Work Text:
Aizawa-sensei’s voice droned on senselessly, clashing over Izuku’s ears like the gentle lapping of waves at the beach, shifting sandy brain particles lazily with each break, foaming with white bubbles and percolating deep into the sand of his memory without any recollection of the words he was subconsciously absorbing. He peered out over the windowsill, gazing deeply at the uncanny cloud shapes that merged into familiar faces the longer he stared, flickering in from old middle school classmates to past heroes he read up on months ago. The greyish clouds drifted past in no particular hurry, dragging his attention with it as they tumbled out of view.
It was some boring Ethics class he was ignoring – too much spontaneous research during inevitable free time in middle school granted so much knowledge on morality that these facts about vigilantes were already burned into his brain like his birthday or his age. (It totally wasn’t the consideration of his own dubious heroic career that pressured him to knowing his stuff, not all all!)
Everyone else was probably paying attention, hell, even starting up a heated, passionate discussion right now while Izuku was logged out, lights on with no one home. It was definitely an important topic, don’t get him wrong! But he didn’t particularly need to be fully present and engaged. He could peacefully dedicate his thoughts to more purposeful meaning. Like scattered hero analysis and brief ponderings about anything the vestiges happened to bring out in the mind space. On that note, he should probably look into Black Whip’s emotional ties more deeply next time he trains with All Might…
It was quite strongly linked to his stronger feelings like anger and frustration, often acting on its own out of line. (And getting him in constant trouble – he was called Problem Child for a reason!) It had even manifested itself during a heated training exercise! Fifth had said that the key was to control his emotions, but Izuku knew that was harder that it seemed. Who could actually stop their anger all the time? He rolled his eyes internally. Guess he would need to figure that out and make All Might proud!
Well, notes on last training session was the increased control, oddly enough. He’d been doing some alternate methods with the help of Sero, Tsu, Uraraka and Kacchan, mostly to improve on his mid-air movement and dodging capabilities using Float and Blackwhip simultaneously. It was actually working super well too, with Sero and Tsu helping more so with Blackwhip and where to use it, and Uraraka aiding with her expertise in floating. And, well, Kacchan was exploding things as per usual.
He clicked his pen on and off, affecting interest in the flight of some fortunate bird beyond the UA walls. He can’t hear its squawks, but he imagines they sound quite loud and powerful, judging the bird’s incredible size.
“Hmm, seems like an eagle of some sort. Odd to see it out around these parts – wouldn’t it be too urban for birds of prey?” Seventh ponders from the void, sparking a new discussion over Izuku’s misplaced feathered friend. The chattering hums in his head, the words unintelligible for the most part since he wasn’t paying any attention to the amicable conversation between seven bored-to-undeath vestiges.
He thinks back to the enjoyable training session – even though so much progress had been made, shockingly little training had been taken seriously, their time more filled with more giggles and hypotheticals than actual hardcore training when he practiced solo. Normally, his newly manifested quirks were a source of frustration and annoyance for the one quirk he could never make sense of. Every time those feelings bubbled up, he expelled them in passionate, driven training to relieve the pent-up irritation. Huh, could Blackwhip was linked to certain emotions? It was certainly a different vibe to his other sessions…
“Hm, what an interesting development, Ninth! Now, I was a laid-back hero myself, so could that go towards your theory? Also, test mine while you’re at it! That’s totally an eagle over there!” Fifth exclaimed, probably waving his arms around as if exaggeration would prove his point. Izuku humours him and glances out of the window again. Huh, maybe the eagle call wasn’t too far off—
A bang fires off with a screech, sparks flying and searing his palm, causing him to yelp in surprise. His pen explodes with familiar green sparks, the cogs and springs bouncing off and smacking his classmates dab in the temple. He stifles a snort only by focusing on the smoking remains of his favourite pen. Really, this was not the time for weird One for All shit. (Would he ever catch a freaking break?) His head blows up with half-excited, half-done shrieks of surprise as the boring classroom atmosphere was forcefully shattered by Izuku’s antics. Well, his quirk’s, more accurately. Wow, Aizawa-sensei might be going somewhere with that “Problem Child” title.
