Over the years, Izuku had seen a lot and had faced a lot. There was this one time where a random robber tried to take him hostage and the hero who patrolled the area somehow violently saved him and didn't aid him in anything after. Izuku was also caught in the middle of a verbal war between two wild adults when he was six. There was also this one time where he almost fell over a bridge had it not been for a drunk woman casually pulling him away.

The point is, Izuku was barely terrified of walking on the road, even when someone grabbed him, but having a disgusting slime trying to take over his body and choking him in the process terrified him beyond imagination and for the first time since that fateful day lost in his past, Izuku wanted to give up fighting.

"Hey… hey kid… helloooo?"

Izuku opened his groggy eyes and tried to recognise his surroundings. He was not in a hospital… definitely not his home… It was a street? There were two bottles filled with some weird liquid and there was All Might staring into his soul.

There was All Might staring into his soul.

Oh.

THERE WAS ALL MIGHT-

"Gahhhh!" Izuku jerked up in surprise and winced at the muscle pull.

All Might was quick to support Izuku's shoulders. "Don't be so hasty, kid. You've been through… I almost thought I lost you there" he spoke, drawing his hands away, "Are you alright?"

"A-All Might??"

"HAHAHA! INDEED, IT IS I! I'M GLAD YOU'RE ALIVE, KID"

Izuku tilted his head in confusion when All Might suddenly stepped away from him in alarm. At first, Izuku observed something akin to thin smoke rising from the hero's arms but then a feeling of sadness washed over him, thinking that All Might backed away because he was Quirkless. Then again, how would he know?

"All Might…. I…. I'm f-"

"YOU'RE FINE? THAT'S GREAT, KID! UNFORTUNATELY, A HERO IS ALWAYS BUSY SAVING THE DAY SO I GOTTA GO! MAKE SURE YOU STOP BY THE CLINIC NEXT STREET TO GET CHECKED AND OH, I SIGNED YOUR NOTEBOOK WITH THE DATE SO YOU CAN SHOW IT TO ANY MEDIC/HERO TO GET A FREE CHECK-UP! TAKE CARE NOW, HAHAHA"

And with that, the hero shot into the skies to save another person's day.

Izuku always wanted to fly.

And All Might wondered if he accidentally put on ankle weights.

Blue eyes met green and both widened like saucers, each yelling in disbelief and fear.

"KID, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! LET GO!!"

"IF I LET GO NOW, I'LL FALL TO MY DEATH"

"Fair enough…." All Might mumbled and landed on the next building he could find. Izuku let go of the hero's leg and fell flat on his back, panting due to the adrenaline rush. All Might turned to face the teen, irritation etched on his shaded features. "What were you thinking, kid? That was so reckless!"

"W-well I um.. All Might-"

"Sorry, kid. I don't have time to talk. Let's get off this building-"

Izuku clenched his fists and willed himself to speak up, suppressing the immense urge to flap his hands and dance around the hero, worshiping his entire being.

"All Might… I just… I just need an answer… a-and you're the only one I-I know will have it…"

All Might frowned and scanned the kid from head to toe, taking note of the remnants of cinder on his yellowed uniform and the slight tremble of his body.

"Kid, I don't have enough time. How about we talk some other time-"

"NO" Izuku demanded, "I…. I need it… now"

"Make it quick, then! I can't stay at one place for long. There are people who need me"

Although the No.1 hero did want to stay because something in him urged him to, he knew he had not enough time as the faint smoke now became quite apparent and he barely had two minutes.

"I… I have always um dreamed o-of being a hero e-even when-"

"-ahun-"

"-everyone else a-around me sa-said that it's impossible-"

"-you don't have to believe that-"

"-I know! But things are different at my end-"

"-It can't be that bad and oh! I gotta go-"

"Yes, it can. I'm Quirkless"

"I don't see- wait what?"

And Izuku flinched, looking down at his feet, afraid of the look of disgust or pity his idol probably had on his face.

"I-I just wanna k-know… CAN I BECOME A HERO WITHOUT A QUIRK? Can… Can I be like you? Can I save people with a smile? Can I-" he dared to look up only to see a skinny blond man spitting out blood, "-WHO ARE YOU?! WHERE'S……. ALL MIGHT?"

