Chapter Text
Midoriya Izuku got this quite a lot. He knew how poor his health was. His skin kept that pale, clammy look. He was pure skin and bones and no matter how much he tried to eat, he never felt full. His weight never seemed to get past the 100's no matter what he did. He was smaller than the rest of his class (both boys and girls).
His ribs would show along with the bruises and burns that lingered across his skin.
It's not that he's dealing with family abuse or anything, no. In fact, he loves his mother and she loves him. They share a great connection with each other not only because of Izuku's health issues along with his status as a quirkless, but because he's her child, her sweet innocent baby who could do no wrong. Their relationship was greater than any mother and son relationship. A 'mommy's boy.' It's just, he's been dealing with a little bullying is all. If anything, anybody would make fun of someone who'd eat a ton. It's normal. And while his father is unable to be in the picture, The mother-son duo call him as often as they are able to call him. Besides that, he helps support his family as much as he can. And let's just say it's by a lot.
I'm dying
She does all she can to help and support her starving son. Yet no matter how much his mother would feed him, no matter how much the doctors would prescribe him, no matter how many pills he took or how many scans they'd take of him, and no matter how many sweets or cakes his Dad would send to the two, he just can't seem to gain any weight. He was so, so hungry. But, that's just life in the year 20XX he supposed, of course, his way of life. He was apparently the first one with this kind of health issue, but then again, the human race is still evolving, so it's probably him just dealing with health issues like any other quirkless Deku.
I'dyingI'mdyingI'mdyinghelphelphelpsohungrysOHUNGRYFEEDMEHUNGRYHUNGRYFLE-
Izuku realized at this moment in his life, however, that he's got to do whatever it takes to get healthy. No matter what. He's going to do it for his Mom, Dad, and for himself... mostly his Mom and Dad.
All of this started back in the era where quirks didn't exist. It started in QingQing city where an extraordinary baby was born with the ability to emanate light.
After that, many people around the world began to manifest different kinds of abilities.
While there were some that thought this was a blessing, the people of Japan, all over the world even, thought of this as a curse.
They used to slaughter them or imprisoned them and experiment on them. Until scientists and doctors made the discovery that children at the age of 4 show signs of a quirk unless they were born with a mutation. Like the little girl who was born like a little flashlight.
And just like all the others with a quirk, they all have a missing toe joint.
All except himself and roughly 20% of the human population.
As years and Wars have gone by, life continued like normal. Or well as normal as a world filled with superhumans can get.
See, here's the issue with Izuku's side of the story. He for some reason has the stomach the size of 13's black hole. And that hole is endless.
He remembered it had started at the age of four, just like any kid with a quirk right? He had taken note of how he had bitten through a metal spoon once when he was really, really hungry (that day a bully had stolen his lunch and his snack during snack time).
And yet, the doctor said that all of this had been clearly impossible as he has an extra toe joint. Just like 20% of the quirkless population.
So why? Why is he like this? Well, not even the doctors knew.
They had concluded that this is a new type of "illness" as they had dubbed it. They had labelled it EDNOS, meaning "Eating disorder not otherwise specified." So prescriptions, stress eating, more eating, protein bars, sweets, prescriptions and other medications were there for him to keep him alive at this point (Mom had called Dad later after his 5th birthday being spent in the nurse's office late after school because he had fainted due to exhaustion and hunger). He remembered how the nurse and Mom had talked to each other in hushed tones, thinking a five-year-old Izuku couldn't hear. Well, he did.
And as the years flew by, so did Izuku's weight, Decreasing by the gram, as the years flew by. And as his weight began to decrease, so did the number of friends he had. And it wasn't that much really. It was all thanks to kachaan for the few friends he ever had. Izuku still counted kachaan as a friend in a way. Not really. More like a source of inspiration to keep going, no matter how much everyone said to give up.
No matter how much the doctors told him and Mom that he probably wouldn't make it close to 20. How Mom kept making mid-night calls to Dad crying and weeping to him, thinking that Izuku was sound asleep, telling him what the doctors told her. He remembered how scratchy his voice was. And the day his father had told her that he was too injured to be able to come back home without risking his own health.
