The day started pretty normally, as anything could when you were quirkless in a world where everybody had some sort of power.

Izuku went to school. He knew what he was getting into. The stares, the name calling. Having Kacchan telling he should jump off the roof was a new addition that the teen had been trying out for a few days now and he got really creative about it. Ending up in the pound with his notebook by his side was not very nice but all he did was stand and keep on with his day. What else was there to do?

So Izuku walked home. He took the long road, just to be sure he didn't meet any of the bullies. From time to time they would actively seek him out to punch and kick the energy out. What could Izuku do anyway ? Once he was alone with them, he didn't have the strength to stand up on his own.

Standing up for others though, that was nice. When he faced Kacchan, his body like a wall between the explosive boy and his new found victim, some form of pride shone in his chest, warming him up a little bit, a different kind of warmth that the hands of the boy he called a friend for a long time.

Izuku liked to help others. It was his one true goal. Everytime he looked at his computer, at his hero, his idol, and saw All Might's smile to the camera, he felt some sort of envy. He, too, wanted to make people happy, to bring them safety, hope. So even if he had to face Kacchan's wrath, and the punches, the burns, the hits and kicks, he would do it. Because the other kid was safe, because it was better him than someone else. Maybe, one day, someone would see him the same way he saw All Might. Okay, that was a little far fetched, he wasn't anything like All Might. But maybe someone would be reassured he suddenly put himself between them and harm, maybe he would bring someone a flicker of hope.

That's what he thought while he walked in some alley, alone and fidgeting with his notebook. He looked over what he wrote in the morning, about the fight and the new heroes.

Mt. Lady and her growing quirk, Kamui Wood and, well, his wood quirk. He added some notes in the margin about a detail. The new heroes seemed very keen to the media, a little bit too focused on their image. And was Kamui Wood capable of creating any kind of wood? Any density? Could he make ebony wood? It would be far more heavy and perhaps harder to break, more efficient against villains. Or not, if he couldn't, Izuku wondered what kind of wood he could make, was it a special kind, since it was a quirk? Maybe a weird human-wood kind of thing since he seemed to be made of it. A unique form of wood, known and created only by the power of the hero. How flammable was it? How would the hero react if he encountered...

Completely unaware of his surroundings, Izuku was knocked over by someone. He immediately scrambled up, trying to fetch his notebook and pencil while bowing to apologies.

Instead, his eyes met with some creature, a mutant type very likely, and immediately after his mouth was filled.

His eyes watered, he tasted sewage water and trash and throwing up sounded like a great idea all of the sudden but his mouth was full and he started choking as the thing, person, something filled his airway little by little.

He was barely aware of hearing a voice, a muted "Thank you, you're my hero, I didn't know he was in town."

Panic clouded his mind. After everything he went through on an everyday basis, after all the pain and insults, all the loneliness and disgust, he would die like this. He couldn't even breathe. His head hurt, and his vision darkened.

And maybe that was really it.

Then he vaguely felt knocked over once again. He breathed. Or he thought he did. He hoped he still remembered how to. He wanted to cough, to spit out everything, to have his throat to himself again. Was it still there?

A voice was talking.

It became clearer and clearer, the black spots stopped dancing in front of him.

He was on the floor, lying on the street he didn't remember exactly where, his bag was somewhere on his left, his notebook near him with the pencil inside. His throat hurt and he was a little out of breath.

And All Might was staring at him from his incredible high, wearing his famous costume and...

All Might.

Staring at him.

Izuku jumped up, almost falling right back down and somehow managing to stay on his feet.

"Oh my god, All Might, I'm such-"

"Ah, yes. Glad to know you're alright. I thought I lost you here for a second. I must go."

Wait- no. Izuku had to ask him. He needed to know. It was All Might, he would tell him the truth. If anyone would believe in him, it would be the Number One hero, the symbol of peace. If anyone knew the hardships of hero life, but what made a true hero, it would be him.

"Wait, please, All Might, sir." He took his notebook off the ground, not caring a second about the pages still wet from earlier before shoving it as high as he could need the hero. "I need to know sir..."

"Ah, yes," he took the notebook and the pencil, signing it with practiced motions before closing it and giving it back to Izuku. "Now I must leave, young boy. Stay careful and fear not, for I Am Here."

The hero turned to leave. Izuku's eyes darted between his idol and his bag. A plastic bottle was dangling from the pocket of the hero, murderous eyes moving inside it. But Izuku didn't pay it any attention and went for his bag, grabbing it as quickly as he could. He then literally jumped on his idol, holding on for dear life on his leg as the floor went from right beneath his feet, to hundreds of meters under him. The wind was slapping his face, his eyes painful. He heard All Might complain, asking him to let go of him. He vaguely answered that it wouldn't be a good idea while his mind circled around one thought. Or perhaps two.

