Work Text:
If one were to describe Izuku Midoriya in just one word, the choice would vary depending on who was asked.
For those who care for him, those close within his circle, they would look at Midoriya and call him kind. They would call him sweet, encouraging, earnest. They would point out his strengths, his heart, his soul. They would be uplifting, just as Midoriya has lifted them up in return. They would call him a leader, a fighter, a friend.
For those not in his circle, but still within his orbit, they would see Midoriya and they would think of perseverance. They would call him hard-working, consistent. They would call him anxious but excited, would falter between praising the good they see and noting the timidity that the boy has shown, a shyness that the green-haired student has pushed through. They would call him good, a force of ideals.
For those who oppose him, the villains he faces and the foes he fights, they would take one look at Midoriya and call him stubborn. They would call him a pain in the side, inevitable, annoyingly constant in his attempts to be a true hero. And some will respect this, begrudgingly, but his enemies are more overwhelmed by the need to crush the boy. They would call him many things, most of which would not accurately describe him, but would, rather, be a sign of their anger after losing against him.
Depending on who is asked, a simple explanation of Midoriya would not be encompassed in one word, or even one phrase. The Yuuei student is just a touch too complex, too different depending on the responder’s perspective, to be perfectly described in a single response.
But there are two things that anyone can agree on, no matter how they view Midoriya. There are two universal truths that come to the boy.
The first is that Midoriya is a hero in training. And this fact may have different feelings attached, depending on the perspective- those who are in favor of him proud of his progress, his immense growth since he first stepped on campus grounds for his first year; those who oppose him angered by the fact, by the fact that Midoriya will only grow to be more of a challenge, a threat, with time- but it is a fact nonetheless. Midoriya is a hero in training, one who will pass, who will succeed, because there is no other option, not really. There is no other option that Midoriya will accept, no other option that the world could possibly acknowledge. The sky is blue, the grass is green, and Izuku Midoriya will be a hero like no other.
And this fact, too, leads to the second truth, the second belief that anyone can see quite plainly.
Izuku Midoriya is under immense pressure, an eternal strain that never ends, a weight on his shoulders not unlike Atlas, not unlike him in the slightest. Because there is a world resting on him, a world of hopes, of dreams, and Izuku Midoriya is the one who shouldered it, whether or not he knows it, whether or not he truly meant to.
And perhaps most do not know the first moment of acceptance, do not know the moment that Midoriya accepted this life, this stress, this insurmountable level of expectation. No, only a few do, only a handful of people know of the legacy that Izuku Midoriya agreed to, the Quirk nine generations long, the Quirk that brought with it a nemesis, a man set out to do nothing more but kill him and rip away the legacy that he rightfully earned, an entire League hunting for his head, for his power. Only a few know just how deep these expectations have rooted themselves in Midoriya, backed by a history no one truly knows, no one except for Midoriya, with eight voices ringing true in his soul, encouraging him with tales of grandeur, of hopelessness, of tiny beacons of light in an infinite void of darkness. Only a few know of the pressure that has been building, growing with every day that Midoriya has learned at Yuuei, the stress that has duplicated itself over and over.
Only a few know this truth.
But everyone knows of the truth that was revealed during Izuku Midoriya’s second year. Heroes, villains, friends and foes alike, all know of this truth, it being no secret whatsoever.
The truth that Izuku Midoriya is set to inherit All Might’s agency, his legacy.
That Izuku Midoriya is All Might’s chosen successor, the next Symbol of Japan, a Symbol of not Peace, but Hope.
The world had not been ready for it, and yet it had been all the same. Because Izuku Midoriya started as something quite small, someone with an uncontrolled Quirk, someone who broke and shattered himself on live television for his first Sports Festival.
And yet Izuku Midoriya was the boy who was caught taking down the previously indestructible Overhaul on the news, was the boy who fought on the front lines against the Paranormal Liberation Army, was the boy who interned under Endeavor when the man became the Number One Hero. And yes, there were others at each of these events, others from his own class, no less, but it is Midoriya who crackled green lightning and a dangerous aura when beating the Yakuza leader, it was Midoriya who Shigaraki, the leader of the League, specifically felt the need to target, it was Midoriya who grew exponentially when working with the fire-Quirked hero, mastering a power that the world had never even seen before, black tendrils with immeasurable strength.
