Chapter Text
You can’t remember the last time you felt like this. How long has it been, really? When your Quirk first manifested, you were absolutely thrilled—as most kids tend to be—but it didn’t take long for the illusion of happiness to fade.
Everything became worse over time. People started avoiding you, gossiping about you, and the nature of your Quirk seemed ill-suited for a hero to begin with. It was all about control. Putting people in submission and dictating their next move. Granted, if used properly against a villain, you always believed it would be a worthwhile ability, but it didn’t exactly seem very heroic . Plus, factoring in the whole kissing aspect, which was more than enough to make people’s heads turn… yeah.
Much like how people called Izuku a fool for wanting to become a hero while he was Quirkless, you looked both foolish and shameless parading around with a Quirk like yours.
However, at long last, things have changed. Things are different now. Izuku said it himself. Just imagine how many people you’ll be able to save with a power like this. Recovery Girl’s Quirk is already amazing enough, but yours was somehow able to surpass hers.
It’s normal to be excited. It’s normal to feel proud. Yes, you probably shouldn’t get your hopes up, especially since things almost never go your way, but surely this is a sign. The turning point you’ve been so desperately hoping for.
Thanks to you, Katsuki didn’t have to give up on his dreams. You saved him, right when he needed it most.
If that’s not proof that you can be a hero, then what is?
“Recovery Girl!” you exclaim, bursting into the room without warning. Katsuki was the only one resting in the infirmary when you went to see him. It looks like this used to be a storage area or something, but has since become a back-up nurse station. Instead of beds, there’s a sofa and a few armchairs strewn about. Aizawa and Thirteen are each sitting in an armchair, and their heads turn at the sound of your voice.
“Try to keep it down, please,” Recovery Girl sighs. “Their injuries may not be as severe as that other boy’s, and I did finish treating them earlier, but they still need as much rest as possible.”
“I’m sorry,” you apologize, but it’s almost impossible to suppress your grin. From Recovery Girl’s perspective, this must seem rather odd. Last she checked, you had just found out Katsuki was almost completely paralyzed. She left you with bleak, hopeless words, the likes of which nearly made your heart shatter.
And yet, here you are. Looking happier than ever before.
“Did you already contact Katsuki’s family?” you ask.
“I did,” Recovery Girl frowns. “I told them to get over here as soon as they can. I didn’t tell them the details over the phone, however. I thought it was a conversation that would best be had face-to-face.”
“Okay, good.”
“Good?”
“I mean, it’s a good thing you didn’t tell them anything and upset them for no reason. They don’t need that kind of stress. Everything’s going to be fine now. I healed him. Katsuki’s okay.”
The doubtful, slightly bewildered look Recovery Girl gives you isn’t surprising in the slightest. Everyone knows by now what kind of Quirk you have. After kissing someone, you gain the ability to control them for a certain period of time. It’s a strange power, which can’t be classified as offensive or defensive. It fits into a category all of its own. But it’s certainly not a healing-type Quirk. Not even close.
Or so everyone—including you—once thought.
You’re about to start rambling excitedly, but the sound of footsteps can suddenly be heard, approaching from behind. It looks like Katsuki and Izuku followed you. They’re actively avoiding eye contact with each other, as expected, but that’s not what’s important right now.
Katsuki’s here. He’s here, walking around all on his own. He’s moving freely and unrestrained. Even though he shouldn’t be.
Recovery Girl’s jaw drops open.
“What in the world is going on…?” she mumbles, hurrying over to Katsuki’s side. You watch as she looks him over from head-to-toe. You removed some of his bandages earlier, exposing his unblemished forearms. There isn’t any scarring whatsoever, despite the fact that the Nomu shattered his bones, and he wasn’t even supposed to be able to move most of his body.
“I healed him,” you say again, with a big, beaming smile. “Isn’t it amazing? Katsuki told me he feels good as new. He doesn’t have to worry anymore. He’ll be able to keep being a hero.”
Recovery Girl glances over at you, still in stark disbelief. She reaches out and gently grabs Katsuki’s arm, applying a slight amount of pressure to it. He doesn’t flinch or react with any sort of discomfort, and when she asks him to make big, rotating motions, he does so with ease.