His hand stings painfully, like a friction burn had graced him with its inconveniencing presence. Glancing down, he finds he was probably right, his palm still buzzing with leftover energy and shaking slightly. The piercing needle-like sensations drill into his hand with a lingering ferocity, and Izuku winces at the leftover—is that smoke?!
“Holy shit Midoriya!” Kaminari shouts as the fizzling pen parts spin around the floor, weirdly still with enough energy to strain and bounce with elasticity. How were they even doing that? The class was still erupting in a cacophony of noise, but he could only focus on the exclamations in his own head.
“I think that was Third’s quirk…” Sixth whispers helpfully. Izuku could only mentally facepalm. So many of his quirks had manifested quickly and threw him in a loop – mostly during training exercises where the new quirk scared the shit out of everyone. And now they were upgrading to the classroom? Sheesh, give him a break. He’d have to get this whole thing explained to his friends too, well, after he knew what was happening.
“My quirk has manifested in an interesting way, actually. I thought it would be a more deliberate decision to use it, but I guess you are due another explanation.” Third informed him. “Sorry about the hand. Friction is an enemy we all need.” Izuku huffed half-heartedly in response, tilting his face down and hiding his smirk.
“Problem child, please say you’re kidding. I don’t think I can deal with ‘another new quirk aspect’.” Aizawa-sensei has a desperate glint in his eye, and half of him feels bad for the situation his teacher finds himself in. The other part is giggling at how ironic it was that the one time he caused trouble in the classroom Aizawa had to be present. The man sighs dejectedly and takes a long chug of his coffee while Izuku shrugs lopsidedly. “Great. You can run off to Recovery Girl now – she’ll sure be thrilled to see you. Again.” Izuku could see another piece of his teacher’s sanity chipping away in his eyes, and while he felt pity for him, he felt more for himself.
A shiver had run down his spine at the mention of Recovery Girl’s name.
The classroom fell quiet, the air tense in respect for their fallen classmate. “Good luck Deku!” Uraraka whisper-yelled, imitating a “rest in piece” motion while stifling her giggles behind her palm. A glare from Aizawa-sensei silenced her, but the class still hissed in sympathy as Izuku trekked to the door and sealed his fate.
“Yes sir…”
“Damn, boy, you’re giving Toshinori a run for his money, always getting into trouble, you.” Recovery Girl scolded him, rapping her cane lightly on his head in punishment. Izuku thought that one was slightly unjust. He didn’t even break anything! Was it even his fault if another quirk decided to manifest without his permission anyways?
He chuffed under his breath instead of voicing his displeasure, not willing to face any more wrath from the retired pro than necessary. His hand was now wrapped in soft bandages, rendering him unable to clench his fists but it was a small price to pay, he guessed. Better than shattered limbs at any rate. Izuku would just have to figure out another way to take notes till he could fix his hand, since Recovery Girl wasn’t likely to use her quirk on such a small, insignificant injury—
“Here, settle down now in this bed. I’ll heal you, but make sure you have this all figured out when you wake, you hear me?” She pushes him down onto the plush sheets of the hospital bed he had been perching on, silencing his protests with a quirked kiss to his forehead. The stinging in his palm ceased as a wave of exhaustion washes over him like gentle lapping waves. He must still be carrying some form of injury from last night’s late training session. He melted into the mattress, shutting his eyes are succumbing to the nagging urge to sleep.
Peeling his eyes open, he’s greeted by the familiar shifting darkness he’s come to associate with the Void. Their was a faint buzzing in his ears – white noise that hummed under his skin, brimming with energy and shifting around in the air with potent force. The inky black mist coats his body so only his eyes peered out like an eerie illusion. It used to be a limitation, barring off his communication, but after learning a simple way to talk through his own mind (which had definitely baffled him when the voices stuck around in the waking world) it was more of a comfort to lean into the mist than a hinderance.
