Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In this world, eighty percent of the population was born with a special superhuman ability called a ‘quirk’. These amazing powers range from various mutations and evolutions among the people, ever changing and evolving across multiple generations.

"Hey Uraraka! Will you not play?"

"Don't invite her, she is quirkless!"

The unlucky twenty percent, however, are destined to live a life without an ability that makes them special. So called quirkless, a fossil from a time where babies did not glow.

"Can't keep up with the rest?!" the boys shoved her away. "This girl is useless!"

"Yeah, right? I bet she is adopted!" the other girls shamed her into a corner. "I don't want her close to me, she drags everyone down!"

Uraraka grew to withdraw herself. She was the only one between all her classmates to not have a quirk. When the teeth of babies start to grow, they seek to use them as of instinct to keep their development strong and healthy. The same idea could be applied to quirks, young kids seeking outlets to get a  better grasp on their new abilities. And so that made young Ochako a very easy target for harassment.

Uraraka came from a family with struggling financials, she watched her parents collapse tired from work time after time. They were great parents with great empathy, who taught their loving daughter to think and act the same. In consequence, Ochako learned the mentality of not asking. They were already working too much, they didn't need more burns on their backs. She never wanted to be more burden, quite the contrary, she dreamed of lifting them all away. If you did not bring money, then do not bring problems

So she never told them about the bullying. They did not need another problem to worry about. If she couldn't solve it, she would just take it and keep going until the harassment died out. They never learned what was happening with their child, until a fateful day.

The classmates were going to dress as one of the heroes they liked. Ochako took all her willpower and asked her parents for a Thirteen costume. They worked hard and managed to get her an incredible gift. Their daughter was skipping in excitement under the big astronaut helmet. She came back that day, carrying the destroyed costume in her hands, the broken helmet with cracked gaps where her crying eyes popped out.

Ochako's parents learned what their daughter was going through, what she was bottling inside her heart all this time. Ochako herself, however, crying in shame, learned she did not hide it well enough.

She withdrew herself from most social interactions ever since. The bullying slowly decreased as the years went by, as the perks of being invisible. She was lonely, with no real friends, but it's all worth it if her parents had less load to carry. She always smiled, in spite of her pain, it was the facade she carried all the way to the end of middle-school.

Ochako Uraraka, thirteen years old, a quirkless girl with no friends. There was, still, one hope for the future…

"I-I want to be a hero!" she showed an innocent drawing she made of herself in a pink hero costume in front of the entire class. "I want to go to U.A and become a pro hero, so I can make lots of money!"

Silence sat down for a few seconds. People did not expect a delusion to be her choice for a future career. A laughter escaped one of the girl's mouths, then suddenly every other kid started laughing, mocking and pointing at the stupid absurdity of her dream.

"Uraraka, are you sure about that?" the teacher came closer in an attempt to soften the bullying. "Why don't you choose something more in your reach? There's nothing wrong about looking for different paths in life." said with an apathetic smile.

"B-but, everyone wants to be a hero…" she held the paper close to her face, ready to cover her eyes. "Why can't I be a hero too?"

"It's because you're quirkless, get a grip!" she heard one boy yell among the laughter.

"But…!" one girl yelled, "If you're so worried about money, maybe you could use some of your other attributes!" her clique reaffirmed her with praises. “What attributes ?”

Uraraka looked down in shame. She walked back to her table deep in the classroom, every other kid mocking her with their eyes and smiles. Oh she hated those smiles. A single moment of attention in a long time and that's how it went. Thankfully, as soon as the next kid came forward with their own dream of becoming a hero, everyone had completely ignored her.

Leaving school, there was really nothing much in her life. She lived two hours by train. Their parents thought the bullying would stop in a different school and that traveling more distances would give her more independence. Well she was not in any clubs, there was no one she could hang out with, and she carried just the money necessary to go day by day.

How could a quirkless girl enter the most prestigious hero courses in the entire country? Could even someone born without a quirk become a hero?

"Maybe I should start skipping lunch again…" she thought out loud while looking at her drawing. "Then, I'll save some money so I can try to build some gadgets!"

She skipped through her imagination. Lots of heroes use gadgets to add into their quirks, not so many depend on their gadgets to do their work. She also skipped the fact she had no idea what to build. An electric gun? A grappling hook? Some throwable weapons? Better yet, she skipped how she would build a hero gadget in the first place. It was an area she had zero knowledge on.

"And even if I did… wouldn't they put me to a support course instead?" she talked to herself as she went under a short tunnel.

For a moment, she thought of ripping the drawing apart. All the bullying, all the people looking down on her, all these bottled emotions that never were allowed to breathe fresh air. She held the paper close to her heart, because she knew destroying it would destroy her little hope of being something more. Destroying this drawing would mean she was giving up.  

It was when one of her worst fears materialized behind her back, coming from under the manhole.

"A medium-sized body… to hide in…" the sludge monster villain attacked, suddenly engulfing her entirely in its slimy grasp.  

Ochako could not defend herself nor cry for help, the liquid body did not offer friction to stop it from entering her gullet. Struggling was useless. She was suffocating, losing strength on her legs.

"Don't worry little girl! I will only use your body to hide for a bit. In fourty-five seconds I'll possess you entirely!"

She felt herself losing consciousness. All her efforts were worthless. If only she was born with a quirk maybe she could fight back. Was that it? Was that how she would die? Was withdrawing herself all for nothing if she would be attacked anyways? Why did she even think of trying?

Is this the way of the universe to tell her she should have ripped the drawing?

Please… someone!

"Fear not kid, I am here!"

Her eyes took a glimpse of hope in the bright smile at the end of the tunnel, the iconic smile. One of the few smiles that genuinely cared. The big powerful smile of The Symbol of Peace.

"ALL MIGHT!?!!" the sludge villain shivered in the presence of the number one hero, but it was already too late.

"TEXAS SMAAAASH!!" a massive punch sent a shockwave that peeled the villain out of her body. So fast, so powerful. Her eyes just experienced the power of the symbol of peace.

"Hey? Hey? Hey?" All Might gave light slaps on her face to check if she was awake. "Thank goodness!" he said as she opened her eyes.

Ochako screamed in shock. It was not a dream. He was there, right in front of her, absolutely towering power and stature. He was apologizing for getting her caught on his villain hunt, being grateful for her as he successfully captured the sludge villain inside a soda bottle, but she was in awe with his presence and she could not focus entirely on what he was talking about.

"W-wait! An autograph! I n-need to ask you an…" she looked around for her backpack, then she looked at the paper with her drawing on the ground. All Might had already autographed the back of it.

"THANK YOU SO MUUUUCH!!" she bowed so many times her back started aching.

"Ha! Ha! Ha!" All Might laughed as he turned around. "Now I need to go bring this fellow to the authorities. You can catch me on TV!"

Wait, Was that it? Uraraka thought. He saves you, gives an autograph, then leaves? She knew he was a very important hero, thus time would be extremely valuable to him. Who knows how many people he was yet to save. Even still, she felt there needed to be something more to say.

"Until next time…" he squatted, preparing to jump.

"W-wait, All Might!"

"THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!" he leaped high into the sky, carrying the sealed bottle with the villain in his pocket.

When All Might looked down, there was an additional weight holding onto him.

"HEY NOW!" Ochako held onto his leg before he could go away. "Release me! I appreciate your enthusiasm but…"

"IF I DROP YOU I'LL FALL!!" she yelled with the wind flapping her face.

"Oh, right!"

All Might looked around to find a place where he could land safely. Blood was already dropping from his mouth. His time was running out. Shit…

They landed on the rooftop of a building. There, Ochako could drop safely from him. She was still recollecting herself from the jump, she is not used to feeling the power of a quirk this much on her body.