Once again, Recovery Girl looks at you in disbelief.
“I don’t understand,” she finally confesses. “I had already used my Quirk on him, and even that wasn’t enough. Since when did you have healing abilities? I thought your Quirk was control-based.”
“Well… not exactly.”
“How so?”
“It’s kind of hard for me to explain my Quirk, but it functions in a number of different ways. When it first manifested, I saw this strange screen in front of me. It reminds me of a video game. There’s a visual component to it that only I can see, and every now and then, it gives me missions to complete that are supposed to enhance my strength. Technically speaking, charming people is only part of what I can do. A while ago, it said I was in the process of developing a new power… but it was still incomplete back then. I guess I was able to unlock it somehow.”
All three of the adults present in the room—Recovery Girl, Aizawa, and Thirteen—look equally puzzled. In Aizawa’s case, he’s practically covered in bandages, so it’s a bit harder to tell, but you notice him scrunching his brows together. It’s clear that nobody was expecting this. Which, of course they weren’t. You weren’t even expecting this.
Recovery Girl has no reason to doubt you, however. It’s not like you’d gain anything by lying, as bewildering as the situation may be. Either way, this is an incredible outcome. An outcome that nobody could possibly be unhappy with.
Unless, of course, that person wasn’t in their right mind. Say, for example, someone who was hoping for Katsuki to remain crippled.
…but you obviously don’t know any people like that.
“How are you feeling?” Recovery Girl asks, addressing Katsuki now. “Are you sure you don’t feel any lingering aftereffects? There may still be issues with your mobility, even if [Name] was able to heal you more effectively than I did. I understand wanting to be appreciative towards your friend, but it’s always best to be honest, no matter what.”
“I’m fine,” Katsuki simply says.
“Are you sure? Just to be safe, I’m going to have to give you another examination before you leave.”
“Okay. But I meant what I said. I feel exactly like how I used to before I got injured. Thanks to [Name],” Katsuki adds, and when he looks over at you, his lips pull into a small smile.
Meanwhile, Izuku bites down on his own lips to keep from screaming .
“Alright, then. That’s good,” Recovery Girl says, heaving a sigh in the same breath. “Goodness, I think I nearly just had a heart attack. All of these emotional ups and downs aren’t good for someone my age. You’ll all put me into an early grave at this rate.”
“I’m sorry,” you hum.
“You say you’re sorry, and yet, you’re smiling.”
“I know. I’m just so excited right now! I still can’t believe I was actually able to help someone!”
You’re grinning so hard you can feel your cheeks starting to hurt, and you’re even bouncing in place, giddy from the beauty of life. Recovery Girl chuckles softly. It goes without saying that she’s happy for you. And not just you, but all the people you’ll be able to save. It looks like she’s unintentionally found herself a successor. She can rest easy knowing that if anything happens to her, you’ll be able to take her place.
“Oh, right!” you suddenly exclaim. “Actually, I wanted to try healing Aizawa, too. You said he’s okay overall but that his eye is a bit damaged, right? You said it would make his Quirk more difficult to use from now on.”
“You don’t need to worry about me,” Aizawa brushes off.
“But if I’m able to help you, then I should at least try, right?”
Recovery Girl nods encouragingly. “I don’t see why not. Still, this is a new ability that you haven’t gotten used to yet, so make sure you don’t overdo it. You don’t know what kind of repercussions it might have.”
It looks like you have the go-ahead, whether Aizawa insists on being stubborn or not. You happily bound over to him, and although kissing people normally makes you rather embarrassed (especially when you’re about to kiss your teacher, no less), oddly enough, you feel none of that right now. Besides, it's no different than what Recovery Girl does. People never judged her for it the way they judged you, however, because unlike your ability to control others, hers is beautiful. Selfless. Nobody would ever dare to speak ill of her Quirk because she does so much good with it.
Over time, you really hope that people come to see you the same way.
“I’m going to help you, sensei,” you tell Aizawa, with a gentle squeeze of your hand, and a reassuring smile. He looks like he’s about to tell you there’s no need, but as you lean closer, his expression seems to soften a bit.
