65 Fanfic #65 Inheritance by AisforAmy71(MHA)

This fanfic is a my hero academia au where Izuku has a quirk that gives him the quirks of people who die around him. I really like this fic because unlike a lot of mha fics it doesn't immediately turn angsty. I haven't gotten through it completely, but so far Izuku is going through a lot and yet the fic hasn't gotten angsty or given izuku constant panic attacks, which is a nice change of pace. I also like that Izuku's Dad is actually a good dad, usually you don't see him or he's the worst.

Synopsis: When Inko dies in a trainwreck while protecting Izuku from the impact, Izuku discovers he had a quirk all along. The ability to inherit the quirks of people that die is, to say the least, problematic. It sends Izuku on a much different track that he ever imagined his life taking, but will hopefully end up exactly where he needs to be.

Rated: M

words: 275k

https://www.archiveofourown.org/works/27511546/chapters/67275457

Here's the first chapter:

"Sorry kid, It aint gonna happen."The doctor's voice sounded indifferent, even bored.

Four year old Izuku felt the All Might action figure slip from his grasp and heard it clatter on the floor, but merely sat, stunned. He didn't have a quirk? None at all? He couldn't fathom it. He heard the doctor explaining to his mother that the x-ray of his foot was the best indicator, and why. He didn't understand what the bones of his toe had to do with anything, and he really didn't care. How could he not have a quirk? Everyone had one! He didn't know a single person who didn't have at least a tiny one.

Izuku walked silently alongside his mother as they left Dr. Tsubasa's office and down the crowded sidewalk to the station, where they boarded a train to go home. His mother kept her arm around and tried to talk to him softly, but he didn't hear her, so deep was his shock at what the doctor had said. He couldn't even cry. Not yet.

He was only vaguely aware that something was wrong when his mother gave a startled cry of alarm and gripped him tightly by the arm and pulled him from his own seat, and into her arms. There was loud clattering and people were shouting as the train rocked roughly from side to side. There was a moment of relief when the train seemed to settle on the tracks and his mother let out a relieved breath.

That's why it was all the more jolting when there was a deafening BOOM!! It seemed like the train jumped like a cat pouncing on prey, then the handful of people in the train car seemed to be floating for a moment. Izuku's stomach felt funny as the lack of gravity took hold, then released as the train car plummeted downward on its side. Everyone flew sideways as the train left the tracks and began to tumble like a rectangular barrel down a hill.

Everyone was getting tossed around like dolls, and Izuku felt his mother's arms tighten and her hand press his head against her shoulder. He felt her knees squeeze against him from below as she became a protective ball around him as tightly as she could. His heart was beating very fast now, and he could hear his mother's heart thundering with the ear pressed against her. It was like what Izuku imagined it might be like to take a ride in a tumble dryer as they rolled around, with the world (and everything in it) spinning around them. There were lots of bumps, and Izuku was scared because his mother was screaming as they fell, they flipped over and fell again. And again. And again.

"Izuku," he heard his mother say close to his ear once the train became mostly still again. "Izuku, are you okay?"

Her voice was quiet, and she was breathing funny.

"Okay," Izuku answered, whispering, too.

"I love you, baby boy," she told him, like she did when she tucked him into bed at night.

"Love you, too," he answered, wondering why she was crying.

Was she hurt, or just scared? He was scared. He didn't know what was going on, but he could tell that something bad was happening. He hurt pretty much all over from being bumped around, but he didn't want to scare his mother by crying. While he was in pain, it didn't hurt that bad, and he was going to be a hero someday, and heroes never cry! He was trying to think of what he could do or say to make his mom feel better, but then more bad things happened.

