Katsuki walked into the agency building, he could already hear Mirko before he could see her. By the sound of it, she was yelling and cursing about paperwork that had been due today but wasn't even close to being finished. He carefully turned the corner, his hand gripping the suitcase with his hero costume a little tighter. Mirko had always been a person he looked up to, one of his idols, his hero. He hadn't known her name was on his request list until Deku pointed it out.
Katsuki didn't hesitate anymore after that, not that he'd let the nerd know that. No, he was still pissed as fuck at Izuku. Who the hell chooses to walk into the lion's den when he could be having a fucking productive and great internship somewhere way better?! An absolute idiot, that's who! Fucking asshole, making Katsuki worry and shit over his dumb ass! Ugh! Why was he even still friends with that jerk?!
He didn't have to stick around to help him get out of trouble whenever he exposed himself! He didn't have to care about his safety or his happiness! Was his friendship really something he took for granted? Did he really think this was just gonna blow over? Well he was wrong!
Katsuki took a deep breath, calming himself down as he walked up to Mirko, who was still screaming at this poor sidekick who was close to tears. Ha, can't even keep your cool in front of your boss huh? Tch, how weak. They didn't hesitate to point out his presence either, quick to turn Mirko's rage on someone else so they could escape. Coward.
"And who might you be, squirt?!" she asked, eying his uniform.
"Ah, the UA kid! It's about that time already, ey? Well don't just stand there! Go change! We're leaving for patrol in five so you better be ready to kick some fucking ass!"
Katsuki grinned, nodding quickly as he scrambled to find the changing room. Hell yeah! This is exactly why he came here! This internship would be great! And even though no villains showed up on their patrol, it was still a great experience. Mirko was fast and energetic, hopping through streets at a speed that challenged Katsuki to keep up. People shouted greetings as she passed and they had to stop a few times for pictures and autographs.
"Beating up villains is fun and all, but you've gotta keep up public appearances too!" she explained.
"The thing with modern day society is that popularity matters in the rankings! It's a big pile of bullshit but you gotta learn to pick your battles if you wanna make it in the big leagues kid!"
"Yeah? Well everyone thinks I'm an arrogant brat with a foul mouth and an attitude" Katsuki grumbled, trying to hide his rapid breathing as they stopped at the edge of a rooftop, looking out on a plaza below.
"Don't know how you manage to keep your damn reputation so clean... I don't have the fucking patience to deal with people"
"You remind me of when I was in high school! Full of spirit!" Mirko grinned.
"Believe me kid, you'll learn how to deal with them. It's something that comes with experience!"
She turned around to look at him as she stretched her legs, a sign they would soon be moving on again.
"The press will always be a pain in the ass but it's part of the job! And the people asking for pictures and autographs are just fans! They fucking love me! So ignoring them would make me the asshole, ya know? They're the people we do this for, after all!" she smiled.
"You ready to get going again?"
"Always" Katsuki answered, popping his hands before taking off after her.
...
Izuku had been steadily earning Gran Torino's trust, not slipping up even once during their training. Even better, he decided Izuku was ready to go out on patrol with him! And about time too because Izuku was bored out of his damn mind! He was buzzing with excitement, his leg bouncing up and down as they sat on the train. He glanced outside the window, seeing his eyes sparking up in his reflection.
Kacchan did mention once that his eyes literally light up when he's excited or activates his quirk... Yeah... He really hoped they could talk after their internships and get back on the same page. Their friendship was too precious to him to just let it go to waste over a stupid disagreement. With a sigh, he saw the light in his eyes diminish. Huh, guess his mood really is easy to read... Well, at least he might get to chase a purse robber or something today to put his mind off of things.
Before he could come up with potential situations in his head, the train came to a shrieking halt. There was a loud crashing sound, making him whip his head around. There was smoke rising up in the distance, a city they were just supposed to be passing by. Wait... No, that couldn't be... Izuku instantly shot up from his chair. That was Hosu. The place where Iida's brother got attacked. The place where the Hero Killer was roaming around. The place of Iida's internship-
"Don't even think about it kid!"
His eyes shot down to Gran Torino and it was only then he realized he had already partially activated his telekinesis quirk.
"My friend is over there" Izuku stated.
"The Hero Killer is there! People are in danger, we need to go out there and help them-"
"You're a student and you're under my supervision" Gran Torino pointed out, jabbing Izuku as he talked. He grit his teeth and clenched his fists by his side. He couldn't actually be serious right now!
"I'm not going to let you throw yourself head first into danger like that! Promise me you'll stay here"
He slid a window open, not breaking eye contact with Izuku as he did so. What?! He was going out there without him?!
"...I'll stay here" Izuku gritted out. He didn't like this, not one bit, but he needed to prove himself. Needed Gran Torino to trust him. Even though everything about this situation frustrated him to his core!
"Good" Gran Torino said, climbing into the window, turning around to glare at Izuku one last time.
"I mean it. Stay"
"Am staying" Izuku answered, watching his mentor- was he his mentor though? He was in charge of him right now anyway- jump through the window.
Another explosion sounded in the distance, making Izuku clench his fists even more. This just wasn't fair! But he couldn't go. He needed to stay, needed to prove he could follow orders- And another explosion, a distant roar. It pushed him over the edge. Before he realised what he was doing, he was flying towards Hosu at a monstrous speed, probably even beating Gran Torino there.
