Notes: Something I've wanted to do for a while. I was going to hold off on posting, but based on where the manga appears to be headed, I wanted to go ahead with this, in case parts of this prove very similar to the canon material. As a nod to the anime, I've included brief character Quirk intros in the midst of relevant scenes.
Summary: It all began with the luminescent baby. And it never ended. It doesn't matter, if you're a hero or a villain. The only thing that matters, is how and when the Light calls you to serve.
Imprisoners
A My Hero Academia Fanfic by
Nate Grey (xman0123-at-aol-dot-com)
Chapter 1: Uravity Grounded
"How does that feel, Ochaco-chan? Not too tight?"
The younger woman slowly flexed her bandaged arm. "No, it feels great. Thanks, Mama!"
The older woman beamed at her. "Of course, dear. You know you can come by anytime."
Ochaco Kirishima frowned slightly. "I... really shouldn't, though. I only came here because I was close by when I got hurt. I know you guys have an open door policy at this base, but-"
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Ochaco Kirishima
Alignment: Civilian
Title: (Formerly Pro Hero, Uravity)
Affiliation: Uraraka Construction
Quirk: ZERO GRAVITY
She gave up her high-floating, weightless ways to raise a family! Now she dedicates her life to building low-cost housing for retired heroes and victims of tragedy!
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"You know what Izuku always says. Once a member, always a member. And you were one of the founders."
"That was a very different time, though." Ochaco sighed wistfully and stared at the far wall of the infirmary. "A time when I thought I'd be the only other person calling you 'Mama', but now..."
"Now, nearly everyone I treat calls me that. I suppose it's a compliment. There was a time when I thought I didn't deserve to call myself that, and now almost every hero I meet praises my qualities as a mother."
"You are a great mother, Inko-san," Ochaco said softly. "One I've tried to be more like. If it wasn't for your advice-"
"You would have figured it out," Inko Midoriya interrupted firmly. "I've seen you with Ichiro. You have good instincts, and he's the one with a great mother."
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Inko Midoriya
Alignment: Civilian
Title: "Mamadoriya"
Affiliation: Deku Force
Quirk: ATTRACTION OF SMALL OBJECTS
She is best known for her warm, motherly nature, and having raised the rising hero, Deku! Anyone who has experienced her tender care can truly say, "There's no place like home!"
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Ochaco blushed, as much from the compliment as from the thought of her son's grinning face. He was so adorable that she simply couldn't stand it at times. Fortunately, he was not yet old enough to realize that being constantly hugged and kissed by his mother might be a bad thing. Of course, Ichiro's father had no complaints about getting similar treatment himself.
"Ah, I need to bring in the extra antiseptic that was delivered last night," Inko said suddenly. "Ochaco-chan, could you watch things for a few minutes while I'm gone? I'm expecting a call soon."
"Sure," Ochaco said warmly. "Take your time. It hasn't been so long that I forgot how things run around here."
Inko smiled and patted Ochako's uninjured arm before leaving the room.
After a few moments, Ochaco stood up and looked around the infirmary. Very little had changed in her time away. There was the table where they'd placed the shrapnel removed from Tsuyu's left arm. Next to it was the chair where Ochaco sat when Izuku popped her right arm back into the socket. And over there was the specially reinforced bed where Izuku received nearly all of his treatments, no matter how small. No doubt it still smelled like him, too.
Ochaco quickly forced that lingering thought from her mind. She started to pull out her cellphone to call home when a warning light on the display screen built into the nearby wall flashed red, indicating an incoming call. Out of habit, Ochaco tapped the light, turning it green, and accepted the call with the old greeting. "You've reached Deku Force Base, Uravity speaking."
The screen lit up, showing a younger woman with long, white hair and red eyes. Her red costume was covered in dirt and singed in some places, but she seemed cheerful despite that, especially when she realized who had answered the call.
"Oh! Uravity! So nice to see you again! It's me, Eri! Remember?"
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Eri
Alignment: Hero
Title: Reversion Hero, Erilution
Affiliation: Deku Force
Quirk: REWIND
She's cute, but don't touch without permission! Her Rewind can revert a person to any previous state! That means perfect health, old wounds, memory loss, and for the worst of the worst, even total erasure!
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Ochaco forced herself to smile. Of course she remembered the girl who had effectively replaced her on Deku Force, even if it was more a matter of timing than anything else. It was not Eri's fault that she had been recruited by Izuku only minutes before Ochaco had resigned from the team. Indeed, when Izuku first brought Eri to the base to meet the team, he'd been shocked that Ochaco was not there to greet them, doubly so when he learned why.
