A Villain's Rise

A Change of Heart

Deku sat in the middle of the woods, relaxing as time went by. He quickly checked the time and got up. "They should all be asleep now" He muttered. He raised his arms and concentrated as his hands turned into a green mist. A green portal appeared above the ground in front of him and mattress with a person on came falling through. It landed with a thump, waking the person sleeping. "Time to wake up Todoroki" Deku greeted. Todoroki's eyes immediately shot open when he recognised the voice and he launched an attack towards Deku. Unfortunately, Todoroki hadn't fully woken yet and Deku easily dodged the attack and threw a dart at Todoroki.

The dart reached its target and injected something into Todoroki. "What did you just inject into me?" He asked. "Just something that will block of your quirk for some time. Don't worry. I just want to talk" Deku replied. "Talk?" Todoroki scoffed. "What would you want to talk about? Don't you just want to kill us all like Iida?" He accused. "For the record, Stain was the one to kill Iida. But this has nothing to do with that. I want your help" Deku responded. "I will never help a villain" Todoroki stated.

"Villain, hero, vigilante. Call me what you like. Does it really matter? No. What matter is why we fight, what our ideals are and what our end goal is" Deku spoke. "You and your league just want to kill All Might and destroy society" Todoroki accused. "Don't lump me in with that child. I'm not a part of the league. They are simply the means to an end" Deku retorted. "My vision is so much greater. I don't want to destroy society just because I want to. I will burn it down along with all its evils so that a great new world can rise out of the ashes" He explained. "What's so wrong about this world then?" Todoroki asked. "You out of all people should know what I'm talking about" Deku replied

"The glorification and worshipping of heroes, that leads to all suffering being hidden and swept under the rug. Amongst other things" Deku explained "You're wrong" Todoroki stated. "Oh, am I now?" Deku replied "Why not use an example. Maybe you." He suggested. "Your father, using his influence and wealth, forced your mother into an abusive marriage. He forced her to have four children just so he could force his offspring into beating All Might" Deku began. "Stop it" Todoroki said through gritted teeth. "But that's not the end, is it?" Deku continued, ignoring Todoroki. "When he got his perfect creation, a son, you, who could control ice and fire, he 'trained' him. Every day Endeavor would punch and kick you until you threw up on the floor and could no longer stand. And to top it all off, you weren't even allowed to be around your siblings. And still the worst is to come" Deku narrated. "Shut up!" Todoroki yelled. Once again Deku ignored him and increased his intensity. "Your mother was driven to madness because of what your father did to hear. Your mother, who loved you and tried her best to protect you, could no longer handle the pressure and snapped. In a moment of madness, she poured boiling water over your face, scarring you for life" Deku said.

"You know nothing" Todoroki said as he was crying over the memories. "But I do Todoroki. I know exactly what it is like. We have gone through so much of the same hardship. I was bullied, punched, kicked, burnt and cast aside like a pebble. None of my bullies where punished, all because I didn't have a quirk and still tried to be a hero. Meanwhile, they had quirks and were never discouraged. The worst was Kacchan, or as you know him, Bakugo. He was my childhood friend and he turned on me in an instant, becoming my number one bully. And the teachers kept praising him because he had a powerful quirk and should become a hero. I went through ten years of hell just to have my dreams shattered by All Might himself. And the next day, my mother, the only one who has ever loved me, was killed because All Might was too busy with his fans and basking in his glory to notice one thing. That a villain was aiming a gun at my mother. The villain fired the shot and she dropped dead right in front of me. And the one common theme in my life? It has always been turned into a living hell because of the mindless following of heroes and prejudice. Nothing is considered wrong if it could help heroes" Deku explained "Now, ask yourself this one question. Why did no one, not a single person, do something about all the hardships you faced? Why did your father get away with absolutely everything, despite the abuse being common knowledge among heroes? Why didn't the media say anything, despite having access to the necessary records?" He asked. "I... I need time to think" Todoroki replied. "Fine. You have until tomorrow night. I'll be there" Deku said and opened a portal. "Take your mattress and go back to sleeping. I have a feeling tomorrow will be a long day" He said and motioned towards the portal. Todoroki didn't say anything and walked through the portal with his mattress.