"Hopefully the people downstairs help us get down, but I have no time for that!" he looked at the blue sky, analyzing where he needed to jump next.

"Wait! All Might! Please!" Ochako gasped for words, trying to stop him just for a quick moment.

"I'm sorry, young one! I don't have the time to…"

"CAN I BE A HERO, EVEN WITHOUT A QUIRK?!"

All Might stopped right on his tracks. The question finally stopped his momentum. Ochako closed her eyes, remembering every time she was put down by her nature, all the moments she was bullied by the kids around her, all the painful reminders of not being as special as everyone.

"Can someone quirkless be a hero just like you?" Ochako repeated herself, holding a tear to not fall.

"Quirks… they are…" a shock on his abdomen. He reached his limit. All Might could not hold his form for longer. Steam was gushing from his pores as he coughed away his strong form.

"Because I don't have a quirk, people always said I was useless or that I did not have worth. I've always thought that I never would be able to make my parents happy…" she turned her head down. "But your smile, it's so incredibly powerful! I want to make my parents smile just like…"

She looked up and saw a skinny man out of the steam where All Might should be.

"Just like… yours…" Ochako was dumbfolded. "Huh?"

"What? I'm All Might." blood gushed out of his mouth.

"WHAAAAAAAAAT?!?!" her eyes almost fled out of her face.

"You know when people hold in their gut in the pool to seem strong? It's like that."

She was speechless. Never in a million years could she imagine the greatest hero of Japan could be hiding such weak form from all the public.

"A powerful smile, huh…" he sat down on the floor, his clothes now so baggy they flail with the wind. "You seem like a good kid, so please don't share this online."

He pulled up his shirt, showing a massive impact scar on his torso. Respiratory system almost destroyed, stomach removed. He explained how he wasted away from the after effects of the surgeries and how now he could only be a hero for three hours a day.

She held her mouth so it did not fall on the ground. Was that the consequences of being a hero? Were all the heroes hiding scars like that?

"I asked for this to never be made public. I'm the symbol of peace, I save people with a smile, so I could never be daunted by evil. I smile, so I could scare away all the fear and pressure. A pro should be ready to risk their own life…"

"And that's why I can't be a hero… right?" Ochako interrupted his monologue. "I don't have the power to sacrifice myself…"

All Might frowned from hearing her words. In front of him was a weak girl with great dreams. He wanted her to be truly happy, but he could not simply say yes to her, he could not send a child in danger.

"You could still work as a police officer. They get mocked a bit, but it's still an admirable profession." he lifts himself up, heading downstairs. "It is not wrong to have dreams, kid. But you need to be realistic. I'm sorry…"

All Might leaves the rooftop. Ochako ponders the words of the greatest hero. She knew it, deep down she had already accepted that cold reality. She was looking for a way to reject it, find some type of support or affirmation, someone to say that she could chase her dreams.

It was all fantasy. She needed to be realistic.

She still remembered the way her parents looked, when she arrived home with her broken astronaut helmet. The way they were terrified by the idea of their daughter suffering at school, on how their eyes were fighting to keep the tears away. A sad smile as they hugged her to give comfort.

"Mom, dad…" Ochako hugged them back. "Why can't I be a hero?" she cried in their warm embrace.

"We're so sorry, Ochako…" her mom told her. "I'm sorry we can't give you what you want…"

"Please, my little Ochako, forgive us!" her dad allowed the tears to fall. "It's not your fault, it's not your fault…"

No, mom. No dad. That was not what I wanted to hear that day…

She reminisced those memories on her slow walk to the train station. What would she do now? Was there anything else she would like to do in her life? She held her tears with every step, making sense of her situation. Everybody wants to be a hero, but not everyone will manage to become one. Most people will face this reality of giving their dreams up in favor of something closer to their grasp. If everyone managed to be a hero, then villains would not roam the streets anymore.

A commotion of people surrounded a villain attack on a narrow street. Uraraka took a glimpse of the fire and destruction, then moved on. Heroes were already arriving at the place, it should all be sorted out soon enough.

"Wasn't this villain the one All Might was trying to capture?" she heard one woman say.

"All Might? He was here?" she stopped.

"Where is he right now?" she turned her face back.

Desperation pierced her heart. She walked inside the agglomeration, pushing the crowd aside so she could see it on the front row, behind the perimeter put by the heroes. Yes, it was the sludge villain. He was in possession of another middle schooler, an aggressive blond boy who was offering way more resistance than what she could ever do.

But how? Didn't All Might capture it on the soda bottle? Where was the… Oh no!

She covered her mouth, the bottle had fallen when she jumped on him. The villain escaped because of her. It was her fault. Not only was she useless to help, she was also making everything worse. Her legs paralyzed in fear, her heart jumped faster and faster in anxiety. She was preparing to have a panic attack.

Mt.Lady appeared to the rescue but the street was too narrow for her to fit. Every other hero was the physical type, none possessed a power like All Might had to finish this off quickly and safely. And worse, even if All Might arrived, he already spent all his energy in his hero form. Now people will put this disaster on his back too. And it was all her fault. She did not help at all, she only made things worse.

Why am I still around here? Ochako stopped her thoughts. Everything around her was numbing out. The cacophony of the people screaming for help was fading out, her vision blurring away. She was about to faint on the spot.

"PLEASE!! SAVE KACCHAN!!"

A boy with green curly hair pleaded for help as the hero pressed him back to the perimeter. His crying screams fueled her body with adrenaline. She locked her focus on the boy losing the battle against the sludge. His face, his eyes, he was sad, sad like her parents were when she got bullied, sad like the boy right beside her, screaming for a hero to take action.

When she woke back to reality, she had already taken the first step forward.

"GIRL, WAIT!!"

Ochako ran towards the boy, no thoughts in her head, no understanding of her actions. The sludge monster attacked up front. She was trusting her instincts this time. Spinning around and throwing her backpack on the villain's liquid face, she got in contact and began peeling him off the blond boy.

"Who– WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! BACK OFF!!" the boy screamed as she desperately tried to remove the villain piece by piece.

"I–I don't know…!" Ochako stuttered. "I–I just…”

Tears fell from her eyes, fear and anxiety of getting hurt, the frustration of being useless her whole life, but now she had the determination to finally feel she was doing something good.

“I thought you were in desperate need to smile!"

"YOU STUPID CHILDREN!!" the sludge villain towered against her, trying to push the boy back inside him. His attack fell. Ochako closed her eyes.

All Might appeared out of nowhere. Stream coming out of his muscles and mouth. He grabbed the sludge attack like it was just a bit of paper glue stuck in your fingertips.

"Such stupidity! I was not following my own lesson here. A pro should always be ready to risk their lives!!"

DETROIT SMAAAAASH!!

All Might held us both with one hand, and with the other the villain got obliterated. Winds ascended in a small tornado, rain fell in the aftermath, extinguishing the fire. With one punch, the number one hero changed the weather. An even more powerful display of ability than before. Everyone cheered and smiled, congratulating his and the work of the other heroes around.

Ochako for a small moment imagined a future where they would be smiling and cheering for her.

She got a very big sermon from the heroes to not do that again. Interfering like that in hero work complicates rescue plans and puts her and other people's life in more danger. Being quirkless is an aggravating factor. Let the professionals do their job without interference. Thankfully they let her go with only that because she was still a young kid.

Ochako walked a lonely street in the orange sunset. She had dozens of missed calls from her parents who already knew about her recklessness. They were very worried that she got hurt in some way, but she calmly explained everything to soothe their hearts with ease. Of course she skipped the part about meeting with All Might.

"HEY!!" an enthusiastic voice came running from behind. Ochako turned to see the same boy with curly green hair from before.