"Yes, I remember you, Eri-chan," Ochaco replied, hoping her voice didn't tremble too much. "It's Erilution now, right?" At Eri's eager nod, Ochaco added, "Did you need something?"
"Yes! We're about three minutes away from the base, and Froppy asked me to call ahead and tell Mama that we're bringing four guests. Um, I think they were called Kingly Murderous Explosion?"
Ochaco found herself smiling genuinely. "I'm pretty sure that's Explosive Murder Kings, unless they changed the name recently. Is one of them a loud, scary guy that blows stuff up?"
Eri frowned. "Yeah, he looked like the leader. Or acted like it."
"That's Bakugo, and he... well, you get used to him. Eventually."
"Mmm, I don't know. Oh, but his wife is really nice!"
"I know, we were all friends in high school. Anyway, I'll pass the message on to Mama. See you in a few, Eri-chan."
"Okay! Bye-bye!"
Ochaco sighed as she ended the call. She hadn't planned to stick around, since it could mean running into Deku, but now she definitely would. It was uncomfortable enough, being around the guy she used to have a crush on, now that she was married. It was worse, both of them knowing that she'd quit the team because of him.
Five minutes later, Ochaco and Inko were standing in the hangar as each team emerged from their respective hovercraft. Ochaco had purposely positioned herself a bit closer to the hovercraft of the Explosive Murder Kings, and hoped it wasn't too obvious.
First down the ramp was a pink blur that launched itself at Ochaco and wrapped her in a warm hug. "Ochaco! I missed you, it's been ages!"
Ochaco smiled as the blur became one of her dearest friends, Mina Ashido - no, it was Mina Bakugo now, she had to keep reminding herself. "Hi, Mina-chan! It's great to see you!"
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Mina Bakugo
Alignment: Hero
Title: Alien Queen Hero, Pinky
Affiliation: Explosive Murder Kings
Quirk: ACID
Pink and cuddly, but the Acid she produces makes her tricky to hold onto! Handle with care!
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"Oooh, tell me you've got new pictures of Ichiro!" Mina gushed. "He's so cute I could just gobble him up!"
Within seconds, they were both squealing over Ichiro's cuteness as Ochaco cycled through some pictures on her phone. They were interrupted by a cough, and Ochaco looked up to see the "loud, scary guy" glaring at her. "Oh, hi, Bakugo! Been a while, huh?"
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Katsuki Bakugo
Alignment: Hero
Title: Explosively Murderous Hero, Live Grenade
Affiliation: Explosive Murder Kings
Quirk: EXPLOSION
His pin's always pulled, so run for your life! His Explosion is huge, but his body count is minimal! A scary, no-nonsense hero that 7 out of 10 kids love!
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Katsuki Bakugo grunted, though not as rudely as he might have once. And he seemed significantly less threatening when Mina bounced over and latched onto his arm, giving him a swift peck on the cheek. Ochaco still had no idea how her bubbly friend had managed to hook one of the wildest men she'd ever met, but they had dated for three years before getting married, and Mina seemed happy enough. Bakugo... still seemed like Bakugo, though perhaps a slightly more mellow version. Which only meant that Ochaco had never seen him yelling at Mina, which had to count for something, considering how much he yelled at virtually anyone else.
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Shoto Todoroki
Alignment: Hero
Title: Freezing Flaming Hero, ColdNova
Affiliation: Explosive Murder Kings
Quirk: HALF-COLD HALF-HOT
The bloodline of Endeavor shines through, but don't overlook a mother's Quirk! Half-Cold Half-Hot is burning one minute, and freezing the next!
Momo Todoroki
Alignment: Hero
Title: Everything Hero, Creati
Affiliation: Explosive Murder Kings
Quirk: CREATION
Behind the sharp mind and the soft smile lies a Quirk of All Trades! Creation never leaves her empty-handed! A hero with equipment for any and every situation!
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Behind them were Shoto and Momo Todoroki, arm in arm, and looking tired but satisfied. Shoto stopped briefly to shake Ochaco's hand, then left her and Momo to catch up. This couple made more sense to Ochaco, since there had at least been some attraction on Momo's part beforehand. Momo was one of those friends who had made an extra effort to stay in touch with everyone, and was always the driving force behind planned get-togethers. Ochaco had to admit that she had been impressed when Momo produced a slim, white-haired woman at one of these gatherings and introduced her as "Mother Todoroki", who had not been seen in public in years. That was one of the few meetings Shoto had been present for, and he and his siblings had hovered protectively around their mother the entire time, in a way that was both very sweet and a little sad.
