86-Author's note: This story is a what-if story exploring how I believe the events of My Hero would play out if Deku developed a quirk that gave him the powers and appearance of Nightcrawler, everyone's favorite fuzzy elf from Marvel. That being said, it is just my interpretation and is purely meant to entertain myself and hopefully others.
There will be changes that I'll make both to the world of My Hero as well with Nightcrawler's powers to fit them all together and create, what I feel, will be a fun story. Slight changes, possibly big changes, a different ship than the one that seems to be building in the MHA canon. The lengths of the chapters probably won't stay consistent either. Some parts have a lot to say, others might not. At minimum, I'll try to keep it to 2,000 words but, some may vary, there may even be short stories if others take an interest. It's all up in the air until the end.
With all that being said, let's get into it!
It was a bright, sunny afternoon. Perfect for any number of various playground activities. Unfortunately, Katsuki Bakugo took this opportunity to use his newly awakened Quirk, Explosion, to bully another kid on the playground, accompanied of course by his two cronies who also developed their own, albeit less intense, Quirks.
A young boy with messy green hair stands opposed to the three, fighting back tears in his eyes as he stands with fists clenched in front of the crying child to defend him from Bakugo's attacks.
"Stop it Kacchan! You've already made him cry!" The green haired youth said, biting back tears as he spoke. "I… I won't let you hurt him anymore!"
The explosive youth stood with a wicked smile on his face, slamming his fist into the palm of his other hand and creating a miniature explosion. "So… Deku the Quirkless Wonder thinks he can play hero, huh? Let's teach him a lesson!"
The three bullies closed in on the poor youth, ready to punish the green-haired boy for standing up to them.
Izuku was terrified, but he wanted to protect the boy. He didn't like to see others hurt or in pain. He wanted to be a hero and protect those that need protecting. All he wanted was to get the boy away from these three as fast as possible, but sadly he knew they couldn't outrun them.
Tearfully, the green haired boy vowed to at least protect the boy as much as he could, turning quickly away from the three bullies and covering the boy with his small body, wishing, praying for any way to help.
Then suddenly… he heard… cars?
There hadn't been many around near the quiet playground where the five boys had been. Also, quite notably, he wasn't being beaten brutally by Bakugo or his gang. Did they change their mind because more people were around to see them? It wasn't very likely.
Izuku dared to look up and saw that… they were in a completely different place than they had been. They were no longer cowering in the playground at the park but rather at a small shire near one of the shopping districts of Musutafu where they lived. Izuku had, unconsciously, been wishing he had gone here instead of following Bakugo and his gang to the playground to play. He always liked this shrine since he loved looking at the koi fish that swam in the pond.
The boy who had been crying looked around and gasped slightly. They were somewhere away from Bakugo and the others.
"H-Hey, how did we get here? W-Wait, this must be your Quirk!" The boy said, having stood up and looked around the shrine. "You teleported us away from them!" The boy cried out cheerfully. Whether Izuku had meant it or not, he had saved them. "We're at least three blocks away from them!"
Izuku gasped slightly, feelings of excitement welled up inside of him as his Quirk had finally awakened, and he could teleport! He knew they were really rare Quirks; he couldn't even really think of any heroes who had one. Not only that, but he could bring others with him!
Izuku's mind began racing as it built up more and more. Finally, the boy had turned to look at Izuku. "Hey, thank y-" He started, his face suddenly turning pale though as his eyes met Izuku.
The boy let out a loud scream and began crying again. "A…. A monster!" Despite being grateful for being saved, at that moment, the boy ran.
Izuku was surprised by that reaction. Why had the boy screamed and cried? A monster? Quickly he turned around to make sure Bakugo and the others hadn't come with him… but he was alone. He had also been slightly worried he might have accidentally teleported them in front of some villains but… no one was there.
Izuku rubbed his messy green hair in confusion… but wait… why did his hand feel weird now? He was also confused why his shoes feel so odd and strangely tight now.
Izuku looked at his hand, seeing that his previously pale hand with, a quite normal, five digits had shifted into a dark blue with two rather large digits instead of his four fingers as well as having his thumb look much larger.
The boy doubled back in shock and tripped over his own feet, landing on his butt with a grunt. Wait… there was something else. A new sensation. He focused on it and wiggled it, feeling a slight weight located around his tailbone, soon bringing this weight around as a thin blue tail with a spiked arrowhead soon landed in his lap.