“Ninth! Congrats on your very first semi-normal quirk awakening! This deserves a celebration.” Fifth winks, lumbering over to sling his arms over Izuku’s shoulder with a brute force that might have knocked him to his knees if he wasn’t in his own mind space. “Any alcohol?” He jokes, firmly ignoring Second’s eye roll as he guides Izuku over to the gathered group. Their expressions vary from proud smirks (courtesy of Seventh and surprisingly First) to concerned furrowed brows from Third and Sixth. All Might’s mental projection stands mutely behind Seventh, looming silently with a puzzled look.
“Well, I certainly wasn’t expecting Third’s quirk so soon…” First whispers to himself, chewing on a fingernail absently, deep in thought. “I was considering Smokescreen or even Danger Sense, but I guess it’s Third’s turn to teach you how to handle his quirk.”
“Hopefully better than whatever job Fifth attempted. I swear Ninth’s classmates were a better help.” Second huffs, dodging the string of Blackwhip charging for his head and throwing up his middle finger at Fifth’s loud squawking protests that he “did an excellent job, thank you very much!”
“You all fight like toddlers, you wouldn’t believe you’ve spent decades in here with each other.” Fourth mumbles, eyes shut to block out the incessant bickering. Izuku could relate – his attention span had significantly suffered after the introduction of seven voices (and half a spirit) roaming his consciousness and unconsciousness. Talk about greedy attention hoggers! The conflicting opinions often triggered indecisiveness and opposing preferences over simple things like lunch options or what show he started in his free time and encroached on his own likings most of the time. However, gradually it shifted into a weary acceptance with his incompatible preferences and an ordinary 'quirk' of his everyday life.
His bets were that One for All aided in that aspect of linking him to the vestiges, and he had suspicions that the same slow process he undertook didn’t take place for the other ghosts haunting his head.
“Are you sure you actually have time to teach me? I don’t know how long I’ll actually be here and Recovery Girl was pretty demanding about learning about this quirk so I don’t want to risk biting off more than we can chew. Also, what even is your quirk? We’ve never really discussed it so I’m kind of going in blind here… also I'm considering something to do with energy manipulation considering that pen spring was still bouncing and all, but I haven’t actually confirmed anything, you know being rushed to Recovery Girl like some kind of humiliation ritual—”
“—Woah, slow down there Ninth. The words aren’t gonna run away you know?” Sixth chuckles and hides his grin in his collar as Izuku waves his hands around and flushes in embarrassment. “Also, I think you’re scaring Third.” The younger user points over to a wide-eyed Third who definitely hadn’t processed a single word Izuku spat at him in his mumbles.
“Oops, sorry Third! Just wondering if we have time for a full explanation and impromptu training session before I wake up.” Izuku sheepishly scratches the back of his neck under the blanket of fog, willing away the mortification that hits after a particularly long muttering spiel in front of others.
“I’d guess there’s plenty of time, Ninth. You were more tired than you thought you were. I think you need to take care of yourself better – you are just like my Toshi in that aspect, one hundred percent.” Seventh ruffles his hair fondly before stepping back. “Well, we’d all better allow you some alone time with your new mentor, Ninth! Good luck now!” She pulls away from the group, the other vestiges following till he and Third stood by themselves. He could still hear the others talking senselessly in the back of his mind, but he pushed it away in favour of concentrating on the due explanation.
“Well, I guess it’s introduction time.” Third made a lame attempt at jazz hands which caused the mist to ripple from his sniggers. “Sorry, that was awkward. So, my quirk is called Fajin. It allows you to store up kinetic energy from repetitive movements and expel the energy when you want to as power or speed. I used to only be able to use Fajin on myself, but it seems One for All has upgraded it to allow energy transfers to other items as well. Quite useful, I’d say.”
“Do you think I could train and use different energy types? Creating flashbangs or electricity could be useful, but the backlash might also be dangerous. I wonder how efficient the changes would be. Could I even choose what form I expelled?” He questioned, considering the consequences of playing about with the quirk without proper information. Third seemed to blanch at the thought of packing more power into the already formidable quirk.
