Izuku: Variety (Epilogue) (Patreon)

Midoriya sits on the roof of UA, hiding in the corner as he uses his quirk to speed up his writing speed, a mutter storm echoing across the partially enclosed area. What’s he doing here, one might ask? Well, he’s analyzing every aspect of his life, trying to calculate whether or not he should follow his Alternate’s examples in an effort to gain his own quirk.

Don’t get him wrong! He loves the fact that his childhood idol trusted him enough to have entrusted his quirk to him! Even though he would have appreciated a heads-up regarding the two-hundred year old nemesis that comes with holding One For All…

Still, no matter how much he appreciates the quirk, how much good he’s been able to do with it, it doesn’t change the fact that it’s not his. And he just can’t manage to shake away the doubt that the Alternates have planted: that he does have a quirk, but hasn’t been able to use it because it essentially needs a kickstart.

But… if he does decide to try and unlock a latent quirk by doing as they did, he needs to be careful. An odd thing to consider when you’re planning your suicide. But on the off-chance that he actually doesn’t have a quirk, he wants to be able to come back. He can’t make his friends and mom suffer just because of his own selfishness.

Which is a problem, because two of the ways his Alternates got quirks/abilities are one-hundred percent fatal! Midosagi has to literally die, while Viridian Dragon had to bathe in lava for an indeterminate amount of time. And she’s not even sure that’s how she ‘awakened’, as she put it.

On the other hand, Broccoli’s method of gaining his quirk, or quirks, is completely impossible. He essentially underwent an alternate method of becoming a Nomu than the ones his class has encountered. Not only does that mean his quirks aren’t really his, but Midoriya also isn’t willing to risk One For All coming under the control of All For One during the process.

And of course there’s the fact that he’d be equally likely as not to lose his mind during the process.

So he’s out, and Kitsune’s method wasn’t much better. Her power comes entirely from her bloodline, her inheritance from the Tailed Beast. Since those are just a show in this world, lighting himself on fire using someone’s quirk would just result in him becoming cooked Midoriya. No powers for him.

His questions to Viridian Dragon didn’t help him in trying to identify any characteristics that would tell him if he too could become a dragon, though the way her lips curled when he asked spoke of how little she thought of him becoming one. So just as unhelpful as the others.

So, really, the only one he can reasonably try to copy is Midosagi. The problem with his is that it’s not an instant regeneration kind of thing, instead taking a minimum of thirty minutes to come back to life, and a maximum of twenty-four hours. If he were to try and wait the full length of time it could happen, but it didn’t work, then he’d stay dead! Nothing can bring someone back so long after they died! And even with what they do have available, it only works within moments!

If he tries to get Midosagi’s quirk, he’ll have to be prepared to stay dead.

He sighs, leaning back so his head taps against the wall. “What should I do?” He asks himself aloud, hoping that the noise will help him make a decision. He isn’t expecting a reply, so when one comes in the form of an explosion slamming his head into the ground it’s safe to say he’s surprised.

“You should stop being fucking stupid, Deku! The fuck is wrong with you to even consider something like that!?” Bakugou lands with a heavy thud, signature scowl on his face as Midoriya picks himself back up. But instead of apologizing like Bakugou expects, Midoriya scowls back at him.

“I’m thinking ‘Hey, maybe I’m not a useless waste of space!’ You know, like you always told me I am! Maybe I was born with some actual worth instead of being lucky enough to be chosen by All Might! But you wouldn’t know anything about that, now would you!”

Bakugou is taken aback by the words, but he doesn’t show it, his scowl just deepening as explosions rock the inside of his palms. “So you think offing yourself is a good idea!? Because some shitty villain version of you did the same!? Grow the fuck up, or you’ll never be worth shit!”

Midoriya clenches his fist, his mind flashing back to how none of the Alternates were afraid of his childhood friend. But…no, that’s not right, is it? A childhood friend isn’t meant to belittle you. Isn’t meant to take any opportunity they can to put you down. They’re meant to support you. Or at least bet there for you. They’re meant to be a friend.

Midoriya takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly. And then it hits him. The quirk isn’t what’s important. Half of the others had a quirk, but that simply highlights that the other half didn’t. So, other than them all being different versions of himself, what did they all have in common?

None of them thought of Kachan as their friend.

None of them, except for him. He’s the outlier. And what do the others all have in common? They’re happy. Even Analyst, who clearly stated that he wants to die, gave off a happy feeling when he talked about how his bodyguards won’t let him die. Which leads him to ask-

Would he even be contemplating trying to follow Midosagi’s example, if he didn’t consider Kachan his friend?

Looking back, he’s not sure. Yes, he would have still been bullied. Growing up quirkless meant that such a thing was non-negotiable. But…would he have endured daily beatings if he just stopped following him around? Deluding himself into thinking that being quirkless didn’t change their friendship? The other kids often followed Katsuki’s lead in how to treat Midoriya. So if he had avoided him, would they have stuck with name calling and ostracization, like All Might said he experienced?