The boy screamed again. Something had changed with his Quirk activation. He had to see what else changed. The boy cautiously scrambled to the koi pond, unintentionally making the fish scatter at the sudden movement as the boy looked into the water.
It took a moment for the water to settle as the image focused in. He could still see that his messy green hair remained unaffected… but his face. What had once been the face of a pale, freckled boy with green eyes was now covered with fine blue-black fur. His once emerald eyes having changed to plain yellow with no visible pupil in sight. He also noted, thanks to his jaw having dropped from the shocking appearance, that he had sharp, canine-like teeth and pointed ears as well.
The boy, despite being happy to have a Quirk, began to cry at this new appearance. It was shocking to say the least. He knew how that boy reacted was how many others might react to his shocking new appearance. What would his mother think?
Tearfully, the boy curled into a ball, unintentionally activating his teleportation power as he suddenly appeared back in his bedroom, curled up on his bed and pulled his All-Might blanket over his body.
Inko Midoriya had been cheerfully preparing dinner for herself and her son. Her husband had just recently begun taking some hero work in the city and unfortunately for his spouse and son crime never sleep so neither can he.
She had been waiting for her soon to get back from playing with his friends, fearing a bit to herself that Mitsuki Bakugo's son would be a bit too rough with her poor Izuku.
It was around the time that she had just finished cooking that she heard… crying? Not just any crying though…
"Izuku?" She called, checking the front door but not seeing the boy there. "Izuku?" She called out, soon hearing the crying from the boy's room. How had he snuck past her without her even noticing him coming home. That didn't matter now.
Inko went into her son's room, seeing the small shape curled into a ball under his All-Might blanket.
"Izuku… sweetie. What's wrong?" She asked as she stepped over, sitting on the bed beside the small figure. "Was Bakugo too rough with you?" She asked as she began to pull back the blanket but her son suddenly tugged it back down.
"N-No!" The boy called out, whimpering beneath the cover. Inko was surprised to be sure. Why didn't her son want her to see him? If that boy had seriously hurt Izuku then Inko would definitely have to have a talk with Mitsuki about her son's treatment of her boy. Inko gingerly picked up the All-Might toy that had fallen off of the bed and lightly tapped the bulge.
"Sweety, are you hurt? Tell me what happened." She said, though the ball curled tighter. Tearfully, the boy began to tell his story.
"I-I went to the playground to play with Bakugo and some of the other boys." He said, sniffling. "B-But Bakugo was being too rough and he made the boy cry. I-I tried to stand up to them, b-but I was afraid. I couldn't fight them back. Instead, I-I tried to protect the other boy from them and then… my Quirk activated…"
Inko was surprised to hear that. She had been growing concerned since her son hadn't shown signs like the others in his class, but to have it suddenly activate like that… It must have been hard for him. "What happened?" She said, growing concerned. Had Izuku accidentally hurt someone?
Izuku sniffled a bit. "I… I teleported us to the shrine near the shopping district…"
Inko gasped. "Teleportation… t-that's nothing like my or your father's Quirk sweety. That's amazing."
The boy curled tighter into the ball. "I-It turned me into a monster though…" He added, a bit of worry creeping across Inko's face before she smiled a bit and sighed. She knew that some Quirks changed the appearance of some children. The shock of suddenly developing and using it must have shocked him.
"Sweety, you aren't and never could be a monster. No matter what changes you may have gone through, you'll always be my precious boy. Now, let me see sweetie." She said as she tugged gently on the blanket.
Reluctantly, Izuku began to let the blanket slowly pull down, revealing his new, blue form to his mother.
The appearance… was certainly shocking. Inko knew better than to let that show over her face though. She understood why her son had been so shocked about it. Gently she pulled the boy up and hugged him close to her. "There there, see? No monsters around here. Just my sweet, lovely little Izuku. Tomorrow we're gonna go see the Quirk doctor and get a full check-up to find out all about your amazing new power. Now, let's have dinner, I made your favorite tonight." She said cheerfully, handing her son the All-Might toy and carrying him into the kitchen.
The doctor sat back in his chair as he looked at Izuku. "Well young Midoriya, Mrs. Midoriya. That's definitely a unique Quirk your son developed. Definitely a mutation if your family's Quirk history is current."
