Chapter Text
"Are you ready for this?"
It was a question that should not have made her falter. Ochako had steeled herself for this moment for weeks. Planning, anticipating, rehearsing for every question that could come. She spent countless hours agonizing over this culmination of everything she was and ever had been.
"Nope. Still not."
How could she possibly be ready for the end? For the first death knell? To fall from the stars back to Earth? To leave everything she had worked so hard for?
How could she be ready for the death of Uravity? How could she be prepared to watch her own hero fall?
"Me neither," the hero in question, still bearing the name she gave him, replied with a sheepish smile. "But I guess there's nothing more we can do about it. Just have to take the plunge."
He had changed so much over the years, and yet his smile remained the same. At 57, Izuku still looked incredible, his physique holding up impeccably well, despite the odd wrinkle on his face, slightly greying hair, and the many scars across his body beneath that costume. Age was creeping up on him, but he was still Deku, however much he was wearing down.
He was holding up a lot better than she was.
"Guess so," Ochako replied. She breathed out a deep sigh and reached out to grasp his hand. It was weathered, but as always, felt right to hold. "Together then?"
"Together to face the world." He squeezed her hand in reply and put on his trademark heroic smile.
"And everything else," Uravity said with a beaming grin as the two stepped forward, partners through it all.
The rapid clicking of camera shutters as they took the stage with a wave was as bracing as ever. They were far more robust than usual today, the reporters eager to capture the rare joint press conference between the iconic husband-and-wife duo. It was only the second time they had done this; the last one had been 35 years ago when they had announced they were starting their hero agency. That attracted less than half the eyes peering at them now.
They each took one of the prepared seats at the table, emblazoned with their agency's star-filled logo. Aides had everything prepared in advance for them: microphones, water, and a wide berth. Absolutely professional.
"Thank you all for coming," Deku began, his smile unfaltering. "It's wonderful to see you all."
"We're truly grateful for your coverage," Uravity said, meeting the eyes of many of the reporters in the room. "We could not do what we do without you."
Charm the press as much as possible before unleashing the storm. That was the plan.
"It truly is a wonderful time for our world." Izuku picked it up, launching into the buildup to their proper announcement. "We have a time of unparalleled peace. I am proud to be part of an incredible generation of heroes that have helped bring crime to a standstill. I am also supportive of the efforts of our governments to address villainy at the root, and slowly move back from relying on professional heroes."
The next generation might be the last, they both knew. They were okay with that. The cycle of violence needed to stop eventually. They had pushed where they could to help bring about real, societal change.
"It is because of the current state of the world that we feel comfortable doing this," Izuku continued, his face suddenly becoming far stonier.
This was it - her cue. With a deep breath, she uttered the words that would change the world forever.
"We're retiring."
The room shuddered with the energy of the statement. "No!" Someone cried, completely losing composure. Gasps and murmurs rippled through the crowd followed swiftly by the whirring of more camera shutters.
"Now, we know it may be alarming," Deku said with a little more force, his tone shifting to exude calm. "And it won't be right away - we haven't settled on an exact date, but we figure it will be roughly six months. We've given it a lot of thought, and we feel the time is right. We aren't getting any younger, and it's time to leave things to the next generation."
"We've both been able to achieve everything we set out to do when we started." Ochako did her utmost to maintain her composure, but it was difficult as she reflected on everything: fighting villains, saving lives, overcoming it all by Deku's side. The memories of all the battles they fought together flashed rapidly through her mind, culminating at this moment.
She momentarily glanced sidelong at her husband, who was wearing a small smile but doing nothing to hide the tears at the edges of his eyes.
"I'm proud of the legacy we've left behind and all the people we've been able to help," she continued, swallowing back her own tears. "I think we can both comfortably say we can move on without regrets."
She stretched her arms out, leaning slightly back in her chair in an exaggerated motion.
"And finally, get a much-deserved tropical vacation."
That got the desired chuckle out of the room. Throwing out humour to put the media in a good mood; always a good tactic.
"We'll take some questions," Izuku said, causing the room to erupt with pushy reporters desperate to get quotes for their puff pieces.
He pointed to the front row at an older reporter with a thick, white mustache and glasses. "Rupert McGuire, National Hero News. Deku, you've been the number-one hero for so long now - you just surpassed All Might's record two months ago. When he retired, it left a massive void and led to a rise in villainy in our country. How concerned are you that your retirement might do the same?"
"Not at all," Deku replied with ease, maintaining a calm facade. It was always mesmerizing to watch him bat off difficult questions; he had gotten a lot better at it over the years, as he learned to push past his anxieties. "I imagine there might be a villain or two that sees this as an opportunity, but our society is protected by hundreds of incredible heroes, with more bright ones coming. Our country is in very capable hands."
Deku quickly pointed to another reporter, a middle-aged woman in the middle of the crowd.
"Hi, Sakura Ito, Japan Today. Deku, what would you say to the millions of people that look up to you, who are going to be hurt by your retirement?"
"I know it is a tough thing to face. I remember how bad it felt to see All Might get forced into retirement all those years ago." Deku's smile faltered for a moment, the wrinkles under his eyes growing more pronounced at the mention of his fallen idol.