Now, Izuku's skills of observation were no fluke and a horrible sense of dread settled in his stomach when he realized quite vaguely that this person had the same clothes on as All Might had, had blond hair that seemed to resemble the iconic streaks and the blue eyes, pristine as the hero's idea of justice…. This was All Might.

"All Might…"

"This is me, kid. I am All Might…"

Izuku clamped his mouth with his hands, eyes tearing up with fear and a sense of sorrow. No matter what the reason, his hero was weakened.

"H-How…"

All Might slumped against the wall and sighed. "It's classified"

"I- I see… I'm so-sorry"

The No.1 hero looked at Izuku's humbled form and shook his head. "I'm afraid you've gotten yourself into a slightly sticky situation now….. ?"

"Oh- s-sorry, how rude of me… I-I'm Midoriya Izuku"

"Midoriya-Shounen… you need to get interrogated"

Izuku paled. "I-Interrogated??? But I swear I mean n-no harm! I just- just wanted an answer f-from you! Idon'tholdanybadintentionsandIcertainlydon'twanttousethisinformationagainstyoubecauseyou'remyidolandohmygodmymomwillbeworriedandintroubleifthishappenstobealegaloffen-"

(I don't hold any bad intentions and I certainly don't want to use this information against you because you're my idol and oh my god my mum will be worried and in trouble if this happens to be a legal offen-)

"-ounen, MIDORIYA-SHOUNEN!"

"A-AH!" Izuku's eyes widened, "I'm s-sorry, I rambled, didn't I?"

"You sure did," All Might chuckled, "Does that happen often?"

The green haired teen looked away, flustered, "I g-guess it kinda r-runs in the family"

"Haha! I see. Anyway, don't worry. This isn't a legal offense but since there are only a handful who know my true form, we need to make sure that it's safe with you. Using memory quirks is illegal or you'd certainly be stripped of this memory, I'm afraid"

Izuku gulped.

"Calm down, kid, the one who's going to interrogate you is a good friend of mine, Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa. He's one of the kindest people I know and before any apprehensions pop up, Tsukauchi never shows bias. Quirk, no quirk, it's all the same to him"

Somehow, it was slightly more reassuring than knowing that the detective is All Might's friend. Izuku nodded and fiddled with his bag straps, waiting for the next command.

"Now then, let's get off this building"

All Might buffed up and lifted Izuku in his arms before jumping off and landing on the ground safely.

Izuku started to follow the now skinny hero towards the Police Station silently as he had no idea what to talk about. A few meters in and they heard commotion coming from the next Street. Curious, the hero, followed by Izuku, walked towards it to check what was happening.

"IT'S KACCHAN! ALL MIGHT, IT'S KACCHAN!"

All Might understood that the Ash blond currently trapped in the same sludge that had almost killed Izuku, was the latter's friend (of sorts). Unfortunately, All Might had not the energy to save Katsuki and a look of helplessness crossed his face. Izuku believed he was the reason All Might couldn't transform and before the hero could so much as articulate something, Izuku was sprinting towards the crime scene at full speed.

"Kacchan!!" The frantic teen yelled in desperation as he chucked his backpack with enough force to hit the sludge's eyes. As soon as the grip on Katsuki loosened, the blond blasted the remnants of the sludge and somehow pushed himself out of it's hold, panting and cursing.

All Might stood slack jawed and only snapped out of his daze when someone yelled that the villain was about to attack again.

"Pathetic," the hero thought to himself before mustering up all the power he could and dashed towards the scene, punching the villain to smithereens. He turned to look at the seemingly unconscious kids and panicked, "Medic!"

The force from his power-packed punch resulted in rain and the media went crazy, snapping pictures of All Might as he posed in his signature style.

"Now now, please give us some space so we can work on apprehending the villain and treating the victims," All Might instructed the media, "I'm sure you've got enough coverage"

One of the media people went ahead with their question anyway, "All Might! What do you think about the kid who intervened before you?"

"Do you think he needs to be punished for meddling with hero work?"

"All Might! Is it true that you had already defeated this villain today? How did he escape you?"