"Oh, it's you!" she put her flip phone back in her pocket as the boy grasped for breath.

"M-my name is Midoriya. I-I, I did not manage to do anything because I…" he jumbles between his words, fidgeting with his fingers. "I know that Kacchan is a pain, b-but…"

Ochako seemingly smiles at his earnest attempt. The boy's face was red, exhausted from the run and burning in shame by such a cute girl in front of him. He fixed his composure and bowed his body the best he could.

"I-I wanted to thank you for trying to save him!"

Something warm fills Ochako's heart, an emotion she is not used to, something that was lacking or forgotten for such a long time.

"You're welcome!" she closed her eyes and hit the biggest smile the entire day, bowing back at him. He did not know she could only move forward because of him.

Midoriya turned back behind him, worried about the time to go back home. “I-I gotta go now, thank you!” he waved back at her, his fingertips had little soft pads.

I should thank you, dummy! she held back her breath as the boy went away. She already cried today and she does not want to cry again. This little adventure today, although dangerous, was really fun. She turned to walk home, thinking back on all that happened today. Her hero dream is still crushed in a big pile of sorrow, but after everything she felt the energy to try picking up every broken shard and maybe turn it into something new.

Do whatever is fun with whatever you have. The solidification of Ochako’s ideas.

“I’M HEEEERE!!” All Might pops out from a street corner.

“A-All Might?! What about the reporters?!”

“Ha ha hah! Shaking them off is nothing for me! Because I am ALL…” his body puffed out, coughing a comical amount of blood, unable to finish his sentence.

“A-are you sure you’re doing good?” she realized how he exerted himself way more than he should, feeling guilty once again.

“Kid, I’ve come to thank you, and revise what I said earlier… I also have a proposal.” he gazed up to the sky, back to my face. “Without you… if I hadn’t heard your story, I’d have been nothing but fake muscles and insincerity. So thank you!!”

“Wha– why are you telling me this…” she frowned in shame. “It was my fault that the villain attacked again, I’m just a stupid quirkless girl…”

“You’re wrong!” he shouted. “Of all the people in the scene, it was only you, the quirkless girl, who ran into action! If it was not for you, I would not have spurred into action!”

Uraraka felt the weight in her mind and body disappearing. All the bullying, all the troubles, all the challenges, left her body as All Might spoke. The tears are flowing back, she could hold them back for much longer.

“Most of the top heroes show signs of greatness even as children. Many of them claim that…” she fell to her knees in disbelief. “…their bodies moved on their own, even before they could think!”

We're so sorry, Ochako… she remembered. Please, my little Ochako, forgive us!

“That’s what happened to you back there, right?!”

“YES!!” she screamed in tears. She held her heart with one hand, as the other held the ground. She never asked for too much, she could not force herself to it. But one thing she always dreamed of, what she always wanted to hear…

“YOU TOO CAN BE A HERO!!”

Fantasy. It just became reality. The number one hero, All Might, gave it to her.

“And that’s why I believe you’re worthy of inheriting my power!”

Uraraka cleaned her face, lifting up one of her knees. She looked up at him.

“What?”

Chapter Text

One for All, the ability to accumulate and transfer power. A quirk passed down from holder to holder. The first cultivates the power then passes to another, which refines and makes the quirk stronger, then passes to another, and the cycle continues forming a crystallization of effort across generations.

Do not tell no one about it. Not even your friends, not even your parents. The real nature of One For All must remain a secret.

“I’m home!” Ochako entered her house, it was dark inside. Maybe they were out.

“OCHAKOOO!!” her mom and dad jumped to hug her right as she turned and closed the door.

“WAAAAAAH!!” she screamed in fear, popping her eye out as they held her together.

“Are you alright?! Did you get hurt?! We were so worried about you!!” mom slowly put her eye back as dad cried on her shoulder.

They already knew about the sludge villain attack, about how she jumped into action and how she was saved by All Might. Maybe in other households she would get a long sermon on how what she did was wrong and dangerous, but Ochako’s parents understood that she was a smart kid and knew it already. Besides, other heroes already called her out after the event, thus she does not need to hear that all again. What she needs right now is love and compassion.

“I’m fine, All Might saved us!” Ochako hugged her dad back. “He was so cool! And so powerful!!”

“Nothing less than the number one hero to save my daughter!” dad wiped his tears on his arm as mom pulled him out of the hug.

“Honey, she must be tired" mom embraced him. “A lot of things happened today, right Ochako?”

“Y-yeah! The villain attack and all of that! Heheh!” they can’t know. “I feel dirty because of the sludge, so I think I’ll go take a shower" she walks through them, going right to her room.

“Right! Dinner will be ready in a bit!” her parents smiled as she closed the door.

She let her backpack fall on the floor and jumped into bed, letting all of her exhaustion seep through the mattress. She looked at the ceiling with no thoughts in her head. The talk she had with All Might spins around her head, the memory of the adrenaline she felt pushed a smile in her face. She is still doubting if today was all a big dream, that if she went to sleep at that moment it would all fade away and she would be back to her average monotony of school.

Mom, dad, I’m going to U.A!

A quirk. She will finally have a quirk! And it was the quirk of the greatest hero in the entire country! She was so excited to wield the power she saw today!

Then it dawned into her.

It was not a simple quirk, it was All Might’s quirk . The quirk of the strongest and greatest hero in the country. She was going to step on shoes way too large for her feet. Everything that All Might does, what he represents, it will all fall onto her shoulders. Receiving such power was not going to be easy.

She began asking herself if she was living a nightmare.

Yes she was living a nightmare.

“Come on! You can do it!” All Might screamed motivation as Ochako tried to pull a massive fridge out of the sand with him on top. “This fridge makes quite the comfy perch! A little movement would make it even nicer!”

She fell on sand, failing to move even a single grain of sand away from the original position. “Why are you sitting on top of it, aren’t you heavy?!”

“I lost weight recently, now I’m just 255 kilos" at least on his strong form.

“Do I…” she got up to clean herself. “Do I really need to clean all this beach by myself? Why?”

“Because you’re not a great vessel, young Uraraka!” he laughs away as he takes a picture of her weak body. ”One For All is the culmination of physical strength and power of many people into one. If you receive my power without training, your limbs will EXPLODE!!”

“WHAAAA?!?!” she screamed in terror as she imagined her body blowing into pieces. One For All was not a simple quirk. “B-but, do I really need to clean it all to train my body?”

“YES!!” he gave a thumbs up with his massive smile, “But that’s not all!” he jumped from the fridge, “I did some research yesterday, this beach… well, this one section has been like this for years. The young heroes today only want fame and glory, but being a hero is all about volunteer work!”

All Might pressed a hand on top of the fridge, bending the metal below his palm and fingers so casually it looked like he was destroying a sand castle. “No matter how unglamorous! Never forget that!” he collapsed the full fridge all the way to the ground, exploding a shockwave that repelled all the debris and trash around, revealing such a gorgeous view of the sunrise across the blue ocean.

Uraraka realized her first objective in front of her eyes. The fire of determination burned in her heart. This was her first step on her path to become a hero. She stopped complaining and began feeling excited.

“I can do this, right? My first step is cleaning all of this? I have time, I can do it, if I go small bit by bit, then I can accumulate my efforts and…” she completely understood the assignment, her eyes shining as the realization hit. “IT’S JUST LIKE ONE FOR ALL!!”

All Might definitely did think of that metaphor beforehand. “Y-yeah! Training your body takes time and effort! It’s all about small and constant effort, just like One For All…” he looked to the side. “That’s why I made this…!” he picked a stack of papers from his pocket. “MY SELF-DESIGNED ‘PASS THE TEST, AMERICAN DREAM’ PLAN!!