Most of his face is concealed by bandages, but there’s a small patch of exposed skin, on his cheek, for you to quickly press your lips against. It’s a brief, chaste kiss. In other countries in the world, a kiss on the cheek is nothing more than a greeting. A polite, friendly gesture. You need to stop letting it upset you so much, because after today, it feels like you’re finally starting to come to terms with your Quirk.
[Use Angel’s Kiss on Aizawa Shouta?]
>>[YES]
It’s the exact same screen prompt you saw when you healed Katsuki earlier. Despite what Recovery Girl tried to warn you about, you don’t feel any discomfort, not even a little bit. Nobody can use their Quirk indefinitely, because they’re bound to get tired after a certain point, but thankfully it doesn’t seem like your limit is anywhere within reach. You’re no more exhausted than you were before. You feel absolutely fine. Still beaming with joy, for that matter. And now—
[Error. This target has already been healed to maximum capacity. Angel’s Kiss will have no additional effect.]
…what?
Your shoulders slump. Something went wrong just now, and you’re not quite sure why. What exactly does maximum capacity mean? Katsuki was healed by Recovery Girl too, but you were able to go beyond the limits of her Quirk and restore his body back to a perfect state. You’re not sure why the same thing isn’t happening with Aizawa. What did you do differently? Is it because you kissed Katsuki on the lips? Because there’s no chance in hell you’re about to smooch your teacher.
“Sensei, do you feel any different?” you ask hesitantly—despite already knowing the answer to that question.
Aizawa purses his lips. “Not really. But I wasn’t in any pain to begin with. Recovery Girl took care of that when she treated me.”
“In that case, please excuse me.”
You reach out, much to Aizawa’s surprise, and carefully remove some of his bandages. Based on what Recovery Girl told you, he should have a scar under one of his eyes, from when the Nomu brutally slammed his head against the ground. If his eyes are permanently damaged, it’ll limit the amount of time he can use his Quirk for. It’ll make it more difficult for him to fight and capture villains. Aizawa Shouta, also known as Eraserhead , is an incredible hero. The world needs more heroes like him, and you want to ensure his wellbeing, so that others can be saved as well.
Or at least, that was what you wanted to do, but…
Unlike Katsuki, his scars haven’t disappeared.
To be more precise, there’s only one scar, but it’s a large, noticeable one, directly underneath his right eye. The rest of his face looks relatively unharmed, which is a relief, but it doesn’t change the fact that your Quirk didn’t take effect. You were unable to heal him.
But why ?
Your gaze droops towards the ground, and in that moment, you remember. The screen clearly stated that your healing’s effectiveness would vary. Is it entirely random? Do you not get to decide how powerful it is? Or is there something more conditional, specific, that determines how effective it’ll be?
“It didn’t work,” you mumble sadly. You feel briefly weighed down by dejection, but then you pick yourself up and smile again. “I’m sorry, sensei. Recovery Girl is probably right. This ability is still really new to me, so I haven’t gotten the hang of it yet. I’ll try again another time, once I know how to use it better.”
“It’s alright,” Aizawa reassures, and he smiles again, reaching out to pat you on the head. “Don’t worry about it. I appreciate that you tried for my sake.”
Yeah. It really is alright. You’ve already decided to grow stronger, in as many ways as possible. Izuku’s still trying to get the hang of One For All. He’s in the same boat as you. Together, you’ll figure it out. You’ll both grow into your powers, one day at a time.
You turn towards Izuku, offering a bright smile, and as expected, he smiles back at you.
It doesn’t occur to you that his smile could ever be fake.
School will be closed tomorrow. It wasn’t exactly an unexpected decision, considering what happened today. Not only is USJ in need of repairs after All Might’s fight with the Nomu, but U.A now faces the immense pressure of having to defend against any potential future attacks. Their security system, which they once prided themselves on, turned out to be useless. It couldn’t do anything to counter the threat. As shameful as it is to admit, they made a grave oversight, and the students nearly paid for their mistakes.
