hero's shadow // mha

59) eight golden urns

Izuku has mastered the art of dying in his mind.

If he were to count off the amount of times he's kicked the bucket during his dreams, he'd need more hands. Some of the ways he dies are, admittedly, kind of funny. Pathetic, though.

Sometimes he gets stuck in what feels like black quicksand, and he just slowly suffocates down there beneath the floor. Sometimes lightning strikes and kills him immediately! Shit, just last night he had an anvil drop on him from above.

How the hell an anvil made it into the void plane is beyond him, but he isn't about to go analyzing the meanings behind how he dies. He isn't a sleep or dream expert. Besides, he doesn't actually think these things matter.

It's just a skill issue, to be quite honest.

The thing is, he's been trying every single time he so much as closes his eyes to go inside this realm and make it through the pool of stars. He needs to see the other side. He craves it. He can't live without knowing what's beyond his own understanding.

Each time he tries, though, he either doesn't make it to the pool at all, or he drowns when he gets there.

While some of his deaths are, as he said, funny, a lot of them... aren't.

Sometimes the creatures catch him. And most aren't forgiving.

He dies by fire most nights. There's a new monster in the realm. It has big, flaming red wings that burn up Izuku's hair if he gets even ten feet from it. That's the one who manages to get him most of the time.

The others, though, are just as bad. They grab him and make sure he wakes up in a cold sweat after being killed using one of their own methods. Sometimes he's thrown straight through the ground and back into reality.

Other times he's not so lucky. Some of the more aggressive ones simply tear him apart whilst easily keeping back the few creatures that attempt to defend Izuku.

He hates those nights the most, because he can feel it all.

Everything changes when he manages to get to the pool again after a few days of straight failure. He doesn't hesitate before diving in, knowing that if he does so this time, one of the creatures will grab him and drag him away.

The stars set into his skin as he swims. They burn like liquid nitrogen, and it makes him weirdly cold all over. He's holding his breath and trying not to waste a second of his time. He doesn't feel like drowning again.

The deeper he goes, the harder it is to keep going. He can't see, as it's darker than night, so he's basing his direction on feeling alone. The pressure makes his ears pop painfully, but he spurs on. The heavy wings on his back aren't helping one bit, either.

Come on, One for All.

The red lightning sparks to life. It wreaths around Izuku, circling him and illuminating his surroundings. This way, he can see the rainbow koi fish swimming and dancing around. They're lively, and it looks like they're doing some kind of dance. They're so fast, too. Abnormally so.

They spin around Izuku, crowding around his light, and the boy can't help but smile. He lets his palm glide over their scales as he moves. They really are beautiful.

One for All lights his path, but it doesn't seem to make anything easier. His vision start to darken, and his lungs are about to burst.

Just a little more. He swears it! He can feel it. There's something there, and he doesn't want to miss it. He can't. This is the closest he's ever gotten before.

Something grabs his ankle, and he kicks it off with his other foot. Not like this, he thinks. Give me a damn break!

As his movements start to slow, he wonders if maybe there really is nothing on the other side of the pool. Maybe it's just an infinite sea of black. He could just be killing himself over and over for zero gain. It wouldn't be the first time.