Post Vitam

Chapter 165

Izuku found himself walking down a series of alleyways made from impossibly high buildings. Reeking of urine, alcohol and danger. A whisper behind him caught his attention.

Izuku...

"Who's there?!" he asked aloud, spinning around to find nobody behind him. The walls moved and before he could even register that they shouldn't be doing that the voice spoke again, much clearer though strained with effort.

Why didn't you save me...

There on the floor lay a lump with blue hair, the name left his lips without permission "Iida?"

The lump stirred and suddenly Iida's face with empty eye sockets pouring blood looked at him, the same words leaving his unmoving open mouth on repeat.

Why didn't you save me... Why didn't you save me... Why didn't you save me... Why didn't you save me...

"I-i tried ..." Izuku pleaded with his dead friend but the words never reached him. Accusatory empty eye sockets just staring at him. Izuku wanted to run but found himself stuck in an ever increasing blood pool. Bloody hands pawed at his legs pulling him down. He soon found himself falling through the blood.

He screamed but no sound left him. Just as he was about to drown in blood he was thrown out gasping for air. Looking up he saw the source of the blood was no longer Iida but his brother Hitoshi. Floating off of the ground, blood pouring out his wrist like some twisted waterfall.

"NO!" He yelled "HITOSHI!!!" Izuku tried to run to him but the same hands that had dragged him in and threw him out were now holding him down. Forcing him to just watch.

Hitoshi, colorless and pale, smiled down at Izuku. You should have just let me die...

"NEVER!" He shouted but once again no sound actually left him.

A voice more muffled but somehow even clearer than any other so far reached him "Izu?"

He knew that voice, he'd know it anywhere and in any language. "K-kacchan?"

Izuku looked around and saw him standing in a doorway searching for Izuku, looking lost.

The hair on his neck prickled as yet another voice whispered directly into his ear. You can't reach him anymore son... You belong with me. These people will never know you. They'll always be scared of you. Join me...

"No...No you can't make me!" he spat at the phantom of AFO

His surroundings shifted and he was somewhere with no light, that was until people started to appear around him. The first of which was his friend from the center. Tobio

You should have listened to me, Midoriya...

Pity I never got further with you Jared laughed licking his lips

Why'd you leave us to burn Midoriya-kun? The twins Kaito and Kenji cried out to him

He brings death wherever he goes Viktor said coldly

Izu? Why wont you save me? Hitoshi cried out at him

He can't... Iida taunted

Never could... a voice sounding like himself teased

Useless... MURDERER!!! His mother mocked at him

DEKU! A younger version of Kacchan laughed

Everything shifted again and it was only Hitoshi now, looking healthy, smiling at him kindly but crying at the same time holding a large kitchen knife. Goodbye Izu, tell dad I'm sorry.

"HITOSHI!!!!" Izuku yelled again, trying again to move unsuccessfully, forcing him to just helplessly watch as Hitoshi brought a knife to his own throat, slicing it open.

"NO DON'T!!!!" he screamed loud enough to feel the strain in his throat cause actual damage.

The surroundings had shifted again, only they made more logical sense. Though if it wasn't that he had found himself in a similar situation before he'd have thought he was still dreaming. Everything in the room was broken or bent. Windows shattered, cabinets crumpled like spare paper. Dust was still falling down as the walls stopped shaking.

Izuku felt his heart racing and slowly descended from where he was floating just in time for movement in the corner of his eye to register. He turned his head and there stood his dad and Mic looking extremely worried.

"Izuku! Are you okay?" his dad asked, carefully navigating the ransacked ruins of his hospital room to get close to him.

Before he could even think about suppressing it the tears were running freely and he was openly sobbing. His dad caught him before he could curl into himself, so he buried his face in his scarf instead. "Dad! I-is he–"

"Shh shh, it's okay. Your brother is still with us Izu, you saved him. You were so brave..." His dad said, kissing the top of his head, his own voice sounding a bit choked up.

Izuku felt a new set of hands, much softer than those of his dad's, gently swiping away hair from his face and rubbing at his back. He realized that it was Mic and his heart ached.

It was like he actually had two parents that cared about him, he gave into the fantasy. Left hand clasping at his dad scarf he reached with his right for Mic and pulled him into a sort of threeway hug, just wanting to feel loved.

Mic chuckled slightly at being pulled around by a kid but Izuku could feel him settle into the hug and even reciprocating it, helping his dad to calm him down.

They stayed like that for what felt like forever and Izuku took every bit of solace out of it that he could. It wasn't until a nurse dropped by that they were reminded of where they were. She promptly moved Izuku to a new room once she saw the extent of the damage he had done. Izuku felt guilty for no doubt costing his dad a lot of money to cover the damages.

"Hey, none of that. I know how that head of yours works" his dad said once he was settled into his new room. "Nedzu is paying for it."

Izuku frowned at him. "Why would he do that?"

"He has a shitty way of showing it but he does care about all of the kids in the school. Kind of sees you all as his cubs. It would be cute if it wasn't really creepy..."

"Sho! Be nice." Mic reprimanded

"What? The rat knows he's creepy... he thrives off of it." his dad chuckled

A notification chime rang throughout the room and Mic's face lost all color as he read the text he had gotten. He showed Izuku and his dad... 

That I do.

"Fucking hell does he have the whole of japan bugged?!" His dad swore.

His dad sighed as his own phone went off.

Possibly