He gave the papers to Ochako, informing what her training regimen would look like, what she would do every day, what she would eat, and what she would train. “Wow, you even planned how much I will sleep!”

“Young Uraraka, you want to go to U.A, right?”

“YES!!” she said with glee in her cheeks. “I want to be a hero just like you!”

All Might’s smile grew a bit more in reaction, but he turned to talk. “Like I said before, it’s not possible for someone who’s quirkless. It’s sad but true. In addition to that, U.A’s hero course is the hardest in the entire country!” he then turned back to approach right in her ear. “I will be honest, this plan is super tough. We have only ten months to do it too. Do you think you can do it?”

That was a dumb question. In Uraraka’s heart, it was not about if she wanted or could do it. Either she does it or not. At that point, she had to do it. It was an obligation her mind put on herself. As long as the fire of determination and willpower kept burning in her heart, she would continue to move forward with everything she had. “I will do it!”

And so began ten months of hell. She would wake up early so she could jog to the beach. There, All Might would be waiting for her so they could clean bit by bit. It goes without saying, but she was working out on sand, pulling, pushing, carrying and stacking heavy trash, training muscles she did not even know she had.

“RUN!! RUN!! REMEMBER!! TEN MONTHS!! LET’S PUMP YOU UP!!” All Might always screamed for motivation, always pushing her a bit more than what she thought she could do. Adding more fuel to her fire.

After training, she would try to have her normal classes, which was a struggle as she was completely worn out time and time again, fighting herself to keep her brain awake to at least copy whatever the teachers wrote on the board. It was during these moments of weakness when the self-doubt fell.

“Hey, Uraraka!” the teacher slapped her awake. “Pay attention to the class! How do you want to become a hero like that?”

Just fuel for her classmates. “Look, she wants to go to U.A!!” they pointed and laughed. She did not care, she had way more important things on her mind: the weight of All Might’s power and the expectations he had of her as the next symbol of peace.

Weeks went by. Struggle and pain became the routine. Stress and effort became the norm. She always pushed herself to the brink of collapse, then a bit more on the next day. Slowly but surely, progress was growing. Her parents helped her by focusing on her diet whenever they could, All Might would give her more weight and even bigger challenges to never let her body, mind and soul get used to the pain.

Now at fourteen years old, she took all in herself, cleaning more and more of the beach. But as time went on, desperation knocked louder. Five months in and the fear seeped in that maybe she would not finish on time. She could not let it go down like that, she could not disappoint all the effort All Might put into training her.

“I can’t miss training…” she convinced herself as she became more self-destructive.

One hour less of sleep because she needed more time to study for an exam, put one more rep into that exercise. She thought to herself she could skip eating her breakfast or even her lunch so she could study just a bit more. If she did not sacrifice her health, she would not complete the very first mission to become a hero. She was born with a disadvantage, she had to work much harder than anyone else.

“So, little Uraraka, how are you feeling?”

Terrible. She could not believe she fell ill at such a moment, two months before the U.A entrance exam and still a third of the beach to clean. “I’m doing fine, there’s nothing wrong with me" she told the doctor, eager to leave so she could clean that beach just a bit more.

“Ochako, please, this is your health we’re talking about" her mom held her hand. “It’s OK, don’t need to be ashamed".

“You two should be working, I’m doing good, you don’t need to worry about me" she looked down to her knees. She was way behind her own schedule, and she knew if she ever stopped it would take much more energy to move again. She did not had that energy.

“We worry about you because we love you!” she heard her dad call. “If you don’t want to tell the doctor, then we can…”

“No! I can! It’s just…” She breathes in, holding some tears inside her lungs. Since they were already here and reached this point, the very least Ochako could do was finish this quickly. “I had a very high headache and back pain three days ago, been experiencing some nausea recently, and I could not go to school today because of it".

The doctor turned to the side, writing it on his keyboard. “Anything more?”

Yes, there was. Ochako looked at her mom, with a soft smile, and at her dad, smiling like a little dog every time she sees him. She takes another breath in and out. “I also have been skipping my periods for the last two months".

At first she was scared, but then she convinced herself it was just one less thing to worry about. She had been hiding it from her parents, keeping all that weight on top of her back, carefully moving so it would not crack or fall, slowly losing strength until it all collapsed one day. The doctor wrote down her symptoms.

“You’re a pretty strong girl, aren’t you?” the doctor spoke as he typed what he believed might be the diagnostic. “Are you training for something?”

“She wants to join the U.A Hero Course" dad responded. “She really wanted to be a hero, and we’ve been doing everything she asks for help".

“She has been training for over eight months now" mom completed, pulling one of Ochako’s cheeks. “My little girl grew so much, she is a very hard worker!”

“I see…" the doctor spinned his chair, turning away from the computer to the parents. “We will do some small tests so we can make sure there’s no other problems with her body, but I think I already know what’s the issue…" he took off her glasses in his hand. “You, little girl, are overworking yourself".

“Overworking?!” Ochako stared in disbelief, she could not accept that. “No, I feel like I’m not working enough actually".

“See, there is the problem…” he cleaned his lenses with a small tissue. “You losing your period is just a signal of a larger problem in your body. A combination of chronic stress with overexertion may cause you to lose your period because of hormonal imbalance" he puts on her glasses again. “This is a very common problem among olympic athletes and the more physical heroes. How much have you been sleeping recently? Have you been skipping meals?”

“I…” Ochako held back tears in shame, scratching below her eyes. “Y-yes… I’ve skipped breakfast and lunch so I could have more time to train".

Her mom put a hand on top of her head, caressing her short hair.

“Listen, Uraraka,” the doctor gripped his hands together. “I understand it is something very important for you to enter the U.A. Hero Course. However, you can’t undermine your own health in the process. You’re young, these hormonal imbalances could lead to serious problems with your bone development and even cause heart issues. You must take things more slowly, eat healthy, sleep healthy, train healthy".

“B-but…” the tears fell. “If I don’t give my all, I will never be a hero…” she turned to the sad and worried face of her parents. Resentment filled her chest, as she hiccupped in her failure. “I am so far behind, you don’t understand!”

“I’m so sorry, but it’s for your own good".

Despite common belief, willpower is not unlimited, it is a powerful but finite fire that you must use with intelligence. In Ochako’s case, her flames were out a long time already, only holding together with the memory of the embers. What would she tell All Might?

That young kid with brilliant potential you chose was a massive failure, you should choose another one more suitable to be the next symbol of peace. I'm sorry, All Might…

Ochako walked a slow path of misery across the park. Bad thoughts consumed her soul inside out, their chewing sounds echoing louder and louder. Should she give up? Accept defeat? What about everything that she endured in this path already? What about the many disses and laughs she gulped down on her way to become stronger? What about the painful loneliness of her secret with the number one hero in the entire country? Would all be in vain?

The sun was setting. She wanted to keep going, to take another step forward, to reach out further than her limits, to finally finish cleaning that stupid beach. If she could finish cleaning that beach, then she could finally relax, like her doctor said. Right? If she finished the beach, then she would receive One For All, All Might’s quirk.

Ochako almost tripped at the thought that all she did until now was merely a tutorial.

She began running. No stretches or any preparation, just running. Maybe if she ran for long enough all these problems would stop pursuing her. Oh poor Ochako, her demons matched her speed, they threatened to outpace her, eating her alive right on the next turn. She needed to slow down to rekindle her flames, but slowing down would mean she could not finish this race on time. Her body hurted every time her feet hit the ground, she could feel her skin peeling away against the wind.

She tripped on a rock, and her body flew forward. There she would be, sliding on the rough and dirty ground. She was not born to be a hero after all.

She closed her eyes, holding on to her gut the will to scream in agony, waiting for the impact. She waited, and waited, but she did not feel the friction of the ground. She opened her eyes and realized her body was floating a few moments away from landing face flat. Beside her, there was someone holding her in place, it was that boy with green hair. What was his name again?

