Chapter Text
Voices and footsteps echoed through the halls. The white hospital walls were a pain in the eyes. The group of friends waited in uncomfortable silence. Ochaco fumbled with the hem of her skirt. Her eyes were slightly red from crying. She'd occasionally shed a few more tears every now and then as waves of emotions washed over her over and over. Tsuyu rubbed her back as Ochaco smudged away a few new tears.
"Uraraka, it wasn't your fault," Iida reminded her again.
"I–" she sniffed miserably, unable to hold it in. "It's… he saved me… Deku – He…he…" she sobbed.
"Uraraka, don't blame this on yourself," Iida assured her.
"He's right, ya know," Kirishima agreed. "Look, we all know how Midoriya gets when he wants to help someone. He's gotten worse injuries before – this won't bring him down. He's a tough little guy."
They saw a familiar boy in the hallway. His half-white, half-red hair was easy to spot among the people around him.
"Todoroki," Iida greeted.
Todoroki gave him a simple nod before asking, "Any news?"
"Not yet," Kaminari sighed and leaned back in his chair. He had a bandage over the cut on his cheek. He'd gotten it when a sharp chunk of glass flew at him after the explosion. He kept tapping his foot nervously. The memory of Midoriya going through what seemed like a seizure was imprinted in his mind. It had been terrifying, seeing his friend writhing on the ground like that. Denki had been useless, just like everyone else.
It didn't take long for other students to appear. Yaoyorozu, Tokoyami and Ojiro made it, followed by Sero and Mineta.
After what seemed like forever, they finally got some news.
"He's stable," the doctor told them, and they all sighed in relief. "The spikes had been pulled out cleanly, and the substance in his body isn't recognizable, but his body isn't reacting to it in any way. He had an allergic reaction to it earlier, but that seems to be it," the doctor with a chameleon Quirk explained, his lizard eyes moving around to scan everything.
"You said he was stung by that scorpion Quirk guy, right?" Kirishima asked Ochaco. She nodded.
The doctor hummed. "That must've been how the substance got into his system. We checked him over and there doesn't seem to be anything wrong. Even the puncture area where the sting had entered isn't showing any signs of swelling or nerve damage. It doesn't seem like the sting had done anything to him. We won't know for sure what the Quirk did to him, but physically, he's doing fine. He's still asleep, but you can go ahead and see him. Use the buzzer to call a nurse if he wakes up."
Clad in a simple hospital gown, the sleeping figure in the white bed remained in a deep slumber. The thin blanket was up to his chest. He had dark lines underneath his eyes, but nothing else seemed out of the ordinary. They all gathered by his bed. Ochaco grabbed his limp hand, hoping to comfort him even if he didn't realize she was here.
"Do you think he'll be okay?" Hagakure asked worriedly.
"Of course he will!" Kirishima said. The group shushed him for being too loud. He whispered an apology sheepishly.
"But still, that was really scary…" Hagakure whimpered.
They agreed. The way their friend suddenly collapsed almost gave them all a heart attack.
"You heard the doc, he'll be fine," Kirishima he reassured her. He felt like a hypocrite, because he had been worrying his head off a few minutes ago.
They stayed with Izuku for a few more hours. His mother eventually made it. They scattered and exited to give her privacy with her son. Judging by her eyes, she must've been crying the whole way here. As soon as she reached his bed, she threw herself at him, hugging him close and combing her fingers through his messy hair.
"Oh, Izuku… Izuku… you'll be okay, sweetie… it's going to be okay…" she cried, pushed her wet face against his affectionately. She gave him multiple kisses on his head and cheek and hugged him closer. Ochaco, who had been watching by the door, felt a tear slide down her cheek.
They'd promised his mother they'd take care of him. They failed… they failed and now he was in a hospital bed. The guilt in Ochaco's chest grew. That scorpion attack had been aimed at her. She had been targeted because she hadn't been paying attention. She wanted to tell him how sorry she was. She needed to tell him, or the guilt wouldn't go away.
The shopping trip had ended with terror. Some of the students felt it would've been better not to have gone in the first place. The next day, the classroom felt eerie. The empty desk behind Bakugo was a reminder of where their classmate actually was. All Might kept his usual smile, but they all felt the worry radiating from him.
They visited Izuku again after school. He hadn't woken up.
The doctor wasn't sure why the boy slept like the dead. He'd inspected him again, just to make sure he hadn't missed anything. He seemed fine, so the doctor rolled it off as exhaustion. The third day, they admitted something was wrong. When Ochaco, Iida and the others came over to see him again, they got the unsettling update from Aizawa.
