The Boys

There was nothing special about that day, but when he looked back, Izuku would remember it clearly.

The day everything began to change.

It wasn't a quick change. It wasn't some form of quick strike and instantly, everything was different. It wasn't carried out with speed of a gunshot, but was instead, it was done slowly, one small piece at a time, vanishing and changing, and the one day, he realised that there was very little left.

Still, despite that, he knew exactly when it had started. Izuku would remember the date, even years later.

The year was 2215.

The month was April.

The date was the fifteenth.

And it was a Tuesday.

Kacchan's birthday was next week, and Izuku was excited about it. He was going to be four already and Uncle Masaru and Auntie Mitsuki had been busy planning an All Might themed birthday party for him, and he and all of their friends from class had been invited to it. Momma had helped him pick out Kacchan's birthday present, and they had gone out to the big shops at the weekend to buy it.

It was only April, but the day itself was sunny, more so than usual, and it was particularly warm, which was probably what helped it happen that day.

The day started the same as any other.

"Good morning Izuku".

"Hi Kacchan!"

"Don't call me that!"

He and Kacchan had said hello to each other at the school gates, before going inside with Koharu-sensei. They were learning more numbers today, which was fun. They sat in a circle together and practiced counting, as they played 'pass the ball'. When he'd started school, Momma had made him promise that he'd be careful when he had to move things, and Koharu-sensei said he wasn't allowed to throw it too hard.

He might hurt someone.

He didn't want to anyone.

All Might didn't hurt people, and he was the strongest person ever. If he had to be careful, then Izuku would be too.

When Lia passed them ball to him, and it was his turn to answer, he did, but instead of throwing it, he just handed the ball to Kacchan. They were stood next to each other in the circle, so all he had to do was turn to him and hold out his hand.

"Okay Katsuki, pass the ball to someone else".

Kacchan chose to give the ball to Serin, who was on the opposite side of the circle form them, throwing it as hard as he could, and is the ball left his hands, Izuku's eyes stung. His nose burned at the smell, and he clamped his hands over his ears, the noise piercing his skull, leaving the faintest ringing in its wake.

Blinking away his tears, he saw that others were looking the same way he was, crouched and hunched over, as they also tried to protect their hearing.

Across the room, Serin had been sick. The ball had hit him in the stomach badly, and now he was crying.

What happened, he wondered for a moment, before he turned to face Kacchan, who was still staring at his hands.

He'd thrown the ball, but as he let go, his hand had exploded.

And just like that, everything around them changed.

=== === === === ===

"Wow!"

"That's so cool!"

"So powerful!"

"That's such a cool Quirk!"

"It's the perfect Quirk for a Pro Hero!"

=== === === === ===

"-and then Kacchan threw the ball, but his hand went 'BOOM', and", Izuku cheerfully recounted his story to his mom, while she carefully checked his ears, "it was so bright and loud-"

"Yes, Sweetie, I know. Now hold still for a moment", she tilted his head, and checked inside his ear, but frowned at what she saw.

Nothing.

There was nothing wrong with her son.

That shouldn't have been possible.

Human beings had developed more robust bodies in the years since Quirks had become commonplace. The presence of even trace amounts of Quirk factors seemed to increase the body's durability, and that was without counting those who had actual musculoskeletal reinforcements as part of their Quirk.

It seemed as though young Katsuki's body was reinforced to help deal with his Explosion Quirk, with one noticeable improvement being that his eyes and ears had developed in a way that meant they were adapted to survive proximity with constant and repeated exposure to his explosions. He wouldn't have to worry about going blind or deaf simply from using of his Quirk.

When the hospital had been contacted to expect a mass influx of students, who had been in close proximity to an explosion, Inko had felt her heart leap into her throat. The full explanation hadn't done much to soothe her fears, nor the myriad of other worried parents that had convened at the hospital but being able to examine the children had started to put them all back at ease.

Doctor Tsubasa had personally seen to Katsuki and set about registering his Quirk, with Inko's knowledge coming of the regular updates Mitsuki was sending to her phone.

