In Loving Memory

I've been adopted. Again. Why does this keep happening?

Needless to say, Shigaraki was speechless. "No way," Shigaraki rasped. Though it was less of a "Woah, you're my grandma? Well gee, that's swell!" And more like "I hope you sit on a tack and die."

"I told you I knew your grandma," Izuku said.

"You told him you knew his grandma?" Nana turned to Izuku.

"Yes, while I was possessing him."

"That was you?" Shigaraki hissed.

"Sorry," Izuku said quickly. "I had people to protect."

"Who's this kid, anyway?" Shigaraki tipped his head in Izuku's direction. "And how come you haven't stopped by any sooner?"

"A friend of mine. And I couldn't find you, for the most part. And for the rest of it, well, I did. It was just really hard to find you."

"Dying doesn't really grant supernatural powers," Izuku added. "With All For One having got you it was probably hard for her to keep track of you. My best guess is he moved you around a lot, right?"

Shigaraki narrowed his eyes, but didn't say anything. "He did, actually," Nana said. "It made it hard for me to keep up with him."

"Wait," Shigaraki said slowly. "I remember now, it was you. The shadow that was always in the corner. I thought that was an imaginary friend, but it was you, right?"

"Mhm. That was me." Nana glided a few feet sideways, her cape slowly trailing behind her and settling down a few seconds after she stopped.

"He really is your grandson," Izuku said.

"Hm?" Shigaraki struggled against the cuffs.

"He has the same confidence as you, the same air of 'I can do it.' It's eerie."

"Is that so?" Nana raised an eyebrow. She seemed to hear something and turned towards the hallway. She stood still for a moment, then spoke. "Midoriya, we have to go."

"What? But you barely-"

"I saw what we needed to see. But we need to get out of here."

"Why? We're already dead, what more can-"

"Midoriya," Nana hissed, and for a moment Izuku froze in fear. She was mad at him for what seemed to be the first time. "Sometimes there are fates worse than death. We have to get out of here." Izuku shut up quick as Nana took his hand and raced out of the prison. Izuku wasn't sure what they were running from until he heard a loud screech, and he sped up.

"What is that?" Izuku asked, gliding faster.

"A manifestation of the quirk of a ghost in the prison. They make creatures that can eat most anything, but nowadays since their master is dead, they've taken to eating ghosts instead."

"That can happen?!"

"It can now," Nana said, sounding very worried. "Quirks can do a lot of things, and apparently this time it includes making you double dead. The master of the creatures gets your energy and your memories, but your consciousness goes who knows where. I'm glad I don't know, I've never had the chance.'

"Is it close?"

"No, at least, not yet. We just gotta get out and we'll be safe." Nana tightened her grip on his hand and almost ran into another ghost.

"Hey, are you blind?!" The ghost shouted.

"Sorry! Minato's dogs are out!"

"What? You should have led with that!"

"Get out and let everyone else know too!"

"Got it!" Nana tugged on Izuku's arm a little harder and took a shortcut through a cell, telling every ghost they passed about the 'dogs.' They soon made it out of the prison, with about fifty ghosts standing next to them on the lawn like little kids during a fire drill. The ghosts came in a variety of ages, but most of them seemed to be around their twenties or thirties, a few in their forties or fifties. It seemed that the ghosts that told him as such were right, most people's ghosts showed them at the prime of their life, when they were happiest and healthiest. In the corner of his eye, however, he saw a girl about five years old clinging to the hem of the dress of a girl next to her. She couldn't have been older than sixteen, but she looked at her surroundings critically, as if looking for anything dangerous, and pulled the little girl somewhat closer.