They huddled around Izuku's bed, watching as sweat poured down his head in an unhealthy amount. His eyes were squeezed shut, but the wrinkles around them showcased his distress. It was painful to watch. Dread washed over the group after Aizawa had told them what the scorpion man's Quirk was: Nightmare Coma.
"How…" Iida feared to ask. "How long will he remain like this?"
"That's hard to say," Aizawa said. "I looked into Scorpio's files. He's attack two other people before. One stayed in a comatose state for two months. She was unable to talk after waking up and committed suicide later, so we don't have much information to go on."
The group stayed silent. Kirishima gritted his teeth, his hands clinching into tight fists. Ochaco held Izuku's limp hand, sniffling and doing her best not to cry.
"What about the other one?" Yaoyorozu asked urgently.
His lazy eyes turned to her. "After four months in a coma, she died in her sleep later on."
…
His mother was in pieces. She wailed pitifully as she cradled her son's head to her chest. "Izuku… Izuku…" wake up, baby, she begged. He remained unmoving.
It was sickening, watching him so still and lifeless, and knowing he was probably going through one nightmare after another. His pupils would twitch beneath his eyelids and he would occasionally twitch, but those were the only signs of brain activity so far. Some students, like Kirishima, tried to bring their hopes up.
"He'll wake up on his own! If there's one thing we know about Midoriya, it's that he never gives up!"
So they waited.
Two more days passed. He was still unmoving. They made sure to visit him every day, surrounding his bed and talking with each other loudly, hoping he'd be able to hear them. The fifth day, Iida and Uraraka came to visit him a second time that day, only to find Bakugo in the same room. He was sitting in a white chair with his arms crossed. He glared at them for a minute, then huffed and closed his eyes in annoyance.
He hadn't bothered to visit their classmate before, so why now?
They gave Bakugo a simple greeting – which he didn't return – before they walked over to the bed. Ochaco grasped Izuku's hand gently and Iida placed a comforting palm on the green boy's head.
"Hey, Deku," Ochaco said softly. She came to miss his bright eyes. She saw the wrinkles of distress between his brows and she rubbed her thumb over the back of his palm in hopes of easing his pain.
"Stay strong, Midoriya," Iida told him. "We're all waiting for you to wake up."
They weren't sure if he could hear them. They hoped their words were getting to him some way. They stayed with him, and after a while, Kirishima came by as well. He stopped and stared at Bakugo in surprise. Kirishima smirked, but didn't say anything when the blond growled at him. He chuckled and walked past his red-eyed friend to get to the unconscious one.
Iida moved away to give him room. Kirishima tussled Izuku's hair playfully. "Still sleeping, eh, buddy?" He knew he wouldn't get an answer, but if his friend could still hear him, then every word was worth it.
"I hope he wakes up…" Ochaco said sadly, rubbing his hand between hers. She wanted him back.
"He will," Kirishima told her. It was hard to tell if he was just trying to be optimistic or if he truly did believe Izuku would awaken soon. An hour later, they were forced to leave as Izuku needed to be tube fed. They returned to finish their homework and study for a bit. The dorms felt empty without their sunshine boy.
Ochaco returned to the hospital for a third visit that day. She stopped just by the door when she heard the voice of All Might.
"I'm sorry, my boy."
She'd never heard the man so down. The door suddenly opened and she was fact-to-face with the skinny man.
"Oh, you're here to see Midoriya?"
She gave him a firm nod.
He patted her head. "Go right in. I'm sure he misses hearing your voice," he told her hopefully.
She watched him leave. The whole week seemed sad to her. The situation, her friends, her teachers, her… Everything was a mess. She stepped into the room and greeted the boy, taking a hold of his scarred hand like she always did. This was the same boy who always did his best – a friend she looked up to. He had been the one she strived to be like.
Still holding on to his hand, she reached with her other hand to cup his cheek. He didn't react, of course.
"Deku…"
Still nothing, like always.
"I really miss you, Deku," she admitted sadly. "Please wake up… Everyone is waiting for you…" She felt hot tears as her vision blurred. "Your mom, All Might, Iida, everyone in class…. me…" She sniffed and felt a tickle run down her cheek. She placed both of her hands around his face and pressed her head to his, rubbing her forehead against his.
"Please, wake up soon, Deku…" Her tears slipped and landed on his cheek. Ochaco dragged the empty chair over and sat down. She intertwined her fingers with his, folding her other arm over the bed so she could rest her chin over it like a pillow.