Ochako acted quickly, reaching her hand out to squeeze his over the table. It seemed to snap him back to attention, and his eyes met hers, a grateful smile blossoming again on his face.
"I appreciate everybody who has supported me and cheered me on over these years. But all things must come to an end eventually. You can hang on to your memories of me, but make sure you're getting out there to be the best person you can be. And please, cheer on other heroes, too! I know there are quite a few underappreciated pros out there who could use a few more fans."
Ochako heard approving murmurs in the crowd, a few journalists scribbling into notepads or typing into laptops about the quotes. A telltale sign of a comment well-delivered.
"Hi, a question for Uravity!" A younger woman reporter near the back shouted out when Deku called on her, her short, dark hair frazzled and her glasses eschew. She looked nervous - and forgot to name herself or her station- but Ochako found it oddly endearing. She felt nostalgic for her own younger days, fighting through nerves in her first days as a pro.
"You've said before your husband has been your hero since you were in high school. How do you feel seeing him retire?"
She reeled slightly at the question, the first unexpected one of the bunch. It was a little odd - posing a question to her about him. It also was not something she had given much thought to, so mired in her own retirement and the immediate logistics of it all.
She chanced a glance over at him. He looked at her with a slight grimace, clearly unhappy to have had a question slip through their meticulous preparations.
But Ochako could always improvise in an unexpected situation.
"It's a little hard to think about him retiring. It hasn't completely sunk in yet, to be honest." She smiled gently out to the audience, radiating calm. "I suppose I will miss seeing him out there, doing all the incredible feats of heroism that I always knew he could."
Ochako drew her gaze back to her partner again, whose green eyes were focused intently on her, full of reverence. "But I fell in love with the man behind the costume, and I'm looking forward to spending more time with him, too."
She could practically hear the squeals of fans in the distance at that line, alongside the rapid typing. It was pretty good for something off the cuff, but it was true, too. They had given their lives towards helping the world and their families; now, they could give a little bit more time for themselves.
"I know I'm going to miss Uravity a lot," Deku said suddenly, forcing Ochako to snap back to look at him, his eyes suddenly staring at her with burning energy. "She's been such an incredible hero for so long; it's hard to imagine a world without her helping to lift it. I'm definitely sad she's retiring. But it'll be nice to get away and be together."
She beamed at him, placing a hand over her chest. Leave it to him to surprise her with something so heartfelt, even in a setting such as this. She knew it was going to be tough hearing more of that from people upset about her retirement, but she'd have to get through it.
But questions for her did not come after that. Nearly all of them were for Deku, the press far more interested in the loss of Japan's number-one hero.
"Deku, what is going to happen to your agency?" It was their agency.
"Question for Deku, where are you going to be going on your vacation?" It was their vacation.
"Deku, how have your kids reacted to this?" They were their children.
"Deku, what advice would you give to the aspiring heroes of today?" She could have given that advice, too.
"Uravity, how would you describe your husband's emotions as you've talked about retirement?" Why was she getting asked about him again?
She became bored eventually, sighing and leaning on her hand, not that the crowd before them took any notice. They had expected more questions for Deku, of course, but she did not think it would be this pronounced. By the time they got to the end, she realized the only questions she got had been to get her to talk about him, even if in the context of her feelings. She had never been a hero who cared much for the spotlight, but she had some pride as a professional who had consistently remained in the top-20, often breaking into the top-10 as well.
But it could not be helped. It was hard to shine standing next to a supernova, after all. She always knew that.
"That's all the time we have for today," Deku announced suddenly, snapping her from her melancholy. "But we'll see you around in the months to come. Thank you!"
The two got up in unison, bowing respectfully to their audience before walking backstage, conscious of more whirring camera shudders. They kept up appearances best they could until they were safely away from the prying eyes.
"Well, I guess that went alright," Izuku muttered as they made their way to the back exit of the building, a ride back home awaiting them outside. He glanced towards her as they walked, his lips curling downwards. "How are you feeling?
"I'm just glad it's over with." She groaned, remembering their staring eyes, rarely on her, but still expecting her to uphold a heroic image. "Though I hardly had to do much compared to you. I was starting to feel like I got Toru's invisibility.
He chuckled slightly at that. "I'm sorry about how that turned out. But you did really well when they did ask you a question! And at least we can be a bit more controlled with media appearances from here on out."
"Don't remind me that we'll have to do more of this," she said, giving him a playful bump with her shoulder. "I want at least a 48-hour grace period."
"We can check with our agents. It could be a little hard, though. It may not be possible to escape, with how everyone is going to react."
They stepped outside into the bright day, another swarm of cameras sounding in the distance, though the reporters were held back by a security line.
As they walked towards the sleek, dark vehicle that would carry them away, Izuku stepped in front of her. Under the bright sun, Ochako wondered if the cameras could see her walking in his shadow.
People bathed the city streets in Ochako's favourite shade of green, her husband's face plastered everywhere she looked.