The hospital had sent a pair of plastic surgery residents down to examine the children's ears, helping to determine if anyone had any serious damage. There had been a bit of blood, a lot of ringing and plenty of dizziness, but so far, it seemed as though no one needed to be taken in and prepped for a myringoplasty.

Inko thanked the heavens for small mercies.

She and a few of the other nurses had helped the surgeons with the more pressing exams, but then had taken over for the obviously less serious cases, which thankfully included Izuku.

She'd taken over his exam herself, but she hadn't found anything wrong with him, which just didn't make any sense.

She'd seen the results of her son's incredible strength, and she knew enough about Quirks to know that it stood to reason that there would be some element of enhanced durability to go along with it, to stop big or heavy objects from hurting him, but still, this was something else.

The teachers had said that Izuku was stood next to Katsuki, (to neither her, nor the Bakugo's surprise), and by that, he should've had the worst of it: the loudest part of the bang, the harshest flash of the light, but apparently, Izuku was completely fine. His exam showed no sign of damage, his ears were fine, as were his eyes and he reported no problems with his hearing or his vision either.

Enhanced durability was one thing.

This was something else entirely.

=== === === === ===

"Nothing?"

She shook her head, "Nothing. Not even a bit of redness from inflammation".

"Pain?"

"No".

"Ringing?"

"No".

"Pus?"

"No".

"Blood?"

"No".

"Earache?"

"No".

She tapped her fingers on her porch railings, as she tried to remember symptoms, "Elevated temperature?"

Inko smiled, even as she shook her head, "As cool as ever".

"Just what kind of power does he have?"

"Some kind of overall body enhancement, I suppose", she leant over, resting her forearms on the railings, "but a lot of those get stronger as the users get older, but that's assuming his body works the same as a normal humans".

"Hmm… and he's already strong", Ima mused, before shrugging, "or at least, he's supposed to be. Not that I've ever seen".

"Honestly, if it wasn't for the one incident with the building block and that one time he lifted my entire sofa above his head, I wouldn't know he had it either".

"Age-related growth, I would assume".

"Probably", she sighed, "it's more common, but static would be easier to deal with".

"Trust me, children are never easy to deal with".

"Oh, believe me Mother, I know".

Stretched out in front of them, the two women watched on in silence as Izuku played with Sherubi, throwing his favourite ball about the garden and letting him fetch it, before turning it into a brief game of tug-of-war, only to start the entire process again.

"He wants to be a hero".

It was the first time she'd ever said the words out loud.

Izuku adored heroes, and he especially loved All Might. He had toys and posters galore, and he and little Katsuki were forever drawings pictures of them all. Even now, at least a half dozen of them were magnetically attached to her refrigerator, and she was quite certain that all of them featured the World's Symbol of Peace and Justice in some form of fashion.

Izuku and Katsuki both idolised the man, and Inko could see why. He was brave, courageous and forthright, and he gave off an air of victory, no matter what he was doing. He was a symbol of the best qualities that mankind had to offer, and had influenced children worldwide into doing their best, going beyond and being 'plus ultra!'.

And Izuku wanted that too.

He wanted to help save people with a fearless smile, and with his strength and apparent durability, Inko knew that he would be a good fit for the profession one day, and the more she realised that fact, the more it terrified her.

Because being a Pro Hero, especially one like All Might meant being exposed.

It meant people, everywhere, not just in Japan, but all around the world having their eyes on you.

And what if… what if someone realised what he was?

They'd come and they'd take her baby away from her.

And she'd be powerless to stop them.

No one, not even All Might himself, had the power to take on the entire world, and when that day came, and if Izuku tried to walk that path, Inko knew that it just might, then she knew she'd lose that fight.

She wouldn't stand a chance.

"Yes, you will", Ima told her, and she winced.

Apparently, she still needed to work on her mumbling habit.

Her mother chuckled, "I haven't heard you do that since you were what, seventeen, eighteen? Since before nursing school anyway. It must really be weighing on you".

"I just- what if they-"

"Let me stop you right there, Sweetie", she knocked their shoulders together, "don't start asking yourself what if when it comes to your children, or you'll never be calm again. Just deal with the facts of the matter. He wants to be a hero. It's dangerous, for more than just the usual reasons in his case. You don't want him to. He has a decade before he begins looking at schools, just let him be a boy, let him live in fantasyland and grow up a little more, before you start trying to turn him into an accountant, or maybe a doctor".

