"I wish I could be a good mother to someone like (Y/n), who desperately needs one."

This... was Chloe's wish.

Who knew it would be taken so literally?

----------

     Your consciousness didn't just plop into existence. You weren't born with complete memory and you didn't just wake up one day in the new world either.

     Rather, it felt more like you were waking from a dream. Slowly... You'd get small glimpses from time to time. Bright lights. Dark nights. You'd feel temperature against your skin on occasion. The tight feeling of being wrapped in a blanket, or the warm hug from an elder. So foreign.
Such nurture made you feel uncomfortable. But, there was something nice about it as well. You felt so helpless, so completely dependent on another human being. Scary.. But so necessary all the same.

     Then one day, about age one, you opened your eyes. Beautiful, crystal blue eyes stared down at you lovingly.

     "Are you awake again, little (Y/n)..?" The sound of your new mother's voice cooed. Strange... She both looked and sounded just like...Chloe?!

     You just stared up at her with the most confused, slightly overwhelmed expression. Your new mother leaned over and kissed your forehead. You were flustered, shocked beyond belief, chills rushing through you.

     This was just too much. You opened your mouth and wailed like the pathetic baby you were.

     Too much love. Love you instantly felt unworthy of for whatever reason.

     A man's calm, gentle voice entered the room, joined by the sound of footsteps. He was speaking a foreign language, so you couldn't understand it. Japanese, maybe? Made sense, since the man who leaned over your body, meeting you eye to eye, was none other than that Villain you'd wished into your life.

     No one knew what his whole name was, but most just referred to him as All For One, the demon lord set on conquering the world.

     His eyes squinted with joy when you looked up at him. His hair was white, and he had stunning red eyes. On top of that, he was a very tall and built man. Though you were used to seeing clips and images of him in a suit, right now he wore a simple blue shirt and gray pants. He appeared tired too. Probably just got back from killing someone, or perhaps an entire organization. No, wait, that was cheesy. It was more likely he'd just spent all day doing tedious paperwork and lab experiment-related stuff.

     Despite these assumptions you had about him, you had to admit his smile looked surprisingly genuine. What...changed? You'd expected a manipulative b######, who would only ever think to have a child for experimental purposes. Yet here he was...smiling down at you with love even your own previous parents never had for you.

     Your wide, curious eyes turned again to the face of your loving mother who held you in her arms. Her caring nature was so contagious.... Did she.. Did she change him?

     You stared up at these two new parental figures with so much awe and wonder. Together, they talked to you using words you didn't understand. Your eyes wetened, a confused mess of fear, joy, anger, paranoia, and ecstasy.

     You expected Hell...

     But you got Heaven.

     While you were in the mix of trying to figure out how to even process all of this, your new dad picked you up in his arms and held you, swaying his body gently. You were so small in his arms, overwhelmed with the knowledge that you were completely vulnerable. Even if he wasn't insanely powerful, he could simply drop you and you'd be dead.

     The minutes passed by rather slowly. AFO still held you, one hand of yours clinging to his shirt in the case of him dropping you. He paid no special attention to you, however, instead devoting the rest of his attention to his wife, who sat on the couch. The two spoke for quite a while, about what, you had no idea.

     But...you kind of liked it here. You had to admit. After finally leaving your parents' house, renting your own place, taking up three jobs, and eating nothing but peanut butter and jelly sandwiches just to survive.. would it be selfish to admit you enjoyed the leisure? Of not having to care so much about every little detail..?

     Finally letting go of the man's shirt, you allowed yourself some peace at last, drifting back into that sweet sweet dream of carelessness.

----------

     In part thanks to your little baby brain, plus adult Chloe's insistence about teaching you at least one new word each day, you began to grasp this new language more and more. By the time you reached two, the strange, half-dream feeling finally went away, leaving you fully in the present. You understood a lot more about the world you had entered as well.

     And luckily for you, Chloe was a reliable storyteller, who loved to tell you tales of her past up until this point.

     Your Mother, now Chloe Shigaraki, apparently "didn't" die from that car crash in this AU. Keeping her memories of her past life and the wish, however, she was determined to be prepared for whenever that wish should come, whenever it may appear. Something changed about the world around her, however. Quirks made a rather quick appearance. Apparently, some already existed before in this AU, but they only became a big deal after that car crash.

     As quirks were being discovered left and right, Chloe realized she had a quirk of her own as well.

     Her quirk: Eternal Youth, which essentially granted her immortality against aging. AFO's assistant was apparently in the process of trying to copy this quirk so the villain could use it for himself.