All Might frowned. The media sure was dangerous. "Alright, please hold the questions for now. First off, yes, I did indeed defeat the villain earlier today but due to certain circumstances, he escaped and I take complete responsibility for that"

Izuku, who had woken up, winced at the words. He was the reason for All Might losing the Villain and he hated the fact that his idol chose to accept responsibility.

"It's All Might we're talking about!" A civilian yelled, "Mistakes happen and it's okay because he always prioritizes saving people"

"Yeah! Isn't it the job of the police to take care of apprehended villains??" Another added.

All Might shook his head, "No one but myself is to be blamed for this error. Everyone has been busy with their own jobs so please don't push the blame. That being said, the kid who had jumped into action before my arrival isn't to be punished for being heroic. His priority was saving his friend and as a hero, I admire the spirit put into it despite the obvious danger. Although I must ask you not to publicize this as neither of the kids would want unnecessary attention."

Some people nodded while some grumbled along the lines of, 'couldn't do it even if we wanted to' and All Might understood their complaint. After all, the hero commission was strictly against publishing news of civilians coming in aid where heroes failed. It was a shame.

Izuku gaped at All Might's towering figure, breathing slightly erratic as he listened to his idol appreciate his 'heroic act'

Katsuki, on the other hand, fumed and wanted to curse the life out of 'Deku' but refrained from doing so as the media watched them with hawk-eyes and All Might was just a few feet away from them. He would deal with Izuku later.

"What you did was stupid and reckless. You could've gotten yourself killed," Kamui Woods berated with a resigned sigh, "but it was brave of you"

"True. I appreciate your help, Kid" Death Arms added with a smile. "And you, blondie, your quirk is really powerful"

Kamui nodded, "Use it in a good way and you'll become a great hero"

Katsuki smirked, though not happy with the praise Izuku was getting. Still, having his powerful quirk get recognised was enough as a compensation.

"That was really brave of you, young man" All Might commended Izuku, "I really appreciate your bravery"

"Th-thank you, A-All Might" the greenette stuttered.

All Might smiled and turned to Bakugou who smirked at him, anticipating praise for his quirk. "Young man, you indeed do have a powerful quirk-" there it was "-but please don't use it recklessly. The heroes had to distance civilians away from your blasts and Kamui-kun is made of wood and therefore in danger. I can understand that you were scared so it's okay. Try to maintain your cool if you aspire to become a hero. It's crucial."

Katsuki ground his teeth, "Alright"

Satisfied, the hero smiled and glanced at Izuku. "I'll be off then, make sure you get home safely!" he exclaimed and flew away, causing the teens to stare at his flying figure in awe.

"The check-up is done," the medic informed, "you're okay. Head home and get some rest, please."

The teens nodded and the heroes thanked the doctor for her help. They saw the teens off till the end of the street and resumed their patrolling duties.

Once out of sight, Katsuki growled and pushed Izuku into an alley. "WHAT WAS THAT, DEKU?! HOW DARE YOU INTERFERE??"

"K-Kacchan?" Izuku stumbled back in fear. Then he frowned. "What's so wrong in helping-"

"I DIDN'T NEED YOUR HELP!" Bakugou yelled, "I WAS DOING JUST FINE!"

Izuku flinched hard as small explosions crackled in the other teen's palms. "S-Sorry Kacc-"

"SHUT UP! YOUR NO GOOD QUIRKLESS ASS DIDN'T SAVE ME, REMEMBER THAT!"

"What's going on here?" A third voice interrupted Katsuki's bullying and both the teens whirled their heads around to see a skinny man with blond hair eyeing them in concern and disapproval. "Shounen, what are you doing?"

Bakugou sneered, "What do you want, you damn skeleton?"

All Might frowned at the derogatory term and Izuku turned pale. "That's not very nice of you, shounen and I just came here to check on the kid who saved you. I was there and I saw it all. It's really not nice of you to bully your savior"

"What's it to you?" Bakugou snarled, "get lost!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that. Please allow me to take the other kid with me and please stay away from him. I don't appreciate ungrateful people."

The ash blond glanced between the serious skeleton and a terrified Izuku before slamming an explosion into the wall and stomping away, yelling "THIS ISN'T OVER, DEKU!"

All Might sighed and walked towards Izuku with a small smile. "It was brave of you to save your bully"