All too soon, however, Momo left, and Ochaco found herself alone with the youngest member of Deku Force, who had been patiently waiting to speak to her. Eri all but ran to Ochaco and bowed politely.
Ochaco patted Eri on the shoulder. "You don't need to bow to me."
"I'm working very hard to become a dependable member of Deku Force!" Eri blurted out. "I hope I can make you proud of me one day!"
"Don't worry about that," Ochaco replied. "Just be the best Eri you can be. That's all anyone can ask."
"She's a very good Eri," Tsuyu Asui said as she joined them. "The very best one I've ever seen."
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Tsuyu Asui
Alignment: Hero
Title: Rainy Season Hero, Froppy
Affiliaton: Deku Force
Quirk: FROG
Frog wo-man, frog wo-man, does whatever a frog girl can! She leaps, she licks, but don't ask about the trick with her stomach!
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Eri blushed at the praise. "Thank you, Tsu-chan!"
Tsuyu nodded. "Go and help Mama with the restocking, Eri-chan. Thanks to you, we don't need the infirmary quite as much, but there's always a chance someone could get hurt while you're not here."
Eri nodded and hurried away.
"Is she really fitting in so well?" Ochaco asked once Eri was gone.
"It's not hard for her to," Tsuyu responded. "You know Deku Force is about being a family, and that's all Eri has wanted for so long. She just wants to belong, and to help people. You notice she didn't ask if she could heal your arm?"
Ochaco blinked. "Was she supposed to ask?"
"No. But she noticed your bandage right away, and I had to tell her not to offer unless you asked first. She would gladly exhaust herself, using her Quirk to help anyone. We're still working on that."
Ochaco didn't want to admit it, but she was impressed. Eri's Quirk, Rewind, was both incredibly useful and dangerously powerful. She could rewind a person's body to a previous state. The most common application was returning someone to a state before they were injured. But, if Eri wasn't careful, she could wipe someone from existence entirely. And if she was careful, she could return someone to a time when they were gravely injured. But she tended to save that for especially violent or cruel people. Ochaco was certain that Eri's recruitment into Deku Force was at least partially because of her personal history with Deku: not only was he one of the first people to show her kindness, she could undo and prevent entirely the physical damage that Deku suffered from overusing his own Quirk.
"So," Tsuyu said knowingly, staring at Ochaco. "What are you doing here? You never come to visit. Not here, anyway."
Ochaco sighed. Tsuyu always knew too much. "Don't laugh, but there was a cat stuck in a tree, and I couldn't just ignore it. But he didn't appreciate the rescue, and scratched me. I happened to be in the neighborhood, and I didn't want to go to a hospital. Inko-san said she'd be happy to treat me, so... here I am."
"I see." Tsuyu didn't sound as if she believed the whole story, but didn't argue the point. "Well, it's good to see you, Ochaco-chan. Can you stay for a while? I can make us some tea."
"Maybe just a few minutes, Tsu-chan. I really do need to get home to Ichiro."
Tsuyu croaked in a way that Ochaco understood was a laugh. "I guess I wouldn't be able to resist, if I had a guy that cute waiting for me at home, either."
Ochaco blushed. "Tsu-chan, please don't tease me."
"No teasing. He is a real cutie, everyone thinks so." Tsuyu sighed wistfully. "I just hope, one day..."
Ochaco watched her uncomfortably. "Tsu-chan, do you two still-?"
A voice interrupted them. "Ochaco?" it asked in surprise.
She froze, trying not to wince. That voice, speaking her name, it still sent shivers down her spine. Ochaco turned her head slightly, watching the slowly approaching figure over Tsuyu's shoulder. "Hi, Izuku," she said softly.
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Izuku Midoriya
Alignment: Hero
Title: Unstoppable Hero, Deku
Affiliation: Deku Force
Quirk: BODY BOOST
Broken bones, shredded body, it doesn't matter! Nothing can keep Deku down! Whatever the reason, whenever the season, if Deku is there, the day is already saved! His Body Boost is ridiculously powerful!
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He looked shocked. "When Eri told me that you answered the call, I just assumed-"
"That I wouldn't be here when you got back?"