Yes, he needs to take into account how everyone looked down on him for wanting to be a hero, but then he might have at least been able to train his body to give himself a shot! But when he tried taking martial arts classes or asked his mom to take him to the gym, there Bakugou was, raging about how much better he is, and that Midoriya shouldn’t even try.

Despite all the times he said Midoriya has stalker tendencies due to his notebooks, he was the one who’d always show up to beat him down whenever he tried to get any self-improvement done. And when it wasn’t him, he always made sure some of his lackeys would show up in his place. Eventually, Midoriya just…gave up. It’s why he was able to understand Analyst so well.

Maybe…

“The fuck you thinking about Deku? You better not be trying to find a way to go behind my back and fucking kill yourself!”

Midoriya blinks, pulled from his thoughts by Bakugou’s familiar shouting, and he’s surprised that he wasn’t muttering. Because he knows, if Bakugou had heard what he’s thinking, he would already have launched himself at him.

And that’s the kicker, isn’t it? He’s not trying to make him feel better. He’s not trying to convince him not to, say, jump off the building. He’s threatening him to get what he wants. Yes, Midoriya has known him long enough to realize that this is his way of showing concern, but it’s not ok! Hell, the first thing he did when he found him was to attack and insult him! Like, he thought that Midoriya was considering killing himself, and his first thought was to launch an explosion at his head while telling him that he’s stupid and worthless? What the hell!?

That’s not something a friend does.

Therefore, Bakugou is not his friend.

Maybe he never was.

He nods, satisfied with his realization. It was a long time coming, but better late than never. And with that realization, a weight seems to lift off of Midoriya’s chest. A heavy one, that he never knew he carried. The weight of doing everything he can to support Bakugou’s dream of becoming a hero. Because that’s what friends do.

But he isn’t his friend. And he’s never supported his dream, even after getting into UA. So why should he support his?

He looks at Bakugou, who takes a step back at the look in his eyes. It’s the same look the Alternates looked at him with. The lightest look, in the case of Quirkless, being loathing. It’s a look saying, in no uncertain terms, to leave him the hell alone!

But before Midoriya can vocalize the words, the door leading back inside slams open, and half of his classmates practically fall over themselves as they burst through. They cry tears of relief seeing the green haired boy standing there, one of them shooting off a message to the class’ group chat telling them where they are.

After assuring them that, no, he’s not planning to try and kill himself, Midoriya gets escorted to Hound Dog’s office. It’s quite the procession, including nearly all of class 1-A, All Might, Aizawa, Midnight, and Present Mic, who Aizawa explained the situation to. Hound Dog, of course, is shocked to see the large gathering of people at his uncommonly visited door, and even more surprised when Midoriya is bodily thrown in with shouts of ‘get help’ shouted after him.

It’s only when he manages to close the door, allowing the soundproofing in the walls to work, that the room is silent. Hound Dog looks at the dazed Midoriya, who’s looking back at the door with wide eyes but a happy smile. He sighs, helping him to his feet and to the couch before sitting himself down in the opposing chair.

Though he doesn’t say it, Hound Dog is glad to see the boy here. Unlike his homeroom teacher, Hound Dog actually looks at the records of the students. Not just the hero course, but all the departments! His job is to help people, and that’s what he intends to do.

Which is why he was so surprised that Midoriya hadn’t visited him once since he started school. Developing a quirk literally the day of the entrance exam? The clearly falsified behavioral reports from his elementary and middle schools painting him as a trouble-maker when he could barely speak when he first started? Pile onto all of that the constant villain attacks and the stress of matching up with his classmates who have over a decade of experience on him for using their quirks effectively?

It’s a miracle the boy hasn’t suffered a mental break.

“So, Midoriya,” Hound Dog begins gently, not wanting to scare the boy away. Despite the rather…forceful…way he got here, he won’t make him speak if he’s not comfortable. “Are you ready to talk about what’s been bothering you?”

Midoriya takes a deep breath, letting his emotions fill him for the first time in years. He gives the school counselor a shaky smile as tears pool in the corners of his eyes.

“Yes. I think I am.”

The End

And that's the end of Variety. Originally, I was thinking about the entire class confronting him while he's standing on the edge of the building about to jump, with Bakugou launching himself up from the foot of the building and knocking him out and away from the edge. Midoriya would then be forced to go to therapy against his wishes, and he'd reluctantly let go of his desire to hold his own quirk.

Then I realized...what would that solve? The underlying issue of why he was in that head space originally didn't come from his lack of a quirk, but Bakugou taking every possible moment to put him down. So I felt like this would be a more honest ending. Rather than Bakugou coming off as the hero he always claims he is, he's the obstacle stopping Midoriya from becoming what he always wanted to be.

A hero.