Archeologist Deku

Reflection

Izuku breathed, content. He was snug, smothered by quilts... Quilts? Opening his eyes, his vision was blurred by fatigue, but he could see that he was in a light colored room, mostly beige in color. Blinking sleep away, he found that he was, in fact, in a hospital room. Pushing the quilts down a bit, he found he was out of the LEAF suit, and panicked. I can't let anyone else use that suit. They'd misuse it!

However, his fear was abated when he found the suit neatly organized on a nearby table. Whew... At least it's in line of sight.

His thoughts were interrupted by a woman's voice. "Oh, you're awake!"
Whipping his head around, he realized that half his head was covered by bandages. "O-oh... h-hi..." God, this is embarrassing... I haven't spoken to people in a while...

"Don't be nervous... You're safe here."
Careful to not butcher English, he asked: "Where... where is here?"
"You are at Estes Park Hospital."
"How... did I get here?"
"You made your mother very worried. She contacted Denver police, and they did a joint manhunt with heroes for you in the Rockies... apparently, Stars & Stripes found you."
"Really?!" His eyes shined at the fact that America's number one hero saved him.

"She has come in every day since you arrived, just to make sure you were alright. She'll arrive shortly."

"Thank y..." His gesture of thanks to the nurse was interrupted by his stomach making the largest growl he'd ever heard, almost on par with the Alpha Wendigo. His face flushed red with embarrassment, and he buried his face in his hands.

She laughed gently, amused by his antics. "I will prepare something for you to eat."

His voice was muffled, "T-thanks..."

The nurse left out the only door, leaving him to his thoughts. I'm actually ok... I hope mom is alright... I haven't been able to call her for how long... A single tear ran down his left cheek. Wiping it away, he thought about the other realities where his mother lost her son. My original mom will never know... and the second one won't either...

"Hey kid, how are you doing?"
Looking up, his mood immediately brightened when he saw who it was. Due to being a massive hero fan, he recognized the star spangled one piece that adorned America's number one hero. "You're Stars & Stripes!"

She laughed, "Indeed I am! Still, what matters right now is you. How are you?"

"I'm alright..."
She sat in the chair next to his bed. "It sounds like you've been through a lot."
Izuku looked away from her, "I don't think you'd believe me if I told you a quarter of what I saw there."
Her smile was reassuring, "I don't doubt it! You were wearing some kind of steampunk suit after blowing up a building! There's got to be a story behind that."
"I want to tell... but... I'm an archeologist. I have to tell everyone, publish my findings!"
She laughed, "An archeologist? With that kind of action? This is like an old fashioned movie!"
"I... well..." his voice trailed off as his doubts surfaced.
The heroine looked him in the eye, "I'll listen to anything you want to tell me."

He sighed, "Do you think a quirkless kid like me could have been a hero, if he tried?"

What surprised him was her quick and decisive answer: "Yes."

Blinking, the greenette looked the blue eyed blond in the eye: "Really?"
"Yes. It would take dedication and training, but it's possible. You would need gear, an unbreakable will, and a heart of gold... but yes."

"Well... that's not what I've been told all my life. I was useless, the Deku, the one who couldn't do anything." He trembled slightly, but still trusted Stars & Stripes. She was the hero he respected most now. "Even my mother didn't believe in me... but I never gave up... not even after all the beatings, nor the quirk abuse... nor even the suicide baits..." She gasped, and hugged him, putting him at ease with her embrace.

"I never gave up... and then I was attacked by a villain. One made of sludge. It nearly suffocated me, sliding down my throat to use me like a puppet." He stopped, his breathing ragged. "And then he saved me. Allmight. He signed my book, slapped me awake..."

Stars laughed, "he was never good with rescue protocol... sorry..."
"No need..." He swallowed his nervousness, remembering who he was talking to. "Then I asked him the same question I asked you."

Her eyes widened as she knew what would happen next.

"He said no... but softened the blow by saying to try for something else. And so I did after watching an old movie. I... did so much... I discovered that valley. The Sussurians, the Military presence... Virginia King... Andrew Fisher..." He glanced over to the suit, "Edwin Hall..." Then looked back at her, "I found what I was looking for. The legends were real... but I made a mistake. I stepped forward too quickly, without watching for risk. I took the Lifeseed out from the reactor without wondering why it was there. The whole Indiana Jones scene with the idol. I thought I was clever... but no, it was there to keep the balance. The facility I destroyed... it took energy from the valley. You may have seen the strange orbs back there..."
"I do remember that..." She remembered as he told her, "What about them?"
"Astra, what I escaped from... what I destroyed, harvested the orbs. It sent them to the Soma reactor, amplifying the energy... then sent the energy back to Astra for production... it was a weapons factory."
"Oh? Still functional?"
"Yes..." He paused, "I disrupted the balance. It... that energy is found within all living things. So when it didn't get enough, Astra started to take from the valley itself. If I didn't destroy it... it could've stripped the world of life."

Her eyes widened. "Really?! That's..."
He tried to downplay the current situation, telling her the truth. "No longer a threat, thankfully... but... I shudder to imagine what would've happened if I didn't do anything."

She looked over at him. Concerned, she asked, "Why tell me, kid?"
"I... You're the first person I can trust... ever since I was 4... my mom acts like I'm made of glass... but you believe in me. Nobody else does."

She was incredibly touched by that admission. Quirkless have such harsh lives these days... Toshinori is NOT helping. She put a hand on his shoulder, and smiled. It was no longer a harsh reminder of her mentor, now it was warm. Gentle. Heroic. And not a lie. "You were a hero, kid."
He looked up to her as she continued. "You did the impossible, going beyond Plus Ultra, and saved the world. How many heroes can say that?"

He tried to despute this, weakly, "I... I nearly killed it! People will call me crazy..."
"Actually, I may have an idea to fix that... but first, rest. I'll be back tomorrow with a surprise." She stood up. "The staff isn't too bad, right?"
"N-no..."
She ruffled his hair slightly, the greenette flinching from it slightly before accepting the gesture. "Good. I just have some things to do, but I'll be back again tomorrow."

Stars & Stripes left just as the nurse brought in a tray of food. Izuku shuddered, knowing that hospital food was barely digestible at the best of times, but he still tucked into it. After all, he was still hungry, having not eaten for the entirety of his time in the valley.