Izuku frowned. "Well... yeah."
Ochaco nodded. "That was my plan, I admit. I... don't know why I stayed. Maybe I just wanted to see some old friends again."
"You're always welcome here, Ochaco. That will never change."
She sighed. "That was never the problem, Izuku."
"You two should talk," Tsuyu said abruptly. "I'll make tea."
"You don't have to leave-" Ochaco said quickly.
"I want to," Tsuyu replied. "You know where to find me." She paused, then gave Ochaco a quick hug before leaving.
"It's been a long time," Izuku muttered. "Since we've seen each other."
"Yes," Ochaco agreed.
"How have you been?"
"Better."
"I heard you've retired from hero work."
"Mostly. Sometimes I can't resist, if I see someone in trouble. You know how it is."
Izuku nodded. "How's Ichiro?"
Ochaco smiled. "Happy. Getting stronger every minute. He broke five coffee tables last month."
Izuku tried very hard not to laugh. "Listen, Ochaco. I don't know what you want for his future, but even if he doesn't become a pro hero, I'd be happy to help him learn how to control his Quirk. Just say the word."
Ochaco stared at him. The offer was genuine, even well-meaning. But underneath it, there was more, and it was dangerous. "I really appreciate that, Izuku. I'll keep it mind. But for now, we're managing."
"I don't suppose there's any chance you'd be willing to come back to Deku Force? Even part-time?"
"I told you exactly why I left. Have you resolved that issue the way I asked you to?"
Izuku closed his eyes and shook his head.
"I see. Then you know my answer. But to be completely honest, even if you had resolved the issue, I don't think I could come back. Being around you, it's still too hard for me. I have a family, and you're trying to start one. I think me coming back would be the worst possible thing for both of us right now. And for you to even suggest it-"
"I'm sorry," he interrupted. "You're absolutely right. I just... I miss you."
Ochaco smiled weakly. "That's just it. If we only missed each other as friends or teammates, we might be able to address that. But I can't forget that you were my first serious boyfriend, and I don't think you can, either. That's a big problem. And I don't think you're asking me back just because you miss having me around. If you're hoping for something that I can't give, and that you wouldn't have any business accepting in the first place, I can't. I won't. You know how important loyalty is to me, and I feel like I'm stabbing Tsuyu in the back just by talking to you. And if you've become the type of person who would do that to her-"
"No. I haven't."
"Good. I would hate to think you had compromised your morals to that extent. Or that Tsuyu had let you."
"I'm not the only one here who misses you, Ochaco."
"But you are the only one missing me for the wrong reasons, Izuku. Please, don't ask me back anymore. It would mean nothing good for anyone if I ever accepted."
Izuku looked like he was defeated, but still wanted to argue despite that. That was, Ochaco knew, how much she meant to him. It was both flattering and worrying. And it was the last thing she wanted the final member of Deku Force overhearing as he emerged from the hovercraft.
"Hi, honey!" she said loudly, quickly moving past Izuku.
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Eijiro Kirishima
Alignment: Hero
Title: Sturdy Hero, Red Riot
Affiliation: Deku Force, Uraraka Construction
Quirk: HARDENING
Hard as steel, tough as nails! The only thing that can overcome his Hardening is the love of his wife and child!
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The burly, red-haired man turned to greet her with a big grin and large arms outstretched. He immediately swept her into a tight hug, and planted a mind-numbing, toe-curling kiss on her lips that left her seeing stars. If there was one thing she could always say about him, he never lacked passion.
"Babe, you'll never guess what happened to me today!" he practically gushed, squeezing her. "This kid comes up to me, and asks me to sign his Red Riot action figure! He even had it in the original packaging!"
Ochaco smiled and pecked him on the lips. "That's wonderful, honey. Good for you!" It never failed to amaze her, how simple things like this got him excited. True, he was not one of the more well-known members of Deku Force, because he had bounced around between several teams before finally making his way back home. Some people had even started jokingly calling him the "Every Team Hero". But what they didn't understand was that any team would be lucky to have him, and he was proud to have helped so many of them. No one would ever be able to say that Red Riot had turned his back on someone who asked for his help.
The same, unfortunately, could not be said for Uravity.
Ochaco had almost forgotten Izuku was there until he cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable.
"Thanks for helping us out again today, Eijiro," Izuku said. "I know I said it would only be a few missions, but-"
Eijiro waved him off. "No sweat, bro! Red Riot is always happy to help out! Call me anytime!"
