Why do you want to be a hero, even when you're quirkless?

Chapter 6 - 10 Months Later

Izuku's POV:

It's been 10 months since I first started training. And sure enough, I now have a quirk to call my own. Kacchan was true to his word and protected me from all of the bullies and helped me in training. He has had a lot of snarky comments and at first, he did get a busted lip or some scuffs from fighting off those bullies. You can obviously imagine how crooked the bullies' mugs were. When my mother first saw us hanging out after school, she was confused since she knew Kacchan bullied and hurt me. But after some explaining and a lot of apologies from Kacchan, mum has accepted our friendship. I think a big part was Kacchan's speech about me being a good hero, she was obviously skeptical about him but these past few months have really made all of us closer. Auntie Mitsuki even told me how Kacchan has been less violent, he still yells and screams but apparently he was destroying a lot of furniture to release stress. I never knew he was going through some really strong inner demons but I think both of us are better thanks to the villain incident.

I'm now strong enough to be a great hero and Kacchan's now opened his heart to me and others. He's not cursing people left and right, he still does it but it's not nearly as bad. The training I went through was intense, there was a brief moment where I pushed myself too hard against Neko and I almost couldn't get out of bed because I was so sore and tired. But after 8 months, I ended up receiving my quirk. The next 2 months were about training my newfound power and let me tell you, the first time I used it I collapsed just from the pain. It took me an entire week to be able to use it properly without having the severe backlash, but in the end it all worked out.

I also trained against Neko and Orchards quirks, so you know I got some more data to add to my notebook:
Neko's quirk is called 'Flash Step', it allows him to move faster than the naked eye but for two seconds at a time. And he needs to wait 10-30 seconds before he can use it again. When I fought him, I had analysed his fighting style and I even learned how to move fluidly when fighting but I couldn't account for his incredible speed. Long story short, I got knocked out within the first minute.
Orchard's quirk however is called 'Rose Thorn', it lets her summon vines and roses from her entire body. The vines have thorns that can extend to 10 inches and can be used for restraints or offensive capabilities. Her roses are mainly for defense and can summon a shield or can reflect sunlight to blind her opponents. I know first hand how useful her quirk can be.

"Izuku, time to wake up! It's the entrance exam" the sound of my mother's voice pulled me out of my daze and back to reality. And in this reality, I really feel like I can vomit on command. I'm so nervous for the entrance exams that I could black out from every emotion possible. I woke up an hour ago because I couldn't sleep properly. Whilst I'm confident I have the training necessary to pull off my success, I'm just afraid I'll mess everything up and fail because I'm not good enough. Kacchan would definitely call me a dumbass for worrying so much. But it's almost second nature at this point and I don't want Yosuke, Orchard and Neko's hard work to be wasted because I'm just a useless Deku.

  "I'll be there soon mum, just have to put my shoes on"

  "Okay sweetie, I made you breakfast" I could already smell it, the slightly sweet aroma of the Tamagoyaki (rolled egg omelette) wafting through our small apartment. We sit down and enjoy breakfast, as I am in an intense train of thought my mother places a hand on my shoulder. Likely to reassure me.

  "Izuku, ... if you don't make it to the hero course, remember it's not the end of the world. You'll always be a hero to me and Katsuki" as much as I love mum, she sometimes doesn't know what to say. I want to be encouraged, I want to hear her say that I WILL be a pro hero. I know she loves me and cares deeply about me but I just want to hear those words from her just like I heard them from Kacchan.

  "Thanks mum, but I'll do fine. Kacchan trained me over these few months so I should be able to hold my own" I still haven't told her about Yosuke, I wanted to but I figured she would worry too much and report Yosuke to the authorities.

  "Love you sweetie, stay safe" she says as I leave out apartment. On my way to UA, I start thinking about whether or not I made the right choice. I made a deal with a vigilante organisation, one whose ideals I agree with, but I may be dragged into their ranks. Do they want me as a member, am I going to have to do favours fo them? These are all the questions that run through my head, soon enough, I am brought out of my thoughts when my phone starts ringing the second I leave the train. I see that it's Yosuke, I have his name saved as 'Gayest Spider', I then answer his call, not wanting to keep him waiting.

  "Hi Yosuke, I'm just about to get to U.A" U.A is about a 10 minute walk from the train station and I know I have plenty of time to mentally prepare for today even when I feel like I'll collapse.

  "Today's the day huh, well you'll pass. I know these past ten months weren't for nothing so you'll pass the exam for sure"

  "How are you so confident? You don't know me well enough to tell whether or not I'll do good" he always has faith in me, I have a lot of anxiety and doubts about myself and to have people praise and reassure me, it really helps me when I feel at my lowest.

  "I know you really well, did you think I let your stories go in and out my ears? I know your favourite colour is red, your favourite food is Katsudon, your favourite hero is All Might, you use to play hero and villain with your mother and Bakugo, you thought you would have a strong telekinesis when you were a small child, you and Bakugo came up with the nickname Wonder Duo for your hero agency"

  "Okay, okay, I get it, you know a lot of random facts about me that mean nothing" as he was about to continue our banter, "Hold that thought, Kacchan's coming over, I'll let you know how I did" I found myself outside U.A's security gate, Kacchan waiting on the opposite side.

  "Alright, bye Izuku"

  "Bye Yosuke"

"You ready nerd?" Kacchan says as smug as ever, he has nothing to worry about. I know Kacchan is capable of anything, whereas I keep messing up to the point where I believe it myself that I'm a useless Deku.

"As ready as I'll ever be Kacchan" I just smile and look forward at my dream. But on the inside I feel like crying.

  And just when I say that I instantly trip, and as I brace for impact, I feel a light tap on my shoulder and then suddenly, everything within me feels like air.

  "Sorry I used my quirk on you, I figured you wouldn't mind as long as you didn't faceplant into the ground" as I look towards the voice, I see a small Brunette with pink cheeks lift me back to standing. She taps her fingers together and all my weight returns.

"That's okay, thank you for that"

"That's alright, good luck in the exams" a girl being nice to me, this is a new frontier for me. Usually people just look at me in laughter, disgust or just ignore me all together. The price of being quirkless.

"So, your face got pink real quick" now that Kacchan said it, I do feel a bit flushed. I don't know why, is this just me being socially awkward for about ten years?

"Shut up Kacchan, let's just go in"