail, reflexes — plus a complementary Quirk that lets me generate and control the four elements: fire, water, earth, and air. I call it Elemental Cat.”

“Incredible! Can you combine elements? How many can you use at once? Do you generate them or need an existing source?” Izuku asked, fascinated — making Harumi blush slightly under his focused attention.

“W-well… I can control two at once. And I can't control external elements, only the ones I generate. But I can use my elements to influence external elements. I’ve never tried combining two.” She averted her gaze, which earned light laughter from the group — Harumi was rarely flustered.

Izuku turned to Yoko Saito, immediately noting the tattooed playing cards running down her arms.

“Tattoos — rare in Japan, especially at your age. The way they move… they’re part of your Quirk! You pull cards from nowhere not because of sleight of hand — you’re drawing them out of the tattoos, aren’t you?”

Yoko smirked dramatically.

“Bingo. It’s called Royal Flush. I can convert the nutrients I consume into playing card tattoos on my body, which I can then print out into the real world. And if I concentrate, I can alter their properties.”

Izuku scribbled frantically, clearly enjoying himself.

Next was Yoshi Sueko. Izuku hesitated.

“No visible mutations. No active Quirk signs… Your vigilante name is Wave, so maybe something with water or sound waves?”

Yoshi smiled softly.

“Good instincts. My Quirk’s Soundwave. I can vibrate my cells at high frequency, producing sonic waves through my body — mostly through my voice, but I can emit them anywhere.”

“That’s amazing!” Izuku exclaimed, delighted.

Then came Aoi Uraraka. Izuku studied her carefully.

“The other day, I saw you move your phone with a gesture. I’d guess something psychic — maybe telekinesis? But your vigilante name is Quasar… quasars are cosmic phenomena that release immense energy — maybe you manipulate gravity or energy fields?”

Aoi blinked, mildly impressed.

“Close enough. My Quirk’s called Gravitational Zone. I can create a spherical zone and manipulate gravity inside it. Make things float… or crush them.”

Izuku was awestruck.

“Wow… can you do both at once? Can you make yourself float? How much weight can you lift—?”

“I’ll answer later. Not in the mood right now,” she said flatly, eyes glued to her phone. Everyone sweatdropped.

“Don’t worry, kid,” Toya said, laughing. “She barely talks to us either.”

Aoi flipped him off without looking up.

Izuku sighed. “Oh. Okay then…”

“Alright, kid, your turn to analyze me. Mine’s easy. You already know who I am,” Toya said with a half-grin.

“You have a fire Quirk,” Izuku said instantly, smiling like it was obvious. “But those burns… your Quirk’s too strong for your body, right? Or maybe you weren’t born resistant to heat?”

Toya nodded.

“Both. It’s called Cremation. I produce blue flames hotter than my father’s, but my body wasn’t made for it — I inherited my mother’s ice resistance. Every time I fight, I burn a little more, It was worse before, but the Good Doctor managed to fix most of the old damage.”

Izuku frowned, taking worried notes — already brainstorming ways to help him.

He skipped Kaina Tsutsumi — everyone already knew her Quirk — but still asked, “You use your Quirk like a sniper rifle, but where do the bullets come from? Do you produce them or buy them?”

“I make them from my hair. I pull a strand, and it turns into a ballistic bullet as strong as a real one. My hair grows back in a few hours. I can use real ammo, but my own is more reliable,” she said monotonously.

Finally, Izuku turned to Despero.

“You’re a telepath — conscious, intelligent… but today, I didn’t feel any discomfort when you spoke to me.”

Despero replied directly into his mind:

‘You’re adapting. Congratulations.’

Kenji smiled at the exchange.

“That’s rare. Most people need months before the discomfort fades. You adapting this fast is a good sign.”

Izuku nodded, jotting notes without noticing everyone once again staring at the mysterious notebook that appeared and disappeared without explanation.

Kenji cleared his throat.

“Alright, since you’ve impressed everyone, let’s start some light training — no pressure. We’ll go slow: basic strength work, cardio, reflexes, parkour… one step at a time.”

A few months later...