Inko sat with her arm around her son. She had wished her husband could be there with them and while he was definitely interested and concerned for Izuku… his body just wouldn't let him go out today without trying to get some sleep because of his long night of patrol. He had apologized profusely to Inko and made sure to give Izuku a reassuring hair tussle before passing out on the couch just as the two were getting ready. Which, unfortunately, left the job of comforting their son up to her for the moment.
"It is. How rare are Quirk mutations like this?" Inko asked the doctor.
The doctor shifted his weight in the chair a bit. "Exceedingly so. Typically, a child either develops the quirk of their mother or father, or some combination of the two. There are, of course, exceptions, like with any gene. It seems young Izuku here is one of those exceptions."
The doctor picked up his notes. "With exceptions like this, we've had to run numerous tests to collect data from the boy. It also means we didn't have a proper name to call his Quirk but one of my interns named it Nightcrawler and, with no better name, is the one we've chosen to call it for the time."
Inko blinked, confused. "Nightcrawler, why Nightcrawler?"
The doctor stood from his seat and closed the blinds to the room, then he walked over to the lights. "Izuku, I'm going to turn the light off for a moment. Ms. Midoriya, if you'd please, try to keep your eye on the boy after I shut the light off. Ready… go!"
The lights went off and Inko's eyes turned to her boy. There was a very dim light barely peaking in from the blinds and computer but… it was hard to keep tract of her dark furred boy in the dark, and although she felt she had her eyes clearly on him, when the lights came back on he was not in that location at all. "Oh, wow."
The doctor nodded and returned to his seat, ushering Izuku back beside his mother. "This is not the active ability from his Quirk but rather a facet of the unique appearance created by it. We found that in dark lighting conditions, your son practically blends into the shadows. We've also discovered that he has a form of night vision, meaning he can see practically as well at night as he can during the day. Hence the night part of the name." The doctor said.
"We've also found that there have been changes to his born structure besides the changes to his hands and feet. The tail, obviously, is under his complete control, but we've also noted that his bone structure has actually changed and made him far more flexible. If the boy wanted to, he could conceivably curl his entire body into a ball as easily as I would curl my arm." He said, standing up. "Izuku, come here please."
Izuku looked to his mother, who nodded, standing up and walking over to an area of wall with nothing on it. "Young Izuku..." The doctor said. "Please, climb this wall."
Inko blinked a bit and was about to object when she saw her son place his hands on the wall… and then his feet, slowly climbing up the wall until he was hanging at the very top with his messy green hair brushing the ceiling.
"We've also noted that there are micro-suction discs on his hands and feet which the boy can control to climb onto surfaces, though, we've noted that the surface can not be wet or too slippery, otherwise he'll simply slide right off. Come down, please." He said, waiting for Izuku to come down before they both walked back over. "That ability is the reason for the crawler part. So, the intern called it Nightcrawler. Not every technical but a lot of Quirk names aren't." The doctor added.
A smile broke out across the doctor's face. "And none of that even compares to what his actual Quirk does. A simple but effective Teleportation Quirk. During testing, we've noted that he can travel about the length of three city blocks currently, making a total of about three jumps before he'll become too exhausted and need a break, though I'm sure with training in the future he could easily overcome that slight limitation, who knows how far he could travel or how many jumps he could achieve…" The doctor said with that same smile, before returning to his neutral expression.
"That being said…" He started. "There are limitations. We've noted that young Izuku can't travel to places he hasn't been yet, and we highly advise him performing a blind teleportation. While we can't say for certain, we believe that his power runs the risk of him accidentally teleporting himself into a wall or another object should he teleport blindly. This would likely result in grievous injury or possible death, and it's best to avoid testing that limitation. He can bring others with him when he teleports but it will tire him out faster. We've also noted that he'll retain whatever momentum he had just before her teleported. So, when he teleports at a full sprint, he'll have the full speed he had gained at that moment. So, if for some reason he ever reached terminal velocity, he wouldn't be able to save himself by teleporting closer to the ground… though perhaps if he shot himself up in the air to lose that momentum THEN teleport back to the ground…" He began to think but seeing Inko's worried face he dismissed it.
"My apologies. These are just the limitations that we believe, as we wanted to warn you properly given the unique nature of his Quirk. There will be no need for concern for a long time unless the boy pursues Hero training, then that information would be crucial."