“M-Midoriya?!” she shaked her arms in an attempt to regain balance.

“Uraraka?!” he exclaimed in surprise, he had not recognized her, “Are you alright?” speaking in between heavy breaths, he was also running around here. “S-Sorry for using my quirk on you without your consent”.

“No, thank you for doing that!” she looked at him spinning his body back up, standing her on her two feet, then touching his finger pads together. A green glow emanated and Ochako felt her weight again. “Wow…”

“Do you want some water?” Midoriya turned his eyes across the ground. He was running while holding his bottle on hands, then threw it as Ochako was falling.

“Yes, thanks!”

She smiled through, walking back and sitting on a bench close by. He took his bottle back and sat next to her, cleaning sweat on his forehead with his arm.

“You’re running too?” he is not the same scrawny kid he was a few months before, but he still had a long way to go if he ever planned to match her physique.

“Yes, I’m training for the U.A entrance exams" he lended the water bottle to her, she opened the cap and let it fall on her mouth to remove any possibility of indirect kiss. “You seemed to be doing the same, b-but much better. I barely recognized you right there".

“Really? I don’t think I’ve changed much…” she put the bottle in between them and flexed her arm to test. Oh wow I’m strong. Even herself was surprised by her muscles.

“WOOOAAH!! That is amazing!!” he smiled with stars in his eyes, impressed by her gains. “What was your training?! How did you achieve this?!”

“I…” was trained by the number one hero in the entire country in the process to become a vessel for the greatest power alive? No, she could not say that. “I picked… trash" she closed one of her eyes.

“Trash?” in her defense, she did not tell a lie. “Woah, that makes sense! You want to become a hero so picking up trash will make you learn all about the volunteering spirit that you need for saving not only people but the environment as well but to strengthen your body with only carrying trash will depend on the amount of trash you collect plus the amount of weight you carry around and for how much time and how many reps and what’s your routine so maybe you can do it somewhere where trash accumulates so you can clean and already separate everything to recycling and you could also do a basic workout to focus on the muscles you could not work at that specific day so it is a very adaptive routine and I can see all the progress that it could lead…”

Ochako blinked twice as Midoriya held his bottom lip and muttered the logistics, advantages and weaknesses of her unusual training. She could tell him to stop but there was something endearing about it she could not put a finger on, so she kept on listening to him as he spoke more and more until the words were meshing together as his voice could not match his thoughts.

“Ah, A-ah I’m so sorry, I…” he blushed slightly as he dodged her look. “I’m being stupid again".

“No, no it’s not stupid. It’s pretty cool, actually!” she leaned in closer. “I think you’re not doing bad either, well…” she moved a bit further from him, looking away. “Not as bad as me at least…”

He turned back when her voice fell sadder in his ears. Not as bad as me…? What did she mean by that? It reminded him there was something he wanted to ask her. An adult passed by, jogging with headphones.

“Hey, Uraraka… what is your quirk?”

“Eh?!” she stuttered. “W-why are you asking that?!”

“Remember that day with the sludge monster?” he grew his arms to mimic the villain. “You rushed in to help Kac- that blonde kid, but you did not use your quirk".

“Ah that?! Oh well…” what would he say if he discovered she was quirkless? She was too scared to find out. “I-I got desperate and I-I forgot, y’know?! My body, see, it just moved on its own".

“Like a true hero" he grabbed his water bottle back on his hands, holding his pinkies out. “I still feel bad because of that day. I was there earlier and I thought constantly to myself that I should do something, that I should have rushed in to save someone I knew… but my body did not obey me. I was such a coward".

“N-no! You did the right thing!” Ochako shaked her hands frantically trying to calm him down. “In fact, I-I was in the wrong there, I could have made things even worse, I should have let the heroes do their job".

“But you still went to save him" He turned back to her face. The wind blew their hair together with some fallen leaves. Midoriya continued. “My quirk is not strong, I was a punchline when I was younger because I could only make things a tad bit lighter. I was called useless a lot, they even nicknamed me".

Oh what Ochako would do to have such useless quirk. That is exactly the type of thing she wanted to help her parents. “No! Your quirk is amazing! Your little finger pads are so cute! And the way you saved me was incredible! I wish I had a quirk like that!”

Her eyes glistened as the last sunrays of the day reflected. He gulped, his face turned red. He was a nerdy boy not used to being complimented by other people, much less girls.

“I-I…” he shaked his head to regain composure. “Thank you…” he cleaned his throat.

I wish I had a quirk like that… Ochako’s words reverberated in her head. Her energy died down again. Another person passes by running. Would her situation change if it was any other quirk instead of All Might’s?

“What I wanted to say…” he gazed back at her, still a bit red. “Seeing you jumping in to save someone, without even using a quirk, it made me reevaluate myself. I thought that I could still become a hero, I could still go to U.A, despite what other people said to me".

She paid very close attention to his next words.

“I’m a big fan of All Might, and seeing him in front of me saving the day was amazing. He was more amazing than his videos!" he averted her eyes with every word, he was sweating so much in anxiety. “B-But the more I thought about it, the m-more I realized… how it was you that truly inspired me, Uraraka. You were a much closer hero to me than All Might”.

You truly inspired me…

She remembered what she imagined right after All Might defeated the sludge monster. Everyone cheered and smiled at her, all eyes focused on an idealized version of herself, a powerful hero that saves everyone with never shedding a drop of sweat. Recognition, this boy had already done it a long time ago. What was she trying to prove all this time?

All Might said she too could be a hero, but what Midoriya made her realize was that she already was a hero from the very beginning.

“Thank you…” Ochako closed her eyes, pressing her fingers to hold her tears. Come on now, she did not want to cry in front of a boy. “Thank you so much, Midoriya!”

“Y-you’re crying?! D-did I say something bad?!” now it was he who was shaking his hands to try to calm her down.

“N-no!” she sniffed, laughing at the stupid situation she got herself in. Tears fell across her smiling cheeks. “You said everything I needed to hear! Thank you!”

That smile. He paid close attention to that smile of hers. So contagious was that smile. So endearing.

His hand was reaching out to her tears. She watched his fingers move closer to her face, until he stopped midway as his cellphone beeped.

“A-ah! S-sorry! I-I need to study for my exams!” he pulled back to his pocket, stopping the alarm. “So sorry, I didn’t mean to take your time”

“Oh, i-its ok…”  she turned away, cleaning her face as the shame seeped through her cheeks.

“S-see you later, Uraraka” he took the bottle and got up to leave.

“Midoriya, wait!” He was about to walk away, but turned at her call as she stretched her hand to grab his shirt. A final question. “What do you do when you feel you can’t achieve something?”

He thought for a moment, staring back at her eyes, then at her strong hand delicately holding him back. He looked out as another jogger passed, and Uraraka released him.

“I think… I try to stop comparing myself… and focus on doing my best!” he ran right behind the jogger. “Let’s meet again on the entrance exam, Uraraka!”

She smiled at his words. “Yes! See you soon!”.

Ochako watched him sprint away, leaving her field of view as she melted back on the bench. She took a deep breath, in and out. She felt her body relaxed, her cogs running low and heartbeat slowed down. It has been a long time coming. She pondered back on Midoriya’s words.

“YOUNG URARAKA!” All Might suddenly rushed in front of her, his scream almost made her jump to the sky, falling on a bush of leaves right behind the bench. “There you are, I have been wanting to talk with you!”

She got up, cleaning the twigs out of her hair. “A-All Mi…”

“SHHHHH!!” he reprimanded, he was in his skinny form, she almost declared his secret out loud. “Look, I’ve noticed you were hiding things from me, I want you to know if you have any problems with…”

“It’s ok, t-trainer,” she walked back in front of him, “I have not been able to keep up with your training as I told you I would in the beginning, I’m sorry.”