There was another shudder of the train car then, and then a sharp SNAP! and a rushing sensation as the train began to slide on it's roof down an incline. The seats were where the ceiling should be, and there was broken glass all around them. Izuku could feel something warm and wet on his face, and on the arms wrapped around his mother. The other passengers were all shouting again, but not his mother. She was still wrapped around him, but not as tightly, and she was quiet and calm. Izuku thought she was very brave, not panicking like everyone else. It was then that the train came to an abrupt stop, and Izuku felt something hit him in the head hard enough to make stars float in his vision before everything went black.

When Izuku woke up, he thought he must be dreaming. He did feel sleepy. He was in a bed in a white and blue room with bright lights, and Kacchan's mom was there, for some strange reason. She looked tired and her eyes were red around the edges, instead of just in the middle, like normal.

"Auntie?" Izuku asked, surprised when his voice sounded way too loud in the quiet space.

"Hey there," Auntie said, reaching out a hand to gently ruffle his hair. "Tough day, huh?"

She picked up something from the mattress that had a red button on it, and pressed the button before putting it back down.

"Where are we?" Izuku asked, using a quiet voice and looking around curiously.

There were weird curtains hanging from the ceiling, and poles with weird machines on them, and a tube was taped to his arm, and his arm was taped to some kind of board.

"This is a hospital," Auntie said gently. "You got a little banged up in an accident."

Izuku tried to remember, but only had blurry memories of riding a train with his mother and that something strange had happened.

"I think the train crashed," he finally said, thinking hard about it.

"That's right," Auntie told him with a wobbly smile. "A villain made the train crash."

Two people came into the room, then. One was a short man in a blue shirt and pants, with greenish skin and sleek feathers for hair, and the other was a kind looking woman in a white dress.

"Well, well, Midoriya-kun," the man said kindly. "It's good to see you awake. You have quite a bump on your head."

"I do?" he asked in surprise, lifting his one unencumbered hand to touch his head. His fingers found the edges of a bandage on his forehead and he patted the soft padding, wincing slightly when he got to a sore spot.

Auntie gently steered his hand away from his head and smiled at him softly.

"You have seventeen stitches," the man told him. "I'm Doctor Wu. I've been taking care of you since you were brought in."

The woman in the white dress was busy with the machines, and then she started to take the tape off of Izuku's arm. Izuku was surprised when she held a cotton ball against his arm and pulled a long piece of plastic out that looked like a needle. She wrapped the spot with a stretchy bandage in bright blue.

"Where's my mom?" Izuku asked, looking around. "She was on the train with me."

Auntie made a strange sound in her throat, but gave a little cough and said, "You can't see her right now, but I'll look after you, okay? You can come stay at my house for a while and have a sleepover with Katsuki."

"A sleepover with Kacchan?" he asked curiously. He'd never gotten to spend the night at a friend's house before. "Wow!"

Izuku felt sleepy still, but the idea of having Kacchan all to himself for a whole night was exciting enough to distract him from not being able to see his mom.

"Yep," Auntie affirmed, sounding like she was getting a cold. "You should be able to go back home tomorrow."

"M'kay," Izuku agreed. "I don't have to stay here?"

"We've done everything we can for you, young man," Dr. Wu told him with a nod. "We'll give Bakugou-san your discharge instructions and you can go with her."

Izuku was okay with this. Auntie was nice, even if she yelled a lot. Mostly she yelled at Kacchan, and she never yelled at him, so he wasn't scared. She helped him get dressed in clothes he didn't recognize, though his shoes were the same light-up All Might sneakers he had been wearing that morning.. There was a lot of paperwork that had to be signed, but Izuku was allowed to sleep a little while Auntie filled it out, then they rode in a taxi back to Kacchan's house.

Izuku clung to Auntie's skirt as they entered the house, and looked around for any sign of Kacchan. Instead, Kacchan's dad was standing up from where he'd been on the couch and approaching with a soft smile.

"Hello, Izuku-kun! Are you hungry? I was just about to call Katsuki down for a snack," he said kindly, looking at his wife with questions in his eyes.

