Viridian

Chapter 11: On the Edge of Destruction

A/N: Wow! I can't believe how amazing you all are! I've written and finished this chapter in one day for you all! *Getting ready to head out the door to work*

I finally tried my hand at a Villain Deku Cosplay, and I rather like it. *Grins* Maybe I'll even write something with that eventually. Check out the pictures on Instagram! ;)

Please stay safe with Corona!! I cannot stress this enough, because I care about you!

I can't really think of anything else to put right now, so read on, my friends! And please enjoy. ^^
OH! And any fanart you may have can be sent in to aizawa@email.com

A big thanks to BB_Berry for this awesome Viridian Fanart! https://imgur.com/a/syxYsTi

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"Zuku..." Izuku looked over to Shouta. He was filthy, covered in dirt and grime and blood, but Izuku wasn't much better either. It'd been two months since Hizashi's death, and the two were slowly starting to get back on their feet. It was hard, incredibly so, for the two pessimists to pull themselves together.

At one point, soon after the incident, Shouta had suggested ending it all. And Izuku had nearly agreed. But he'd never been the kind of person to just give up. Besides—he had a promise to keep, even if Shouta hated him for what he did.

"Shou. We have to. We were nearly found the other day, and I don't want to just sit around anxiously waiting for them to close in on us." Izuku argued as he cleaned his sword. It would never be the same as it was, but it had somehow survived the lightning strike. The metal was astonishingly not warped, as he'd expected (maybe because the charge went through the Nomu?), so the blade was still usable. Though it had a pretty cool pattern now if you held it against the light just right. "I promised him I'd look after you." Yes, he was being an ass and pulling the Zashi card. Shouta flinched and sent him a glare.

"That's not fair."

"Life's not fucking fair." He bit back. Shou didn't have to like him—he just needed to stay alive.

They glared at one another for a long moment before Shouta finally sighed. "Fine. We'll find another location to set up base." He glanced around, despairingly.

Izuku knew why he was so hesitant to leave... this place held so many memories. Of Hizashi... of Nemuri... Dabi and Higari... Tamaki... of everyone they'd loved and lost in this hell. And now, only the two of them were left. It was a sobering thought.

"Thank you, Shou." Izuku gave him a hug, and the man reciprocated. It'd been hard the last two months. They'd developed a sort of love-hate relationship. Shouta was still angry with Izuku for leaving Hizashi, and Izuku wouldn't blame him if he never forgave him—Izuku wasn't sure he'd ever forgive himself, honestly.

But at the same time, they were all they had left, and Shouta still thought of Izuku as a baby brother. It was mutual. Though lately, with Shouta's near crippling depression (some days, he couldn't even get the man out of his cot), Izuku felt more like the older brother. It was fucking hard to take care of someone else.

But things had gotten dangerous again. They'd stayed in this location for nearly three years, now. They'd gotten complacent, and it would cost them dearly unless they abandoned this faux safety now. He resolutely ignored the traitorous part of his mind that whispered it already had cost them dearly.

There was no truly safe place in this world anymore. Izuku learned that years ago.

They packed what they needed in their backpacks, and left in the early hours of the morning. Izuku didn't know how long they traveled for, but he'd guesstimate several months. They camped without fire, huddling together for warmth as they tried to shield each other from the biting cold. It must've been winter, or something—early winter, by the feel of it. No snow yet, but it seemed to get colder and colder each night.