Izuku scaled the wall of the alley, ignoring the growing number of scrapes on his hands as he left yet another criminal zip tied to a dumpster for the police to find. He'd lost track of how many criminals he'd apprehended so far that night. It had to have been more than five, but honestly he didn't want to keep track. He just figured that it was easier to throw himself into fights than it was to face the battle that was raging in his head right now. The little imaginary Eraserhead on his shoulder was telling him to be logical. Yes, he'd messed up, but he'd saved more people than he'd allowed to die. Without him, the Asui kids might've become orphans, so he had to be doing at least some good, right? On his other shoulder, however, a little imaginary Kacchan was yelling at him that vigilantism was just one more thing he couldn't do right.

(Bakugo crossed his arms, scowling at the screen)

It was just easier to ignore both of them.

Thankfully his online order for a new hoodie had come in sooner than he had expected, so even if he still had to use the wrong color of marble, he could pretend that things were back to normal. Kind of.

Aoyama: He must get the correct colors soon.

Monoma: Not important Aoyama.

"Busy night, huh?"

Izuku jumped as he heard a voice speak up behind him, and almost relaxed when he realized that it was just Eraserhead, but then tensed as he remembered what had happened last time they ran into each other. So much for pretending things were normal.

"Eraserhead..." Izuku forced out an awkward chuckle, "Fancy seeing you here...?"

Aizawa: Because I'm normally asleep at this time.

Eraser rolled his eyes, "Because I'm obviously normally asleep at this time of night, problem child."

He sat down on the edge of the roof and glanced back at Izuku in a silent invitation to sit down next to him, but Izuku hesitated. He wasn't sure what Eraserhead had to say to him, but after everything, it couldn't be good. He'd told Izuku to stay out of the trigger investigation. Izuku hadn't. Someone had died.

Inko: Not your fault Izuku...

Finally Izuku decided that he deserved whatever lecture was coming his way, so it'd be less painful to just sit through it and get it over with right? They sat in semi-awkard silence for another long moment before Eraserhead spoke up, "We can't keep doing this kid."

"... I know." Izuku wrapped his arms around himself. "I need to leave the investigating to you. I can't just go off on my own and do things without telling the heroes."

All Might: You really can't...

"Well, yeah, that too, but that's not what I'm talking about." He placed a firm hand on Izuku's shoulder and looked him in the eye, "You can't be a vigilante forever, Viridian. You know that, right? It's not a good long term plan."

Izuku froze, "I, uh, guess I hadn't gotten that far? I never really intended it to be..."

Hound Dog: He thought he'd be dead by now...

"Be long term. I know." Eraserhead nodded. "You weren't planning on living this long, were you?"

Izuku shook his head and shrunk in on himself a little more. He supposed it was just one more thing to add to the long list of things he'd failed at. Leave it up to a deku like him to not even be able to die right.

Mitsuki: Izuku...

Eraserhead sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Kid... you know that's not a bad thing, right?"

Izuku shrugged, but didn't answer. Sure, he'd saved some people, but he'd also hurt some people. At this point, he honestly didn't know whether the world would have been a better place these past few months if he'd just taken a swan dive live Kacchan told him to do in the first place.

Uraraka: It wouldn't have...

"You're using vigilantism as a crutch, problem child." Eraser said finally. "It helped you out when you were in a bad place, but now? You need therapy, kid. Actual therapy. Not just beating up villains until your brain stops screaming that you're a terrible human being and should have done better."

That... was a little too accurate to be comfortable. "How...?"

"How did I know?" Eraser scoffed. "You're forgetting I've lost people too. That friend I told you about? The one who was killed during a work study? I was there when he died."

Jirou: Oh sensei...

Tsu(sadly): Ribbit...

Kirishima: Is this why he didn't want us to go on our work study internships?

Midnight: Yes...

"Oh..." Izuku didn't know how to respond. "I... I didn't know that."