Auntie shook her head ever so slightly, and Izuku knew that they were probably communicating the way grown ups did when they didn't want the kids around to know what they were saying to each other.

"Yes, please," Izuku said, remembering to be polite.

He didn't know how long it had been since breakfast that morning, but his tummy was feeling grumbly, now.

Auntie ruffled his hair again, just as Kacchan came thundering down the stairs.

"Is mom home yet?" he called out as he approached.

"Hi Kacchan!" Izuku said brightly, stepping out from behind Auntie.

"Izuku!" Kacchan greeted him. "Hey! Why are you wearing my clothes?"

Izuku shrugged and looked down at the red shirt with skateboarding T-rex on it. "I dunno. Your mom brought them."

"Why do you have a big bandaid on your head? You got an ouchie?" Katsuki demanded.

Izuku nodded uncertainly, and Auntie came to his rescue.

"Izuku was in an accident this morning and his clothes got dirty, so I took him some of yours. He got a cut on his head, but the doctor gave him some medicine so it's not hurting right now. He's going to stay here with us, tonight."

"Cool," Katsuki accepted easily. "I can show him the rhinoceros beetle I caught yesterday!"

Kacchan's dad came in a moment later holding a tray with tea and snacks, and set it on the table. Izuku sat across the table from Kacchan and grinned at him.

"Dorayaki!" Kacchan announced, standing on his chair and grabbing two plastic wrapped treats from the tray and holding them up. "Do you want red bean or strawberry?"

Izuku held out his hand toward the strawberry one, since he knew that red bean was Kacchan's favorite. To everyone's great surprise, the strawberry flavored treat flew from Katsuki's hand and straight into Izuku's waiting one.

"Woah! Did you get your quirk?" Kacchan asked excitedly. "It's about time!"

"Katsuki!" his mother scolded his rudeness before turning to the green haired boy. "It looks like you got your mother's quirk, Izuku! How exciting! When did this happen?"

"I don't know! I never did it before!" Izuku cried with wonder. "Wow!"

"Do it again!" Katsuki demanded, jumping up and down on his chair.

Izuku looked to Kaccan's parents for permission, and wondered why they looked at each other sadly. Wasn't getting a quirk a good thing? The doctor had said he didn't even have one, and now Izuku could see that the doctor was just wrong.

"Try to float this one over to you!" Kacchan demanded with a huge grin, holding up the other dorayaki.

Izuku concentrated on the other packet and made a waving motion like he'd seen his mother do when she used her quirk. He was delighted when it gently floated over to him.

"All right," Auntie said indulgently after a moment. "Don't overdo it. Eat your snack and then go and play."

She picked up the red bean treat and passed it back to her son, and both boys grinned at each other before tearing open the plastic and starting their little feast. Izuku ate two dorayaki and then some crackers, as well, feeling much better with some food in his tummy. Once their tea was finished, Kacchan jumped down and rounded the table to pull at Izuku's arm.

"C'mon! Let's go to my room and see what you can do with your quirk!"

Izuku hopped down and followed, with Auntie calling after them to be careful of Izuku's head wound. "The doctor gave me some medicine for you, so if you start getting a headache or feel bad, come tell me!"

Izuku followed Kacchan to his room, where they practiced with Izuku's quirk, by having Izuku pull all kinds of things toward him. His mother had only been able to pull small objects to herself, and it seemed that Izuku was no different. He tried to move a CD player off of Kacchan's desk, but all he could do was make it slide a little, and it couldn't hover at all.

"Well, it's not as good as my quirk," Kacchan told him, somewhat consolingly, 'but maybe it'll get stronger if you practice enough."

Izuku was feeling tired and sore by the time the boys were called down for dinner. Auntie gave him some medicine that tasted bitter, but gave him some fruit milk to wash it down with, so it was okay. By the time dinner was finished, Izuku was beginning to feel sleepy. When Auntie came to help him and Kacchan with their bath and getting into pajamas, he got the first look at his body.