She slept next to her friend.
…
Something was terribly wrong when she opened her eyes.
"Eh?" Her voice echoed.
She was standing in the middle of a white room. There were no walls or a ceiling, just empty whiteness.
"Eh!" she gasped, clutching her head in confusion. Where was she? What was this place? How had she gotten here? "What's… what…" Her hand came up to clutch over her heart, and she noticed the feel of the clothes she was in. looking down, she noticed she was in her school uniform. She hadn't been wearing this when visiting Deku…
Deku!
She'd fallen asleep next to him, but that was as far as her memory allowed showing her. Green fog slowly devoured the room, and she suddenly saw herself standing in the middle of a sidewalk. People walked by her normally and cars passed by.
What was going on?
"Eh… I… excuse me?" she tried to get a boy's attention. He walked by, ignoring her completely.
"Please? Excuse me?" She tried again when she spotted two girls clad in black school uniforms. She called to them, nervously wringing her hands. "Can… can you help me? I think I'm lost – I… I sorta don't know how I got here, but if you could please tell me where I am–" she froze when the two girls walked through her as if she were a ghost.
"…Eh?" her head creaked to look back at the girls. They were talking as if nothing happened… as if she wasn't even there. A random boy in a similar uniform walked through her as well, leaving her standing in silence as her brain slowly turned on the engine again.
"Eeeehhhhh?" she screamed and frantically patted herself down, checking for anything wrong. Was she dead? Was she a ghost?
She caught the familiar sight of bushy green hair. "Deku…?" she rubbed at her eyes, because this couldn't be true. He was walking away, his yellow backpack strapped to his shoulders. She recognized his big, red shoes. It was definitely him.
Abandoning all forms of logic and reason, she ran after him. "Deku!" She reached to touch his shoulder. "Deku, wait–!" Her hand went through him uselessly. She took a second or two to realize what had happened and looked down at her hand. She couldn't touch anyone, not even him. "Deku…?" He didn't respond to her. he hadn't heard her or seen her. She was invisible to him…
Where was she?
She ran after him and slowed to walk next to him. He was wearing a black school uniform, and she notice he was almost her height. She remembered he'd been slightly taller than her before. He was looking down at the ground as he walked and she noticed how his shoulders slumped and how his eyes didn't have that usual brightness she'd come to admire.
She waved her hand in front of his face experimentally. He didn't react.
"Deku? Can you hear me, Deku?"
Still nothing.
She was a ghost to him.
She didn't know why or how, but as soon as a school building came into view and saw Izuku walk through the gates, her mind pieced together everything she'd gathered so far.
Shorter Deku, those uniforms, that kind of school…
Was she looking at Deku's past? But… but… how was this possible? No. It had to be a dream... right?
She followed her friend, hoping to find an answer to what was going on. She kept her eyes on him, folding her hands behind her back. He looked so sad. He never raised his eyes, but kept them down to the ground submissively as he walked. As he drifted through the hallways, she felt the need to talk to him. She knew Deku was a quiet unless spoken to, but this… this was too quiet. This Deku didn't seem like the happy boy she knew at UA.
This one looked sad.
The circle of isolation around him worried her. Her heart sank into her gut when Inko's voice rang in her head. Izuku's been a lonely boy. I don't think he realizes he has great friends now – now… he never had any before.
"Deku," she tried in vain. "Deku, please talk to me?" I'm here for you now, so please...
"Deku," she pawed at his shoulder uselessly, watching it pass through him. It was frustrating, watching him so isolated and alone and she was standing right there – unable to do anything for him.
Someone bumped him, shoving him to the side. She passed through him harmlessly, but his shoulder slammed against the wall. He held on to the straps of his backpack as the blond-haired kid who'd pushed him smirked down at him.
She recognized who this was. "Bakugo?"
The blond-haired kid's friends chuckled beside him. Izuku began trembling and Ochaco noticed how he seemed to shrink into himself, as if he wanted to hide.
Rage bubbled in her chest. Her hands clinched and tears collected at the corner of her eyes.
"Got something to say?" the friend with long fingers threatened, taking a step closer. He was fairly thin and his long hair hid his eyes, but he was significantly taller than Izuku, and that smirked didn't seem too friendly. Izuku shook his head frantically, his pupils shrinking into tiny dots.
She couldn't stand it.
"Leave him alone, you bullies!" she yelled, her fists shaking by her sides. But, of course, no one heard her.