"How about a lawyer?" Inko teased.

"That would work too", Ima agreed, watching as Izuku threw the ball too far and it tumbled under her husband's old truck, "something nice and respectable, at least, with good money. You can get him a nice suit, two-piece, in black or light grey".

"Not blue?"

"Ugh, not with our hair colour".

Izuku scrambled to help Sherubi reach for the ball he'd thrown, but it was apparently too far under the truck for him to reach, and she nudged Inko's attention towards it.

"Hang on a moment, Sweetie. We'll help you get it".

Izuku turned to face them, "It's okay Momma. We got it".

Ima was just about to dispute that fact, not seeing the ball in his hand or Sherubi's mouth, when Izuku moved from his position lying down to crouching, and firmly gripped the front bumper.

For as long as she continued to live, Ima would never forget the sight of her three-year-old grandson lifting the front of her husband's old truck clearly above his head.

"Sherubi", Izuku said, without a hint of strain in his tone, "fetch".

The dog darted in, and after a moment, returned with her favourite blue ball in her mouth, and her tail wagging happily behind her. She dropped the ball, slick with saliva, at Izuku's feet, as he lowered the truck back down to the floor, letting it drop it the last few centimetres.

"Come on Sherubi. Fetch!"

He threw the ball again, and ran with the dog, chasing after it, and he probably needed supervision, but all Ima could focus on was her husband's old truck, which had stopped moving now, and was once again completely stationary.

"So… he's strong".

"Yeah".

"Overall body enhancement though, so he's durable too".

"Yeah".

"How about that".

"Yeah".

=== === === === ===

"Happy birthday Kacchan!"

A tired sigh, which Inko couldn't help but be amused by, escaped a pair of young lips, as, sharing her grin with Mitsuki over the top of their heads, the Bakugo's welcomed them for Little Katsuki's birthday party, "I told you not to call me that", the birthday boy then offered them a formal bow, which they returned, "please come in".

Izuku helped up the box he'd carried in, wrapped carefully in smiling All Might faces, "We brought you a present!"

Katsuki thanked them both for the present, offering them a formal bow, before offering them both a party hat. Inko politely declined, needing to leave shortly to begin her shift, but Izuku happily took one. The hats were All Might blue, with his red and white diamond symbol around the middle, and naturally, Inko couldn't help but think, were complete with two golden spikes of hair, sticking up from the front of the hat.

Inko left the boys to it for a moment, as Katsuki showed Izuku where he could put his jacket away and took the coffee Mitsuki was already handing her.

"How's he been? With his Quirk?"

The nurse in her was curious. She'd heard tales from nurses of children who panicked when given abilities that had the potential to frighten them, but she had a feeling that Katsuki would prove himself more resilient than most.

"You mean Mister Explosion down there?" She shrugged, even if there was a faint smile on her lips, "Loud, mostly. Well, louder than usual, at any rate. He tried using his Quirk for fun, but we ended that when he tried to make his own toast with it".

Inko grinned, "He didn't".

"Burnt breadcrumbs all over my kitchen", the woman shook her head, "what about you and little 'Zuku, did you enjoy your weekend trip to see your mother?"

"I did, yes, and Izuku's always happy to see Sherubi, if not Grandma herself".

"Well, that's nice. My parents are both gone, and Masaru's live too far away for anything other than a proper trip".

"I remember you saying they lived in Imabetsu, right?"

"Right up north, yeah", she sighed, taking a sip with her coffee, "but never mind that, how was your trip to Grandma's house?"

"Fine, like I said. He likes it up there, Grandma likes seeing him and he'll take any excuse to play with a dog".

Mitsuki smiled, "Apartment too small for a puppy?"

"Banned by the building", Inko told her, "and if we ever move, I just need to make sure that the next one is too, or I'll end up finding myself with a dozen strays living out of my bathtub".

Mitsuki snorted, "I can just imagine him looking up at you, those big expressive eyes while he cuddles them all".

