Chapter Text
“i would hand out these print-outs of your desired future, but who am i kidding!” the teacher threw up the papers. “you all want to be heroes, don’t you?”
the class cheered, showing off their quirks as they did. only 2 people stayed mundane, though, and it was the wonder duo of alder junior high. bakugou katsuki and midoriya izuku.
where ever one went, the other followed. that was the unspoken rule of the two. they never left the other’s side, and they were the only exceptions to the other’s behavior. bakugou, an outspoken crude bully, would show softness and kindness to midoriya unlike anyone else. midoriya, an apathetic boy in his own world, actually paid attention to bakugou and whatever he said about everyone, him being the only one he talked to.
bakugou would show up as midoriya’s savior, while midoriya showed up as bakugou’s brains(to keep him from doing stupid shit), they were demons on every surface. that didn’t stop them from bullying midoriya, though.
“yes, yes, you all have very amazing quirks. please keep in mind that you are not allowed to use them during school hours, though.” he said, everyone’s show offs coming to a close.
bakugou chuckled, his feet slung over his desk as he leaned back in his chair. “don’t lump me with these extras, teach. these losers would be lucky to end up as some D-lister sidekick. the only people who have potential in this dump is me and izuku.”
the class began an uproar, yelling about how rude he was.
“that was uncalled for, bakugou-kun!”
“yeah, how would midoriya even get anywhere anyways? all he’s even good for is being a villain.”
“yeah, midoriya-kun is just going to become a villain anyways, with that quirk there’s no telling what he’ll become.”
bakugou grit his teeth, setting an explosion out on his desk. “SHUT UP!!” he yelled, the classroom silencing. “izuku is going to be more of a hero than you extras will ever be, especially since you all have shit fucking quirks!!”
“now, now, bakugou, settle down.” the teacher reprimanded half heartedly. “you’re aiming for U.A, right?”
“oh yeah, the number 1 hero school!” someone says. “don’t they only have a 2% acceptance rate?”
“yeah, i doubt katsuki could get in with his bad attitude.”
“really? i’d expect U.A to only really ever focus on the quirk aspect.”
“i aced the mock exam, losers! i’m going to beat all might, and all of you extras won’t be going anywhere.” he stuck his tongue out and threw a thumbs down in a patronizing way.
the teacher smirked. “oh, midoriya, don’t you also want to go to U.A?”
silence swept the room as they turned to midoriya, who was almost asleep before he startled himself awake. bakugou also looked towards midoriya, not passing up the chance to see what his friend was doing, since it was always a mystery.
suddenly everyone started laughing, making midoriya rub his eyes in confusion. bakugou looked around with a frown on his face, wondering how his classmates were any better than midoriya.
one could only pull his eyeballs farther from his sockets, while another could stretch his fingers. they weren’t that much better than what midoriya had, which was a super overpowered quirk that just had the unfortunate qualification of taking the quirk forever.
“you, midoriya?!” someone cackled. “don’t be stupid!! villains can’t get into a hero course!”
“what're you gonna do, study your way in?”
“there’s always the general education exam, you know.” midoriya said, everyone quieting down. don’t let it be known, but no one missed the chance to hear midoriya speak, which was on very, VERY, rare occasions. not because they liked his voice, but because it was such a rare thing to hear and because they loved to patronize the tone of it.
“or the business course, the support course, interning with a hero.” he listed off. “i can do a lot of things that aren’t the hero course.”
“you better fucking get into the hero course, izuku!” bakugou shouted, letting an explosion off on his own desk. “these extras are idiotic and stupid out of their own goddamned mind, they don’t know what they’re fucking talking about!!”
“settle down, bakugou-kun. let’s continue with the lesson, you can carry on with your brawl later.”
~
after school ended, midoriya stayed behind a bit to finish writing his notes that he had been furiously scribbling down throughout the lesson. he was already way ahead of a junior high level, so he didn’t need to pay attention.
he could feel bakugou’s stare on him as he scribbled down words, but chose to ignore it in favor of writing theories and questions of Mt. Lady. her quirk may not have been overly interesting and complex to the bare eye, but midoriya wasn't normal. he jotted down every detail and aspect he could remember about the newly debuted pro.
