extreme // villain!midoriya izuku

26) a fallen star.

I was a star.

Well, I mean, if I was considered a star, I'm not exactly sure what my master would be. What goes beyond a star? A galaxy? Nebulae? Anyway, I digress, but that does not mean I did not hold her in high regard. She was the one that created who I am today. Melded me into the greatest person in the world, the true symbol of peace and the pinnacle of all Heroes.

She took my hand and guided me through all my broken bones, crying and bruises. She taught me with patience how to use my quirk- her quirk, our quirk.

I'm sure you have a general gist of it. One for all, an ability that is passed down from user to user, which progressively gets stronger and stronger as it retains the power of the previous user. I was the eighth recipient of that power. To others, it may seem like a heavy burden, but to me, it was the greatest honor I could ever receive as a quirkless.

Naturally, I worked tirelessly to make it mine. I strengthened my body into the ideal shape, I trained hard everyday under the guidance of my mentor and I created all sorts of moves that no owner had done before. I adapted to the recoil and soon enough, I was rising to fame with the immense power I held. I was heralded as the bringer of the new age of peace, to tackle all wrongdoings by the villains and purify the world of all evil. That includes taking out the leader of the villains- All for One.

Hundreds of thousands of fans trailed behind me, supporting me and cheering me on. Millions more stood in favour of me. I know I sound arrogant, but I knew that everyone was leaning on me, counting on me and idolizing me as someone great and all-powerful.

That was until my fight with All for One. I never expected to have a run-in with him so quickly and before I knew it, my mentor was dead. I was left twitching on the ground, bleeding and severely injured. I still have flashbacks to that day, my first real brush with death and watching my master die in front of me. I still recall his fingers lifting me from the debris by my hair, and my body both simultaneously numb yet white hot with pain. I thought I was dead, that it was the end of the All for One legacy at the hands of its enemy.

But he didn't kill me. He did worse. He sent me spiraling down a path of despair and sent my whole world crashing down. He brought his disfigured, mangled face close to mine and somehow, the scar tissue covering nearly his top half only served to emphasize the sinister smile stretching across his face.

"Oh, poor Toshinori Yagi. Didn't your master ever teach you that One for All is only, and will always be a subset of All for One?"

A chill shot down my spine, sending goosebumps down the undamaged areas of my skin. I felt my hairs stand so far up that they were practically attempting to flee from their roots.

"I gave that quirk to your first predecessor, my younger brother, out of contempt that he thought he would ever defeat me. To think it would carry on for nearly eight generations was a poor oversight on my part. But even a mule would know that you can never defeat the original- the better, and the superior."

He swung his hand to the side and my hair was pulled painfully along.

"ALL YOU HELICOPTERS UP THERE REPORTING THE SITUATION!" He raised his voice so loud I thought my ears would bleed.

"DO YOU HEAR ME? ONE FOR ALL IS ONLY A MERE SUBSET OF ALL FOR ONE. THE HERO YOU ALL ADMIRE IS JUST A PATHETIC BOOTLEG FROM THEIR MUCH MORE POWERFUL VILLAIN," he smirked. All I could do at that point was force out a plea for him to stop.

"Tell the world that Toxic Chainsaw has defeated All Might. He fell to the hands of a mere villain. And I, All for One, will now be taking him. Your weak, weak hero."

I had never felt that devastated in my life. I was humiliated in front of all the press, in front of live broadcasts, being told that my power was a lie from the start. That I inherited it from the villains and I was fooling the world into thinking it was my own. Tears streamed down my face as I uselessly begged for him to stop.

He left me on the ground to die. He just walked out, and I could never face everyone else after that. Gossip spread everywhere, people now looked down on my with disgust, and every ounce of support I once had simply vanished like how All for One did. I could only live out the rest of my life in shame and hiding. Get well soon cards trickled out of existence and was replaced by letters that were filled with contempt and hate. Eventually as my presence diminished, everyone simply forgot about my existence. I would just be a name in a textbook of an era that couldn't last.

With nowhere left to turn, All for One came for me with that smirk of his. The one that drained me of all hope and left me with a sense of doom. He invited me into the League of Villains, told me it was better than living alone in a run down apartment in the middle of nowhere. Gave me a sense of purpose. I hated the idea of having to work for the person that ruined my life, but what choice did I have other than do or die?

Years passed as I adjusted to living within the Villain base. I met new people, saw old ones leave. I never did anything, just watched from the shadows. Nobody ever told me to do anything either- I could still hear their silent judgement whenever they looked at me. 

Then Midoriya appeared in my life. He appeared in front of me with a backpack and still in his school uniform, with wide, deer-like eyes. He had such an unassuming appearance with the freckles lining his face and cheeks still round from leftover baby fat.

The whole time, since I was declared MIA and forgotten by society, the boy never stopped writing to me. He never stopped looking for me and finding me, and it tore my heart. To know I was once like him. To make the mistake of protecting this wretched society that turned against me when I showed even a silver of weakness. With his untainted beliefs, blissfully ignorant of my shortcomings, he held my hand and begged for me to come back. Though I was just a remnant leftover from the Toxic Chainsaw Incident, he still looked up to me with those sparkling eyes and I felt nothing but guilt.

I decided that I would not let society take him from me. Those that would boo you at the turn of a hat though they claimed to be your biggest fan minutes ago, those that asked for your autograph on hero encyclopedias only for your page to end up crumpled in the bin, I would not let it happen to him.

--

All Might's breath hitched. Your head felt heavy as you debated whether now was the perfect time to look him in the eye.

"(Name)."

That was your cue, you guess. You slowly tilted your head up as you looked into his piercing blue eyes, realizing it was aflame. Not with passion or justice or any of that cheesy nonsense.

All Might smiled gently. "Take care of Midoriya-my boy, will you? He's all that I have left."

A warm feeling spread in your chest. Midoriya Izuku... how would he be like if All Might had won the fight? Would he be pursuing his old dreams of being a hero? Maybe in an alternate universe, he wouldn't have even met you. You'd just brush past him in his Yuuei uniform and apologize for bumping into him, and that was the most interactions you two would've had for the rest of your life. You felt tears forming at the back of your eyes and you closed it tightly, standing up. You swallowed the lump in your throat and opened your mouth, proclaiming what you truly felt at that moment.

"I promise, sir! Midoriya will be under my care for as long as I live, I swear!"

If only you realized how important that promise meant to All Might as well.