Ochaco had no doubt that Izuku would keep calling, if only to keep her at least indirectly involved in Deku Force. But it probably didn't hurt that her husband was willing to pretend that the history between herself and Izuku was entirely friendly and innocent.
Ochaco had barely stepped through the front door of her home when a loud crash greeted her. Sighing, she shot Eijiro a grateful smile as he removed her coat for her. Then she clapped her hands loudly. "Ichiro, we're home!" she called into the house.
An even louder crash was the response, and then her six year-old son hurled himself into the room, nearly crashing into her head, if not for the hardened hand that snatched him out of the air.
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Ichiro Kirishima
Alignment: Civilian
Title: (Unofficial) Interplanetary Hero, Falling Star
Affiliation: Uraraka Construction
Quirk: WEIGHTLESS ROCK
He flies, he crashes, repeat as needed! Weightless Rock both hardens his body and briefly suspends its gravitational pull! The ultimate enemy of household furniture!
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"I told you about that, you little monkey!" Eijiro growled, digging his knuckles into their son's skull. "No launching yourself at the parent without Hardening!"
Ichiro only giggled, automatically hardening his head to the degree that he barely felt the punishment, if it could even be called that. Only when his father stopped did the boy relax his skin to normal and greet his mother with a sunny smile and a hug. "Mama, Papa! I broke three chairs today!" he crowed, throwing his arms around Ochaco's neck and giving her a big, sloppy kiss on the cheek.
Ochaco couldn't help it, she covered his grinning face with kisses. "Oh, my little man is so strong!"
"Of course! Nothing less from Interplanetary Hero, Falling Star!" Ichiro raised both arms and made whooshing noises, as if soaring through the air. Ochaco kept a tight grip on him to make sure he actually didn't. She hated to think how much of their furniture had been destroyed in their absence.
Oddly enough, Quirk combination had never even entered her mind when she and Eijiro first started dating. She had only been glad to find a decent guy who understood and accepted her past with Izuku. Now, though, she wished she had at least thought about it. A child who could essentially become a living boulder and then hurl himself around the house as if he weighed nothing was surely any parent's nightmare. She had long since lost count how much of their furniture and home itself had been sacrificed in the name of raising their son. But she wouldn't have traded him for any other child in the world. She just would have installed shock absorbers on everything she owned first.
"Come on, brat," Eijiro said, plucking Ichiro from his mother's arms. "You broke the house and everything in it, let's see how you do against something that can fight back."
"Yeah!" Ichiro immediately hardened his body and began pummeling every inch of his father that he could reach. Fortunately, Eijiro was in the habit of keeping his skin slightly hardened any time he was near his son, so this did not result in injury.
Ochaco rolled her eyes. "I'll get dinner started."
"Mama, play with me later!" Ichiro demanded, shooting her a pleading look.
"Sure, sweetie," Ochaco agreed, blowing him a kiss. An evening flight with her son sounded nice, but she knew most of it would be spent trying to keep him from smashing through nearby trees. And yet, when Ichiro's face lit up at her promise, and the ever-present blush in his cheeks highlighted his grin, Ochaco knew she would change nothing about her life, so long as she got to see that grin every day.
Tsuyu's mind was whirling as she slowly dried the dinner dishes.
Izuku had never really been the type to brood, but he did tend to obsess over things, which was worse in some ways. Rather than get depressed over a failure, he would hyper-focus on ways to prevent it from reoccurring.
And there was nothing he tended to hyper-focus on more than what had gone wrong with Ochaco.
Tsuyu couldn't really blame him. First loves were hard to let go of. She would know, since Izuku was hers, and despite all of his flaws, or how much easier it should have been to love anyone else, she still wanted him. She was willing to wait. For what, she couldn't say. But she thought she would know, when or if it happened.
A proposal, most likely. Conflicted as Izuku was over the matter, he had been raised almost entirely by his mother, and he had seen how being alone weighed on her. He would never commit to a marriage that he couldn't put his all into. So if he ever did propose, it would be because he was all in, for the long haul.
Since seeing Ochaco still shook him up so much that he couldn't come home the same night, he was nowhere near ready for marriage to anyone. And that was only one of the two issues still keeping their relationship in a holding pattern. Of the two problems, the Ochaco one was at least something she'd suspected would be a hassle all along, and she'd prepared herself for it. But the second... that was something that Izuku would have to realize on his own that he'd trapped himself in. No one could tell him, or at least no one could convince him to listen. And Tsuyu didn't mind admitting that it bothered her far more than his feelings for Ochaco ever had.
