Faces
Midoriya x Reader or Gen (depending on how you read it)
Summertime beach conversations, Midoriya has probably taken a philosophy class and Reader has a (trash) personality, read the tags if ya really wanna know
I wrote this after seeing the second BNHA movie a year ago and figured I might as well put it somewhere!
Words: ~3K ish
Warnings: swearing, property damage, fire, allusions to violence, the good people aren’t actually the good people
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It’s hot as hell out, and worse even it’s humid––one of those days where you feel like you’re drowning on land. Even sitting beneath the shade of an umbrella, you feel a thick layer of sweat clinging to your arms, your upper lip, your forehead.
The heat hasn’t seemed to stop any beachgoers from arriving in droves though. The fifth family of four to arrive in the past thirty minutes strolls by you, making a fuss of finding somewhere to sit in the already-overcrowded picnic area. An older man in a polo balances a stack of several overpriced burger combos on his food tray while two children tug at the legs of the woman’s linen pants, chirping out mom, mommy, mommy, mom’s like a pair of seagulls. They just stand there taking up space for several minutes before their eyes fall on you and your single extra empty chair. You resist the urge to bang your face into the tabletop as they begin to walk your way.
‘Mom’ (you can only assume) lets out a fake cough and asks “is this seat taken?” in a too-polite tone. She grabs the back of the chair in question, which absolutely rubs you the wrong way because it’s almost like she’s already thinking about dragging the thing away, like asking is just a formality and she’ll be taking the chair regardless of what you have to say about it.
“Actually, it is,” you say with a reluctant, tight-lipped smile, “my friend is getting me a drink. Sorry.” You’re not sorry. Thankfully though, nobody lingers long enough to coax that out of you; the small crowd of them bolt off to bother some other person as they rise from their table.
You exhale and roll up the sleeves of your tee, forcing down all the blood that’s pulsing between your ears. You shouldn’t be this annoyed. Really, you shouldn’t. This family (and the four before them) had just been looking for somewhere to sit. Even though they all came asking the same questions with the same irritating expressions stretched across their faces, there was no reason to let yourself get all bothered. You should know better than to let little meaningless things get to you, but then again...you were also...well, you. Quick to snap. Stubborn. Downright hostile most of the time, and you couldn’t even pretend to be anything other than that. You weren’t sly or subtle, couldn’t try to appease people like––
As if on cue, Midoriya pops into your peripheral vision, the red, yellow, blue of his All Might backpack sticking out in the crowd. He finds you quick, scurrying over and placing two cans of pineapple soda on the table. When he drops his bag onto the ground, you can feel the heavy thud reverberate through the boardwalk.
“Got enough rocks in there, Izuku?” You ask as Midoriya pulls out his chair. He laughs, cheeks pink, and pops open his soda.
“I think so.”
“You were gone so long, I’d be real disappointed if you didn’t have something to show for it.” Midoriya sends an apologetic smile your way.
“There were a couple things I had to take care of. A group of kids stepped on some glass while they were playing volleyball, so I had to take them to the visitors center to get fixed up. Then, while I was on my way back to tape off the area, an old lady asked for help carrying her cooler to her car, so that was another thing.” He unfolds two fingers, like he’s trying to keep track of where he is in the story. “Then…” Midoriya recounts every minute detail of his excursion: the missing wallet by the pier, the lifeguard that needed to take a bathroom break, the tourists that hadn’t understood the definition of “sandbar” and got lost looking for some shoreside tiki bar.
“No vacation for an up-and-coming hero, huh?” You tease. “Not even with no teachers to give you busy work? Nabu island is pretty deserted for a vacation town. I’m surprised U.A. is taking the risk,” you rest your forearms on the table and lean in close, “you know, after Kamino.” Midoriya’s eyes shoot up from his soda, locking onto yours.
“They’re being careful,” he says, looking on-edge all of a sudden, “making us work in teams, calling in every night. I think they know they can’t afford to be at the center of another incident.”
“All Might isn’t around anymore––“
“He is though––“ Midoriya interjects.
