Chapter Text
Class 3E had lost more than one great friend that day, they had lost two. Nagisa, weeping, had pierced the chest of Korosensei with the point of the blade and watched as their teacher began to scatter and dissipate. There was a final flurry of the particles that encircled Nagisa, a feeling of warmth enveloping him as he stared forwards. Then the particle cleared and there was no small, blue-haired boy left looking back at then. Karma only stared at the space where his friend had once stood, lost for words and grasping at any fleeting explanation his mind could muster up.
It was as though the boy had appeared from nowhere, silent as a anything as he suddenly landed as though falling with a graceful roll. He came up standing, blinking as he watched the cruel black eyes of that villain near him. All Might watched as he ran faster and faster, trying to catch up before anything happened to the boy who had arrived from what seemed to be nowhere.
But there was no reason for concern. The boy kept on looking forwards, almost disconcertingly calm. He took a couple of steps that All Might could barely seem to see before walking beside the man, dangling the sharp, ornate dagger that had once been in the villain’s now empty hand, between two nimble fingers. The boy stopped for but a moment ad All Might dazedly clasped the knife.
“How?” he muttered as the boy, though All Might had believed he was a girl at the time, continued to walk.
Noticing the still stunned villain, All Might resumed his job, making quick work if the task at hand, before running up to the retreating back of the child.
He was about to call out to him before the boy just stopped, head turned upwards as he looked contemplatively at the telephone wires that networked above them. Within a moment, he had sprung upwards. He didn't fall back down.
Startled, All Might looked up, just in time to catch a flash of a dirtied, scuffed trainer as it fell to the ground and the barest trace of pale blue disappeared over the top of a high rise building.
All Might picked up the trainer, the laces were undone and there was a sort of glistening powder that refused to be rubbed off of the white canvas material, prominently stained brown with mud and crimson with what all Might could only hope was not blood. Then he set off, springing up and trailing the strange teenager. He may have found the perfect candidate for the heroics course of Yuuei, he couldn't give this kid his power…
His power!
He could feel it fading suddenly, weakening as the boy became visible, sitting on the edge of the building and casually dangling his legs as he observed from high above, a sort of intelligence in his eyes that would suggest he knew exactly what was going on with every person that passed below him. All Might watched the air around the boy begin to fizzle a little, fading, dimming as though it were separate from the rest if the atmosphere. He cocked an eyebrow as he shrunk and felt his lungs, tickling and begging. He coughed and blood flew out from his mouth.
Nagisa hadn't had a very good day. He had killed his teacher, he had been trying for so long so he didn't understand just how he could feel such an ache in his chest when he did. The hot tears felt as though they were searing his porcelain cheeks as they spilled unrelentingly.
Then the world had spun in that flurry of glistening particles before disappearing behind them. He stood there still, blank faces and gazing forwards into an endless white void.
A voice echoed across the open space, calling on both high and deep tines at the same time, somehow both melodic and monotone.
“It's been awhile since I got the privilege of observing such a promising prospect as yourself.” it said. Try as he might, he could find no sign of its source.
“what?” he called out to nowhere in particular. He continued to stare into the abyss, beginning to feel as though it were returning the favour with much rigour.
“Yes promising. Now, allow me to tell you a tale of heroes and villains, of knots of twine and fate, of the lives you will soon be entering.” and the voice told him exactly what it had promised to before a door appeared, even the quiet noise it made as it appeared to Nagisa’s side like the loud bang of an explosion in the deafening silence.
The door owned without assistance, beyond it another void, this one of velvety black that danced around, uninviting yet oh so tempting…
“Before you go,” the voice interrupted his thoughts “there is something you will need to get by on the oath you must lead and now I shall bestow it upon you.” Nagisa could feel it, like a weight on his shoulders. Still, he knew not what it was.
“A quirk!” exclaimed the voice, the younger tones overpowering the older “A quirk to allow you to live a life amongst others better than the one you have left. Maybe one day you may return but there is much I require from you first. For the task ahead I have given you a grasp over darkness, both the darkness I'm people's minds and the darkness that lies in the shadows and night, for what does an assassin use to their advantage and where do they work better?”
Then, without warning, he was doing into the abyss, floating slowly downwards before he suddenly began to plummet and was forced to think on the feet that had been suddenly swept out from under him.
He was terrified, confused and in complete and utter disbelief. But still, he would have to postpone his shock as he landed right before a man wielding a knife.
So there he sat, high above the city, watching people pass below, aware that none of them knew he was trying his hardest to keep a straight face because he knew that there was a man behind him, watching him.
“I know you're there.” he said at last, eyes briefly flickering over the emaciated frame if the observer. They looked taken aback but still hesitantly approached.
Toshinori did have to wonder why it was this way, why he met promising children upon rooftops, true form on show, knowing he may well regret it all.