“Well, maybe avoid that? We don’t want another quirk that blows your limbs off.” Izuku can’t help but smirk under his smoggy coat at the imagery that had popped into his head all those months ago at the mention of his limbs being in mortal danger. It had been petrifying before, but now after facing so many villains and gaining way too many issues from his aspirations, the (well he hoped) exaggeration didn’t scare him so much anymore.
“Yeah, probably not. Anyways, do you have a good image for how the quirk feels like? All Might talked about a microwave… but that probably wasn’t the best metaphor for a centuries old quirk hunted down by an evil supervillain.” Izuku attempted to shrug to get his message across. Third just winced at the mention of their perpetrator but proceeded to think about Izuku’s question. His brows furrowed, deep in thought. Izuku just observed him intently, eager to learn some more about the reserved vestige. His silver hair was tucked out of the way, but fingers still messed with the strands idly, similar to Izuku’s own fidgeting habits. His face was neutral, although somewhat puzzled as he thought out a complex, lifechanging metaphor to inspire Izuku.
At least, that’s what he hoped was happening because this was taking ages. He was probably being a hypocrite; he usually got lost in his head too, but could you really blame him when there were so many people muttering around in there too? Maybe he and Third were more similar than Izuku had anticipated, although the elder was definitely quieter than Izuku’s own rambling mess of a personality.
“Well, I’d say it’s like a complex wind-up toy. You turn and turn and turn that handle, the same motion repeatedly, and it stores up that energy. When you stop, it’s all stored and when you release it, that small motion expels a much larger force and the wind-up toy moves with more power than you originally put into it. However, spinning too fast can snap the whole thing; Fajin is all about balance and consistency, not raw power.” Third shrugs at his description. “That is what wind-ups do, right? I haven’t got a clear memory of them, since they are quite outdated.”
That was pretty accurate, Izuku thought. Much more helpful than a microwave. “Huh, makes sense! Consistency…?” He projected aloud, questioning the exact meaning.
“Fajin is different to One for All in many ways, mainly the feel of it. It’s quite fidgety to get a proper grip on it because you need to stay congruent with your usage otherwise you dispel all the energy you’ve built up. However, I think you will take to it nicely, with your personal experience. You definitely don’t slack off on your repetitive exercises, do you?” They both laughed as they thought back to Izuku’s dedicated kicks back when he was still working on Shoot Style.
“Hah, I sure was… dedicated to the lifestyle.” He snickered at his own aching legs flare in reminder of the strenuous training he put himself through to catch up to the rest of his classmates. He had been stressed and felt the pressure in every class, but it paid off and now he felt slightly more deserving of his place alongside his friends in Class 1-A. “So, what kind of training are we going to do for Fajin? Is it now, or will I have to return to my dark days of Shoot Style practice?”
“Hah, maybe something a bit more engaging than those drab exercises.” Third smirked slyly, before spinning around and lifting his hands up to cup around his mouth before shouting out into the void: “Hey! Can I get some training dummies over here!” He looks to consider his words carefully for a moment, eyes squinting to form crow’s feet and forehead lines from constant furrowed brows and disappointment.
Third silences the squawking in the distance with a disappointed afterthought. “Only dummies that will take this seriously or wants to risk a metaphorical concussion.” His deadpan expression sparks empathy in Izuku for the group of carefree ghosts that haunt his head.
Out of the foggy distance approached First, Sixth, Fourth and Second, albeit the latter being dragged along by First’s outstretched hand grasping his sleeve. Second was grumbling the whole way but didn’t tug himself away, so Izuku guessed he wasn’t as opposed to joining them as he acted, similar to Kacchan’s own attitude. Second in general just reminded him of Kacchan in almost everything they did, from their personalities (good and bad, take that as you will!) to their physical looks. Both faces were painted with scornful scowls 99 percent of the time, and don’t even get him started on their hair? If Kacchan had orange hair dye and some makeup, he’d be Second’s double. The best part was that all the Vestiges knew it too. The amount of teasing the two had gotten after Kacchan magicked himself into the Void after a One for All disaster was unbelievable – Izuku could still rile up the blonde with it if he tried.