She shook her head, "He'd never let me get rid of them".

"Inko and her hundred dalmatians".

"Izuku and his hundred dalmatians", she corrected, "Inko's not walking and feeding them".

"You don't want to play fetch all day long?" Mitsuki teased.

"Not a chance", she shook her head, before brightening up, "but that does remind me, how would you like to hear the latest tale in my story of the son with superstrength?"

Mitsuki's eyes lit up, "Newer than lifting up your table?"

"My sofa", she corrected.

"Right, right", Mitsuki waved it off, eager for the good gossip, "well come on, tell me already, what did he do now?"

"He played fetch with Sherubi, and after a while, they managed to get the ball to roll underneath by father's old truck".

"I already love where this is going".

"It was pretty far in there, so I told him to wait a minute and we'd help him get it", she shook her head, "all he does is turn back to look at me and go, 'it's okay, we got it', and then, casual as you like, grabs the truck by its front bumper and lifts the entire front half straight up, above his head".

"Ha!" Mitsuki erupted into giggles, "Course he did. Let me guess, they got the ball back and went back to playing, like nothing had happened".

She shrugged, "Yeah, but at least his Grandma finally got to see his Quirk in action".

=== === === === ===

Inko smiled as her son clambered into his safety seat, taking care to properly buckle himself in under her watchful eye, "Did you have a nice time at the party, Izuku?"

"Yeah", he sat back against his seat, and she dutifully handed over Mister Doggo, who Izuku immediately tucked into his side, and she couldn't help but notice his response was at odds with the upset expression on his face.

"Are you okay, Sweetie?"

"Yeah".

She reached behind her, the fingers of her left-hand toying with the hem of his trousers, "Did something happen? Would you like to talk about it?"

He sighed, "No, Momma".

She wiggled his foot, "Okay, shall we go then?"

"Yes, please".

=== === === === ===

"Good morning Kacchan!"

"Good morning, Ku".

Inko blinked, as there was a cackle of noise and light, and after a moment, she realised that it had been little Katsuki, using his Quirk in the palm of his hand.

"Stop that", his mother hissed, quickly running some of the wet wipes that her husbanded handed her, over his palms to remove any smoke residue. The smoke was a light whitish grey in colour, instead of a more worrying hue of dark grey and black, wafting up away from his skin, and while the nurse in Inko screamed out for her to pin his hands down and make sure he was safe, the annoyed expression that Mitsuki spouted made her think that the youngest Bakugo had spent the weekend testing out his new ability.

"Long weekend?"

Mitsuki glowered, "You don't know the half of it", she shuddered, "let's just say that burnt breadcrumbs are the least of our concerns".

"That bad?"

"He ruined my favourite tablecloth".

"I'm sorry".

"Masaru's mother gave it to us as an anniversary gift one year".

"Oh?"

"It had a print that was identical to the one we had at our wedding".

"Hmm".

"And now there are burnt handprints right in the middle of it".

She winced.

"So, we've decided to swap to paper ones".

"That sounds sensible".

Mitsuki sighed, pinching the bridge between her nose, while Masaru moved to keep a better eye on the boys, who were now standing with a group of other children.

"I just want to get through today without any issues", she rolled her shoulders, and Inko noted, not for the first time, just how tense she seemed, "he keeps trying to find excuses to get away with using his Quirk, and if he doesn't learn to knock it on the head now-"

"He might never", Inko finished for her, understanding her concerns, "makes me grateful that Izuku's strength seems to come and go. Hopefully, by the time he's old enough to control it properly, he'll be so used to not having it that he won't think to use it".

"If only we were all so lucky".

=== === === === ===

When he had accidentally thrown a block through the wall at the hospital, Momma had sat down with him, and made him promise to never ever use his strength against other people for fun. Only real Pro Heroes, like All Might, were allowed to use their powers, and then, only against villains, and if All Might wasn't allowed to use his powers against his friends, then he wasn't allowed to, either.

That made sense to him.

"I promise", he'd said, and he'd been very careful since. Just like she asked, he never threw things, or tried to pick up the big things. Koharu-sensei always told him he was doing a good job when he handed people things instead of throwing them, or placing them down gently, and Izuku knew that that was a good thing.

