Step One

Izuku almost seven years old

All For One looked at his son. "You wish to be a Hero?" he asked, careful to keep scorn out of his voice. Tomura would do that enough for him.

Izuku nodded. He could tell his dad didn't approve but he held firm.

Unknown to Izuku, his father was quietly cursing. The premier villain in the world had known of his son's admiration of heroes. Tomura kept him very well appraised and even though it had lasted for several years, he had genuinely believed that his son would grow out of it. Izuku was almost seven and it appeared he hadn't. This called for more drastic measures. He would not have another family member betray him.

"Izuku, you do know it was heroes who attacked?" Hisashi asked carefully, as he thought about how best to handle this.

His son nodded again and he could see that he was tense.

All For One sighed. "My Little Dragon, your mother is the one who wouldn't support you," he said gently. "If you told her this, she would cry and say she was sorry and never let you do it. I am willing to support you but, I want you to know exactly what you are getting into. Being a Hero isn't all that it's portrayed to be." Though if his actions now made Izuku decide that destroying Hero society was best done from within, and that was his genuine motivation to become a hero, then All For One would alter his plans but he doubted it would come to that.

At that, Izuku looked slightly confused.

"Remember what you know about people," Hisashi said. "What you've seen."

"People are cruel," Izuku said. "And they fear what they don't know."

All For One nodded. "That even applies to Heroes," he added. "Heroes are just people."

"Because they don't know better," Izuku objected. "They don't know you."

They didn't and he wasn't eager to let them know him either.

"Be that as it may, they are still people," he said, before he allowed his features to shift into a more contemplative gaze. "There is one more truth that I've told you, but you were probably too young to realise it. Do you remember your first day of school?" He asked his son.

Izuku frowned, stretching his freckles as he tried to remember. "There was something about the quirkless kids."

"There was," Hisashi nodded. "But you were also called a sympathiser," he added.

Izuu's eyes widened as the memory no doubt returned. "Everything you see happening now is repeated in adults," he whispered.

"Exactly," All For One was pleased. If Izuku could recall that exactly, he wondered if he should have his son tested for an eidetic memory. It would be so much easier if Izuku possessed that, rather than having to find a quirk to simulate it. "Children are often more honest than adults as well. The cruelty adults try to hide, or justify, they simply do. So, if you want to become a hero, Izuku, I want you to learn about the people you will be protecting. Really learn about them. Know them at their worst, know them at their best, and know them as they really are, without anything hiding them."

"What do you mean?" Izuku asked.

Hisashi was pleased. His son wasn't arrogant enough just to rush in without consideration. "You will be enrolled in a different school next year, one that does not segregate the quirkless children, and you will be enrolled as quirkless," he added.

Drastic times called for drastic measures.

"What will that do?" Izuku gasped.

"It will show you how people truly are. And if you are to be a hero, then you must know that." He could tell, Izuku still didn't fully understand, but he would.

One way or another.

-ted-

"Last day!" Ochaco cheered before their class started.

"Yay!" Minato echoed her sentiment.

Izuku just sat there and watched his friends. They were so happy. Because they didn't know.

"Little Dragon, is something wrong?" Ochaco asked when Izuku didn't cheer for the end of the school year.

The question caused him to burst into tears and Ochaco quickly looked at Minato. He shook his head. He had no idea what Izuku was crying about.

"It's only summer," Ochaco stated. "I'll be helping my parents but we'll still be able to see each other. Especially for your birthday."

Izuku shook his head, his lips quivering as he tried to bring his tears under control enough to tell them what was wrong. "I'm moving," he managed to gasp out.

"What?" Minato asked.

"Dad is moving the business to Niigata," he explained.

"When?" Ochaco demanded, even as she tried to remember where Niigata was. All her young mind could tell her was that it wasn't close to Mie Prefecture.

"Next week," Izuku told them. He'd tried to argue that they could move just as well at the end of summer as the beginning but his father had insisted that as soon as school finished, they were moving across the country.

Tomura didn't care where they lived. The older boy had his games and that's all that seemed to matter to him. Kurogiri would go where he was told to, as would Gigantomachia. His Dad had talked to him and had said that the move was only in part due to needing to enroll Izuku in a new school but mostly because he had new business ventures that needed to be attended to elsewhere.

He explained that he usually spent a few years in each location and he'd already been in Mie long enough.

Either way, there was no arguing with him and they were moving. His Dad had tried to make it seem more exciting by telling Izuku he could begin some physical training since his spatial awareness training was about as good as it could be for the moment.

It had been months since Tomura had snuck upon him and the older boy didn't try much now. Which was just as well since Izuku didn't think he'd seen Tomura wear his gloves at all lately. Not even when playing his favourite games.

It didn't change the fact that they were moving.

He could see that his answer had upset Ochaco and Minato but before they could say anything, the bell rang. Minato looked torn. He had to go to his homeroom.

"We'll still be friends," he said by way of parting.

Ochaco looked at Izuku after he left. "We will, Little Dragon," she repeated forcefully. "And we can write, and call as well." She wasn't sure if Izuku had a phone. It wouldn't matter because she didn't but she could get his dad's number and call that from one of her parents phones.

Izuku nodded, and Ochaco was glad to see that he looked slightly more relieved now. They'd make something work.

-ted-

"This is all your fault!"

Izuku jerked up at this hiss. His green eyes widened as he saw Tomura standing in the doorway. "It's not my fault," he objected. He'd been working in his notebook.

"It is!" The older boy insisted. "If you didn't want to be a hero, none of this would be happening," he growled the sentence, glaring between the fingers of the hand that covered his face.