Deeming this a small, effortless victory, Bakugo huffed and continued walking, stuffing his hands into his pockets. The kid with long fingers chuckled and patted Izuku on the shoulder, as if rewarding him for not fighting back. Izuku flinched at the touch and the kid walked off with his friend, quickly forgetting about their victim.
She turned to him quickly, looking him over. "Are you okay, Deku? Are you hurt?" she fussed over him, worry eating at her heart. It was clear Izuku had been expecting something worse from that boy, judging by how he was still trembling. He released a shaky breath and dropped his head, waiting for his heart to calm down. He was still leaning against the wall he had been shoved against.
This wasn't like him. This wasn't like him at all. He usually bounced back quickly after confrontations with the explosion boy.
"It's okay, Deku. He's gone," she tried to comfort him. The way he held himself… it was like a puppet hanging on to loose strings. This wasn't the Deku she knew from UA. She reached out and her hands went through him again. She wanted to squeeze his shoulder, rub his back, hug him – anything! He was hurting and she couldn't do anything.
He released a deep sigh and readjusted his backpack, moving away from the wall. There was a slight glint of determination in his eyes. Her Deku was in there somewhere, hidden under all of his fears and insecurities.
"Are you feeling better?" She knew he wouldn't be able to answer her, but please just hear me, please!
He huffed and straightened his shoulders. This looked familiar. She recognized the movement and she felt a flurry of happiness in her chest. "That's it, Deku! Pick yourself up," she cheered for him, punching the air as she encouraged him. "That's it! Don't give up!"
He stopped shaking, and once he collected himself, he took a brave step, followed by another, then another, until he was marching through the halls and up the stairs like a soldier. His movements were forced and stiff, but she knew if it wasn't for his stubborn determination, he'd still be leaning against that wall.
As she hiked up the stairs after him, the walls began to crumble and break into dust. The tiny particles drifted up slowly like the sand in an hourglass. To her horror, the stairs disappeared from beneath her feet. She saw Izuku's back as he slowly became transparent.
"Deku!" She reached out to him desperately, jumping over non-existent stairs. She wasn't moving from her spot. His figure faded and her hand remained stretched out to him.
Everything turned out. The white room again.
Her eyes cracked open slowly. There was warmth in her hand. She squeezed it and felt the familiar scars. She was in the hospital, holding Izuku's hand. He was still in a coma, and she had slept beside him.
It had been a dream…
"U – Uraraka?"
She suddenly turned when she heard Iida's voice. Most of the students were present, staring at her with concern in their eyes. Iida looked like he was about to shake her by the shoulder if she didn't respond soon.
She rubbed away the sleepiness from her eyes. "Hey, guys," she said tiredly. She noticed Aizawa and Izuku's doctor standing there as well. How had she not heard any of them walk in? "What's…" she stopped after following where everyone was looking.
Izuku was still sleeping, but a fainter form of Full Cowl glowed against his skin. The red lines stretched across his face, down his neck, and around his arms. The glow was much weaker than the usual Full Cowl. He was unconscious, but the rapped movements beneath his eyelids and the wrinkles between his brows indicated he was going through something in his head.
He slowly relaxed, and the glow faded completely.
No one moved.
"….what the hell was that?" Kaminari asked quietly.
No one answered.
"Oi," he tried again. Still, no one responded to him.
Getting past her own shock, Ockaco slowly removed her hand from Izuku's before turning to Iida. "What… what happened?"
"Did he just try to use Full Cowl while in a coma?" Jiro asked in disbelief.
There was a long pause of silence. The doctor with the chameleon's face ordered everyone out to check over the comatose boy, leaving the kids waiting outside, pacing back and forth and scratching their heads over what they had seen.
The doctor gave them the verdict: no change.
"What the heck was that, then?" Kirishima asked, his mind going in a million directions. He'd been hoping his friend would be close to waking up. His hopes had gone down the drain when it turned out nothing had changed; Izuku was still in a deep sleep.
"I honestly don't know what to tell you." The doctor bent over and lifted one of Izuku's eyelids to look at his eye, then did the same to the other. "Physically, nothing's changed."
"Physically," Aizawa repeated. "You think his head is messed up, then."
"Mentally," the doctor corrected. "I know this sounds farfetched–"
"We just saw one of my students use his quirk while in a coma. I think I'll take whatever crazy theory you've got into consideration," Aizawa commented nonchalantly.
The doctor's chameleon eyes twitched. "Like I said, it's farfetched, but considering the Quirk that got him into this state, we can say this isn't a normal coma, yes?"