“Alright, is everything cleared up now?” First questioned, dropping Second’s sleeve when the group had amalgamated into six. Third nods in response, and First gets excited. “Time to get started!” His bright grin softened the boiling adrenaline zipping through Izuku’s veins at the idea of a new, exciting quirk to analyse into a quieter buzz of anticipation. First had that effect on people – always a calm and optimistic character to smooth out ragged emotions that would have bubbled over unpleasantly.
“Yes, I think Ninth has got the jist of what Fajin entails, but I still need to figure out a quick training exercise we can practise in person before Ninth wakes up. Anyone have any ideas?” he gestures around in search of suggestions.
Fourth twisted his fingers silently (seriously, how did he manage that without cracking his knuckles? Izuku could barely move an inch without cracking something somewhere—) before speaking up shyly. “Yoga? Mindfulness was always good with Danger Sense, but would that carry over? It might help with getting a proper feel with the quirk without doing anything straining while Ninth is still getting a feel for Fajin.”
Not to be mean to Fourth, but yoga? Izuku’s limbs were already on their last legs (haha, legs) and he doesn’t know how much flexibility he could test before they popped off like All Might had threatened way before he even accepted the quirk. But taking one look at First’s bright smile and Third’s pleased expression settled Izuku’s fate for him.
Third had brightened up at the suggestion, while Sixth’s one face fell. Relatable. Izuku watched as his face flickered through all five stages of grief, before a wicked expression settled on his features. “Great idea Fourth! Why don’t we make it a group yoga session?” He winked devilishly before turning around and whispering in Izuku’s direction. “Don’t worry Ninth – if we are going down, they’re all coming with us.” Izuku smirked under his misty disguise and nodded discreetly.
“Do we really have to drag the whole gaggle of idiots into this?” Second grumbles, frowning but giving no further protest to ruin their plans.
“It’ll be a great bonding exercise!” First pouts at Second’s unenthusiasm but turns his eagerness over to shake Sixth by the shoulders. “Good idea! Can we?” The last part was directed over at Third, who just nodded uncommittedly with a lopsided grin. If Izuku had to guess, he was sure Third knew of their plans but just didn’t see the need to interfere.
“Hey Fifth, Seventh! Get over here!” Sixth cupped his hands to yell at the troublemaking pair. Loud shrieks of excitement soft-launched the mayhem as they both swung and flew using their quirks to reach the group, All Might following behind them like a silent shadow. How did they even do that? There certainly wasn’t anything for Blackwhip to grab onto. If he had to guess, Fifth was probably conjuring grips as he went, similar to how they could summon boardgames as other leisure items to pass time and have fun while stuck basically in Izuku’s head.
“Great! Nearly thought you were gonna leave us out, sitting there all on our ownsome lonesome!” Fifth giggled, and Izuku smiled for his misfortune. A captain didn’t go down without its ship, and it was the same premise for Izuku and his ghost predecessors when it came to flexibility training. In truth, he used to be quite quick on his feet and able to squeeze through tight gaps, but he definitely lost that ability after obliterating every bone in his body in his amateur days. It was a source of regret that only panged when he couldn’t dodge As—Tsu’s stealthy attack or he couldn’t recover from tripping himself up on his blocky shoes he refuses to replace.
“Great you guys could make it.” Sixth snickered, smothering his smirk in his high collar. Although it was a commendable effort, it was quite futile as Seventh clocked his laughter with a pale, unnerved expression. Izuku’s own giggle slips out, and Seventh pierces his projected laugh with a betrayed glare.
“This isn’t a trap, is it?” She asks the crowd, looking up for confirmation with a brazen expression. Fifth was confused till he spotted his successor cackling into his collar, and his triumphant, cocky manner fell off his face like a shattered mirror. Seventh’s features turned grace as she took the shoulders of Sixth. “It is.” She hung her head onto his shoulders in faux despair. “Tell me, what is our punishment for providing a smidgen of whimsy to this barren realm?”