     Chloe lived through the trying times of chaos, as civil wars broke out across the globe due to this new power imbalance. She took in strays, orphans; any child, teen, or young adult in need of a home. And being one of the few who even accepted those with quirks so openly, she quickly became known as the true "Loving Mother." Despite remaining in America through all of this, fables of her were told through the wind. Legends of a woman so kind and pure that she may as well be an angel descended from the heavens.

     All For One took interest in this. Not only did she seem like a natural opposite to him in every way, but as the ages passed and still she had yet to gain a wrinkle...it became obvious she had some kind of quirk.

     He left for America in secrecy with the plan to steal this quirk for himself. Instead, he fell madly in love with her and the two were married a few years later.

    His overall plans never changed, however. And Chloe, finding out who he really was not long after they had fallen in love -- he had arrived undercover and only kept said cover to get to know her more -- with some reluctance agreed to stay by his side despite knowing what a terrible villain he would be. Since she had seen a change in him already, she held onto hope that perhaps over time she could sway him to use his powers more constructively.

     The two were married in secrecy for almost a hundred years before finally deciding to have a child, bringing about your reincarnation.

     Physically, a couple things had changed about you now. As makes sense genetically, if you expect to pass off as these two's biological child. First off, your hair was now white like your new father's. And as a blessing from the aether on high, you inherited Chloe's beautiful.. crystal blue eyes. Other than these traits, you looked about the same as before in your past life...as a baby at least. (If you have darker skin, then Chloe does too and therefore yours is still the same shade thanks to her genes.)

     Now, as you were again learning how to draw and talk at the age of two, the big question came up.

     Should you tell Chloe you are the old friend from her stories? Apparently, she only named you (Y/n) in the first place in honor of, well, yourself!

     Did that mean you were named after yourself??

     --Nevermind that for now!

     The big question followed you for months. And being such a helpless blob of mush, you couldn't escape this query either by busying yourself with house chores, homework, or a job. Nope, you had to sit around uselessly and do nothing but think for hours.

     At least you could make it up to Chloe for being such a good mother by staying out of the kind of trouble other parents often complained about. But..that just left life even more boring for you. Ugh...

     You were lying on your back flat as a pancake, staring up at the ceiling fan spinning the millionth time. Nothing buzzed in your head but this question. Even all that scheming about un-vilifying anime villains had been pushed to the side for now.

     Your biggest positive would be to have Chloe as a friend again. Maybe the two of you could talk like old times again while your dad was away..and maybe she'd finally trust you enough to let you wander wherever you pleased.

     Your biggest negative would be that Chloe would most certainly treat you differently if you fessed up. And while you still were getting used to all of her snuggles and three meals a day type stuff...you had to admit you kinda liked it as well. Preferred it over your previous dynamic even..if just a little.

     But...you also didn't want to get used to deceiving people either. And this was by far the biggest truth you'd ever hidden. Wh-what if this was some kind of morality test too?? What if, by choosing to greedily keep this secret to yourself, you were starting along the path down towards hell!.. Ohhh noohhh... Why did your mind always jump to the worst conclusions?! It was more likely by "heavenly favor" those beings meant they would pair you and your best friend up again..so you'd always be at each other's side! Though intimidating, the angels were actually pretty nice, so it would just be rude to assume they would set this up just to make you stumble!

     Either way, you had to make a decision soon! Because, well, being on the fence about it was probably even more torturous than making the wrong choice.

     "I'm back!" Your dad announced upon entry, as he usually did to alert his small family to his presence. You remained completely still on the floor of your small suburban home as AFO hung up his coat and umbrella. It was raining outside. Another reason you were so painfully bored. Darn it.. now you kinda wished you had siblings to harass. "Oh? What is (Y/n) doing on the floor so deep in thought?~ Plotting to conquer the world too, hmm?~" The man chuckled and picked you up with his two big hands and held you out in front of him. His red eyes crossed derpily, drawing an adorable baby laugh out of you. What?? You couldn't help it! The thought of this man ruining so many innocent lives was just absurd! "Hun, do you think (Y/n) might need a diaper change by any chance?" Thankfully, this guy was too much of a clean freak to ever risk cleaning you up in the past.

     "Um- (Y/n) is actually potty trained already!" Chloe called from the kitchen where she was preparing dinner... Too bad your tummy couldn't handle hard food yet. It smelled so good.

     "She is?!.. Why... What a fast learner.." The man marveled. You giggled and smiled. Every compliment this man handed out was like a gift from God. "Can you say 'Dada' as well~?"

     You giggled and shook your head.

     "Awwh, why must you torture me like this? Did I do something wrong?" He used the pouty lip and everything. This man, who was supposed to be a supervillain bent on destroying the world, was somehow so whimsical and fun with you. Half of the time you even forgot he was a character from an Anime. You fought to hold back the laughter, but after a successful few seconds, you failed, laughing again.

