What Should Have Been

    If he was being honest, Sir Nighteye's opinion of Mirio had started off neutral. His grades were subpar, to say the least, and he had a very loose grasp on the true power of his quirk. Of course, the boy wasn't completely hopeless, Sir was the one to seek him out in the first place after all. Mirio Togota had a fighting spirit. He had an unbridled determination and no matter how many times he failed he always came back with a smile even wider than before. In that particular sense, Mirio was the perfect person to inherit All Might's quirk. Mirio seemed to be the only one worthy of obtaining All Might's quirk and continuing the legacy of One For All. Sir repeatedly recommended the kid, but Toshinori hadn't bothered setting a date to even meet the kid, which Sir deemed a shame.

    Sir had trained Mirio near constantly, borderline working him to the bone. They trained after long school days, and sometimes even before. They went out patrolling more often than not. Mirio never shied away despite the overbearing tasks. He never even faltered. His academics skyrocketed, and soon he was one of the most revered students in the school. He was a fixer-upper, but Sir's positive reinforcement went a long way it seemed. In addition to his grades, Mirio quickly gained quirk comprehension skills. It was quite the sight to behold. Sir watched as Mirio perfectly passed through wall after wall. He became a worthy opponent, even against a pro like himself. He was perfect, the perfect vessel for One For All. Unfortunately, Toshinori was incredibly stubborn. Sir's pleas were left unheard and Toshinori was running out of time. Sir admired All Might, but wished that Toshinori wasn't so easily blindsided by his one-track mind. A few years passed without so much as a conversation between the two. Sir wasn't pleased, but he had other things to attend to. Mirio was going to be an astonishing hero regardless of if he was going to be All Might's successor or not. Lemillion was going to be a fantastic hero whether he was riding All Might's coattails or not. He didn't need One For All. They had so much work to do, Mirio was his obligation now.

    Without consulting Sir Nighteye, or even sparing him a glance in acknowledgement, All Might made his choice. Sir was irate. He had already found the perfect specimen, a smart, kind-hearted, smiling, bouder of a boy. Toshinori chose to pick some kid up off of the street. Sir had tried to leave it be, genuinely he did, and for a while he was able to remain ignorant. That is, until the kid in question waltzed into his agency. Being the former sidekick of All Might, there was no chance that he could decline the future of One For All, but he was not happy about it. Sir absolutely couldn't see the star quality that Toshinori had. He gave Izuku Midoriya a chance to prove himself, but he was met with grave disappointment because he was thinking about what it could have been if Toshinori had just listened for once. If Mirio had been put through the same trial, he still wouldn't have been able to retrieve the seal, but the crucial difference would be both of their demeanors. Midoriya had looked like he was going to cry at the end, Mirio would have branded an award-winning smile and taken his failed attempts in stride. Mirio had it all. Midoriya was not worthy. Mirio was what should have been. Toshinori Yagi truy made the worst decisions.

    On Sir's last day on Earth he was still confident about who he should have picked to be his successor. But Sir wasn't the one in that position. He wasn't the one leaving a legacy. He was forced to place his pride elsewhere. Regardless, here he was, impaled and bleeding profusely while watching Mirio in one of the most valiant fights Sir had ever seen. It was comparable to one of All Might's many victories. Sir wasn't fully lucid at the moment, he was dipping into a wooziness as he was reaching a critical amount of blood loss. He was, for only a few minutes, still holding onto his consciousness. He had noticed his heart swell in seeing Lemillion's arms outstretched to protect the child. A sublime selflessness like that was a rarity, especially in the go-go society that they were living in. It was somewhat grounding. Sir Nighteye was very compelled to continue watching, but he was lulled into a blurry, agonizing, semi-consciousness. He could see and hear, but it was muffled. His brain was foggy with the events of the night. He wasn't able to absorb any information until several surgeries later. Despite the efforts of the hospital and the miracle of modern medicine, Sir's prognosis was rather grim. He still had some unfinished business though.

