After a long day, Izuku came back to the dorms beyond exhausted. It was late at night--though in reality it was nearly four in the morning. 

His hand was burning, and he could imagine the skin becoming a deep red and blisters beginning to form. Nevertheless, he found himself not letting the hot key go. It was different from the others, modified. 

Somehow. 

But Izuku had found the key and he just couldn't keep himself from feeling its ridges and memorizing every nook and cranny of the metal. 

He kept it in his pocket as he returned to the doors, but the key felt so heavy. His burning raw hand itched to just take it out and throw it far far away. 

But you have to keep it. 

Izuku found the input odd, as the voices never spoke of anything positive or negative about the keys he previously connected. Izuku found himself shrugging, accepting the sentence and noting that this key must be special. Different. In a way besides burning his skin. I have to keep it. 

His eyes twitched as another sharp pain flooded through his cranium, sparking the first inkling of yet another headache. 

He had been getting those more frequently too. The headaches. 

The floating dots in his vision, the sometimes swaying world even though he knew he was standing as still as could be. He could feel the pain slice through from behind his eyes, poking and prodding him internally. 

He would have winced except he felt as if he had to keep a calm facade. Izuku couldn't explain it but he just knew he shouldn't under any circumstances show his weakness. 

His steps did not change pace as he scuffed towards the dorm. 

His mind was far away from the idea of avoiding security cameras or being watched from the windows of the common rooms. But what did rattle his anger was the mocking laughter coming from the back of his mind. 

Suddenly he felt his quirk flare up right from under his skin, energy warping the skin on his person. 

And it hurt. 

You think, spoke Eight in-between a spout of laughter, that you found the key. 

This time, Izuku did flinch. 

You think the key is in your grasp right now? Mumbled a mocking Seven. 

Izuku felt the world spin as he reached the door. His hand couldn't reach the handle until the fourth try. 

The key cannot be held. It is not something you can pick up after you find it–

Izuku couldn't make out which one was talking anymore as the words grew tenfold, stabbing at his brain and taking away his breath. 

He leaned against the doorframe, his final bout of energy straying from him. His hands jangled the lock as his fingers slowly halted their efforts. 

Not a moment too soon did the door finally get pushed open. 

Izuku stumbled down as the door gave way, finding the headache having grown ever stronger. His body wheezed and heaved as he tried to bring air into his lungs. He felt like he was choking by invisible hands. The laughter in his mind was very prominent, canceling out the worried voices of his classmates trying to check in on the noise. 

He felt another pulse of pain wracking his body. This time black splotches dusted his vision. 

He let out a shaky breath.

You really are a fool. Spoke up on voice, clearer and louder than all the others. 

It was the last thing Izuku heard before he felt himself fall into the depths of unconsciousness.