"You wouldn't want to see this scarred man anyway dear, it's best if we keep calling each other like this."
"But-"
"Shh, it's ok. You're going to be ok. Izuku's going to be ok, he's going to live past twenty I know so. He's a strong boy, I may not ever be able to see him, but maybe he and you can come to see me. Even though I'll look like- what's that one book character that Izuku talks about, 'Voldemort' was it? Yeah him, I'll look like him, too gross for you to see. Hey, see! I got a laugh out of you! No need to cry ok my dear? I'll continue paying the bills and the appointments and you and Izuku won't have to worry a single thing."
"Hmm, fine I suppose we can do that, but I'm still going to get a job! I can't have you over-working now can I?"
A soft, fond yet scratchy sigh.
"Alright, I suppose my green little angel if that's what'll make you happy. I recommend the little hospital near 1st street. I know a few friends there that either work there as an employee or go there as a patient. I'll give them a call and recommend you."
"Thank you, sweetheart. Love you."
"Love you too my dear."
It was at times like these that Izuku continued to wonder, "Will I even be able to become a hero like All Might?"
Others have told him, 'No, probably not.' Or his classmates have leered and made fun of him. Calling him names.
"Like as if a fatass like you will even glimpse at the Hero field!"
It's those days that he avoids eating. Only to race back down late at night and scarf down what his Mom had made that night. Not bothering to reheat or take his medication.
Mom would find him a little afterwards, crying into an empty bowl.
She'd give him a quarter of the special cake his Dad had sent to them. How it had been made with a frosting filled with high calories, something Mom had labelled as the "Sugar Rush" cake.
He didn't really like those days, no matter how tasty or cute looking the cakes are.
But, by the time the next day would come, kachaan would be there to insult and pick on him.
And Izuku will be here taking in insult after insult with even more determination.
._.
Another day, another burned item(s) as Izuku had dubbed it.
He sped walked through the halls with his wheeled backpack trailing behind him. Cat and star stickers burnet and peeling off of his slightly burned backpack. His face barely flushed, giving him a marshmallow with a red-dye look. A few tears sprung in his eyes as he walked faster through the halls and out of the building. Remnants of what had happened during class flashed through his mind in a painful remembrance as he was also reminded of what happened to his favourite panda hair clips.
Bakugou Katsuki, Kachaan, his childhood best friend.
"Hey, here's some advice for you! Why don't you take a swan dive off the roof, maybe in your next life you'll get a quirk!"
Izuku could still hear the sound of kachaan and his friends cackling and leering as they left Izuku to sit there and cry like the big baby he was. He remembered that he was going to finally stand up for himself. The word's "Why would you say that!" on his tongue, only to be silenced by a single glare.
'Why do you have to be so cruel?'
Just because he still wanted to go to UA doesn't mean he can run all over his dreams.
Just because he was ill didn't mean that he was weak.
Just because he's useless in most situations didn't mean he was, his Mom always told him the opposite. She always told him how strong and smart he was. Even though most of the time he had to have a teacher or a reluctant student aid him towards his classes. Even though he pretty much goes to class only on Friday's due to his poor health. But he's glad; he'd have never learned how the body works, and he'd never had gotten that little chemistry kit his dad had sent him along with the anatomy & chemistry books he sent for his 10th birthday.
He understands but he slightly wishes to gain the experience of what it's like to climb up the stairs and towards the rooftop for lunch. But, again, due to his health, he has no other choice but to eat at the nurses' office for his daily supplements or because of the fevers he'd frequently get.
It's not his fault he was born this way. Blame the genetic makeup of the human race.
Or just blame the human race completely for screwing up the environment to the point of... well, this.
As Izuku walked out of the building heaving slightly, he slowly made his way towards the pond, minding how he shouldn't push himself too much. His notebook soaked to the bone in icy water and koi fish trying to grab a bite through the book filled with thorough details of every type of hero. From the fighting style to their weaknesses, to their strengths and to their quirks. A soft sigh escaped his lips as he shook the watered down notebook gently. A few of his tears dripping onto the notebook as he slipped it into his yellow wheeled backpack. The weight of his other textbooks and snacks making it harder to pull towards the bridge where his apartment is at.