“Why are you being sorry? It is completely understandable, I told you the training was tough…”

“B-BUT!!” she held her heart in her chest with one hand. “I still want to be a hero! I still want to do what you expect of me! But my body and mind can’t keep up with these expectations…”

Focus on doing your best…

With a new fire of determination in her eyes and a sweet smile on her cheeks, she decided her future. “…so instead, I want you to help me in doing my best!”

All Might looked at his pupil and his eyes widened. It was the first time he felt Uraraka was so certain of something, a young soul so full of hope. Her face reminded him of someone else, a person just as pretty as her that went to become his role model on becoming the symbol of peace.

“Those who smile are the strongest” he approached Ochako and caressed her hair, pulling her closer to a hug. “Let’s rework your training so you can do your best, young Uraraka!”

Ochako felt a deep melancholy in his heart. She felt a loss, grief and loneliness on the way he gently scratched her hair strands. She reciprocated the hug, letting a silent tear run down her face. “Thank you, All Might.”

She still had a lot of time to grow and get stronger, but she would try to not let the insecurities freeze her down. There was so much she dreamed of doing, still.

It was six in the morning, the day of the exam. All Might arrived at that beach to find his pupil sitting on the sand, quietly watching the sunrise. He walked towards her, his footsteps being noticed by Uraraka but she kept focused on the gorgeous view of the waves coming and going. He sat right beside her, keeping silent for some minutes before saying anything.

“You did it” All Might begins.

“It’s not done” she turned to him with a serene but tired smile on her cheeks, “There is still some trash lying around the sand, and a whole spot that I could not begin cleaning.”

“Don’t beat yourself to it, you did what it was planned for you to do” his eyes were locked to the horizon. “How is your health doing?”

Ochako played a bit with the sand below her palms. “I’ve been eating and sleeping more…” she hesitated for a moment. “I’m still very anxious about the exams… I’m still waiting for my periods to be back.”

“It will be alright” he answered with wise confidence. They were very aware of her health ever since her visit to the doctor. All Might had been reading and trying to do his best on how to help her, and Ochako was very thankful. “You will be able to relax soon enough.”

She closed her eyes to take in those words fully. Today was the day, what she was working so hard for, where her dream was targeted. She felt the stress and fear creeping up her spine, but the notion it would all end soon and it would all be worth it was keeping her mind clear of immediate self-doubt.

“Here, look at this” and showed an image on his phone to her. “This right here was you, ten months ago.”

“Now look at me now…” she looked down on herself, a simple flex and her muscles would show. “I’m not all cute and girly anymore…”

“Haha, don’t say that.” All Might chuckles. Ever since he kept her down his wings, their relationship was like that of an old grandpa and his grandchild. It really showed his age whenever Ochako made him laugh, especially in his skinny form. “Stand up for me.”

Ochako nodded. She turned to the waves coming and going, and stood up. All Might plucked a string of his hair and bulked up. 

“Young Uraraka, there is a big difference between being born with that silver spoon and working your butt off to earn it. I want you to take this with all your heart…” he extended the string of hair to her.

She promised herself she would not cry, but she was failing. Damnit she was failing.

“You earned this power, fair and square. You achieved something beautiful, never let anyone or anything doubt that.”

“Yes… thank you… All Might!” she cleaned her eyes, a look of fierce determination. She had a clear goal in her mind, to keep cleaning this beach. This was just her beginning…

“Now, eat this.”

“…what?"

Chapter Text

U.A Highschool Hero Course is designed to give students everything they needed to become pros. It’s the toughest and most popular hero course in the country, only 1 in 300 applicants are accepted. From every student that graduated, All Might, Endeavor, Best Jeanist, it seemed graduating from U.A was a requirement to become a great hero.

Ochako finished her training and received One For All. She rushed home to take a bath and pack her things. A train ride later, she arrived at the campus. February 26th, the day of the practical portion of the general entrance exam for U.A. She never got time to test her new quirk, she even doubted if eating that hair even changed something in her body. Needless to say she was on the verge of having an anxiety attack.

“MOVE ASIDE DEKU!!”

Closer to the entrance, there it was. She recognized the voice and hair, that blonde kid who she tried to save almost a year ago. At that time, she thought he was screaming at her because of danger and desperation, but maybe he always acted like he was two seconds away from blowing someone to smithereens.

“Kacchan!” so Deku was a nickname to Midoriya. “L-let’s…”

He pressed his hand down on Midoriya’s shoulder, she could feel the intense rage from afar. “SHUT UP! Get out of my way or you’re DEAD!” and pushed him aside.

He never even took a glance of pity towards the silent shivering Midoriya, he just kept on walking straight as some other students recognized him from the incident. With every step, he kept exploding onto everyone that even tried to gossip about him. Forget a short fuse, that boy didn’t have one to begin with.

Ochako walked towards Midoriya. Since they have never interacted again after their meeting at the park two months ago, they still don’t know much about each other. She felt from the distance him shaking off the fear from his body when he sighed, then as he took a step forward, his feet tripped on themselves. She quickly jumped by his side and pulled him up by his backpack, stopping what would have been an embarrassing fall right before the most important exam in their lives.

“You know, it’s a bad omen to trip and fall…” Ochako smiled wide as shs put him standing back up, hiding her growing worry behind her face. “Now we’re even!”

“O-ah! T-thank you, Uraraka!” Midoriya scratched behind his head to release his shame, she was really strong, maybe stronger than before.

“Was that your friend?” she looked frontwards, trying to find that blond explosive in the crowd, but he was already out of their sight. “You two have nicknames going on…”

“Bakugou?” his name was Bakugou. “It’s a long story, we were close when we were very young, but then we got our quirks and…” he flinched a bit as he tried to find the words. “…and then we got more distant.” he pressed his finger pads into each other.

“Are you alright?” Ochako called. He shaked his head to snap out of his thoughts.

“Sorry, there’s not much I can do about it. Compared to him, I am weaker…” he closed his fist, contemplating his and her strength. “That's why he calls me Useless Deku” and walked forward, evading the topic at hand.

Bullying. She knew it was. Her mind went back on the first time they met, right before All Might gave her the proposal to become a hero.

I did not manage to do anything… I know that Kacchan is a pain…

“Sorry, I don’t need to focus on that now…”

Ochako followed beside him as they were entering the big halls of U.A’s auditorium. A thick ice wall was blocking the attempt of communication on both ways. Midoriya knew he should talk more about Bakugou but he could not muster the will to do it, especially right before the practical exam. Uraraka wanted to know more and maybe help him someway, but she did not desire to poke at his wounds at the moment, it would distract him.

But as she looked at his stressed face, she felt the need to make him smile. Bakugou, Midoriya, Kacchan, Deku… Deku?

“I thought Deku was a cool nickname…” her decreasing voice blasted through the ice.

“W-what?!” Midoriya turned to her, surprised, then he looked away, then looked back again.

“Y-yeah! It sounds like ‘You can do it!’, you know? I-it’s motivational! It’s cool! I-I think…” she looked at his face, holding an awkward smile. The desire to slap herself was aching her stomach. Maybe it was better to stay silent and move on, she did not need to poke around where she was not asked.

But to her surprise, he lifted a soft smile. His cheeks turned red, painting his freckles in embarrassment. His hand tried to move behind his head to scratch his hair, but he stopped the motion and put it back down.

“I will be Deku then.” His eyes glistened in hope as he uttered back. “Thanks!”

Ochako did not realize at the time how deep her words would reach into his heart. She was only focused on making a friend happy, and how cute he looked when he was turning red as a tomato. Her anxious smile had become genuine.