     "Dada!" You let him have it, excitedly reaching out for his face. The dude was so big! Even without any kind of quirk this man was a behemoth! Wait.. would you get real big too!? Oohhh...?

     "Adda girl. Now come here." He pulled you closer and wrapped you in his arms. You melted there, so very glad.

    Past parents? Pssh! Never heard of em!

     You had the greatest parents in the world!

     ...And since telling Chloe about your history together might only ruin this...you decided to keep your past life as your one personal secret.

     Maybe in the afterlife, you could thank her.

----------

     It was a whole nother thing seeing this place in person...

     Though you were only three, there wasn't a chance you'd be forgetting this! Large tubes filled with glowing purple liquid lined the messy, wire-filled walkway. More rows of these large canisters carried on behind the rows closest to you. The creatures inside were a whole other sight. So eerie and disturbing. Nomu floated around inside these tubes, strapped into place by wires. Knowing already that these were originally humans..didn't help any. You thought that since you'd seen these things in action many times before in the show and felt nothing that these would be an easy encounter. However...your little tummy was made queasy by the mere sight of these creatures.

     Your mom had decided to stay behind in the hospital waiting room for this very reason.

     Your dad walked along the pathway in large strides. He carried you on one arm, the other hugging tightly around you. He had mentioned going to the doctor today to see about your quirk... What if.. What if this was where he showed his true colors??

     "..It's okay..." He spoke softly, gently rubbing your back. "They won't attack you... They only move on mine and the doctor's command.. You'll be alright..." You turned your face away from the sight and pressed your forehead into his shoulder. The Nomu sure were a sight, but it wasn't them you were worried about... At least.. at least he didn't sound any different than normal. No conniving or manipulative tone in his voice. Just...Dad.

     Exiting that room, you entered through a tunnel of large wires, at the end of it entering into a much brighter room. "We're here, Doctor." Your dad announced, a big smile spread across his face. A short, fat man with a bushy mustache slid out of his chair and began his shuffle toward you two.

     You knew who this guy was...

     "(Y/n), meet my assistant, Kyudai Garaki." AFO motioned toward the man.

     The doctor giddily walked up to you. "It's so nice to formally meet you, Ms. (Y/n)!" Once he stopped, he tapped his heels together and stood at attention. "I've prepared a station for her already! With the new technique I've been developing, we should be able to predict whose quirk she will inherit before it even activates!"

     "How??" You asked quickly. Your voice was so high-pitched again, it had taken a while to get used to. But it was also really cute. A super weapon for getting free treats!

     "Ohh, I'm afraid it's a little too complicated to explain." The doctor chuckled as he turned around, rubbing his bald head. Your dad followed him to a table of sorts, which he set you down on. Your dad placed his hand on your shoulder as Garaki dug around through his supplies. "But essentially!" The short man sprung back up. "All I need to do is take a look at your blood.." Saying that, he pulled out a small syringe. Your hands both rose and gripped onto your dad's.

     Ohhhh, you hated needles...

----------

     "Okay, now repeat after me. 'I won't take my Mommy's quirk.'"

     Your dad sat in he back of the car with you, your mother driving with a little grin on her face. He leaned your way over the empty middle seat, smiling at you in your little booster chair.

     "I won't take my Mommy's quirk!" You giggled, jumping in your seat a little.

     "I don't believe I heard you." Playfully. You were too excited. You didn't even need to act.

     "I won't take my Mommy's quirk!"

     "Sorry, could you try that again?" Cupping a hand around his ear. You laughed as you tried to yell even louder than before.

     "I won't take my Mommy's quirk!!"

     "That's my girl!. Chloe, I think we are in need for a celebration. (Y/n) behaved herself very well, and Garaki said there was an eighty percent chance of her inheriting my quirk." His hand landed on your head, ruffling up your hair. You giggled again.

     This really was exciting! Not only would you have what appeared to be a happy life, but you'd also have a strong quirk as well! There was just so much to be happy about today!

     The moment you looked out the window, reality slapped you in the face. You all were currently on the highway, driving over a tall bridge. You could see so far. So much city, as well as so many dark green hills in the distance. Your smile dropped as you stared out the window.

     ...Oh yeah... Your dad was not only a villain, but one destined to be defeated as well... He deserved it, of course! But... Neither the show nor Wiki ever gave an exact year everything took place in, meaning who knows when All For One's clash with One For All would take place. He could have his face one day and be a complete potato head the next! That thought scared you a little bit... It made you wonder what would happen when that time came. Would he even be able to see you again??

     Or would he be too consumed with revenge to even care?