She smiled as she waited in an alley, looking out over a fairly empty sidewalk. Across from her, she could see a simple convenience store with multiple posters hanging in its windows, Deku's green costume prominent, striking a heroic pose for the camera. Such images spread like wildfire throughout the city - both because people wanted to show their appreciation and stores wanted to cash in.
It did her heart good to witness. Deku had no lack of admiration or respect, but she was glad to see the world truly did love him, just like she did. Even as he ascended to number one, there was always a small part of himself nagging, doubting, wondering if he could truly match All Might and inspire people as he did. The near-mourning the city was in over his impending retirement would hopefully disavow him of those lingering fears.
She felt a low buzz in her helmet, indicating it was time to get into action. She stepped forward, projecting loudly.
"Stand aside, everyone; clear the way! Please, stand away from the street; a runaway vehicle is coming this way!" she shouted, stepping onto the very edge of the barren sidewalk.
The few pedestrians in the area responded, moving away from the road, but stopping to gawk at the heroic work about to take place, a few phones coming out of pockets.
"Don't worry; everything is going to be okay!" she shouted, flashing a thumbs-up.
She glanced toward a corner in her heads-up display on her visor, where a low timer was ticking down.
Their estimated time of arrival was five seconds.
A dark van sped through the streets, approaching her, making its way to the end of the city through side roads in an erratic pattern. It carried three bank robbers, fresh off a heist.
Three.
The van blared its horn to get people out of the way. The vehicle was not losing any speed, ready to run anyone down if necessary.
One.
She stepped forward to tag the runaway vehicle with her Quirk, timing it precisely so she could step back and forth very casually, without any substantive risk other than sore fingertips. With her Quirk triggered, the van lost traction on the road, its occupants screaming as it floated upwards, losing speed as the air dragged onto it.
Uravity shot wires out of her two gauntlets, which automatically wrapped their way around the sky-bound vehicle. With a quick jerk, she ended its forward momentum, yanking the van back towards the earth.
She carefully guided the vehicle back towards her, pulling until it was just above the ground. She peeked into the window to see a driver wearing a dark mask shaking, and someone else on the passenger side passed out from the rough jerk of her maneuver.
"Surrender peacefully, and I won't send you flying again," Uravity shouted forcefully, body tense, ready to move if the perpetrators attempted to flee.
"I give, I give!" a deep voice sounded from the driver, hands going up on instinct. The car's wheels kept spinning fruitlessly, stuck in mid-air.
Uravity quickly tapped a button at the side of her ear, communicating with mission control. "Vehicle stopped. Need some support and medical; one of them might have a concussion."
"Police on their way. Nicely done as always, Uravity."
Backup arrived before long, quickly helping her apprehend the villains and secure the stolen goods.
By the time she finished, the area had already cleared, nobody around to cheer her on and appreciate the flawless takedown. That is the way it went sometimes. With so many heroes doing incredible feats every day, the little stuff could get lost beneath the cracks. Every hero she knew had gone through that at some point or another.
Still, the streets felt a little lonely as she walked around and continued her patrol, keeping an eye out, awaiting any word of someone in need. She went largely unnoticed as she made her way around, the very occasional greeting doing little to counter the strange sense of isolation.
These were the last days of Uravity, but that had changed nothing about the world.
"...Deku once again amazed us today by taking down another destructive villain at the north side of the city."
A small crowd had gathered outside an electronics store where televisions in the window were playing the news, framed by more Deku posters. It had become a widespread tactic; even non-electronics stores might stick televisions in their displays, airing whatever snippets of Deku coverage they could to attract people to glance at their wares.
She stopped to watch as her husband stared down a burly, oversized villain. The foe punched downwards, breaking the concrete, tearing off a large chunk of it with his bare hands and throwing it at the statuesque Deku.
The camera could not track what happened next; Deku vanished, there was a blur, and the villain was face down in the ground, completely incapacitated. Deku stood victorious above him.
"He's so cool!" A small child in the crowd next to her shouted, jumping up and down.
"It's a real shame he's retiring so soon. What are we going to do without him?" A senior said from the back, shaking his head, frowning.
"He was the best hero there ever was. Even greater than All Might, I think."
"He's gonna go down in history!"
"I'm just glad no one was hurt," Deku's voice said suddenly, his face centred in the frame, a pleasant smile etched upon it. "It was a good group effort to keep the damage contained."
"Any words for your adoring fans upset about your retirement?" a reporter's voice asked.
"I've been touched by all the well-wishers lately," Deku replied calmly, scratching at his head. "But, I promise you'll all be in good hands!"
"Well, there you have it. The world's greatest hero still saving lives in his final days. Truly, we are watching the end of a legend. Back to you."
Uravity walked away as the crowd cheered, eating it up. She smiled wistfully, her own heart soaring at seeing her hero do so well and be so beloved.
Yes, soon they would reach the end of his legend. The name she had helped give him would be retired and move to the pages of the history books while they lived out their days in peace, hopefully. They would tell his story, and she was thankful for it. He deserved it.
She continued to walk, a ghost in the streets as people's attention focused on their descending idol.
Nobody would care much as she ended her hero days. That was fine. She had done everything she wanted to as a hero. She could be content. Her story would stay with her family and friends. She could be okay with that.
Couldn't she?