Izuku perked up a bit and smiled. "I-I do want to do that. I do want to become a hero!" He said excited, Inko smiling through her worry a bit to see her son so excited again. It faltered a bit when he suddenly looked down. "I-Is it possible to… turn this off? I-I don't want to scare anyone." He asked, motioning to his blue body. The doctor shook his head. "Unfortunately, we don't believe so, we called in a young hero with the power to erase Quirks with a glance and well… it stopped you from teleporting, but it did nothing for your appearance. That's just how you look now." Izuku remembered during one of the tests he was asked to teleport a few feet away but couldn't, perhaps the man he referred to had been behind that glass with the doctor. He had wondered why he wasn't able to at that moment.
Izuku looked down a bit and seemed a bit sad. Sadly, the doctor was not much help. "Hey, cheer up! Maybe it did change how you look but that's one amazing Quirk. Train it right and you could be a great hero someday." The doctor said. Izuku smiled a bit and nodded. "T-Thank you…" He spoke softly.
Inko thanked the doctor and went home with her son, happy that he could finally pursue his dream of being a hero, even if it worried her, but a bit saddened that her son was so concerned about his appearance so much. Izuku had intentionally left out the part about scaring the other kid but Inko wasn't a fool, she had guessed how the other boy had reacted just from her son's own reaction.
10 years later…
Izuku Midoriya was sitting in the back of his class, jotting down some notes on a fight he had seen earlier between some large villain and Kamui Woods. He also had made notes about the debut of Mt. Lady. Izuku loved watching the heroes in action and made sure to take special notes whenever he got the chance.
In the background, Izuku could make out the fact that his teacher was talking about handing out future career forms… at least until he tossed those papers in the air. "Ah, screw it! I know all of you want to become heroes!" He shouted as the class roared in agreement, each showing off their Quirks… well, all except Bakugo and Midoriya.
"Yes, yes, you all have some wonderful Quirks, but remember, it is against school rules to use them in class." The teacher chided as the class settled down some."
"Yo teach…" Came a voice from the fiery blonde, sitting at his desk with his feet perched on top of his desk. "Don't lump me in with these bunch of losers. My Quirk far surpasses all their worthless ones." He said cockily as the class roared again in annoyance at Bakugo's cocky attitude.
"Get over yourself!" One of them called out among the sea of voices as Bakugo laughed without even looking over to them. "Shut up you bunch of extras!"
The teacher looked over his papers and nodded. "Hmm, Bakugo, you're aiming for U.A, correct?" The teacher asked as the class went silent. U.A was notorious with its steep requirements and low acceptance rates. Many of them shuddered at the thought of even trying for it. "Is… is he really going for U.A…" Some muttered. "They accept so few people…"
Bakugo jumped up on his desk with a grin. "That's right you lot of extras! I'm aiming for the top! The top of the top! I aced those mock exams so I'm the only one here worthy of getting into U.A! I'll become the best of the best; I'll even surpass All Might! The rest of you losers would be lucky to get stuck as a sidekick to some busted D-lister!"
It was then that the teacher, who had been looking through his papers since Bakugo's rant began, noticed something and spoke up. "Hmmm, Izuku Midoriya… You're also going for U.A. it seems, right?"
Izuku could hear the pen drop as the class went silent and looked at him. None laughed, none even spoke. In a way he wished they had. It would've been embarrassing, sure, but… the silence… the stares… If he didn't think he'd get in trouble for using his Quirk he would've teleported right out of the room.
The worst part though… Bakugo was staring daggers at him. No words left the fiery blonde's mouth but… he could tell Bakugo was pissed.
The rest of the day went about at a snail's pace thanks to that bombshell, and a well of anxiety reared itself into Izuku's stomach. He just had that feeling, he'd need to make a break for it and fast as soon as the bell rang to release them. Just as the last bell rang, Izuku shot up out of his seat and quickly put his stuff away… only to feel a strong hand push him back down into the seat. Bakugo…
The others in the class had spared some passing glances at the two boys but none said anything, even the teacher had left. In a way, it felt like the world had abandoned Izuku in that moment as he was left with his blonde-haired bully and his two cronies.
Izuku spared a glance at the angry blonde, wincing a bit at the glare he got back. Once the room was empty, Bakugo seemed to notice that one notebook Izuku was always writing in. Izuku's eyes also noticed he had left it out on his desk. Originally, he had planned to leave quickly so he could take notes somewhere quiet… now it seemed like that had come back to haunt him.
Quickly both Izuku and Bakugo reached for it.. but Bakugo was faster, snatching it up quickly and holding it tightly in his hand. "H-Hey! K-Kaachan! Give that back!" Izuku got up to reach for it but was knocked backwards by a small blast from Bakugo's Quirk.