"You know how to convince people" Dabi said as he approached from behind a tree. "We still have to see if he is convinced. Remember, don't hurt him tomorrow" Deku said. "I'll do my best. But some of the members doesn't like to follow orders" Dabi replied. "That's not my problem. Just try to make sure he is hurt as little as possible. If we hurt him in the attack, he might refuse to join us" Deku said. "I'll head back to the lab. Shigaraki would get suspicious if I don't blow something up soon" He said and opened a portal. "See ya" He said and entered the portal. "See ya" Dabi said back and walked away.

Todoroki didn't know what to think. What Deku said made him start to question everything he thought he knew. "Are heroes really good? Is there a better way? Is Deku right?" Those questions circled around his head, planting doubt in his mind. And as the day went on, he found himself getting angry at Bakugo whenever he saw him. The same anger that Todoroki would feel against his father. Then, the villains attacked and Bakugo was kidnapped. Todoroki knew he should feel some level of loss, but he couldn't help to feel that Bakugo deserved it. And again, Deku's offer swirled around in his mind, telling him to give in and betray his friends, more tempting than ever.

A grim group of UA students walked through the forest. They had just failed at saving their classmate and watched as he was taken from them. None of them knew what to say as they walked the long way back to the camp. That was until a figure appeared in the distance. A teenager with unmistakable green hair, that made them very cautious.

"Why the long face? Did they actually capture Kacchan?" Deku jokingly asked. "If it provides any comfort then know that Shigaraki wants him alive" He added. "What do you want?" Tokoyami asked, as he and the rest got ready for another fight. "Nothing really. I just want to get an answer to an offer I gave to one of you yesterday" Deku replied. The group of 1-A student immediately began looking at each other with suspicious looks, with one exception. "Come on now. Once I get my answer I'll leave right now, with or without you. But if you don't want to answer. Well, let's just say you won't like what happens next" Deku threatened.

After a few tense moments, Todoroki stepped forwards and began walking towards Deku. "Todoroki" Uraraka called out in disbelief, making him stop halfway. "Don't tell me you'll join him?" She asked. "I'm sorry, but he's right" Todoroki said. "He's a villain! They killed Iida!" She yelled. "Why does that matter?! Heroes aren't any better! At least he wants to change that" Todoroki shouted. "What are you talking about" Tsuyu almost whispered in disbelief. "Why can't you see it!? Bakugo deserved to be taken! He is a monster just like my father! And no one tries to do something about that except Deku" Todoroki hissed. "Why do you have to make it so difficult!?" He exclaimed. "Come on Todoroki. Do the right thing. Maintain the status quo or-" Deku said and extended his hand "-join me and make a new and better world" he finished.

Todoroki took one last glance at his classmates before making his decision. He turned away from them and walked to Deku, refusing to look back at them. "Good" Deku said and opened a green portal that they walked through, together.

Deku and Todoroki exited from the portal into a lab different from the one at the League of villains hideout. "I betrayed my friends. They trusted me" Todoroki whispered. Deku looked at him with a sympathetic look and place a hand on Todoroki's shoulder and looked him straight in the eyes. "I know that this is hard, but remember this. You didn't fail them, they failed you. They refused to see things from your point of view. Building their own image of who you should be instead of who you want to be, who you are meant to be. It will be difficult for a while, but you will get over it. And together, we will achieve great things" Deku said and let go. "Take the time you need to get yourself together. Progress can wait a bit" He added. "And when you are ready. I will help you become stronger than ever"

A/N: A new chapter so soon? What? You never played tuber simulator? Should I stop writing everything as a question? Yes, I should? All joking aside, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know I more or less skipped the entire attack, but nothing really changed so there wasn't any reason to just write an exact replica of what happened in canon. This chapter was made purely to focus on Todoroki's change of heart (roll credits, wait they are rolling). Once again, I hoped you enjoyed it and look forwards to what is yet to come. I hope you're all having a wonderful day. Goodbye.