“are you really not going to go in the hero course?”
midoriya stopped writing for a second, looking up at bakugou. “i am. i just said that to get them off my back.” he went back to finishing his sentence.
bakugou smirked. “you better fucking get in, you damn nerd. you’re smart as hell, smarter than me, and about as heroic as all fucking might.”
“we’ll be the wonder duo we’ve always dreamed of.” midoriya smiled faintly, closing his notebook. “i wanted to finish my page on mt. lady today, since i don’t want dad to find my notebook and ruin it.”
bakugou frowned. “i still hate your dad and how no one believes us.”
“me too sometimes.”
“i still don’t understand how you can still love that asshole.”
“me too, kacchan.”
“why don’t i give you a nickname?”
midoriya perked up at the sudden question. “that was a little random.”
bakugou shrugged. “you have at least 2 dozen fucking nicknames for me, ‘s about time i give you one that isn’t shitty nerd or whatever.”
midoriya shrugged. “i’ve grown attached. i never thought i'd see the day where my dearest kacchan would come up with a nickname for little ole’ me.” he teased lightly, his monotonous tone not giving anything away. bakugou knew how to read the boy, though, even if he was sometimes a mystery.
“shut up.” bakugou growled. he crossed his arms for a moment before standing up. “i’ll think about it along our walk on the way home.” he sighed, coming up with blanks for possible nicknames.
“alright.” midoriya placed his notebook into his bag, slinging it around his arm and exiting the classroom with his best friend. he always wondered how aldera managed to stay a school, seeing their quirkist views and horrible care of the place might've been a little bit of an eye opener for the inspectors. he was sure there was a new spider in the bathroom every day, seeing as he always killed them when he saw them. there was also mold where the toilets were planted in the ground and horrible bacteria that formed on water fountains. there were rats in the cafeteria, but midoriya didn't even eat there, he occasionally saw them as they stole food and cheered.
they walked down the stairs and halls of aldera, hanging on to every crack and crevice they passed. their shoes clacked down the floor as they joked and laughed, knowing they were the only ones in the school. no teachers inhabited the hallways after hours and students were eager to leave the shit place of aldera, which was understandable. this was just the only place midoriya didn't have to suffer from permanent property damage and actually had a friend.
bakugou shoved his hands in his pockets, looking forward instead of at midoriya. “a little weird that we’re going to high school,” he started. “feels like we’ve been in this shithole our whole life.”
“maybe it feels that way because i’ve been in your life the whole time.” midoriya shrugged.
“shut it, izuku.” bakugou snapped. “it’s... a little weird that we promised our whole lives together, and so far it’s actually fucking happened.”
“we should be grateful, not everyone gets to spend everyday with their bestie.” midoriya said, approaching his locker. “i mean, we’ve been in every single class together since preschool, so i get why it seems like we’ve spent all of our years here.”
“yeah.” bakugou sighed, switching out his indoor shoes for his personal outdoor ones. “we are going to debut together this way, though, so that makes it bearable.” he smirked to himself, thinking of how cool the two would be as they dominated the world.
“awwe, how sweet.” midoriya said in his usual deadpanned voice. “kacchan really cares for me.”
“i’m gonna wire your jaw shut if you don’t shut the fuck up.” bakugou scowled, a thin coat of blush dusting over his cheeks.
midoriya and bakugou walked out of the school’s gates and down towards the street, taking a back road towards the long way home to avoid midoriya’s dad for just a little while longer. they always took back roads and adventured for as long as they could, trying to stray clear of the poor boys house.
“so violent, i might just think you don’t like me.” midoriya cooed. “anyways, what will we call ourselves when we debut?” he changed the subject, kicking a stone as he walked.
bakugou looked at him incredulously. “i thought we banked on wonder duo, nerd! you can’t tell me you've been calling us that all this time and not once have you thought that was our hero name.”
“well, i thought you thought that it was lame. what about bakumido? like bakugou and midoriya together?”
“that’s dumb.” bakugou deadpanned. “why not your real name?”
midoriya frowned. “mom said that’s not my name anymore-“
“fuck your mom, izuku! she’s not a mom.”