"Geez kachaan, you should know that provoking someone to do that will ruin your career easily. But did you really have to tell me to kill my self? What if you told someone else other than me." Izuku mumbled to himself as he trudged down the path under the bridge. "That jerk..." The smell of sewage making him gag slightly (not like anything will come out). He trudged onward towards the apartment complex that he can see from here.
"Well, telling me that's just going to push me even more forward! You better watch out villains! Cause once I become a hero, then no one will help you!" Izuku released a hearty laugh mimicking the number one hero, All Might.
"Well, look what we have here!?" Izuku turned around.
And isn't that disgusting? Most definitely not cute looking at all. It looked like a five-year-old just grabbed a bunch of jello, chewed it, spat it out, then made a crude mouth and stuck that along with two rubber eyeballs into green goop. The small clanging sound indicated that he- no, it, had slithered its' way out of the manhole with plenty of sewage to regenerate or grow larger.
And at that moment, with just those few seconds, a small squeal and a squelch were what you could hear.
"Man! Back there, I was being chased by the big guy and what do ya' know? I got myself a bodysuit! This is perfect for me to escape without getting noticed!"
Izuku was dying. He was dying with this- thing violating his dying insides. He was going to go for his nose to breathe through but he then realized that it wasn't the brightest idea as there is more slime covering his entire face. The few seconds he had left were filled with blur. And a lot of pain.
His skin felt like it was burning.
It was like being dunked into the arctic ocean.
It was like being burned alive in a pit of flames.
It just hurts. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts-
"I gotta hand it to ya' kid, I thought you'd give up a lot quicker since your as skinny as a twig. Heck, a twig looks over-weight compared to you!"
'There was no need for that kind of remark you know?' Izuku thought faintly as his sight began to splotch over with black dots.
"But, alas kid, this is where you and I depart," It said as it's left eye started making its way down his throat.
"See you in the next life!!"
What happened next was something, not even Izuku himself could comprehend. One minute, he's dying. The next, a rubber object touched his tongue and that's when everything went black. The last thing he heard was the sudden (and quite loud) gust of wind forcing its way through his ears as he fell backwards and towards the ground. His hearing swam one last time in a garbled mess. A thin beeping sound was all he could hear.
Man, Mom's going to get worried.
Wait.
Was that a scream?
Tosinori Yagi.
That was his name.
His friends called him Toshi-san.
His identity is better known under the alias as All Might, the Number One hero in the world. He was known for saving over a hundred people in less than ten minutes. He is loved by all citizens and fellow heroes and hated and admired by villains one and all. He was known to never fear ("Never fear, why? Cause I'm Here!") but at the moment.
All he could do was stare at the bottles in his hands.
And at the anorexic looking boy in front of his kneeling form.
He did not expect for the kid to suddenly go berzerk. He especially didn't look like the type too. The fact that out of his pocket fell an assortment of animal hairclips said otherwise as well.
All he wanted today was to go shopping and just relax, but as they say. Heroes never rest. But at the moment, what he really hopes for when he gets home is a nap. Just like Aizawa-san, he supposed. Toshinori really wants to lighten the mood, but the gurgling and moaning coming from the bottle isn't really helping, especially that pinkish colour splotching next to his single, functioning eye, and the small chunk of white that is what's left of his left eye.
"Hey, kid. Kid are you ok?" He said slapping the boy's cheek as careful as possible."You kinda need to get up. Umm... I'm in a hurry so..."
At this point, Toshinori didn't exactly want to be here now did he. His time limit was almost up, but he couldn't just up and leave the kid here.