"I didn't ask to move!" Izuku snapped back. He didn't ask to change schools and move away from his friends.

"I just got everything back from that stupid hero raid and now I have to move again!" Tomura continued to rant. "I have to pack up and then unpack it and I'll never be able to find stuff again!"

Izuku had packed up his room earlier. The raid, which his dad had explained was from Heroes who feared what he did - though Izuku wasn't sure how that worked since his dad was a businessman, but he knew he didn't know everything his father did - had actually made packing easier for him. He hadn't been as demanding as Tomura had to replace everything. Kurogiri had given him a few boxes and soft bags. He'd packed his clothes into the bags, and books into the boxes. The misty man had said he would take care of the bed, chair and desk that was in his room.

Since he'd cleaned everything out, he'd come out into the common room they had set up so that it could work on his notebook.

"You could unpack neatly," Izuku suggested.

He knew it was a mistake the instant he said the words. Tomura's gold eyes flashed, and the other boy lunged forward. Izuku slipped off the chair before it disintegrated. His notebook was clasped in his hand and he could feel the pages crinkling under his grip but he wasn't going to let Tomura get another one.

Izuku dodged left and had to jump to the side as Tomura screamed and swung his right hand out, flailing as he tried to hit anything. Thankfully, Izuku was far enough away that the older boy missed. Izuku dove forward, focusing on the door. The set up at this place was slightly different from the last location. It was similar. They had a kitchen, a bar, and a common room but there was more space between them. He thought Kurogiri was packing up the kitchen.

He heard Tomura's yell from behind him and that made Izuku put on another turn of speed. He darted down the corridor. Tomura was hot on his heels. "It's not my fault," Izuku yelled.

"It is!" Tomura screamed.

Izuku slammed himself into the wall at the right as Tomura's clawed hand passed through where he'd been. The older boy's thumb caught on his t-shirt but Izuku didn't have time to care about that. He scrambled along the floor before rising again. He felt the tug on his shirt but didn't pause.

Tomura howled. "Fucking bastard!" He screamed.

Izuku kept running down the corridor. He could have taken Tomura's quirk but he knew he shouldn't. His dad had pointed out that people did not like the thought of losing their quirk. Izuku had never asked his friends but he'd spoken to Kurogiri about it and the misty man had said it was the worst thing Izuku could do, so Izuku tried to avoid it.

Usually he could push Tomura away using Caeli Imperium but he needed a moment to focus on that and the other boy wasn't giving him any time. Izuku burst into the kitchen area and looked around frantically. His stomach fell when he realised Kurogiri wasn't there. He didn't know where the other man was, and he knew his dad was not here. The only other place people might be was in the bar, but to get to that, he'd have to get past Tomura again. And that was unlikely. Izuku knew the other boy wouldn't care either.

He backed up against one of the cupboards and used the time to pull his quirks to him. If he kept his face to Tomura then he could use Fire Breath to keep the other boy off him. Izuku spat out a small tongue of flame as a warning.

"That's not going to save you," Tomura snarled. His hands were in front of him, shaped as claws. Except his right thumb was hanging at an odd angle.

"Tomura, your hand!" Izuku used up precious air.

"Not going to save you!"

"But-"

Tomura snarled and lunged forward again. Izuku had enough space to dodge and the cupboard door he had been against crumbled into dust. He managed to take a deep breath and shot a breath of flame towards Tomura. He could control the heat of the flame and hadn't made it too hot. Kurogiri would be upset if he injured Tomura.

The older boy swatted the flames aside. "You can't be a hero against me," he growled.

"I'm not trying to be a hero!" Izuku objected but he knew Tomura wasn't listening.

The grey haired boy lunged again, extending his right hand. Izuku flinched but felt a stab of panic when Tomura corrected his aim. He wasn't going to get away. He grabbed at his quirk, before grabbing at the older boy's grey quirk even as he felt Tomura's hand seize his arm.

Izuku froze. Tomura froze. Nothing happened.

Izuku looked at his arm. Tomura was grasping it and his flesh was white from the pressure. All fingers were down but… He almost breathed a sigh of relief before he realised he better not. The thumb, which had been caught earlier on his t-shirt was hanging down, which meant that it wasn't touching his arm.

"Tch!" Tomura growled and before he could bring his left hand over to touch him, Izuku yanked at the quirk he'd grasped.

Tomura stepped back though, letting go of Izuku's arm before he took a step back. "Give it!" The older boy demanded.

Izuku glared at him for a moment, judging what Tomura would do. The aborted attempt to disintegrate him seemed to have calmed him down. His yellow eyes were still glaring but there was a more controlled glint in them. Even so, Izuku pulled on Caeli Imperium before he shoved Tomura's grey quirk back at him.

The older boy seemed to shiver for a moment as he stood still. "It's your fault," Tomura hissed before he stalked away.

Izuku watched him go, hardly daring to breathe and when he heard the other boy slam the door to his room, he sucked in great lungfuls of air as he slid to the ground. He didn't even mind the dust that puffed up around him from the destroyed cabinet door.

It wasn't his fault that they were moving and he wasn't trying to be a hero with Tomura. The other boy should be thankful that he hadn't behaved like a hero! He'd played the games Tomura lent him and those heroes always killed the villain. If he was being the hero, then Tomura was being the villain, and him killing Tomura was the way things were in those games. But the game wasn't reality and Izuku knew heroes of today weren't the paragons of light they were portrayed to be in the games. They were good, but still human.

Izuku leaned his head back. "It's not my fault."