They had to part ways as they arrived at the auditorium, a massive room with a podium in front of three massive screens in the walls. Rows and rows of seats separated them in between schools, which would mean Midoriya would sit right beside Bakugou.

As the room filled up and the clock sang, a hero named Present Mic started the presentation of the exam, hyping everyone with his super loud voice.

“WELCOME TO TODAY’S LIVE PERFORMANCE!! EVERYONE SAY ‘HEY’!”

He was met with uncomfortable silence. Though, he was unphased by it. Seems like he was used to this kind of reaction already.

“WELL, THAT’S COOL, MY EXAMINEE LISTENERS!! I’M HERE TO PRESENT THE GUIDELINES OF YOUR PRACTICAL!! ARE YOU READY?! YEAHH!!”

It would not stop him from trying, however.

She needed to defeat robots. There were three types of robots, one more dangerous than the other, and each would give a score from one to three based on their type. One-point robot, Two-point robot, Three-point robot. It was not needed to destroy the robots to count as a point, restraining their movement effectively would also count. Even if she could not destroy or immobilize the robots, there were switches located behind their metal carcass where a student could use to deactivate them. 

She had lots of options on how to acquire points, then why was she feeling like she could vomit at any time? Why was her legs trembling and why was her vision blurring? It was obvious, by the way the test was crafted, she had to use her new quirk to pass. She needed to use One For All.

Wait… how do I use a quirk?!

That strand of hair must have been digested already, like All Might told her at the beach. That memory made her even more nauseous. Her thoughts traveled back to what he told her. She may have become a proper vessel, but it still was put together in a hurry. Because she had no time to use her power, she should get ready to receive a lot of recoil.

If only I had finished cleaning that damn beach one or two weeks earlier… Calm down, Ochako! Don’t think about that right now. Focus on your breathing, focus on keeping a cool head for the…

“AND BEGIN!!”

There she was already in front of the open gates to the mock city where the test would happen. Present Mic screamed from the speakers at the top of the towers, much to the confusion of everyone, snapping Ochako back to reality.

“WERE YOU EXPECTING A COUNTDOWN?! THE TEST STARTED!! RUN! RUN! RUN!”

And as she looked back, everyone was already desperately running in front of her, dispersing across every new street to fight every robot that spawned from every corner and every wall. She had to run, she was already far behind everyone.

It’s OK, I’m fine! I’m fine! I’m fine! I can do this! It does not matter if I'm behind, I can still manage it!

A robot burst through the concrete of a building right in front of Ochako. One-point, painted on its legs, quick but fragile, scary but manageable. She stopped in front of his electronic head and faced his mechanical claws and rotating guns. This is U.A, the greatest school in the country, surely they would not risk hurting their potential students in the entrance exam, right? They’re bluffing, right?!

But as the robot rushed to Ochako, she quickly realized that was not the case. In a swift move, that heavy machinery was a few inches of smashing her down with its full body. Taken in absolute fright, she curled down to her knees, trying to protect herself from the impact.

It was when she was saved by a bright laser beam, burning a hole on its frame like a sharp pencil piercing a sheet of paper. She looked at the origin, she was saved by a blonde boy with a belt gadget where the laser came from.

“I appreciate the assist, girlypop! Doubt we’ll meet again though!”

No, she was not saved, she just gave that dude one extra point. In pure instinct she became terrified and could not act. She didn’t even try to use the quirk All Might gave her. Idiot, stupid Ochako. Was all the training you did worthless? Will you disappoint All Might? What will you tell your parents when you get home?

Focus on doing your best!

The words Midoriya told her at the park came back to her mind. She punched her knees, scaring her fright away. Then she ran again, looking for more robots to destroy. The test took ten minutes, there was a limited amount of points for everyone. She could not fool around. She needed to do her best. She was going to do her best.

Rounding a corner, there it was, a lonely Two-point. Its four legs and big tail with a laser on the tip made it look like a scary metal scorpion. Much scarier than the first One-point. It noticed her, and went straight for the kill. Ochako put a leg behind her and jumped to face its might. Use One For All to destroy it, remember what All Might told you!

Clench your butt and let your heart cry out, saying…

“SMAAAAAASH!!”

She punched one of its metal legs with all her determination. It left a dent. She retracted her fist, crying in the pain of punching hard metal. The robot stopped moving as it saw tears falling down her face as she held the red hurt hand with her palm. Pathetic. They were made so people could destroy it pretty easily with their quirks, so why couldn’t she destroy it? This robot should have turned into scrap metal, so why?

Why couldn’t she use the quirk All Might gave her?

Another boy went speeding and smashed the robot with a quick kick of his leg, turbo engines on its calves propelled him forward to completely obliterate the robot. Great, another two points gone to another student.

“Are you playing around?” he turned to her after landing, “Why are you here?” and zoomed out as fast as he arrived.

Before she could even process those words, Present Mic screamed again.

“SIX MINUTES AND FOUR SECONDS REMAINING!!”

Her body gave up trying to stay calm. As she ran to find more robots, she felt the fire of her hope going out. The streets were getting full of debris and destroyed metal, she had to watch out for her steps otherwise she could fall, which slowed her progress even more. Every tick of the clock was drying her mind out of rationality, every second she spended looking around was one less robot she could find to destroy.

The examinees were now competing against each other, trying to reach the robots before anyone else. When Ochako thought she found three points, the entire mechanical mass floated high in the air just to collapse down. Midoriya, pressing his fingertips together, was exhausted. His legs wobbled as he tried to still move deeper in the chaos of quirks and metal.

“Thirty-five…” he held his belly and mouth together, stopping him from throwing up.

Thirty-five?! She did not manage even one! Every opportunity she had slipped right through her grasp, every second spent running around was another drop of desperation echoing on her mind. Five minutes left, and she did nothing! All the self-deprecating thoughts hammered on her mind, all the seeds of doubts had taken roots, growing and trapping her actions with their vines, the thorns pierced her lungs, its poison was starting to trigger a panic attack.

And when she thought things could not get worse, a whole building collapsed in front of her very eyes. It was the Zero-point.

As Present Mic explained, that robot was a gimmicky one. It was not an enemy, it was an obstacle. It would rampage the streets in close quarters. Defeating it granted no points, it was made to be avoided. A monster, a force completely overwhelming. She fell on the asphalt as everyone took a glimpse of its gigantic claws bending an entire building like a straw, opening his passage.

Everyone abandoned their plans and ran away, passing through her shocked and scared expression. There was only one of its type on each testing site, so they all could escape its destruction and keep pursuing points.

I need to run! I need to run! I need to get points! I still have zero points! This can’t be all for nothing! I need to run! I need to…

Ochako stopped.

If there were still points to be pursued anyway.

Yeah, why would she run? She already lost the test. All the training she did, all the struggle she went through, all for nothing.That was the cold unalterable reality of a quirkless girl. All her efforts would lead to nothing. Hide away, isolate yourself again, keep yourself away from being hurt again. Close your eyes, Uraraka…

“N-no…”

She was accepting her loss when she looked at where the voice was coming from. Midoriya. He did not run when everyone did, he was trying to get the points people left behind when the Zero-point spawned in. In the rush, he had tripped on the debris and fell.

“I need more points… I can’t… stay behind…” 

His pained expression shook her core. He most likely sprained his ankle, yet still tried to keep moving forward, pushing his body with his arm away from the Zero-point’s path of destruction. How much willpower did that boy have?

Then Ochako locked into his eyes, pained teary eyes. He was as desperate as she was, as scared as she was, yet he did not stop moving. Despite it all, he was still fighting.

I have to run.