It was surprising and yet not all at once, and it was only fitting that the reveal occurred during Midoriya’s second Sports Festival.
The Sports Festival that Midoriya had just won, no one quite able to beat the boy with the power of many, multiple Quirks to pick and choose from, an unstoppable powerhouse. Midoriya had simply and truly swept through the competition, having moments where his peers nearly got the jump on him, but always knocking their efforts to the side, ending up victorious all the way to the top.
It was during the closing ceremony. All Might, withered but standing, had come forwards, much less showy than the previous year, but far more genuine as he greeted the winners and presented their medals. And it was a beautiful moment, Yaoyorozu taking third, Bakugou claiming second with a settled scowl, and Midoriya tearing up as gold was rested around his neck.
And then it was revealed, an announcement for the ages. All Might had praised them individually as he went, kind and true.
And then, after speaking to Midoriya, he had turned, microphone picking up every word as he did.
“And let us give a round of applause to the winner of the second year Sports Festival,” the blond had called out, and the crowd had cheered as Midoriya lifted a hand, displaying the V for victory with his fingers.
And just as the crowd reached its peak, All Might finished, “Izuku Midoriya, my successor!”
The world went still, but only for a moment. Just a moment, and then there was screaming, the cheers only growing more wild, reactions caught in real time. And Midoriya had blushed, flustered, but he had stood strong, smiling and letting his victory gesture drop, instead turning into a sweet wave.
He had known, had known exactly what would happen.
It was his announcement that he was there, after all.
The rest of his peers had not known that this announcement would occur, however, had not ever been told this truth. Because Midoriya had never spoken of it, had never bragged or spilled secrets not fully his, not this one.
And yet it once again was not surprising. Because it had been clear since their first year, since the first week, that Midoriya and All Might had a connection that was different from the rest, that there was a hint of mentorship between them. The signs were well and truly there, the secret being revealed in motions and conversations for those who chose to read into it.
His peers had been excited for him. His teachers had been proud of him. The world was cheering for him.
The pressure only grew, the expectations more than ever before.
And no one is quite sure what to do about it.
Because Izuku Midoriya still smiles. He still holds his virtues, his values, his ideals all close to his heart, open for the world to see. He stays on top of his work, stays ahead of his training, sticks to his routine and continually improves, somehow outdoing himself every day. He tops the class, becomes a part of the Big Three in his third year, the leader of them, too. He is a sign of everything Plus Ultra , the definition of a hero, a Symbol of Hope even in his third year. He is adored by the people and feared by villains, a reincarnation of All Might but with differentiations, the cores the same and the results similar, but the in betweens being different, unique.
Izuku Midoriya still has everything that his friends had hoped for him.
Except for a chance to relax.
The pressure grows, the hero in him growing all the more with it, a proportional change that does not know how to stop, to rest, to take a reprieve. The days are moving faster and graduation is ever nearing, and Izuku Midoriya is already in the running for the top ten for the next Hero Ranking.
And yet it is wrong. It is wrong , the stress too much, and the pauses too infrequent, practically nonexistent.
It is wrong, and graduation is just around the corner, and the world knows two things.
Izuku Midoriya will be a hero, and he is under immense pressure thanks to this fact.
But those who know him, they know a third thing.
Izuku Midoriya will be a Symbol, will be the next All Might. He will be someone that inspires change, will be someone that makes everyone feel safe, will be someone that children want to be just like, that parents will use as a role model.
Izuku will be the next All Might, and will work himself to the edge by being this way.
It will simply be the duty of his class, his future colleagues, to make sure that they are there when he reaches that edge, so that he does not tumble over.
And they will be.
Because it is lonely on top, and Izuku is shooting for the stars.
But he won’t be alone when he falls.
Because he is a hero, but so are his peers, his teachers.
And they will help take the weight of the world off of his shoulders the moment that Midoriya realizes that he does not need to do it alone, no matter how long they must wait.
Because Midoriya may be the next All Might.
That does not mean he must go through the same path.
(And he won’t, because the A Class always sticks together, and they are there.
They are all there.)