"Woah! You're covered in cuts and bruises!" Kacchan exclaimed excitedly.

Izuku looked at shirtless body in the mirror and saw blue and purple bruises in splotches all over his arms. HIs legs looked even worse when he got further undressed, and there were scratches and scrapes all over him, as if he'd had a run in with a very unfriendly cat with very sharp claws.

"What happened to you?" Kacchan asked eagerly, as if he expected to hear about a great adventure.

"Katsuki!" Auntie said in a scolding tone.

"I don't remember," Izuku said. "I was on the train with my mom, and I think it crashed."

"That's okay," Auntie told him, sounding funny again. "The doctor said you might not ever remember, because you hit your head. Let's get you washed up, and into the tub, then you can get a good night's sleep. You feel better after a nice soak."

"You were in a train crash?"

Kacchan sounded amazed, unable to let it go, even with his mother glaring daggers at him.

"I guess," Izuku said with a little shrug, feeling uneasy for reasons he couldn't quite pinpoint.

"What happened to your mom?" Kacchan asked, as if it had just occurred to him that it was unusual for Izuku to be spending the night, right after being in a train wreck. "Is she still in the hospital?"

"Katsuki, that's enough. It's time to wash up!"

Kacchan looked at his mother with annoyance, but Izuku had a sudden feeling of guilt. He'd been having fun with Kacchan all day, and even found out he had a quirk, and hadn't thought about calling his mom even once.

"Is my mom hurt, too?" he asked timidly, afraid of the answer.

By that time, Auntie had guided him to a small stool and wash bowl while the tub filled with warm water.

"She's still at the hospital," she answered softly. "She wanted me to take care of you for now. Okay?"

She helped him wash very gently, carefully avoiding his head wound before helping him climb into the tub to soak. A couple of minutes later, Kacchan climbed in with him, splashing a bit as he did so. Auntie tidied up the room while the boys enjoyed the warm water.

"That one's shaped like an alligator," Kacchan said, pointing to a long, thin bruise that had blossomed on Izuku's side.

Izuku looked down and could kind of see what he meant. It was like looking for shapes in clouds; they could look like animals and things if you thought about it.

"Do they hurt a lot? Did you cry?" Kacchan asked curiously, giving the alligator a small poke that made Izuku jump in surprise.

"Katsuki! Don't jab at him like that!" his mother scolded, gathering big, fluffy towels from a shelf. "You'll make the bruises worse!"

"They hurt a little," Izuku told him honestly. "But it's okay."

He looked back at Kacchan's mom and obediently got out of the tub and allowed himself to be enveloped in the soft, clean-smelling towel. Kacchan was similarly cocooned in his own towel, and was using the ends to rub at his wet hair. Next, they dried off before getting into pajamas. Kacchan had a new pair of All Might pajamas to show off, and he let Izuku wear his old pair, which had grown just a little too small for Katsuki, but were just right for Izuku.

There was a child-sized futon on the floor beside Kacchan's bed, and Izuku settled down under the quilt while Kacchan climbed onto his mattress and under the covers. Once they were both tucked in, Izuku looked to Auntie.

"Will I be able to go and see my mom tomorrow?"

Auntie gasped and looked away for a moment, then took a deep breath and said, "I'm not sure, honey. We'll have to wait and see. Sleep well."

The lights were turned off as she shut the door behind her, but there was an All Might night light plugged into the wall by the door, so it wasn't too dark. Izuku thought that he and Kacchan would stay up, playing and talking, but before he knew it, his eyes were getting droopy, and he fell asleep.

Thirst and woke him a couple of hours later, and Izuku quietly crept out of the room, and went to see if he could get a drink of water. Auntie was in the kitchen talking to Uncle, and they didn't see him at first.

"She was the only casualty, apparently," Auntie was saying. "Hisashi said he'd catch the first flight he could book a seat on. He should be here tomorrow, so you might need to go and get him from the airport."