Eraserhead shrugged, "I never told you. I don't talk about it a lot, for obvious reasons, but the fact is that Shirakumo and I went to fight a villain we were woefully unprepared for and he paid the price. I didn't even know he was gone until the fight was already over. I can't tell you how many times I've wondered if he would have survived if I'd just been a little better of a hero."

Mic: Shou...

Aizawa: I know, I know, don't blame myself.

"How did you make those thoughts go away?" Izuku whispered.

Eraser raised an eyebrow, "How do you think I knew you'd be out here? I threw myself into training. I kept fighting until I just couldn't think anymore. That's how I know it doesn't help."

Midnight: And cut yourself off from us...

"But...!" Izuku tried to interrupt, but Eraserhead stopped him with a look.

"I bet you've been cutting yourself off from that friend you made, haven't you?" He asked.

Kaminari: Wait Midoriya...

Izuku shut his mouth and stared at the scrapes on his hands. Denki had been texting him all day, asking him if he'd seen the news, but how was he supposed to face someone after he'd basically killed their crush? Even just talking about it made Izuku feel a phantom vibration in his pocket and he froze, "That's... that's different."

"Oh really? Because it's exactly what I did." Eraser said. "Your friends are there for a reason, problem child. You're supposed to be helping each other through stuff like this. What you're doing really isn't healthy, kid."

Toga(sighing): Nothing he's doing is healthy.

"But what am I supposed to do?!" Izuku hated how broken he sounded and he wiped furiously at his eyes in an attempt to stop the tears. "Vigilantism is the only thing I've ever been even slightly good at! If I can't be a vigilante, then what am I even supposed to be?"

"You can be a hero."

Izuku did a double take. He was so shocked that he even stopped crying. Eraserhead said it like it was the simplest thing in the world. A logical conclusion, not something that could turn Izuku's entire worldview on its head in less than a sentence.

Iida: Well you can be a hero, Midoriya. You can.

"Don't..." Izuku turned away. "Don't tell me that."

No one had ever told him that. Not Kacchan. Not Mom. Not even All Might. Izuku wasn't sure he could handle hearing it from Eraserhead.

Compress: Oh this poor child...

"Why not, problem child?" Eraser asked. "It's true. You've got potential and experience."

"Wouldn't the commission have a problem with that?" Izuku deflected. "I'm sure they don't want people like me getting hero's licences."

Hawks: ...He's not wrong unfortunately.

"You'd be surprised." Eraserhead said. "There's actually an entire program designed to help people like you."

"Who, suicidal teens?" Izuku joked. Maybe if he could just get off this topic, he could forget that Eraserhead wouldn't even be bringing this up if he knew Izuku was quirkless. "I think I heard about that in an assembly one time..."

(a few people awkwardly chuckled but the mood didn't change)

"Don't try to change the subject, kid." Eraserhead glared at him. "Vigilantes. Obviously, the commission doesn't want a lot of you running around without licenses, so they created a rehabilitation program that would basically act as a sort of parole after you're taken into custody. As long as you meet the requirements..."

"Requirements that I don't meet." Izuku cut him off. "I'm not even a real vigilante."

Endeavor: Loopholes.

It didn't even matter what the requirements were. Due to him not technically being a vigilante, he didn't qualify. He was completely certain that the hero commission would never approve a quirkless kid to take part in a program like what Eraser was describing, not that Izuku deserved to be able to take part in it anyway.

Tsukauchi: You do deserve it but...

Mirko(growling): The Commission won't approve.

Dabi: Oh can't society be less quirkist for two seconds?

"And why not?" Eraserhead pushed. "Just because you've made some mistakes? Just because there were some people you failed to save? That doesn't make you any less of a real vigilante, problem child, and it won't make you any less of a hero either."

Mt. Lady(groaning): He doesn't get it...

"That's not..." Izuku groaned and aggressively stamped down on the tiny spark of hope that Eraser's words were trying to light in his heart. "People like me can't be heroes, Eraserhead. It took me a long time to come to terms with that and this whole conversation isn't helping!"