“But he’s retired, not a hero. The guy was an absolute badass––quite frankly I think he was the only hero worth all the hype––but the fact is that if something goes wrong, nobody can count on him to swoop in and save them anymore. You know that. If anyone really cared about preventing another Kamino, the students would be back at school under the direct supervision of your teachers.” You feel a heat (completely unrelated to the hot day) rushing back to your head and lean back in your chair, arms folded. “Instead, they’re out here alone. The way I see it, the heroes are trying to pull a bluff: ‘come at us, we aren’t scared.’ But if some villain takes advantage of that, what happens is that people get screwed. Students break, and once someone manages to tape them back together, the system labels it ‘a learning experience.’ Fucked up, is what it really is.”
Midoriya is quiet for a while after that, eyes glued on you still, but saying nothing. You hadn’t meant to launch into a rant––really you hadn’t. But...but it just pissed you off beyond belief, and you weren’t good at holding your tongue. You couldn’t lie, and you wouldn’t, not to Midoriya. That wasn’t the way the two of you operated.
There’s a sudden pop, and you look down and realize you’ve snapped the tab off your soda can. You hadn’t even noticed that you’d been fiddling with it. Midoriya sighs, bringing you back to the present moment.
“There are problems with heroes,” he finally says, green eyes catching light as a soft smile tugs at his lips, “I’m not naive enough to sit around twiddling my thumbs and hoping things will change by themselves.” Midoriya’s expression changes with the end of his sentence. His gaze narrows, suddenly intense––like he’s looking into you rather than at you––and his soft smile becomes something sharper, more deliberate. You can’t find a word to describe it before Midoriya begins scooching his chair around the table, legs scraping against the boardwalk until he’s next to you rather than in front of you. “I intend to be the change. I’m going to do whatever it takes to fix things. People deserve to have heroes they can actually trust running things.”
Determined. That was the word for his expression, his assurances.
“Aw, I always knew you were a closet revolutionary.” You tease, donning an exaggerated look of admiration. “Soon you’ll be out there with me and the others, dismantling the hero association right beneath everyones’ noses. But baby steps, I guess.” Midoriya chuckles and leans over like he’s going to drape his arm across your shoulder. You shimmy out of the way just before he does, casting an apologetic look his way.
“You really don’t wanna do that: I’ve been sweating nonstop for the past few hours. I’m practically toxic right now.” Midoriya purses his lips in a pathetically pouty display. So pathetic that you have to wipe the moisture from your palms just so you can give his cheek a playful pinch.
“Come on, stop making that face. You know I can’t resist that face.” Midoriya yanks himself away, grinning wide and rubbing at his pink-tinged cheek.
“Am I the one that’s a ‘closet revolutionary?’��� He asks playfully, leaping back to the previous conversation. He uses his foot to drag his backpack closer. “I’m out here working hard. Meanwhile I see the group’s name across headlines everywhere, but not a single one mentions you. No name, no picture…”
“They don’t want me out ‘in the public eye.’” You say, rolling your eyes.
“Do they think you’re too valuable to risk losing?” Midoriya asks, the seriousness returning to his voice. He grabs his bag, then drops it in your lap. It feels as heavy as it looks––at least 20 pounds, easy.
“No, they just don’t trust me,” you sigh. “You know I’m no good with people: too aggressive, too impatient…” Your voice trails off as you reach into the main pocket. The All Might zipper flashes a cartoonish grin your way as you reach in and grab a rock, the smoothest you can find by just feeling around a little. It fits nicely in your palm, only just bigger than a tennis ball.
“Neither is Kacchan, but he made it into U.A.. Are you sure––”
“Bakugo is the reason nobody lets me do anything yet.” You say, grinding your teeth together. There it was, your trademark temper flaring up again. “You’ve been away in the dorms ever since Kamino happened, so you only hear bits and pieces of everything. Even now, they sent me out here cause they knew you’d be around to keep me in check. Shigaraki has had his fill of loose cannons; he doesn’t want to risk another ‘recruit’ causing issues, so he insists on sending me out with babysitters.”
Midoriya makes a couple thoughtful noises, but doesn’t argue. He can’t because he’s known Shigaraki for way longer than you have, which means that he knows you’re right. The League had taken a gamble trying to get Katsuki Bakugo on their side and it’d nearly wiped them out; the only reason they had any semblance of a structure left was because All for One had connections in place. Abandoned properties they could hide out in, powerful allies that would turn a blind eye to a couple ravaged storehouses. Still, the bottom line was that the group was struggling. Accepting new recruits was a gamble, but with its reduced manpower and dwindling resources, it was one the League couldn’t afford to pass up. Still, desperation didn’t mean they’d let themselves make the same mistake twice.