"Hero analysis for my future?" Said one of the cronies. "What a loser, am I right?" Bakugo frowned at Izuku and didn't look his way. "Can it, extra." He told his goon, who seemed annoyed and hurt. Even with the three having been friends since grade school, Bakugo always called them extras.
"You really think someone like you can rub shoulders with me at U.A, freakshow?" Bakugo asked Izuku, who winced a bit. "I… I wasn't trying to rub shoulders with you Kaachan, I… I just wanted to take my shot, become a hero… You know it's always been my dream. I have to try…"
This seemed to make Bakugo only frown more as he slammed his fist into the notebook, burning it with an explosion that shocked Izuku. "Try…" Bakugo said annoyed. "You're going to try, huh? Tell me what a pathetic freak like you is gonna do TRYING to get into U.A! You're such a pathetic loser that you can't even attend classes without a support item hiding your ugly face from the world!"
Izuku winced at the remark… but Bakugo was right. In the years following since his Quirk emerged and changed his appearance, Izuku had… trouble… being around the other children. His appearance disturbed them, and not only just him, but the parents would avoid him as well. People would cross the street just to avoid crossing paths with him… a child… It left Izuku not knowing what to do, and Inko, not wishing to see her son tormented by this forced isolation.. poured what money they could into funding a support item to change how he physically looked.
This was Izuku's disguise watch. A support item which gave Izuku the appearance of a pale boy with freckles. He looked normal like this, or well, he supposed he looked like how he should. It had been so long now that Izuku pretty much forgot what he looked like when he wasn't blue and covered in hair that tormented the family Roomba. This had… cost quite a lot of money. It basically drained their family savings… and it was the reason his father, Hisashi, worked over in America, taking a high paying position over there so he could help pay the bills and recover some of the money they had spent getting the watch made… yet another thing Izuku could feel bad about himself for.
Izuku had made it a point to always wear the watch at school, having filled out forms to do so. Of course, that didn't make things easy for him. Bakugo specifically made it difficult. He knew what Izuku actually looked like, and he was never afraid to tell others who didn't know. The new people were always taken aback at the fact the boy hid his actual appearance, while others were only interested in their own curiosity, trying to pressure Izuku into revealing his true form to them.
It… made it difficult. Izuku had basically no friends, and it made it difficult to trust others. He couldn't listen to a kind word without getting nervous or suspicious that they were just trying to see his real form to ridicule him… and no matter how he looked, Bakugo tormented him. Calling him things like Freakshow, Devil-boy, Pointy-Ears, and Deku… his old childhood nickname which basically meant Useless.
Izuku stood in silence as he looked at the charred notebook in Bakugo's hand. "You're worse than the damn extras, Deku. You're not even a background character. You're the wall, the floorboard, a piece of the scenery that everyone's eyes glance over without really looking at it. Why would U.A accept a carboard cut-out of a person when they can have me?" Bakugo said… but Izuku gave no reply.
Bakugo casually tossed the notebook to the window but Izuku's senses returned to himself, using his Quirk to teleport to the window quickly to catch the notebook before it could fall into the duck pond below. Bakugo frowned at Izuku clutching the still smoldering notebook, turning his back to him and walking to the door. "Next time throw yourself out that window and save everyone else some trouble." Bakugo said flatly.
It was then that Izuku had teleported in front of him, frowning heavily and seemingly fighting back tears. He looked like he wanted to say something… but the unamused frown of Bakugo met him. "…What?" Bakugo asked, wondering if the nerd would actually say something back to him… Sadly not though, as Izuku's head tilted downward and a few tears streaked his cheek, temporarily dispelling the illusion wherever they fell over. He always tried holding back tears at school because of this, as others would get a glimpse of his true appearance. That was also why he always covered his entire body in the rain, as raindrops would cause a ripple over his disguise wherever they fell, basically making the watch worthless.
Izuku stood there silently fighting back the tears as Bakugo pushed him aside and onto the floor, walking out past him with his goons. "That's what I thought." He said plainly as they left the crying boy alone.
As the bullies got down the hall and out of the school, one of them looked over to Bakugo. "Hey man, don't you think you were a little harsh on him today?" He asked as Bakugo stopped at a drink machine and got a soda. "Can it, extra." He said, popping the lid of the soda and taking a drink before they continued on. "If I don't set him straight then he'll never learn…"