“well, i live under her roof, so i have to follow her rules.”
“you’re not under her roof right now.” bakugou said, catching midoriya’s attention. they stopped walking, staring at each other for a while before midoriya smiled.
“okay, i guess i’m akatani mikumo now.” he said softly. “would we be bakutani?”
“stop with the mix names.” bakugou scowled and midoriya chuckled. “why not just the wonder duo? we don’t need anyone else, anyways.”
midoriya shrugged. “maybe yuuei will be different, have some decent people.”
“they have to meet the qualifications, idiot.”
suddenly, they heard sloshing from a sewer nearby and they both turned their head, looking over at the sewer. then, sludge came up from it and settled their eyes on the two boys, smirking evilly. the sludge dripped from what seemed to be its limbs, coating the ground with a thick coat of sewage water and slime. midoriya wanted to throw up at the putrid smell, dead rats and blood not being a good mix. midoriya pushed bakugou out of the way, getting snatched up by the monster instead. they wrapped tendrils of slime around midoriya’s limbs, slipping sludge into midoriya’s mouth and lungs. he gagged a bit, only thinking of how he'd get this god awful smell and taste out of his mouth and clothes. he was allowed to shower today, since he hasn't done anything in a month, so he would have to shower with his clothes since he's not allowed to use a washing machine. damn, this would be hard to take out.
“IZUKU!!” bakugou yelled, running up and blowing up bits of sludge from the villain, being careful as to not hurt midoriya. he focused his quirk into trying to dig the sludge away from the poor boys mouth and arms, clawing and exploding is way through.
they yelled in pain, releasing their grip from midoriya and bakugou took the chance to pull his hand out of the sludge. he broke out of the sludge a bit before he was captured again due to the monster regaining their composure, sludge going down his throat once more. his vision was going blurry as he watched bakugou try and blast away the slime. one more plead of his name before tears filled his eyes, the lack of air getting to him.
“it seems your son has a quirk that is able to take other quirks when he places all 5 fingers and activated the quirk.” the doctor explained.
“what?” his mother said, her face darkening.
“he has a pretty villainous quirk... ma’am. i’m sorry.” he bowed.
-
“mikumo, let’s play a little game okay?” his mom smiled. “you’ll go into that closet until mommy comes and gets you out. you might hear loud noises, and a little bit of banging, but don’t come out. only mommy can get you out, okay? don’t come out unless mommy is the one telling you.”
“o-okay...” akatani frowned, stepping into the closet. “w-will i-“
“not now, miku, just hush.” she smiled.
~
“mommy...” akatani pulled his mom’s skirt to get her attention. “can i be a hero like all might? even with my quirk?”
his mom looked at him and smiled. “no, sweetie. you can’t.”
his eyes widened and filled with tears. “o-okay... sorry...” he cried silently, trying to wipe the tears away from his eyes.
“you can stay with mommy forever, though. mommy will protect you, miku.”
-
“MIKUMO!!” his father’s voice echoed throughout the house. the now teenage akatani ran through the doorway of his room and came face to face with his father.
“i see you still live here and mooch off your useless mother.” he said.
“sorry... father... i-i’m 11, though- i-i can’t get a j-job-“ he was cut off with a kick to the shin, effectively stopping him from talking.
“mikumo, do you want to know some advice?” he smiled, his eyes seemingly glowing red as he cradled his son’s face. he nodded, not daring to defy his father.
“take a swan dive off a rooftop, and maybe you’ll get a better quirk in your next life.”
that wasn’t his father. his father loved his quirk. that was the only reason he was still there. who was this man?
he felt his senses begin to disappear, hearing a faint booming voice echo throughout the tunnel and he felt his body fall to the ground. he heard bakugou shouting his name and he could barely keep his eyes open. he took a deep, shuddering breath and closed his eyes, letting the darkness take over him.
~
he woke up to slapping and yelling, where he opened his eyes to all might— all fucking might!!— slapping his cheek to get him up. not the most desirable way to wake an unconscious teenager up, he’ll admit, but it was all might.
bakugou was yelling obscenities to all might, screaming about how that wasn’t a good way to wake someone up and even he knew that, but immediately calmed down when he saw midoriya looking up at their idol.