“My quirk is kinda like his, right? Like Bakugo’s?” You ask, absentmindedly rolling the rock against the back of your neck then up and down the length of your arms. “I’ve always wondered if that meant we’d get along––you know, if we were on the same side.” Midoriya grimaces.
“I don’t know about that.”
“Why, is he an asshole?”
Midoriya scratches his neck and looks off to the side. You press your lips together and nod knowingly.
“Oh. Should’ve figured as much from what everyone said. It’s just Dabi says everyone is an asshole so I figured––” You’re interrupted when Midoriya’s phone chimes to life. Midoriya glances at it for a millisecond before shoving it back and turning to you.
“Avery’s in position. Gotta move now.” Midoriya mutters just loud enough so you can hear it. He dumps the contents of his backpack onto the boardwalk then loops the strap over one of his shoulders, standing quickly. A sour, burning taste creeps up the back of your throat.
“Wait, wait, wait, Avery’s here too?” You ask, not even trying to hide your irritation. Midoriya never so much as mentioned Avery. You can only assume that was intentional––there were no accidents with him. “I thought this was gonna be a hit-and-dash type thing. Shigaraki doesn’t send Avery anywhere unless he thinks shit might get serious.”
There’s no hint of humor left in Midoriya’s eyes when they find you again. This was the same guy you’d been joking with just minutes ago, the same one that had been laughing like he didn’t have a care in the world. It’s scary how easy it is to forget how he is, how he can just flip at a moment’s notice.
“Just follow the plan.” Midoriya says. “Avery’s only here to make sure nobody remembers your face. Nabu island is small; there aren’t a lot of places to hide out once the heroes make an appearance.”
“I don’t like not knowing things, Izuku.” You keep your voice flat when you say it, but it’s still an understatement of huge proportions. You’re livid. This is a small omission to be so angry over, but small omissions were a testament to the exact thing you’d been ranting to Midoriya about. The bottom line was that the League didn’t trust you. Midoriya was apparently included in that number. He’d listened and pretended to know nothing, but really he knew everything. That was the way he was, and it had been stupid of you not to forget that. “Besides, weren’t you the one pointing out how I never showed up in any headlines? Wouldn’t this be a great opportunity to show off the shiny new recruit?”
You finish and Midoriya stares, expression hard. Then, he takes a step forward. Some deep, primal part of you wants to back away when he does, but against all instincts you stand your ground. When he finally speaks, it’s a question.
“Do you know why All Might is retired now?” You sit there, silently with your rock in hand as Midoriya hovers over you. It doesn’t feel like he actually wants you to answer. You’re proven right when he continues. “All Might is retired because he was great. Civilians knew to trust him with their lives and criminals knew that they were in trouble if he showed up. I don’t think there’s a single person in Japan that doesn’t know his name.” Midoriya pauses. “That made him a target. Every person that ever got in trouble with the system had a symbol they could blame, someone they could rise up against, oppose; you didn’t see that happening with heroes like Endeavor and Edgeshot. They didn’t have people going after them day in and day out, and that’s why they’re still around. People are always stronger when they have a common enemy.
“The League has many faces,” Midoriya continues, “which means that proponents of ‘justice’ have their resources split trying to take down nearly a hundred different people. Shigaraki is the one they really want, of course, but he’s harder to find when he’s surrounded by so many others. But then there are people like you, me, and Avery––the ones that nobody knows they have to worry about yet. We have the freedom to do real damage, to dismantle things from right under everyone’s noses.”
And in that very second, something clicks.
“You. You’re the one that wants to keep me under wraps.” The words feel like someone else is saying them. You exhale once, shakily. “You convinced Shigaraki to hold off on sending me out until you could guarantee I’d have anonymity on my side.” The idea of it is ridiculous. Midoriya is so young, still a student. Even though he’d managed to snatch an advantageous position amongst the heroes, the notion of him getting Shigaraki on board with any of his ideas concerning the League would be––
Midoriya smiles, an answer. The gesture doesn’t carry to his eyes.
