Chapter Text
Izuku never knew his mother. She died when he was too young to truly knew her. He had a few hazy memories of her, but nothing absolutely clear. He probably wouldn’t even remember what she looked like if it weren’t for the locket he’d received right before she died. The one thing Izuku knew for certain was that if she were alive Inko would be leagues better than his father. A father who saw him as a burden. A father with no love to give him. A father who was a wanted villain.
Yes, Hisashi Midoriya was the villain Pyro, and he never failed to painfully remind Izuku. Whether it was breathing fire towards him enough to scare him, slapping him across the face, or coming home a boasting Izuku knew who his father was. A terrible villain who plagued his life. Yet he still held out hope he could achieve his dream. His dream of being a hero. No matter how hard Hisashi tried he could not sway the small boy.
Whenever his father was away Izuku would he would turn on the news hoping that someone would finally catch his father. Instead, he would find that Hisashi evaded capture yet again. Each time he heard that Izuku would despair a little more before switching off the T.V. and heading to his room to hide before his father came home. As of late Hisashi was getting more and more irritable because Izuku’s quirk had yet to show itself. Today was no exception.
Izuku was in his room when he heard the front door slam. The picture of All Might he had been working on now had a line across it from him being startled by the sound. In a panic, he hid the picture under his pillow and pulled out a notebook he practiced writing in. With a pounding heart, Izuku had barely enough time to start writing before his father opened the door to see that he was there still. Instantly he stood and faced his father who was looking at him expectantly.
“Has your quirk come in yet, Brat?” Hisashi asked venom dripping with every word.
Izuku shook his head as he closed his eyes. Hisashi just huffed and left closing the door behind him. Izuku sighed in relief that he escaped his father’s abuse for once. He didn't know why his father wanted his quirk to come in, and he felt that he didn't want to know the answer. Izuku hoped he would get his mother's telekinesis because then maybe he could be a good hero. Free from his father. But fate wouldn't be so kind.
A week his fifth birthday was when his quirk finally showed itself. He had been watching the news about a new underground hero when his father got home. In a panic, he went to turn off the TV but he was too slow. He felt himself get lifted by his shirt then thrown to the floor.
"WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT WATCHING THE NEWS?" Hisashi bellowed at the child.
"N-Not too, Sir." Izuku whimpered and curled into a ball covering his face.
Hisashi stormed over and hosted Izuku up by his hair. The boy's arms were still in front of his face in an attempt to defend himself. Hisashi leaned in close to his face with flames licking at his lips. Izuku was fighting back tears as he felt the heat of the flames.
"You will never be a hero, boy." Hisashi said, "Because you are the spawn of a villain."
Izuku felt something in his chest that started as despair before it changed warm and hopeful. As if on instinct he willed his father to get away from him. Instantly his father was thrown away from him and rammed into a wall. At first, he was over the moon because he had gotten his mom's quirk instead of his fathers. Then he looked down and saw the fire that was engulfing his hands. The happiness he felt went up in flames as he realized he'd always have part of his father with him. So he fell to his knees and cried. Because with the quirk of a villain, how could he ever be a hero?
~~~
Two years later on his birthday, Izuku found himself sitting on the edge of the roof of his apartment building looking out over the city. He had started making a habit of going to the roof after school to avoid his father for as long as possible. Today was no different despite it being his birthday. He was holding his mother’s locket with one hand debating if he wanted to open it. In the end he decided to and looked down at it. Of the two slots for pictures only one of them actually had a picture. It was of his mother holding him as a baby beaming at the camera. The sight of his mother that he didn’t really know caused him to sniffle.
“Hey Mama,” Izuku sniffed, “today is my birthday! Though I bet you already knew that. School has been mostly fine people still try to poke at me to show my quirk. But I don’t because I don’t want to be like him. I helped another kid that was getting bullied today! I know I can’t be a hero, but I can’t watch someone get hurt.” Izuku felt more tears fall down his face. “I wish you were here Mama. I hope you’re resting well.” With that he closed the lockett and started to sob into his hands.
After a few minutes he stopped again and looked out at the city and at the people bustling around. Out of the corner of his eye Izuku saw movement so he turned to look at it expecting to see a bird. However, what he did not anticipate seeing was the hero who had just landed on the roof. Izuku sucked in air his jade-green eyes going wide like saucers. The hero clad in black slowly approached him speaking, but he didn’t hear a word. Because this was the hero who had been after his father for a year now, so he quickly became his favorite.
“Eraserhead.” Was all he managed before he started crying tears of relief. Because maybe, just maybe, he could be saved.