Nobody died. That’s a victory in itself, you suppose. Today could have come to a much more tragic end. Even though you briefly thought Katsuki would be paralyzed for life, that would still have been better than death. You’re honestly not sure how you would have handled such a thing. You don’t even want to imagine it.
Some time has passed, and after bidding goodbye to Katsuki, who still needed to be examined by Recovery Girl, you and Izuku went home. He was less talkative than normal, although you can’t really blame him. He must have been worried about you, even though you didn’t actually get hurt. His emerald eyes, which normally shine so bright, were laden with sadness. You could have easily died back there. If Izuku had been even a fraction of a second later to come rescue you, the Nomu would have torn you to shreds.
A quiet, steady sigh leaves your lips. At least it’s all over now. Your parents smothered you with hugs the second you stepped through the door, while doing their best to choke back their tears. Izuku went to go see his mom right away. She was worried sick about him. You’re willing to bet she was even more emotional than your family.
To be honest, it hardly even feels real anymore. You’re outside, just a short distance away from your house. It’s getting late, but you told your parents you needed to get some fresh air. There’s a park in the neighborhood, the same park you, Izuku, and Katsuki often played at back when you were kids. You’re sitting on one of the benches while staring up at the dark, starless sky. It’s sort of an out-of-body experience. Maybe the shock of what happened today is finally taking its toll on you after all.
You hear the faint sound of a car slowing to a stop, but otherwise, it feels like the whole world is silent. You rub at your eyes and eventually turn around. The car you just heard is parked behind one of the trees, partially obscuring it from sight. At first, you don’t think much of it, but nobody steps out. The car just sits there, for some reason. It didn’t even pull into a driveway or garage.
Perhaps you’re reading into things too much. It must be the day’s horrific events, making you more paranoid than usual. Still, you’re getting a bad feeling all of a sudden, so you sit up from the bench and start walking briskly—in the opposite direction from where the car just parked.
Your lips part so that you can make some noise and alert the neighbors just to be on the safe side, but regretfully, no sound escapes.
Instead, you topple to the ground, having lost control of your body.
“You’ll find it difficult to speak for a while,” someone says, voice devoid of empathy or concern. The moment the man speaks, you get a strange sense of deja vu. You swear you’ve heard that voice before. Somewhere, not too long ago… but you can’t for the life of you remember where .
A cloth is forcibly stuffed in your mouth. Even if you wanted to form any words, you doubt you’d be able to. It’s like your jaw has gone completely slack, along with every single nerve in your body, which now refuses to cooperate.
You can barely move. Even just blinking seems to take a tremendous amount of effort, eyelids falling shut slower than a turtle’s walking speed. Nevertheless, tears slowly fade into sight, and the man picks you up into his arms, holding you like a glorified ragdoll.
Even though you can’t fight back against him, from this position, you can see his face. And it’s not your first time seeing it either. He was there that day, in the alley. He was that other man’s accomplice. As a result of the trauma you endured, you even remember his name.
“I acted on my own, but I think Kai will be pleased with my decision,” Kurono says, eyes cold and narrowed. “At the time, we had no idea you were training to become a hero. It’s a shame. We would have left you alone if not for that. Try not to take it personally. This is just… a case of terribly bad luck.”
Kurono clamps down on your limbs like a vice, dashing any and all hopes you had of possibly escaping. You pray that someone is around to see this, but to no avail. It’s dark. And cold. Everyone is inside with their families right now. You shouldn’t have gone out on your own. You should have stayed right outside your house, at least. You thought that your neighborhood, if nothing else, the place you know like the back of your hand, would forever remain a safe haven.
But you suppose you should have known better.
The car door opens, and Kurono tosses you into the back seat without another word. He shuts the door immediately after and enters the passenger side. You can hear him telling the driver it’s time to leave, but not much else. The car has already begun to move. Nobody saw you. Nobody even knows you’re being taken.
Haha. Ha.
For the first time in what felt like ever, you were actually optimistic. You thought your future would be bright from now on. At long last, you were ready to accept your Quirk, but of course, the moment that happened, something else had to go wrong. Just like it always fucking does.
You don’t know what else to do. There’s nothing you can do.
And so, you cry.