He had to find Iida, had to make sure he was okay. He was so focused on trying to find his friend that he almost brushed past an inhuman monster. If it wasn't for its screeching and people running away screaming, Izuku would've run past it. What the hell was that thing?! It roared again, only to be attacked by the local pro heroes. Izuku wanted to help, but he wasn't supposed to be here. They outnumbered the villain anyway, so things should be okay, right?
Yeah, he'll just focus on finding Iida, making sure he's okay, and hurry back to the train before Gran Torino notices he is gone! Yes, just...stay under the radar... Quick in and out, nothing special! And so Izuku ran off again, rushing away from the commotion to the more secluded areas of town. If the Hero Killer was really here, he was sure to make use of the other attack and make his move in a less crowded environment.
Izuku tried to make use of his detection quirk, but in an urban area like this one it was no use. Every piece of information overwhelmed him and nothing made sense, like static, white noise. Alright, so if scanning the area mentally wouldn't work, he'd need to get physical. Running around like a mad man must've made him look crazy to the few bystanders he passed, but it was a small price to pay.
Yeah, it was definitely worth it when he was able to kick Stain away from Iida. The man was standing over his friend with a blade ready to strike, another hero laying against the wall of the alley as well. Native, if Izuku remembered correctly. He must've been attacked first...
"Iida! Are you okay?" Izuku asked, quickly kneeling down to check him for injuries. He sent out his coordinates to all his UA contacts as a last ditch sos signal, hoping nobody would inform Gran Torino about his whereabouts before he could set this straight.
"M-Midoriya..? What-" Iida started coughing as he spoke. His voice sounded strained, which made Izuku even more worried.
"Don't worry about me. Can you stand?" Izuku asked, glancing around to see Stain recover from the kick, blades at hand. They needed to get out of here and fast!
"Paralyzed" Iida got out. 'Must be part of his quirk' Izuku mentally noted. That must mean Native was also paralyzed.
"Shouldn't turn your back towards your enemy boy-" Stain grinned, plunging his sword into Izuku's back, or at least that was his intention. A green glow engulfed his blade before it could hit its target, forcing it to stay into place no matter how much Stain struggled against it.
"And you shouldn't underestimate your opponent" Izuku hissed, turning around as he got up, swinging his arm and with it, throwing Stain across the alley. He was pissed. His friend was hurt and it was all this man's fault!
"Iida, can you tell me how he paralyzed you?" Izuku asked while using All For One to find out more about Stain's quirk. Mild toxic substance, which checked out since the other two were paralyzed. It was probably a sedative of some kind or a muscle relaxer. Distributed through a mix of bodily fluids... Yuck! But that did make sense. Those blades would definitely make people bleed. But that left the question of how it mixed with Stain's bodily fluids-
No, wait, hold up, how did Izuku get all that information from just looking at him? All For One had never been this accurate before... And why hadn't Iida answered him yet?! He glanced around, seeing his classmate passed out on the floor. Shit.
"You're stronger than you look, I'll give you that. But all fake heroes must die" Stain hissed.
"That boy came looking for me for revenge! He didn't even care about the man passed out in front of him! He's not a real hero!"
"That doesn't mean you get to kill him!" Izuku screamed, his eyes and hair glowing as his telekinesis got a hold of Stain, holding him in place, squeezing him a little harder than intended in his anger.
"You almost killed his brother! He's just a child! He's allowed to be overwhelmed and emotional and learn from his mistakes!"
Izuku was careless, reckless, but there was nobody here to see so who cared? Not like anyone was gonna believe a villain if he claimed Izuku had multiple quirks. So that's why he used his magnetisation quirk to pull all his blades away from him, making them cling onto the wall. He could make inanimate objects become temporary magnets. The bigger the object, the more powerful the magnet. And the wall was pretty big if you asked him.
Stain's eyes widened, but Izuku ignored it as he stepped closer, his eyes darting around to find something to restrain this criminal.
"All For One" he whispered in shock, making Izuku's eyes snap back to him.
"What did you just say?"
"All For One" Stain repeated, louder this time.
"You have multiple quirks...and one of which I remember very clearly"
"You've met All For One before?" Izuku asked, frowning. What business did his dad have with Stain of all people..? Why did Stain know who he was? Izuku didn't like to think about his dad's past... Didn't want to be reminded of what this quirk had done to people. Yet here he was, hearing from his dad's past escapes from the Hero Killer of all people.
"You have too... He gave you that quirk" Stain spoke, grinning.
"You made a deal with him! You're no hero! You're corrupt! Just like all the others! Fake! Weak!"
"Shut up!" Izuku yelled. He meant to squeeze him or to throw him against the building or something. Something- Anything to make him shut up! But instead a black spear of some sort spawned from his hand, piercing Stain's chest. Izuku's breath hitched, his eyes widening as adrenaline pumped through his veins. No, no, no, no, no, no... Izuku knew what this was, but he didn't want it! He didn't call for this! He never used forced quirk manipulation before! Why was this happening?! Blood dripped from Stain's wicked smile as he coughed.
"I see... So you have it now..." Stain choked out.
"He'd been l-looking for a...a protege... Who better than a...a h-hero huh?"
The laugh that followed was one from nightmares, only stopping when Izuku's arm returned to normal, the black substance disappearing. Retreating back into his body together with the quirk of the man in front of him.
It was as if a deep itch had been scratched, like a fulfilling meal. So...satisfying... Was this how it always felt when taking away someone's quirk..? His hands were trembling, tears spilling from his eyes as he pulled at his hair, falling to his knees. And with him fell everything else, too. Stain, the weapons... He took his quirk... He just took someone's quirk!
"...Midoriya?"
Fuck!