“I look up to All Might, really I do. But I’ll be the first to admit he wasn’t perfect. He made mistakes I don’t intend to repeat. If everyone thinks Shigaraki and the others are the only ones they have to worry about, that only makes things easier for the rest of us. I don’t like giving up an advantage when I have it.” Midoriya places a hand on your shoulder, squeezing. “Get it?” You swallow thickly.
“Got it.” His grip on you is firm––not enough to hurt, but enough to get the point across: despite his age, Midoriya is dangerous. He has power and apparently influence. Just how much, you can only wonder.
“Then get to work. Avery will meet you by the market once someone calls for the heroes, then while you guys are heading out the others will start causing trouble here.” Midoriya’s head snaps upward suddenly. His grin goes toothy, innocent and worlds away from the sinister one he’d been sporting throughout the conversation. He pats your shoulder once before holding his hand up, acknowledging someone behind you. You turn and see a lanky guy you don’t recognize waving back at him from the edge of the water. “I guess I should go find Uraraka and Iida before they get nervous. I’ve got a reputation, but it’ll get weird if I’m always around the trouble when it happens.”
“Can’t push your luck, I guess.” You say, your throat dry. “No unnecessary risks.”
“You’re finally starting to get it.” He starts walking towards the stranger––well, probably not a stranger to him, but still. When he passes, he adds a final, “move at 1:35 PM” before rushing off and becoming Izuku Midoriya, U.A. student again. Not Izuku Midoriya, underworld informant, instigator of the rebellion on the horizon.
There’s a power in being able to choose a face, you muse, looking down at the rock in your hand. Midoriya knew what he wanted. He was willing to do anything, play any part as long as it meant he ended up on the winning side. You can’t decide if it’s terrifying or...or impressive. Hell, you could hardly get through a conversation without finding something to make yourself upset over. And once that happened? Forget about acting rational. Of course, it was important that Midoriya stayed on your side; he was a dangerous person to have as an enemy.
You groan, sick of thinking about it already. The minutes roll by, and after what feels like an eternity of waiting, it’s time to act. You stand and not a single person walks up to you asking if they can have your table. They probably don’t even see you––Avery’s work, no doubt. Like it or not, Midoriya had a point: you could work easier when you didn’t have to worry about drawing attention to yourself. Uhg. You’d probably have to admit that to him later––try to stay on his good side. He’s bound to get all “of course I’m right” with you then...whatever. Not the time.
You give the rock a final toss, catching it in the opposite hand. The thing is beyond sticky now, coated in a thick layer of sweat. Gross, but exactly what you need. It pulses in your hand, warm to hot to scorching. When you finally lob it through the window of the nearest food truck it’s practically molten, barreling through the back wall of the vehicle like a cannonball. Not exactly what you’d intended. It doesn’t explode until it hits a grassy patch just shy of the parking lot, sweat igniting into angry red flames that dart out in every direction. There are a couple screams, but it’s mostly confusion for the first few seconds. Then a fiery chunk of rock lands on the straw roof of a cabana, sending the whole thing up in a cloud of smoke. The real panic starts after that.
Once again, not exactly what you’d intended. It works, but there just isn’t enough...umf to it for your tastes. You let out a thin stream of air over your teeth, leaning over to grab another rock from your pile. Some teen bolts past you, knocking you hard in the shoulder as he goes, but you don’t so much as cast a dirty look his way. You’re too busy winding up your next throw. You have to be better. A little bit of chaos isn’t enough: the heroes won’t show unless there’s absolute pandemonium engulfing the beach.
Fortunately for you, it’s hot as hell. You’ve got loads of sweat to spare.
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9. Cold
A certain Todoroki drama
Angst, Manga spoilers (290-ish), I’m emotional and this is just practice :’)
It’s partially your fault. This cold creeping between the two of you is a man-made thing, like concrete stairwells in agency buildings, electric blue popsicles shared in the summer sun. You could blame plain bad luck too, but—but no. That’s the way you’ll start getting sucked up in the unfairness of everything. Better to shoulder the blame yourself. Shitty parents stayed shitty, but you could control yourself, what you’d done. And you hadn’t done enough.
Neither had he.
You should’ve visited more often, noticed the cracks as they’d started to form. He should’ve told you when things all started getting so bad. But then, you’d been kids. Skinned knees and soggy socks, saving quarters for comic books and staying up too late watching movies long after you were supposed to be asleep. Those were the things kids were supposed to be worrying about.