And what's this? A small notebook smeared and slightly wet was next to a backpack with wheels (and covered with really cute, but slightly singed stickers, oh my god he was right he definitely wasn't the type- and are those rainbow hairclips as well?). Toshinori skimmed through the pages, minding the ones slightly stuck together. And after the 10th page, he found a drawing of himself drawn in the most accurate way possible (and that's saying something, he'd seen the other sketches and drawings before this one, they looked more anime than anything). His pose was perfect and symmetrical. His info had small facts about himself, things that he'd never told anybody. So how did this kid find out he liked the Cedars of Yakushima?? Or anything that smells or looks like Cedar in general?
Ok, this is nice. Toshinori decided to just sign the notebook cause obviously the kid was a fan.
He kneeled back down towards the boy as he placed the notebook (and his assortment of cute hairclips mind you) in the backpack, zipping it closed. The boy stirred slightly. And- yes! He's awake. Alright, time to do his thing.
"Well, hello there! For a second there I thought I almost lost you!"
"A-A-ALL MIGHT!?!? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Midoriya said in complete surprise as he stared at the #1 hero in front of him.
"Now, now, no need to freak out so much my boy! I was just passing by and happened to stumble across this man here." All Might showed Midoriya the bottle with the Sludge man inside. "Is- is he ok? He looks like he's in pain..."
"OH! Umm, this- then- he's fine my boy no need to worry!"
"Oh... well um- Oh, right! All Might can you sign umm hold on I have a pen somewhere- OH! Can you sign my note- OH MY GOD YOU SIGNED IT!!!" Midoriya screamed in glee.
"THANK YOU SO MUCH ALL MIGHT I'LL TREASURE THIS FOR YEARS TO COME! THIS WILL BE OUR FAMILY HEIRLOOM!"
"Wow, that's... that's a lot of word-vomit there my boy..."
"Sorry, habit- but thank you! Umm... All Might there's something I have to ask you... is-"
"Sorry, my boy but I gotta go! A hero's work is never finished! The next time I'll see you will be on the other side of the screen!" All Might rushed out as he positioned himself in a runners stance on the other side of the bridge. Midoriya knew that this couldn't be the end, he still had to ask him a question.
"Wait! All Might!-" He latched onto his pant leg in time. The weight of his wheeled backpack feeling like a ton with all the wind pressure hitting against his skinny frame and his beloved backpack.
"ALLLLL MIIIIIIGHT!!"
"HOLY HELL- KID! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! LET GO!! AND WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOUR FACE??" All Might screamed in slight fear as the wind was surprisingly capable of pulling back the little fat on Midoriya's cheeks and forcing his eyelids wide open. He looked like death finally came for him only to forget about burying the body. Resulting in a fanboy zombie.
"I CAN'T LET GO!! IF I DO I'LL DIE!!!"
"OK, OK! JUST HOLD ON TIGHT!" All Might shouted through the wind. A held-in cough betraying his throat as he coughed up a little bit of blood. He quickly wiped it away in hopes the boy didn't see.
"...Dammit, not yet."
._.
A shadowy man appeared through a black and purple portal at the centre of the circling dirt. He stared at the direction of where All Might and Midoriya Izuku had flown off to. He pulled out a phone from his pocket.
"Sir, it's me. The plan with the Sludge villain worked wonders. I overheard the man and it seems he didn't listen to most of it. However, the boy was able to do as you had said. Hmhm yes, sir. Took off a heavy portion of his sludge and two-thirds of his eye. However, All Might had gotten to the boy first. Yes, of course, sir I understand. I'll make sure of it. Plan B of the operation should begin soon. I was able to re-apprehend the Sludge villain though," The shadowy man said as he stared at the two bottles filled with sludge. The moaning and groaning turning into soft and impish whimpers as the sludge realized who the shadowy man was calling.
"The eye is regrowing just as you said, sir. I'll send him off for the next phase of the plan. Pardon? Ah yes, of course, Oh Mr Sludge man? For you." One-third of the sludge mans regenerating eye twitched towards the shadowy man and the phone close to the plastic caging him. The phone was now on speaker.
A shiver and a twitch went down his "spine" as the voice on the other side spoke in a soothing, scratchy tone.
"Remember the plan."