Sixth grinned in his petty revenge. “Nothing! Only some group yoga! Aren’t we all excited?” His smug expression paints the troublemakers’ nightmares as they fall to their knees. That’s what Izuku wants to think anyways.
“Why? Why us! You know I’m as unflexible as a log!” Fifth moans in defeat, sagging his shoulders till Izuku could only see his goggles and not his eyes.
“Hey, don’t mope you losers. Let’s just get started.” Second mumbles, and a few seconds later multiple gym mats layered the metaphorical ground, all in a cute circle. “Choose your colours.” He huffed before stomping off to a fierce orange one. First followed him and chose a bright green colour, flopping down on the mat and drawing his legs up and crossing them.
Izuku scanned the colours as the vestiges moved to choose a comfy mat, accepting their fate of aching muscles and limb death to yoga in the afterlife. Sixth took a deep navy, Fourth decided for a simple pale blue, and Third walked over towards a basic grey coloured one left in the middle. Seventh skipped towards a bright purple and Fifth ran after her to the powerful red one beside hers, ready for some antics. Izuku wandered towards the remaining colour, deciding to let All Might take the sunny yellow on Seventh’s left. The one next to it was a dull forest green not unlike First’s, and Izuku settled down on it contentedly.
“Alright, we all good to start?” Third questions, and he received scattered nods and voices of approval, albeit half of them grumbled in reluctance. Izuku was sure they would warm up to it in time, maybe even him.
“First, let’s just close our eyes and take some deep breaths. Like… in… and out. Silently, please.” Third opened one eye to glare at the offending giggles that erupted on Izuku’s right. “We are all crammed into the infinitely big and small space with each other for decades, just appreciate the quiet time and reflect inwardly for a couple minutes, geez.” He shut his eyes again, and Izuku had the urge to flick his gaze around and stare at the unsuspecting group.
Peeping his eyes open slightly, he looks around at the blank faces of his predecessors before catching the eyes of Second. He hold back a laugh, choking on air silently as the offender smirks, winks, and closes his eyes to leave Izuku suffering in his quest to stay quiet. He squeezes his eyes shut to no one would catch him off guard again.
If he focuses properly, he could hear a humming zipping around from the Void, a constant thrum of activity and restless energy that shifts around the apparitions and skims over his skin under the thick fog that hides it away. It was easy to get lost in, the ghostly sounds soothing and repetitive. It acted similarly to white noise, banishing all proper thought from his mind and instead allowing him to focus more deeply on the simpler things; the fluttering of Float in his fingertips and feet, the writhing of Blackwhip in his chest, the low buzz of what must be Fajin joining the crackle of Full Cowling in his limbs.
He concentrates on the buzzing, feeling it spark to life in his limbs. They beg for action, a reprieve from the stillness he knows he must maintain. One for All’s quirks always start that way – itching to be of use, whispering enticingly of how they can help, how he needs to test them out, to save, to win, to defeat. They were always rusty from disuse, expelling at the wrong times till he gripped the reins properly, each a different rodeo for Izuku to conquer.
If he moves, he will break the calm around him, the steady not-breaths of the ghosts sitting beside him. Not to mention he doesn’t think he could stop if he began – even a small rocking would be likely to set off the quirk now he was properly paying attention to it. Izuku found that quirks were finicky things. Most argued that only a small selection of quirks were sentient, like Dark Shadow. But he’s personally of the opinion that every quirk is sentient in some shape or form, all acting differently and bringing a different sensation to his once deprived body. Maybe his quirklessness when he was younger amplified the feelings of possessing one? An interesting theory to look into, but he can’t run too far with it right now, lacking both a notebook and simple energy to analyse and work with his hypothesis.
He focuses deeper on the feeling, of the flame burning deep within him, the mantle he was handed flickering fiercely. Fajin responded to he search, jittering in his bones and begging for a use. Begging for a routine, something predictable, easy. It hits Izuku like a lightbulb, how Third was always craving some sort of easy motion: rocking, tapping his fingers together, alternating between blinking on each eye for extended periods of time. It clearly came with the quirk.