Izuku didn't know what 'casualty' meant, but Hisashi was Izuku's dad's name. He knew that, because his mom talked to him on the phone all the time, and that's what she called him.

"My dad's coming?" he asked sleepily, rubbing at his eyes.

"Hey! I thought you were asleep. Are you okay? Did you have a bad dream? Does your head hurt?" Auntie said, sounding flustered.

"Thirsty," Izuku said.

Uncle immediately went to the cabinet for a glass and filled it with water.

"Is my dad coming back?" Izuku asked again.

"Yes he is, little man," Uncle told him, handing him the glass. "He's coming tomorrow. They called him about the accident and he's coming to see you and take care of you."

"Wow. Mom will be so happy," Izuku said, feeling a little better about it. He knew mom missed dad a lot while he worked far away.

Uncle looked like he was about to cry, and turned back to the sink. Auntie sniffed and put a hand on his head.

"Finish your drink, and we'll get you back to bed. Maybe your dad will be here by the time you wake up."

Izuku wasn't sure what was going on, but did as he was told. As he settled back under the quilt, he fell asleep hoping that once his father got there, they could go and see his mom together.

Izuku was disappointed that his dad wasn't there when he woke up, but Auntie said he was on his way and would be there soon. Taiwan was so far away that his dad couldn't come home on weekends, so it would probably be a long trip.

"I never met your dad before," Kacchan said as they sat at the table and ate breakfast.

Izuku wasn't feeling very hungry, and was picking at his eggs instead of actually eating them. His whole body was sore, and his head hurt a lot more than it did yesterday. Auntie had given him some more medicine, but it wasn't working yet.

"He works at a place called Taiwan, and he's the boss of a lot of people at a big company," Izuku said, spouting off what he had been told by his parents. "He can't come home too much because he's got a lot of important work, but my mom doesn't want to live there so she stays here."

"Weird," Kacchan said with a shrug.

After they finished breakfast, Katsuki was very interested to learn that they would not be going to school that day. His parents worked a lot, and almost never took random days off without a lot of planning, first.

"Izuku needs some time to rest from his accident," Auntie explained. "And it would be boring here by himself, right?"

"Right!" Kacchan answered eagerly. "Can we play video games?"

"I think that would be all right," she answered indulgently.

Kacchan knew exactly how to hook up the game console to the television in the living room. They had played several games of Racecar Pro 4 before they got bored, and changed to a fighting game featuring several prominent heroes, including All Might. Izuku chose to play All Might in his bronze age costume, and Kacchan chose his silver age one. They were happily fighting virtual villains when the front door opened.

"I'm home," Uncle said brightly. "Izuku! There's someone here to see you!"

Izuku turned his head and saw a sight he hadn't seen outside of photographs for months. His dad. A bit on the skinny side, with messy black hair and freckles that matched Izuku's own, he looked exactly the same as always. He was wearing a business suit that looked rumpled, and his tie was undone, and he looked really, really tired.

"Dad!" Izuku cried happily.

He launched himself at his father without hesitation, wrapping his arms around his neck as the man crouched to gather him up in his arms.

"Hi, Zu," his dad said, hugging him tightly enough to make his bruises twinge with pain.

"I'm glad you're back!" Izuku said joyfully, not complaining about the discomfort as he rubbed his cheek against his father's stubbly one.

"He looks exactly like his dad," Kacchan observed to his own father as they watched the reunion.

"He sure does," Uncle replied.

"Can we go see mom, now?" Izuku asked, turning large worried eyes to his dad.

"I… I just saw her," his dad said, sounding like he had a sore throat. "We can go after you and I have a man to man talk, if you want."

"Okay," Izuku said easily.

He wasn't sure what a man to man talk was, but it didn't sound so bad. He politely thanked the Bakugou family for taking care of him, and his father did the same before setting Izuku on his feet and taking his hand.