And she ran back, to where everyone was running away, she went back to face that creature. She did not think, she just did. Facing a towering monster, she had to reach his head. Watching out the debris, she gained momentum and jumped high, one step she was on the ground and the other she was right on its big rectangular head. It all came as naturally as moving a pen on her hand to write in a notebook.

You earned this power, fair and square. never let anyone or anything doubt that.

Feeling the power deep within her heart, Ochako clutched her fist and allowed her heart to cry out!

“SMAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!”

And the big metal head was obliterated by the power of One for All. Her power!

She knew there was something wrong with her body, and she realized the incredible height she was about to fall, but it all finally clicked in her head. All the failures, all the pain, it was all a path to lead her into this super powerful moment. Why would she not smile? Why would she not cry? It was all so breathtaking…

Ochako faced the ground, getting closer and closer, faster and faster. Was there something she could do to stop her fall? Adrenaline was rushing in her blood, much more than the time she ran to save Bakugou, that’s his name, from the sludge monster. She could not move her right arm for some reason, her legs were also wobbling around in the air.

They were broken.

She gasped in shock, then screamed in immense pain from the top of her lungs, an almost guttural sound coming out from deep within. She was falling. Right, her body was broken and she was falling. The pain, against that much pain she could only cry. Never even thinking on how to survive. She closed her eyes, expecting the impact.

But Ochako got slapped right in the face and her whole body became weightless. The air friction slowed her down to a halt before reaching the street, as she opened a bit of her eyes again.

“Re… release…”

Falling flat on the ground, the sound of many heavy objects and robots crashed with her determination. Midoriya vomited behind a metal missile launcher so she did not need to see.

All Might told her to expect some knockback, but she did not think once using One for All for just a little bit would completely destroy her bones. But she should have pondered that before. It was the power of All Might, duh. The number one hero, the most powerful hero. She may be a vessel, but she was still a weak vessel. She did not finish cleaning that God forsaken beach, but she knew even if she could remove even the microplastics in the water and on the sand, this power was too much.

“I still have… no points…”

There were still some moments before the end of the exam, but Ochako’s mind could not think of trying anymore. She could not move anyways, so, instead, she passed out.

She was healed pretty quickly after her injuries by Recovery Girl, a hero with a quirk which accelerates the healing factor of the body. She went home that day, pretending to herself that nothing happened.

“Ochako! So, how was it?” her dad asked as she walked inside, but she evaded him and fell right into bed, sleeping almost in the same instant her heavy head laid on her soft pillow. Recovery Girl was the perfect excuse, but saying she got heavily injured because of her new extremely rare case of a hidden accumulative quirk would only make them more worried. They did not need that load on their backs, she still remembered how they reacted after the news of the sludge villain, and could only imagine how worse they would react if she said she broke both her legs and an arm.

Still, lying to her parents felt so bad. Even days after the exam when she did not want to say a word about it, they gave her the space she needed. They trusted her a lot, and that all left a bitter taste on her tongue. She was too ashamed to tell them the results.

It was a long week waiting for the results. She calculated her possibilities over and over. Maybe she got good grades on the written exams, but even if she got a 100% score it would just be multiplied by zero. To calm her anxiety, Ochako went day after day cleaning the beach. Not having to worry about the time made the activity a bit relaxing, and shoving away the pending trash cleaned her emotions bit by bit. She pondered on using One For All again, it was a good opportunity. Late at night, no one was watching, maybe she could compact the old tire she was carrying upstairs just like All Might did with that old fridge.

I earned this power. I deserve this power. It is my power. Remember Ochako, I deserve this power…

However, as she tried to activate and felt the immense power shocking her arm muscles, she stopped. She did not want to get hurt again. Ochako never got in contact with All Might after the exam, testing her quirk without his guidance would be too risky.

All Might, what did you see on me?

When she arrived home later that day, her parents stormed her at the entrance holding a letter from U.A. The final results had arrived. She tried to lift a smile on her best attempt. She knew the results already but she did not want them to see, so she locked herself in the privacy of her room to read it.

After sitting on her bed and staring at it for too long, she ripped it open just so a ring could fall and drop. From it, a projected image was shown in the air.

“THIS IS A PROJECTION!!”

“ALL MIGHT?!” Ochako jumped on her bed.

“It has been a while. There has been much to deliberate on…” he bowed, “APOLOGIES!!”

He proceeded to explain he was going to teach at U.A for the next first year of students. So that’s where he was all the time. Someone behind the scenes approached him to get to the point, and whatever he wanted to say to Ochako could be said later.

“Even if you pass the written portion, getting zero points on the practical naturally results in failure.”

That was the confirmation she was expecting. Despite Ochako thinking she had lost all hope, she just lost a small ember of hope she did not realize she still held. She felt so pathetic.

“But that’s not the end of the story!” All Might pulled her out of her depressing thoughts. He turned around where a big television had been moved in the background, “Let me entertain you! Please watch the screen!” and he pressed the remote to turn it on. 

“Excuse me!” It was Midoriya, dressed in his middle school uniform.

“What?! Midoriya?!” Ochako worded in confusion, the video paused.

“He came to see us right after the test! Why, you ask? Stay tuned!” All Might spoke as he pointed to the television behind him with his thumb, playing the video again.

“Um, you know Uraraka? That girl with brown hair and pink cheeks. You know the one…? She is strong but also has a lot of cuteness… she was the one who destroyed the Zero-point with a single punch, you know her?”

“Go straight to the point, green boy ” Present Mic advised with a spice of english in that ‘ green boy’ .

“R-Right, ehm, could you give her some of my points?”

Ochako stood up on her bed. She was face to face with the image being projected, face to face with Midoriya. The sparks of hope rekindled in her core, the flames were rising back again.

Can’t keep up with the rest? This girl is useless! Words from her childhood returned to her memory, insults from the children around her age. They were being proven wrong right in front of her eyes. Her breath was accelerating, she could not believe it.

“After she saved me, she said she still had no points. Please, at least give her the points she lost when she tried to save me!”

Why don't you choose something more in your reach? The doubts of her teacher echoed back. Yes, he was in her reach, and she saved him! Block by block, the walls of self-loathing were being broken down with every word uttered by that boy as he pleaded with all his heart, closing his eyes.

“Please! That girl saved my life!!”

Ochako was holding herself not to cry yet. There was still a lot yet to see and she could not watch it if tears blurred her vision. Her fingers trembled 

“In this exam, we weren’t just watching for villain-based points! After all, a hero course that rejects those who do the right thing is no hero course at all!!” All Might proclaimed.

“ I’m afraid we can’t give her your points…” Present Mic uttered as he gave light headpats to Midoriya’s head. “ But there shouldn’t be a need for it, my little listener!”

All Might continued, “You think this is all for the cameras? Think what you want!! In this job, you risk your life and put your money where your mouth is!” then his voice got louder, more energetic. “RESCUE POINTS were also a factor here! Another fundamental way for U.A. to evaluate you!!”

Those next words made her fall to her knees into a complete sob.

“SIXTY POINTS FOR OCHAKO URARAKA!! and while we’re at it, FORTY-FIVE POINTS FOR IZUKU MIDORIYA!!” All Might stretched his palm, asking Ochako to reach out. “You did it.” 

She reached to him, taking his hand as the tears fell to her sheets. She did it. She was so proud of herself. She thought this was a dream, that at any point she would wake up back to her lonely and isolated school life, when she would spend her free time daydreaming of something more, wishing to be more of use to her parents.

“Come now, Uraraka. THIS WILL BE YOUR HERO ACADEMIA!”

From outside the room, her parents could only hear the intense crying of their daughter. They were ready to be there for her. As soon as the projection ended, Ochako bashed open the door, cleaning her tears and gleaming the biggest smile of her life.

“MOM!! DAD!! I’M IN!!”