Aizawa admitted it was kind of difficult to focus on what the doctor was saying when his chameleon eyes kept darting in different directions. His voice sounded similar to Recovery Girl's, which made it seem even weirder.
"Nightmare Coma, yes? Like I said, it's farfetched, but I believe he may have been trying to wake himself up." The doctor cupped his chin as he thought. "But why now? He hadn't shown any progress like this before… was there a trigger, perhaps?"
Ochaco raised a shaky hand, brought it down, then shook her head and raised it again in determination, deciding it was best to let them know, anyways. "Umm… I…"
"Uraraka?" Iida asked. He then knocked his fist against his open palm in realization. "That's right – you were with him when that happened!"
"Hmm." She nodded. "And… I think I saw something… it was weird, it's–" I was dreaming about him? Her fink cheeks turned brighter as she blushed at the idea of saying that out loud. How would she explain this? This was frustrating. "It's gonna sound weird. I don't know if you'll believe me…"
"Please, Uraraka," Iida begged, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Anything might help. We need something to go on. Please, for Midoriya."
That was enough for her. They listened as she explained her… unforgettable experience. She left out the emotional parts, and the upsetting encounter that involved Bakugo. She mentioned Bakugo was there, but that was it. She was met with tilted heads and she could picture the question marks floating over Denki's head. The question was said aloud by Momo.
"How do you know that was Midoriya's past and not just a dream?"
"I… don't know? It just looked so real…" she hadn't really thought about it. She had assumed it was his past without evidence. What could she use as evidence? Was she making a big deal out of nothing? Had her brain simply made all of that up? Deku… Bakugo… oh!
"Bakugo!" She yelled suddenly, causing some to flinch in surprise by her outburst.
"Eh?" He gave her that half glare, half what-the-fuck-now look on his face.
"Bakugo was there and… he had this friend with really long fingers and… err…" Think, think, come on, remember other things. "… I think it was his Quirk and… he had shoulder length hair, I think and…" She messed with the back of her hair as she scrambled for any clues.
She didn't need to go any further. The look of shock and recognition formed on Bakugo's face before he scowled at the memory of his old lackey.
"Bakugo?" questioned carefully, seeing that strange, suspicious look in those red eyes.
"Yeah, I know 'm," Bakugo admitted sternly, looking away when Ochaco's eyes widened.
"Was the description accurate, Bakugo?" Aizawa asked, eyeing him the whole time.
Bakugo clicked his tongue. "Yeah."
"No way…" Kaminari said and clutched his head in disbelief.
Mina shook Ochaco by the shoulders. "You got in his head? How?"
"I – I… umm… I don't know, really…" Ochaco panicked a little. "I think I fell asleep?"
"That's all?" Momo asked to make sure.
"That might be the weakness of the Coma Quirk," the chameleon man said. "Every Quirk has a limit."
"Uraraka, do you think you can do it again?" Iida asked hopefully.
"I – I don't know," she said nervously. It was still shocking to hear Bakugo admit what she'd seen was real. "I'll try!" she finally said. She'd try, for Deku. If this really was a weakness in the Quirk, then there had to be a way to break Deku out of its curse.
"Repeat what you did when it happened," Yaoyorozu advised. "We're still not sure how it's done."
Ochaco tried to rewind her memory. "I fell asleep next to him and…" she looked down at her hand and blushed. "And I held his hand the whole time, I think."
"So it has something to do with either close proximity or physical contact, maybe." Momo thought out loud.
"Let's try it!" Kirishima shouted, his fists clinching in determination. "We have to! If there's a way to save Midoriya then we gotta at least try!"
It was farfetched. They weren't even sure if it would work again. But there must've been a reason why Ochaco had been able to slip into Izuku's mind. The doctor the nurses set the comatose boy on a heart monitor for safety. Multiple chairs were set up and students crowded the white room.
Ochaco sat by Izuku and threaded her fingers with his. Taking a pill given to her by the nurse to help her fall asleep, she blinked in confusion when Iida took one as well.
"I'm trying as well." The determination in his voice told her how confident he was of his decision.
"You know, we're not even sure if it's gonna work," Ashido reminded him.
"Even so," He dragged a chair to the other side of the bed and grabbed Izuku's other hand. "It's worth a try. I know Midoriya would do the same if it were me on this bed. As a loyal friend, I will not abandon him at times of need." He took off his glasses, folded them and placed them aside before pulling out a pillow from who knows where and plopping it on the side of the bed. "Now, to sleep!" He dropped his face into the pillow.
Everyone in the room sweat dropped.
"The pill doesn't work that fast, son," the doctor stated.
TBC