“all might...” midoriya said breathlessly.
“OH GOOD! THOUGHT WE LOST YOU THERE!” all might’s booming voice filled through midoriya’s ears and he had half a mind to cringe at the sound.
“don’t worry, nerd, i already got him to sign your stupid book.” bakugou huffed, opening the journal to show the overly boisterous signature. midoriya silently thanked him with his eyes, to which bakugou nodded.
“all might, can i ask a question...”
“not now young lad! i must go!”
“let the stupid nerd ask his fucking question, goddamn!” bakugou snarled. all might sweat nervously for a moment of contemplation, before nodding. “go ahead, young lad!!”
midoriya wondered how the literal symbol of peace could be intimidated by a mere teenager before he gulped and nodded. “can... can i be a hero... even with a villainous quirk?” all might looked taken aback for a second, before composing himself. “depends, what may your quirk be young one?” he asked, placing his hands on his hips.
“we called it... erm...”
“it’s called all for one, he can take quirks with a 2 step activation.” bakugou explained, sensing the nervousness coming off of midoriya.
suddenly, all might’s demeanor changed. it when from bubbly, nervous, and happy to complete animosity in a matter of seconds. both boys stared at him in confusion with the sudden change of attitude, to which he cleared his throat.
“no, i do not think that you could become a hero, boy.” he said bluntly, taking the 2 junior high students by surprise. bakugou immediately felt his anger rise to the surface while midoriya stared at his idol with wide eyes, wondering how he had idolized the man. really? quirkist was the man?
“HEY! WHAT THE FUCK?!” bakugou yelled. “JUST BY HIS QUIRK, YOU QUIRKIST ASSHOLE?! NUMBER ONE HERO MY ASS! ME AND MIKUMO WILL DEFINITELY SURPASS YOUR SHITTY SELF, WE’LL SHOW THE WORLD THAT POTENTIAL HEROES DON'T HAVE TO BECOME FUCKING VILLAINS BECAUSE OF PEOPLE LIKE YOU!!”
all might didn’t respond, only jumped away. “THAT'S RIGHT, GET THE FUCK OUT!! god, i hate that piece of shit.” bakugou sneered, turning to midoriya. “mikumo, are—“
he was surprised to see tears forming in midoriya’s eyes, threatening to fall. “even he doesn’t... believe in... me...” he muttered to himself.
bakugou frowned, his inner mother hen switching on. he knew that midoriya would need a lot of reassurance after this.
~
as they continued their walk home, they paused in front of midoriya’s house. bakugou sighed. “don’t let him get to you, mikumo. you’re more than your dumb quirk.”
midoriya turned to him and offered a small smile, erasing it as fast as it came. “thanks, katsuki.”
“wanna train together tomorrow?”
“okay.”
“we can get katsudon afterwards, if you want.”
“okay.”
bakugou itched at the lack of reaction, he just wanted to see the smile of his friend. he hated this, he hated that bastard. symbol of peace? number 1 hero? heroes were supposed to help people, not crush their fucking dreams!! he settled for a sigh, patting midoriya's hair. “see you tomorrow, deku.”
midoriya perked up at the change of name. “deku’?”
bakugou flushed a bit, realizing what he had just said. “well, you can read ‘izuku’ as ‘deku’, and deku is sort of a play on words, or whatever. it’s fucking stupid, i-“
“no, i like it. how is it a play on words?”
“it’s kind of like deku, like worthless, but also like dekiru, as in you can do it.” bakugou explained. “fucking- just take the goddamn nickname or leave it, you stupid nerd!”
midoriya’s eyes sparkled. “i’ll take it. thank you, kacchan.”
bakugou huffed. “whatever, you stupid deku.” he walked off towards his house. “see you.” he was happy. happy that the light had reignited in his eyes. he wasn't going to let midoriya's resolve crumble before his eyes, never again.
he'd never let that happen again.
“yep.” midoriya smiled to himself, happy that he had at least one friend in this godforsaken hellhole that was life.
at least one person believed in him.