The floor was way too far from him and he would very much like to feel its safety very very soon.

And he needed to know.

Could he be a hero?

His one and only dream filled his head, his desire to prove himself, to help, to see people's eyes clouded by hope instead of fear, of pain. Sure, Kacchan, (and also the rest of the world), told him he couldn't do it. It was a stupid dream, a useless deku like him couldn't do much to anything, so being a hero was nothing but laughable. Or pitiful. He could still see it in his mother's eyes whenever he rambled about it. But if anyone would know, it would be All Might.

Because he was a hero. The hero. He should know better than Kacchan, than Mom, than Ito, or his teachers, than the other students. If Izuku had the slightest chance of ever being a hero, All Might would know.

They landed on a rooftop. Izuku felt so weak he almost fell right on his knee. He still kind of wanted to throw up from whatever slime person slash villain tried to make a house in his lungs. And this impromptu flight surely did not help.

Instead of that, he bowed. He stamered an apology, realizing how stupid his decision had been.

But he had to know.

"I'm- I don't have a quirk, but I always wanted to help... People keep telling me to give up and... Do you think I can be a hero?" He finally screamed, eyes screwed shut and heart beating in his chest like it wanted to leave.

He stood up straight again, his question right on his lips. Instead, he screamed.

Here was a man, an actual skeleton, his eyes hollowed and a far too large shirt hanging from bony shoulders. Blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth. It was honestly quite concerning.

"Where is All Might? And who are you?" Izuku asked. A cold sensation washed over him. His idol didn't even bother listening to him.

And who was this man? Was it his quirk that made him look so sickly? Was he okay? Perhaps Izuku should call an ambulance, maybe it was some sort of cancer or the effect of a quirk. Dehydration...

"That would be me." Izuku's thoughts shut down. "I know this is quite confusing. I'm All Might, symbol of peace and justice, number one hero and, well this."

"What happened to you?" This was very much not what he saw of All Might everyday. Maybe this was just some sort of joke. Kacchan really outdid himself if it was the case, what a cruel joke, to meet your idol, or a fake, to just end up with... this?

"Five years ago, I fought a villain." The man lifted his shirt and Izuku saw a painful looking scar cover the left side of the chest.

"Was it Venomous Chainsaw?" Izuku wondered out loud. Dread filled his entire body. Who, no scratch that, what could be strong enough to do that to All Might?

"No, hum, I managed to keep the media out of it, and out of the injury until now. But it became more and more serious and I slowly turned into this." He vaguely gestured to all of himself. "I can only stay in my muscle form, and do my hero work, around three hours a day anymore." The silence was heavy, All Might gently touched his wound as Izuku was panicking in his head. Why would the hero even say that to him, did he put him in danger, was it...

"Without a quirk... Being a hero is hard, you put the lives of others on your shoulders. You have to fight off evils of all kinds, you put yourself between others and harm-ways. Without a quirk... No, I cannot tell you you'd have a chance of being a hero," His voice rang in Izuku's ears.

He vaguely saw the hero stand up, listing a few other possibilities for a person such as him.

But all he could hear were the words 'No, you can't be a hero'

All Might didn't think he could be a hero. Even with the best intention, Izuku's quirklessness was too much to overcome. He was weak and couldn't help anyone.

It was just like Kacchan said, like the other said. He couldn't do anything. There was no way civilians could rely on him. He couldn't help them.

At some point, All Might left.

Why would he stay, he already did more than his job. He saved Izuku, poor little Izuku who couldn't even save himself. He brought him here, answered his questions. He might have shattered his dreams but hey, that was just life wasn't it. It had never been quite on his side since the beginning. Being born quirkless was not fun. Being born quirkless in a world where everyone had powers was even less so. So if All Might, The Hero, thought he couldn't be a hero, then it must mean he didn't.

Tears fell down his face. He felt rather hollow. He had been filled his entire life by this dream. What was he without it? He wasn't strong, he didn't have a power to use to balance his weakness. People did not like him. Not even his mother believed in his dream. What could he possibly do now?

Sitting lamely on the roof, his backpack abandoned by his side, Izuku emptied his tears, all the water in his body coming out in heavy salty streaks down his cheeks.

When he felt like he did not have one single tear left in his body, he decided to stand up. Going home. Yes. What else could he do?

As he walked to the door, his vision darkened and he felt himself fall.