He didn't think Kacchan knew it though.

He kept clapping his hands together and making them go, 'boom', even though other people didn't like it.

Zia had big ears, like a bunny, and it was hurting her. She kept putting her hands over them when she heard the 'boom', but Kacchan just laughed.

"Heroes need to be tough Ku", Kacchan told him, and he nodded, because heroes did need to be tough, "if she wants to be a hero, then she needs to be tougher".

That made sense too, but, "What if she doesn't want to be a hero?"

Kacchan laughed, "Everyone wants to be a hero! Don't you?"

He did… but he didn't want to be mean to Zia either, or anyone else.

=== === === === ===

"Come on Ku, let's go play heroes - and I'm gonna be All Might!"

Karin hit the floor rolling, as Kacchan took the ball from her, and when she sat up, her glasses were wonky on her face, and she looked sad.

"You need to be faster", Kacchan told her, "heroes need to be fast".

=== === === === ===

Izuku ran back when he heard Jimu yelling.

They were playing heroes and villains, and it was Jimu's turn to play the hero, while the rest of them went and hid. They'd only been playing for a few minutes when Izuku heard him yelling.

He'd ran back over to make sure that he was okay, only to find him on the floor, while Kacchan stood over him.

"You're cheating!"

Kacchan scoffed, "What kind of hero can't beat the villains".

"I found you - you're out!"

"You didn't beat me though".

"I found you!"

"It doesn't matter if I won though".

"Kacchan", he said, not wanting anyone to fight, "if Jimu found you, you're out".

He scowled, "Whatever. I want to play something else".

=== === === === ===

"Heroes are always strong, so they always win", Kacchan told him, as Li ran away, "and I'm strong, so I always win".

"You're being mean".

Kacchan stamped his feet, "That kid had a weak Quirk, and he was a wimp, and a crybaby, so I made sure he knew his place!"

Izuku stood up and walked away, as he started looking for his momma.

"Where are you going?"

"I don't want to play anymore. I'm going home".

=== === === === ===

"Well tell the extra to get out of my way!"

"Stop it! You're being mean!"

"I'm being a hero! What are you doing?"

"I don't want to play with you anymore".

=== === === === ===

"Kacchan! Stop it!"

The boy in question just scoffed in response, "Get out of the way Ku".

"You're being mean!"

=== === === === ===

Their moms had taken them to the park, while Uncle Masaru was busy editing his new photographs. Izuku was sitting in the sandbox, when he looked up and saw Bolin running away, because his brother Mako was being picked on by three other boys.

Izuku recognised all three of them from his class, but it was his best friend that stood out from the rest of them. He looked around for his Momma or Aunt Mitsuki, but he couldn't see them anywhere.

And Mako was crying.

"Say sorry!" Kacchan yelled, as he pushed Mako back over, his hands lighting up with the power of his Quirk, as he grabbed at Mako's arms.

Enough was enough.

"That's enough!"

He didn't like shouting, but this time, he needed to. The four other boys turned to look at him as he stomped over and did his best not to trip over his own feet.

"Ku", Kacchan rolled his eyes, "what are you doing?"

"I'm here to help".

"Ha", he turned back to look at Mako, "see, now you have to say sorry".

"I didn't come to help you", he said, looking past him towards Mako, who was clutching his arm, "are you okay?"

Mako nodded slowly, but that was enough for Kacchan, who stepped between them, "Why are you helping him? he deserves it", the boy huffed, "and someone needs to teach him to get off the swings when it's my turn".

"You're acting like a bully, Kacchan, and you need to stop".

"I'm not acting like a bully!"

"Yes, you are", he pointed at Mako, "he's already crying, and I won't let you hurt him anymore".

"You won't let me? Hah!" Kacchan laughed at him, while their other friends nodded along, "You can't stop me. See!"

Kacchan stepped forwards, his hands bright and shining, cackling with his Quirk, as he made to grab Izuku's jacket. Behind him, Tsubasa flapped his big red wings, and Nobunga made his fingers grow as long as his forearms, bending them until they looked like claws.