     Even though you knew he was the main villain from the start, the thought of him actually being that was so foreign now.

     Ugh.. Guess you had to start mentally preparing yourself for it just being you and Mom....

     "...Are you alright, (Y/n)?" AFO noticed your soured mood. You perked up immediately, quick to put on another smile.

     "Are we going to get ice cream?!" Changing the subject was your quickest out. Your dad chuckled and sighed, leaning further away from you to look out his own window.

     "Yeah... Ice cream sounds good..." He watched the world with a placid smirk on his face. You watched him with intrigue, betting you knew exactly what kind of thoughts were turning through his head.

     All emperors shall fall...but golly you wished you could make it last!

----------

     "Goodnight, (Y/n)~" Your mother cooed, leaning forward to kiss you on the head. She stood up from her seat on the edge of your bed and pulled a cord to turn off the lamp to your right. Now the only light illuminating your little room spilled in through the door, which led to the small hallway. "Sleep well, my little angel." Her smile was so warm and full of love. Your heart never stopped melting at the sight of it. She had gotten her wish at last...and she couldn't be any happier.

     "Night, Mommy.." You called back, though tiredly. It had been a long day, after all. Hours having gone by since that scary visit with Garaki.

     As your mother reached the door, the tall, looming figure of your father stepped into view at her side. He whispered gently, "Mind if I speak with her before bed..?"

     "Of course.." She whispered back. Chloe left the door frame, allowing the giant to enter in her stead. The light beside you clicked back on despite not being touched as your dad entered. He sat down on your bed beside you, pulling his legs up onto the mattress to make himself more comfortable. You were already half asleep, enjoying the peace that remained despite the man's presence. He was just like one big teddy bear to you now. Nothing to be afraid of after all..

     "Hello, Daddy.." You yawned.

     "..Do you mind staying up a little while longer?" Though the tone in his voice was still soft, you heard a hint of seriousness in it. You hummed a yes and sat up in bed quickly, leaning your body against his arm for warmth. "If it is the case that you will inherit my quirk, I want to prepare you for a few things first.."

     "Hm? Like what??" This was interesting...

     "As you know, my quirk enables me to take another's. If you are able to do the same, I ask that you not make the same mistakes that I have.."

     "Hm..?"

     "Quirks go far deeper than society would like to admit. They are not just flashy upgrades to our bodies..but are a part of our very souls as well... When I was younger, I made the childish mistake of taking the quirks of anyone I came across. It was just innate; something I felt I could not help. For that, I was labeled a villain and a monster, which caused me to resent the very world I lived in. ... I know the urge to steal quirks will be very strong for you, especially in your early years, so all that I ask is for you to be tactical about it. Think first before you act, or else you could end up drawing a lot of unwanted attention to yourself. And I wouldn't want that for you. Not my little angel." His arm left your side to instead wrap snugly around your small, three-year-old body. You leaned into him more, thinking thoughtfully about the words he spoke.

     So this quirk did mess with your personality a little... That might make things a little harder for you in the future..but not by much! ...hopefully.

     "Okay, Daddy.." You yawned again, eyes slipping shut.

     "One more thing." Chuckling, nudging you back awake. "In my teenage years, I strived to steal the quirks of all the villains wreaking havoc in my hometown. While I did clean up the streets somewhat by removing their dangerous quirks, I suffered in the long run. This is where I again caution you not to make the same mistakes I have."

     "O?"

     "Because, again, Quirks are so tightly connected to the user, fragments of their personality were absorbed into mine. And since I was prioritizing the quirks of villains.. that... didn't positively affect my mental health.. to put it lightly. ... I'll have to explain this again when you're older, but in short, don't steal the quirks of villains unless it is absolutely necessary. I wouldn't want your brilliant little mind to be tampered with by the ill wills of others. ... I've had to rid myself of a lot of such quirks in preparation for your coming... But.." The man sighed a long, content sigh. "In the end, I would count it all worth it... Because getting to see your smile as I enter the room.... There could be no greater reward..."

     You stared up at his chin for a long while, processing the sincerity of those words.

     You're telling me this guy's supposed to be the next, up-in-coming Demon Lord.. Hell bent on conquering the world and killing all who came in his way...?

    Tears brimmed your eyes and you hugged his side. "I wuv you..." You murmured.

     Certainly not.

.

.

.

======================

Also in case you haven't noticed, I started writing this before AFO's backstory was officially revealed. So, though I will be taking a few canon events from his true backstory, my version still has a few key differences (like his humanity). Just wanted to put that out there to reduce confusion. My version wasn't a born psychopath, though he has always had psychopathic traits, such as low empathy.
[This paragraph was added as I write many chapters ahead in the book.]