    His eyes fluttered open. The room felt bright, although the lights were fairly dim. There were a few of his colleagues around him already, he had no idea how long he had been there. They weren't much for intriguing conversation, which left him wallowing in an intensely lonely atmosphere. At some point, Toshinori and Midoriya had come in. Their companionship wasn't worthless, in fact, it was rather impactful in itself. Sir told both of them that he held no sort of resentment, and that Midoriya may have been the key to a brighter future. Just a few simple pleasantries. The conversation was somber so Sir Nighteye was focused on another being entirely. He wondered about Mirio, his Lemillion. His hero who smiled no matter how hopeless the situation, who worked ceaselessly no matter how exhausted. His pupil who had been shot with a quirk-erasing bullet. He didn't have to think for long.

    "Sir!" A tense voice resonated through the room. His heart thumped against the walls of his chest. The voice was instantly recognizable. His charge, Mirio, had never sounded so despondent. Mirio pushed himself off of the door frame he was leaning on and rushed closer on wobbly knees. He had a cast on one of his legs, but, as expected, he still limped to Sir's bedside. Sir imagined it to be sore, but the boy's features painted a different kind of pained expression. His voice echoed through the room, cracking loudly. "You can't! Please, live!"

    Sir Nighteye's fate had been sealed the moment that his interns ran into Eri in the street that day. He couldn't bring himself to speak on such a disheartening matter. Instead, Sir found himself lamenting for Mirio. Words spilled from his mouth. Not about One For All, or All Might. Not about heroes, or the work that they still had to do, but about Mirio.

    "Mirio." His voice was frail and raspy. Tears beaded in the corners of his intern's eyes. Remorse tightened Sir's chest. "You suffered so much because of me. If only I had been-" The student was too choked up to let Sir finish. "It was because you taught that I was able to become strong! It was because you taught me that I am living like this now!" Tears had begun rolling down Mirio's cheeks, dripping down onto the tiled floor. A wet sob echoed in Sir's ears. Guilt piled on top of him.

    "Mirio, please forgive me." He paused, carefully picking the next words to leave his mouth. "At first, I only lured you in as a vessel for One For All." He didn't know if Mirio was able to hear him beneath his own gut-wrenching wailing. Sir had never seen him cry, let alone break down completely. He brought his hand up, resting it gingerly against the boy's cheek. "But you followed me and believed in me, and before I knew it, you became my pride."

    Sir Nighteye activated his quirk, a reel of the future playing in his mind. In his movie-esque sights, his blonde-haired charge was standing heroically. Lemillion flashed his trademark smile. Even after this horrid night in which he lost his quirk, he was still able to maintain his toothy smile. Mirio was always such a sight to behold, Sir knew that there was just something about him. He was worthy, more than so in actuality. It was a beautiful sight, but his vision soon blurred, a sign of his body losing functionality. A warm feeling incapacitated him, followed by a white throbbing pain shooting through his abdomen. His time was limited.

    "You'll be fine." He breathed. "You'll become a finer hero than anyone else." Mirio's tears streamed down the arm leaning against his face, Sir didn't seem to mind. "This is the only future that shouldn't be changed." He let his hand slide back down to the bed, too exhausted to keep it in the air any longer. A tight-lipped smile now encompassed his lips. Mirio's hurt seemed unrelenting. Every breath he took was shaky.

"So, smile."

    Despite the injured man's calm demeanor, a taut whimper escaped Mirio's throat. His eyes squinted shut, wishing away the future he knew was imminent. Sir's eyes stayed locked on his mentee, but he could also see All Might and Midoriya's disgruntled expressions behind him.

    "Smile. A society without cheer and humor will not have a bright future."

    He could physically feel his biological clock ticking down, only seconds were between himself and the cold embrace of death. All of his strength had been diminished.

    The last thing Sir Nighteye saw before his consciousness faded completely was the wide grin Mirio proudly displayed in due time.