Izuku barely resembled the boy who had first arrived. The biggest change was him. His body was stronger, his shoulders broader, and his face — once marked by insecurity — now carried determination and a new spark of confidence. His room reflected that too. Once empty and lifeless, it was now covered with posters of both underground and pro heroes — Mirko, Ryukyu, Power Woman, Edgeshot, Best Jeanist, Eraserhead — replacing every trace of the Yagi family.

As he adjusted a Ryukyu poster on the wall, three soft knocks came from the door.

“Come in,” he said naturally. The base truly felt like home now — a feeling he hadn’t had since he was four.

Kenji entered, phone in hand, expression serious yet worried.

“We need to talk.”

Izuku turned, confused. It was rare for Solaris to sound that serious.

“What happened?”

Kenji showed him the screen. A headline glared at the top:

“Pro Hero No. 6 Emerald’s Son — Missing.”

Izuku’s face froze — disbelief melting into anger. His eyes scanned the article, and silent fury rose in his chest.

“Now they care? After more than three months? Only now they realize I’m gone?” He didn’t know whether to laugh or curse.

“The post is a week old,” Kenji said softly. “They probably just noticed… or were searching for you in secret.”

Izuku sat on the bed, fingers digging into the mattress. He’d always wanted his family’s attention — but now, all he felt was rage that it came too late.

“Why now? What changed?” he asked, exhausted.

“I don’t know,” Kenji admitted. “I just saw it and thought you deserved to know.”

A heavy silence fell.

“They ignored me for a decade. Called me useless. Treated me like a stranger. And now… now I’m a missing child?”

Kenji sat beside him.

“Can I tell you a secret?”

Izuku nodded slowly.

“I’m Power Woman’s son,” Kenji said quietly, as if sharing a distant memory.

Izuku’s eyes widened in shock.

“What?! But—there’s no record of her ever having a child!”

“And there won’t be,” Kenji said with a faint smile. “She chose to protect her family’s privacy. Didn’t want me exposed. Unlike Endeavor, she stayed discreet. I even faked my death to keep it that way.”

Izuku listened silently, absorbing every word.

“That’s why I understand heroes who hide their families,” Kenji continued. “But I’ll never understand a hero who abandons their child. Who lets this kind of pain happen.” He touched the spot on his neck where a burn had once been.

Kenji stood, looking at Izuku with purpose.

“Come with me. There’s someone you should talk to — someone who’ll understand.”

Toya, Harumi, and Yoko sat around a table playing cards.

“Guys,” Kenji said, “Izuku needs to talk. You three… know what to do.”

They nodded immediately. Kenji left the room.

Izuku explained everything — the article, his feelings, his frustration at still being tied to the Yagi name. When he finished, Harumi spoke first, voice steady but kind:

“My mom died when I was little. My stepmother — a CRC fanatic — raised me. She hated me for being a mutant. Called me a freak. My father just… stood there, never defended me.”

She exhaled deeply.

“My life only got better when I ran away and joined the Guild. I use my real mother’s surname to remind myself who I truly am.”

Toya sighed.

“I hate my father. He’s a bastard and deserves to die. But my siblings… they’re innocent. I keep the Todoroki name for them.”

Yoko snapped her fingers, pulling a Jack of Hearts from thin air.

“I made up my last name after I ran away. My past doesn’t own me. Like the saying goes — ‘If you live in the past, you’re either a museum or an archaeologist.’ I’m an illusionist, baby.”

Izuku thought quietly.

“I… don’t want my mother’s name. And I hate my sister’s. So… I’ll make a new one.”

“We’ll help!” Yoko said enthusiastically.

Ideas came and went until Harumi smiled softly.

“What about Midoriya (緑谷)? Because of your eyes and hair — Midori means green, and ya means valley.”

“That’s perfect!” Yoko said. “It’s like you walked through a valley and came out renewed — like a tree that’s finally grown strong!”

Izuku smiled back.

“I love it. Thank you, Harumi.”

And in that moment, Izuku Yagi ceased to exist — and Izuku Midoriya, vigilante, analyst, and brother, was born.