But it was also Touya’s way to reach, to push limits. Always. If you’d told him not to jump off the edge of the earth, he’d have done it just to prove he could. Ambition—that’s another thing you could blame him for. He never knew how to just give up.
The man before you crawls to his feet. Blood trails down the spaces between his fingers, plopping to the ashy ground with a heavy plunk. A separate rivulet creeps out the edge of his mouth. It gets caught in the slit of his grin, a trench created when one of the staples holding it together was half-yanked free. It just hangs there now, dull and swaying, as though on a whim.
“Would you look at that!” He laughs, teeth bared and head tilted backwards. “Here I was thinking you’d be like those other goody-goody heroes, trying to talk! But you just jump right to it—I didn’t even get to finish the speech I worked so hard on!”
You dive for the crumbled remains of a supermarket just as he extends his arms, a cloud of blue flames blooming out of his palms. The heat of it is dizzying and every inhale threatens to sear your lungs from the inside out. Your back burns through the material of your costume, but you don’t dare move, not until the smoke dies down at the edges of your vision.
You rise and turn back to face the man. His heat makes the very air around him waver.
“Since you heroes are so keen on the idea of saving people, I’ll give ya’ a little piece of advice. A gift from me to you!” The flames still lap at his ankles, bright and blinding. Still, it isn’t his words nor the fire that holds your attention. It isn’t the way he cocks his head to the side when he speaks, like he had when he’d announced the way he’d surpass his father in every way, be a better hero, save more people than Endeavor ever had. It isn’t the crazed look in those vaguely-familiar blue eyes of his—blue like the ocean during school breaks, like melting popsicles.
It’s the thought that despite the similarities—the things you recognize—you can’t accept any of it.
“Don’t try.” The man says, arms rising above his head, above the matted mix of white and black hair there. There’s a crackle pop—the sound of his own skin beginning to smolder. “Just sit there and die.”
Touya shouldn’t have died. When he had, he’d left a burning coldness behind. An absence filled with memories of the boy—the friend—that’d burned alive at Sekoto Peak.
A mountain of blue rises from the earth behind the man. You don’t linger for long enough to watch him thrust his hands forward, to send wave after wave of the inferno hurtling towards you. You run away.
“Come on!” He shouts after you, voice cracking, deranged. “Can’t even do that? You heroes really aren’t good for anything, huh?!”
Touya Todoroki is dead. In his place is a Dabi-shaped void.
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I am once again, reblogging this
Where to find my writing
It’s come to my attention that there are a lot of people reposting BNHA fics to other sites. Regardless of whether or not you credit the author or artist whose work you are using, this is theft if you have not obtained express permission from the creator to post beforehand. Obtaining permission to repost a fic is not the same as obtaining permission to monetize any sort of media using art/fiction that is not your own. Even if you credit the author/artist, it is theft if you have not obtained permission to repost another person’s work.
This includes, but is not limited to
Posting fics to other sites (wattpad, twitter, AO3, etc.)
Posting fanart to other sites (instagram, twitter, a personal tumblr, etc.)
Using fanart to accompany in your own fanfiction/videos/website
Posting an ASMR reading of a fic that is not your own (youtube or any other streaming service)
In light of recent events, I’ve decided to make a list of sites where you can find my work. The individuals listed below are the only ones that I have given permission to repost my work in any format. Any other individuals/organizations/sites hosting my work have stolen it. If you see this happening, I ask that you please message me and let me know immediately.
Me (where I post my own fics):
Tumblr
bnhascribbles-https://bnhascribbles.tumblr.com/
This is my main posting place. You will be able to find all of my work here.
AO3
ScatteredScribbles-https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScatteredScribbles
Most of my fics will be posted here within one week of being posted to tumblr. This includes personal works and collaborations.
Others (individuals I’ve specifically given permission to use my work as of 01/15/2021)
Youtube
May Day
Permission has been given for May Day to host audio readings of the following seven (7) works of mine: “Nerves,” “Distraction,” “God-Awful Sweaters,” “Tired,” “Advice,” “Genuine,” and “Stay”
Once again, I ask that if you find any of my works on any site/platform not listed above, you please let me know immediately. Stay cool guys.
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