Izuku decided to meet Fajin halfway, slowing his breathing into the pace Third was whispering. His chest heaved in, then out, exhaling through his mouth. A brief thought flew in about how he was even breathing in the void, but he quickly silenced it with a half-assed explanation about subconsciousness.
He settled into the quiet pace, losing himself in the quiet and the tingling of his limbs. If he learned to properly activate his quirks in the Void, he’d probably be using Float on accident right around now. The seconds blur into minutes, and the array of not-black on his eyelids shifts comfortably even though there’s no change in lighting in the darkness of his own head.
Third spoke up again and Izuku fought to peel his eyes open again, despite the calming aura not flash banging him with piercing colours, only a quiet inky darkness. “Okay, we all relaxed now?” he received quiet responses, much the opposite to the usual attitude from the vestiges. If only they learned sooner that mindfulness actually worked on decades-dead ghosts with zero attention span on a good day.
“Alright, well, we could start with some arm exercises? That’s where I mostly used Fajin, and that’s kind of the purpose of all to help Ninth.” Third sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck as he stood, unfolding his legs from their criss-crossed position to stand, stretching out his elbows with small pops Izuku was secretly jealous of. The group followed suit, standing at the foot of their mats and some personalities dropping their arms awkwardly.
Izuku was determined to have a good training session and not be held back by his damaged arms! He lifted his arms, wrapping a hand around one forearm and pulling. The responding creak is enough to have all the heads snapping in his direction, concern and amusement flickering across respective holders at the deafening sound he produced from jolting his elbow.
“…Whoops. Sorry guys! You continue.” He apologises, embarrassed of his sub-par flexibility. He wished the fog would absorb his whole body momentarily so he could hide from the stares.
“Holy shit Ninth you need to rest those arms lil dude!” Fifth exclaims, abandoning post at his own mat to scramble over and shake Izuku by the shoulders. The whole group elected to ignore the small creaks from the motion. The big hands pushed him down forcefully, and Izuku succumbed to the force and sat back down, thumping onto his mat with a questioning glance. “You do know cracking your joints isn’t good when it sounds like that? Man, you should get Recovery Girl on those, jeez.”
Izuku spluttered out a hasty protest. “It’s honestly not that bad! They only hurt really bad on cold days, and anyways this was the consequences of my own actions!” Sure, they ached a lot some of the time, and maybe painkillers weren’t actually working anymore, but he was fine. Totally fine, not dreading flexibility training for heroics, not at all.
“Kid, relax. And tell her, for quirk’s sake.” Second grumbled as the other holders gathered around his mat, abandoning any prospect of continuing the session, in stead of staring at Izuku. Izuku nodded faintly under his persecuting gaze, eyelids drooping as a sudden wave of tiredness washed over him like the gentle lapping of waves at the beach, shifting sandy brain particles lazily with each break. The users words bubbled and foamed, percolating through his hands like waves striking pebbles.
He smiled under the cape of darkness, whispering his goodbyes to their physical forms as the Void faded to a more literal black.
The ringing of an incessant bell jolts him from slumber, the faint energy of his odd quirk settling under his skin, familiar and buzzing with recognition. His head had a slight headache that pulsed from his temple, but he ignored it in favour of observing the new, settled feeling of his awakened quirk. It flickers gently when he reached out for it, and Izuku smiled.
Flexing his hand, he’s happy to see it had healed quite nicely, only a faint tingling sensation being left behind after he peeled away the crinkled bandages. He scoots off the bed, reaching for his schoolbag, intent to flee quickly and not get stuck talking to any teachers to avoid missing his train home after school. He really needed to stop getting injured so often – he was definitely skiving a few classes at this point.
“Hey, you better tell Recovery Girl Ninth!”
He sighed as he accepted walking the journey home, taking a detour towards Recovery Girl’s office off to the side of the infirmary. Well, at least he had discovered a few things about One for All this time instead of going bezerk during a joint training exercise. A personal win in his books! One for All: 3, Midoriya Izuku: 1!