The first of these children was, of course, Midoriya Izuku who had been promised the power of All Might after he trained himself into the right shape to use it. The second was the strange child who did not look at him but still looked expectant somehow.
“Hello,” he greeted “I'm Toshinori Yagi.”
“All Might.” The boy added hushedly on the end, thinking hard about the voice and the things it had made him see.
“Y-yes. How Do You..?”
“I saw you down there, then I saw you up here. You are the only other person near.” Nagisa hated how easily he could lie and loved it at the same time
Toshinori was bewildered.
“Who are you?” he asked the kid, looking at that soft, feminine face and trying to pull any discernible emotion from the façade of emotionless applied on top of it. He was a little startled to find he couldn't even draw close to doing so.
“Nagisa.” was the reply. It didn't tell Toshinori much. It wasn't a title, just a first name that didn't give Toshinori even a family to trace him to as a family name would.
So he tried his luck.
“Nagisa…-” he gestures for the boy to fill in the blanks.space but he merely sighed and began to rise to his feet.
“Oh, Nagisa, my boy,” for he had managed to figure out the kid's gender in the close quarters “wait. I have something of yours and there's something I'd like to discus.”
Nagisa retook his seat.
“Your shoe.” Nagisa nodded as he took it in his hands, scrutinizing the damage and wear and thinking it was probably time for the old shoes to be replaced, especially because he was aware of the steadily growing hole in the sole of the other. He slipped it on and tied the frayed laces tighter than they had been previously.
“Now,” Toshinori began. Nagisa turned baby blue eyes upon him and watched as a smile spread across the gaunt face of the hero “am I correct in assuming you have just finished middle school?” something flashed across the boy's eyes momentarily, completely indecipherable yet gut wrenching at the same time. He didn't respond for a moment but managed to gather his thoughts and nod again.
“Where are you applying for high school?”
“I'm not sure.” Nagisa admitted, looking down. Toshinori was slightly taken aback by the answer but continued with his recommendation none the less.
“Well, it's slightly late to apply,” He admitted “But I could get you a place in the Yuuei entrance exam if you'd like?”
“yes, very much so, sir.” Toshinori was suddenly taken back by the sudden politeness as Nagisa recalled the teachings of the voice and what it had said about Yuuei. It was crucial he got in to a good hero class to get home and Yuuei was certainly the best option.
“Excellent. I will see you then - however it is imperative I know your surname…”
“Shiota.” He responded “Just know I'm unlikely to respond to it.”
“Very well - I shall see you again soon, I hope.”
“Very well sir.”
Toshinori watched in awe as the boy stood and tipped over the edge of the building, not flailing, completely calm. He fell until he reached a tree, grabbing onto a branch and swinging down into the ground below. .Toshinori watched the final glimpse he could catch of sky blue as it disappeared beneath foliage.
He shook his head and knew that, for most, it would be considered an unnecessary risk to take but for Nagisa it appeared not to be one at all, almost like a leisure activity. Toshinori stared for a moment more before suddenly remembering he had to make haste to go to the proposed training session with Midoriya at the beach.
When he got to the beach, he found the green-haired boy there, waiting, staring out at the horizon line the sun was barely hovering above.
“Midoriya, my boy!” He called, voice carrying over the mountains of rubbish that had built up over the course of time.
“All Might!” He called back, eyes brightening as he saw his idol, the number one hero, appear. It may not have been the first time they had met, not even close, but there was a degree of fanboy-ish admiration both knew would take awhile to dissipate. Thankfully, the beach was otherwise empty.
“How are You?” midoriya asked his mentor.
“fine.” Toshinori nodded, not quite feeling good was ever the right word when his physical health was deteriorating so rapidly but honestly feeling rather happy.
“you know,” he prepared to tell the story of his day but found himself stopping as a familiar figure came up over the same Hill Toshinori himself had passed over not long before.
“Nagisa!” He called out, watching with vague amusement as the boy’s head turned and his pigtails bounced. His eyes didn't take long to meet Toshinori’s.
“All Might.” The petite boy nodded as he made his way over, languidly climbing over hills of litter. Midoriya just watched on, confused. The boy stood in front of Izuku, watching him intently with bright eyes.
“Izuku Midoriya, please meet Nagisa.”
“Oh, ummm, nice to meet you.” Izuku stammered, somewhat profit by the atmosphere around the boy but doing everything in his power not to come off as impolite.
“You too.” He glanced around “Are you having him clear this place up?”
“Affirmative my boy! It's training!” but he didn't say what for.
“Would he appreciate a spar?” Nagisa inquired, really using the opportunity as a polite-seeming way to let off the overwhelming mix of emotions he was still feeling. He may not be Karma, buy Nagisa could hold his own in a fight, especially when weapons were involved.
