Chapter One: Manifestation

I remember when I feared I would never get a quirk. I remember when I felt like Kacchan's bullying would never end because he would never deem me useful. I was always scared that I would never be able to be a hero like All Might. But, that fear stopped when I found out I had a quirk.

It was a cold summer morning, a little strange and out of the ordinary, but in a world like this you grow used to the abnormal. My body had felt hot and ached for hours, but I still went to school to maintain my attendance. My mum tried to convince me to stay home and I probably should have listened to her. But I didn't, and I guess I reaped the punishment for it.

The first bell had rung and I was running as fast as I could. We were in our first year of elementary school and I honestly loved it; apart from the constant bullying. Learning was a gift that I willingly accepted wholeheartedly.

My teacher frowned at me as I sat down and I couldn't help but flush out of embarrassment for nearly being late. That didn't help with the heat that was coursing through my body.

It wasn't long before the day ended and I was making my way home. I stopped by the park and knelt down to pet a cat when the heat that I had tried to ignore burst. It imploded within my blood vessels and I felt myself being torn apart from the inside. I was in so much pain I couldn't even cry for help. Blood seeped out of my eyes, nose and mouth and I remember choking on the metallic tasting liquid.

I could hear my bones creaking and my skin felt like it would tear at any moment. I thought I was going to die. Kacchan had told me many times before that it would be better if I were to die, as I'm pretty much useless without a quirk. Right then, I couldn't help but agree with him. Maybe it was God punishing me for not having a quirk, or some cruel twist of fate that I did have a quirk, but it was going to kill me anyway.

I was scared and alone, and in so much pain. I wanted to die.

And then it got worse. All thoughts left my mind and I could hardly breathe as electricity coursed through my fingers and toes. The blood had stopped running and had dried up, leaving peeling lines of blood all over my face. The ground no longer felt solid, but instead felt non-existent. I had heard a loud yowl and the snapping of bones and the splatter of blood. I forced open my eyes and had nearly thrown up. Everything within a five metre radius was either levitating or continuously changing shape. But, worst of all was the mangled cat body that had floated near me. I was even more scared and I finally let out a whimper of fear. I didn't know what was happening and I felt endangered.

Then, as if by some miracle or curse, I heard voices. They were familiar and had sent shivers down my spine. The levitating objects then seated themselves back into the ground and the other objects ceased morphing and contorting. I slowly settled back onto the ground and tried to stand up but stumbled onto my hands and knees. I looked down at my hands and cringed.

My fingers were torn and bleeding, black burn marks marring the soft skin.

My thoughts were stopped as Kacchan's voice echoed throughout the empty park.

"Ah, Deku! Just the fucking nerd I was hoping to find! I've been feeling really angry and I need a punching bag." I froze and curled in on myself even more, hiding my bloodied face and body from view. He didn't like that.

"Oi, Deku! Are you ignoring me? I'll show you!" I heard a few explosions as he made his way quickly to me. "Look at me when I'm talking to you, useless bastard!" He fisted his hand into my hair and yanked my head back. His eyes widened as he took in my bloody face and charred hands.

"L-let me go, Kacchan, please." His hand dropped from my tangled, sweaty hair and I slowly staggered to my feet. He took a step back and I could see his small form shaking. He looked scared. I'd never seen him like that before and in turn, it scared me. I reached out a hand toward him, but he stepped back quickly. I retracted my hand and turned away from him, ready to run away in case he started to blow things up like usual.

"W-what happened..?" His voice was quiet and gravelly. The boys behind him had stiffened and stepped back, as if to escape something. I turned my head to face Katsuki and tear slipped down my cheeks. The heat was building up again and the only thing I could say to him was, "help me, please".

I watched as he reached his hand out, reached out for me. It was too late though. An invisible pulse left my body, rocking the playground in its entirety and forcing the three boys to their knees. The heat was back full force and my fingers tingled with that electricity again.

Kacchan got up as soon as the pulse ended and watched as I turned and stumbled out of the park, leaving the mangled cat and terrified boys behind me.

That was the first time I ever used my quirk. It was an accident, and it was terrifying. I told my mother as soon as I got home, explaining to her what happened and she had sat me down on the couch. She told me that it was most likely my quirk, and that I needed to start figuring out how to use it. Start out small, and then work my way up to the harder things. But the thing is, nobody has had this quirk before me. Nobody has been born with the curse that I have been born with.

With nobody who has experience with a quirk that even I know nothing about, I could never learn how to control it. I never learnt how to summon or activate my quirk. But as I got older and started going through puberty, my quirk began activating by itself. It started with small objects levitating and then went on to the neighbours dog in our backyard with its legs and head separated from its body, and strewn over the fence.

It was then that I decided nobody could know. Nobody could know that my quirk was something so dangerous. I had gotten mum to agree not to tell anyone when I first told her. She was reluctant, as she wanted to find help quickly, but I was adamant.

My new fear is that someone will find out about my quirk. My new fear is that I will be taken from my family and tested on. My new fear is that I will no longer be seen as human.