"Tsu-chan, do you need any help?" Eri asked as she poked her head into the kitchen.
Tsuyu blinked. "Uh, no. Thanks, Eri-chan. I'm almost done here."
Eri frowned. "Are you really sure?"
Tsuyu started to answer, then realized that Eri didn't really mean the dishes. And it made her smile. Eri was just like Izuku: always trying to fix everything. The only difference was, this was a problem that wasn't too big for Eri to handle.
"Actually," Tsuyu said slowly, "I don't think Izuku will be back until late. So since it'll just be the two of us..."
Eri's eyes lit up. "Slumber party!"
Tsuyu smiled. "Sure. And listen. There are... some serious things I want to talk to you about, Eri-chan. About our family, and how things are."
"Okay!" Eri chirped. She skipped out of the room, obviously going to get things ready for the slumber party.
Tsuyu sighed and frowned. She wasn't sure what she'd say to Eri, exactly. Izuku was always worried about how sensitive Eri was, but Tsuyu knew better. Eri had lived through some truly horrible things, and nothing had broken her spirit yet. Tsuyu's relationship troubles wouldn't phase her too much... except for the fact that they involved Izuku, and that most of it was his fault. And though Tsuyu couldn't be sure, she thought Eri already knew the real reason why they had slumber parties any time that Izuku didn't come home: because on those nights, Tsuyu didn't want to be as alone as she actually felt.
The sight of Blightgate Prison looming before him always filled Izuku with a healthy amount of dread. He knew it was a necessary evil, as it contained a very large number of villains, but more threatening than that was the prison's reputation. There had never been a single successful escape, for a very simple reason: it was a no-Quirk zone. Not as in Quirks weren't allowed, but as in they ceased to work once inside. This was even true for the prison guards, so the ones who did depend on their Quirks to do their jobs, could only secure the perimeter. But among that number were guards with Quirks that specialized in swift, crippling attacks. Fortunately for Izuku, also among them was a former classmate who didn't mind doing him a favor occasionally. But those favors weren't free.
"You should really be at home right now, Izuku. Does Tsuyu know you're here?"
"I don't want to talk about it, Denki," Izuku replied as he approached his old friend.
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Denki Kaminari
Alignment: Hero
Title: Stun Gun Hero, Chargebolt
Affiliation: Blightgate Prison
Quirk: ELECTRIFICATION
The shocking pro hero turned prison guard! His Electrification makes him a living taser, and puts the stun on bad guys on the run!
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Denki Kaminari grunted and led Izuku to the front gate. "Well, tough. I don't mind getting you inside, but I do mind if you're hurting Tsuyu more than you absolutely have to. I could have married her, you know."
"I doubt it. Your Quirks don't exactly mix, and you aren't really her type."
"And how would you know that?"
"She told me. You hung out with Minoru way too much for her to even think about giving you a shot. Plus, someone started a rumor that your repeated... shock treatments weren't exactly boosting the quality of your, um, little soldiers."
Denki glared at him. "That's not-!"
"I said it was a rumor. I never believed it, and I don't think Tsuyu did, either... but she still didn't want to risk it. If you'd ever seen yourself in a mirror after you got shocked, you'd understand."
"Quit smiling! It's not funny!"
Izuku coughed. "Sorry, man. Anyway, you probably stood a better chance with Kyoka. You both always looked like you were in the same band."
"Didn't work out," Denki muttered. "She got sick of how I looked when I shocked myself, too."
"Ouch. Sorry. Again."
"Yeah, well, I'm alone, but I've still got enough sense to see you're blowing your shot with a great girl. Again. This is your third visit this month. Didn't think I was counting? I bet I'm not the only one, either. You're wrecking your own love life worse than any villain could, Izuku."
"That's just it, though. My dream was never to have a great love life. It was to be a hero. And if that means I'll never have the type of love that people dream of, I can accept that."
"But can Tsuyu?"
"She says she can. I just don't know if I want her to be right, or wrong."
Denki signaled a guard beyond the gate. "I never ask what you do in there, and I never will. But if you break Tsuyu's heart, your next visit is permanent. That's the least you'd deserve."
Izuku nodded. "You won't hear any argument from me, Denki. Thanks again."
Continued in Chapter 2: Deku Neutralized
Izuku made a choice that Ochaco could not forgive.