He saw a hesitant look on Midoriya’s face as Toshinori considered.
“No quirks of course,” He amended “just simple hand to hand combat? Surely there would be benefit in that?”
Toshinori agreed and, once again, Izuku had to wonder just who this boy was.
They stood face to face on a flatter section of the beach, staring at each other. One pair of gentle eyes met another and suddenly Izuku lost sight of them. He couldn't see Nagisa for a moment as the other boy approached, not until he felt a blow to his left and suddenly saw his opponent dodging backwards.
It was a quick fight, one which Midoriya spent most of being thoroughly confused. All he knew was it had begun, he had received a bruised hip and it had ended with two fingers pointed purposefully at his neck. It was as though Nagisa was convinced he could kill or seriously injure Izuku right there if he so wished and his conviction made Izuku sure he could. The visible and audible gulp of Toshinori only further proved it.
Nagisa stepped away, hand falling to his side. He was smiling sweetly, resembling a young girl then more than ever.
“You're smiling?” Izuku was a little incredulous and he could settle feel the ghost of nimble fingers hovering in front of his neck.
“It was fun.” Nagisa confirmed.
“Nagisa.” Toshinori brought the conversation away from the bewildering ‘fight’ “would you care to stay here alongside us for a while?”
“yes sir,” and suddenly he was polite again, much more like the middle school student he was than when he had his somehow neat nails pointing towards Izuku’s neck “I really don't have anywhere to go…” he sighed.
“Nowhere to go?” Izuku asked, all memory of fear suddenly replaced by curiosity and concern.
“I'm not from around here.” Nagisa said “so I don't have anywhere to go.”
“But where are you going to spend the night?!” Izuku pressed, worry increasing.
“I can rough it for a while, it's not much of a problem.” He had been spent such a large portion of his life trying to avoid his own mother he didn't pay his sleeping conditions much regard anymore. But Izuku looked scandalized at the prospect.
“No!” He insisted “you can stay with me - my mum would love to meet you, promise!” Nagisa opened his mouth to protest but was cut off “You're coming with me if you haven't got anywhere else.”
So he just smiled. Izuku noticed it was a different smile to the one earlier, both were sweet smiles but there was something off putting in his eyes the first time around; it was gone that time.
“Thank you.”
“Any time.” Izuku smiled back, glad the initial awkwardness was gone and glad to have someone his own age near him besides Kacchan and his awful, awful quirk.
As they walked home side by side Izuku couldn't help but be slightly awed at Nagisa and his incredible nonchalance and analysis. He had been more than excited to share his own analysis with Nagisa who had looked at it and promised to study videos with him that night to see what else they could tell about the heroes and villains in the books.
Thinking of heroes and villains made him think of something else.
“Hey, Nagisa, do you have a quirk?”
Nagisa looked mildly taken aback for a moment, looking at Izuku through the veil of the darkness that was just beginning to settle over them “Yes.”
“oooh!” as someone who had yet to gain a quirk, Izuku held them in high regard “what is It?”
“The manipulation of darkness.” Izuku couldn't help but feel it maybe sounded a little bit villainous but pushed the thought away when he reminded himself Nagisa himself seemed as though he would make a devastating villain but had chosen a much better path. Izuku knew not to judge someone by their quirk, knew that they had no control over them. Who was to say a quirk was befitting if a hero or not?
“That’s cool.”
“I guess, but I know better than to rely on my quirk for everything.”
And then Izuku knew he was not like Kacchan, not at all. He smiled brightly, confusing Nagisa.
“Hey,” the blue-haired boy began as they rounded a corner “Does your mother know that you're bringing me home?” the thought of their destination had suddenly sprung back in his mind and he couldn't help but feel nervous at the prospect of being seen as an unwelcome guest in the home of someone he may just hope to call a friend.
“yeah,” he nodded, bringing out a phone from his pocket “I told her earlier - she said she's really looking forward meeting you - I don't bring people over often.”
Nagisa nodded and they lapsed into silence as they walked for a little bit longer before stopping in front of a rather large apartment building.
“Mum, I'm home.” Izuku called as he walked into the apartment. He took his shoes off by the door and Nagisa followed suit, catching a glimpse at the whole and deciding he really needed new shoes.
“Welcome home!” a cheery voiced called from the kitchen. A moment later a short, smiling woman was there in front of them, wearing a slightly dirtied apron and with green hair tied up.
“You must be Nagisa.” she smiled sweetly.
“Yes ma’am, thank you for having me Miss Midoriya.”
“It's not a problem dear, but please call me Inko.”
“Alright.”
“Good - Now are you boys hungry?”
It was then that Nagisa realised he wasn't quite sure when he had last eaten. Izuku answered with an enthusiastic smile while Nagisa nodded subtly, smiling again.