He ignored the other two, but Kacchan wouldn't let him ignore him. He ran up to him, grabbing him by his jacket, and set off his Quirk.

"Ah!"

It hurt.

His Quirk, Explosion, detonated against his skin. It was hot and felt like he was being pinched a hundred times, at the same time.

"Not so tough now, are ya", Kacchan laughed, as the smoke in front of him cleared, revealing the ruined shirt he was now wearing, and the marks on his favourite jacket. Mister Doggo tumbled out, no longer tucked away in his inner pocket, but before he could collect him, Kacchan snapped him up.

"Pff", Kacchan held him up by his neck, "you're too old for toys", he shrugged, "you should get rid of him".

Then, with Mister Doggo still secure in his grip, Bakugo let loose his Quirk.

Grandma Ima had bought him Mister Doggo, when she told him that she couldn't let him take Sherubi home with him, because he wasn't allowed in the big cities. She'd made him promise to look after Mister Doggo instead, and he had. He'd promised her, and then he'd looked after Mister Doggo; he cleaned him, took him everywhere they went together as a walk and played with him all of the time.

And now?

He sniffed, trying to stop himself from crying like a baby and stood up, ignoring Mako as he ran away to find his brother and father, and all he felt was angry.

He took Mister Doggo from Bakugo's hand.

He reached out, grabbing his wrist and squeezing tightly, until Bakugo let go of Mister Doggo with a gasp. Snatching him from the air, he tucked him safely away inside his jacket, before letting go of his arm to zip himself up properly.

It should've stopped there.

Izuku should've stopped there.

But he was so angry.

His friend was being mean for no reason, and now? Now he had hurt Mister Doggo too.

He waited for Bakugo to stand back up, and when he did, he was angry too.

"Ku", he managed to ground out, "you're fucking DEAD!"

He lashed out, his hand lighting up with am explosive punch, but Izuku decided no more, and as Bakugo stepped forwards, he shoved him in the chest with all of the strength he had and sent him flying backwards.

He breathed out, heavily, his anger dissipating with a sense of satisfaction, as Kacchan flew through the air.

And kept flying.

He hadn't meant to push him that far.

He just kept going.

He went past the sandbox, and the swings, and even the slide. There was a big tree in the park, (there were lots of trees, actually), but this was one of the biggest, with bright pink petals at the top.

And then he slammed into it.

The trunk splintered and shattered, as pink petals rained down around him. The tree creaked, squeaked and groaned, before it gave way to gravity and tipped over.

And then the yelling started.

"What the hell was that?!"

"Oh my god!"

"The tree! The tree!"

"Quick! Get the kids!"

"SOMEONE'S BEEN HURT! CALL ONE-ONE-NINE!"

"Oh my god… that's blood… we need an ambulance!"

"Izuku?!"

"Katsuki?! That's my son! MOVE! KATSUKI! KATSUKI!"

=== === === === ===

Author's Notes:

This chapter was a slog to get through. Truthfully, I almost decided to delete it, and simply change it out for summaries in later chapters, but I didn't want to waste the effort I had already put into it, so here you go.

The title for this chapter refers to Izuku and Bakugo, but it comes from the comic book and subsequent TV series of the same name. The Boys also features a Superman-like character, private and government sponsored heroes and it also addresses the inherent pros and cons that would come with such a set-up.

Still, I felt it was important to see Kacchan get his Quirk, as many of you were no doubt expecting when the chapter title was revealed.

Elsewhere, Izuku lifts a truck above his head, as Ima certainly wasn't expecting.

As in canon, Bakugo's Quirk goes to his head for not only being strong, but in this universe, for also being more easily controlled and flashy than Izuku's. Sadly, for him, he also used it to poke the angry Kryptonian.

One should never poke the angry Kryptonian.

Especially if you're the thing that angered him.

Also, if you're ever in Japan and find yourself in need of an ambulance, the number to call is 119. I believe you can actually call any emergency number and be put through to the emergency services, but 119 is the 'local' number.

And with that, we draw ever closer to the end of Part One, with just a chapter or two to go until we reach the U.A. part of the timeline.