Inko: Izuku... you can be a hero... really... you already are...

"Other vigilantes have done it." Eraser argued. "You met the Crawler, right? He's one of Ingenium's sidekicks now, but that wasn't always the case. He used to be a vigilante, just like you, so if he can do it..."

"No." Izuku said firmly. He didn't know how he hadn't made that connection after meeting the Crawler, but it didn't matter because even if Eraserhead thought they were the same, they weren't. The Crawler had a quirk. A useful quirk that was perfect for hero work, but Izuku? He was nothing more than a quirkless kid desperately pretending that he had a place in the world. "I'm not going to be a hero Eraserhead."

Hagakure: Viridian!

"And I'm sorry, but I'm not giving you that choice."

Izuku's head whipped up to look at Eraserhead, who had activated his quirk, "I want you to choose to take place in the program, Viridian, but the fact is that I've let this go along for long enough. You need help. Help that vigilantism can't give you and I'm sorry, kid, but both as a hero and as someone who cares about you, I can't let you keep destroying yourself like this. I have to do what's best for you, even if it hurts both of us. So, problem child, you can either agree to participate in the program of your own free will or I can take you in and have a judge mandate your participation. What's it gonna be?"

Midnight: Shouta...?

"I..." Izuku froze and looked at Eraserhead, who looked completely serious. That must be why he had activated his quirk, to keep Izuku from fighting back, which would have probably worked if Izuku had a quirk to fight with. He was actually planning on arresting him! "You... you can't do that!"

"Unfortunately, I can." Eraser said. "Well, I can't actually force you to be a hero, but if you get arrested, it'll be a choice between that and juvie, with the program being the logical choice. Please, kid. I don't want to arrest you. Just... let me help you."

Kurogiri: But once they find out he's quirkless...

Izuku stared at him in shock. For half a second, he actually considered just giving in and just going with Eraser but then his expression hardened and he shifted slightly. There was no way that a quirkless kid could be a hero. If he let Eraserhead arrest him now, the offer for the rehabilitation program would be taken off the table as soon as they looked at his ID. Sure, the vigilantism charges would also go away, but they'd tell his mom and she'd force him to stop and he couldn't let that happen.

"I'm sorry, Eraserhead." Izuku smiled at him sadly. "But I can't be a hero."

Izuku jumped.

(everyone froze before remembering he knew parkour and sighing in relief a little)

Shouta saw the kid's decision in his eyes moments before he jumped and he shot his capture weapon toward him, only for the kid to drop off the roof and onto the nearest fire escape. He swore under his breath and jumped after the kid to give chase.

He'd known there was a possibility would try to run when he'd decided to give him that ultimatum, but he'd talked it over with Tsukauchi and some of the other heroes that worked with Viridian the most and they had all agreed that it was the right decision. The kid had proved time and time again that he was capable of being a hero and Tsukauchi had assured them that there was no way that the hero commission would reject his application for the program, especially with all the positive media attention that Viridian had been getting. It was in the commission's best interest to get him off the streets and legalized as soon as they could.

Mirio: Except they'll change their minds as soon as they find out about his quirk situation.

But, of course, all that depended on the kid. Shouta didn't understand why Viridian wouldn't let them help him! He was already saving so many people, and becoming a hero was the next logical step. It would give him more resources, more gear, and more connections to be able to save even more people. He hadn't wanted to break the kid's trust like this. He'd been actively avoiding it, but like he'd told the kid, this had gone on long enough.

If nothing changed, Viridian wouldn't ever get better.

Bondo: I'm starting to wonder if he ever will though...

Setsuna: Don't say that!

Tsunotori: He will get better! He will!

Which was why he was willing to chase after the kid and try to capture him. Try being the operative word, apparently. He underestimated how much Viridian had improved over the past few months. He couldn't help but think of how easily he would have been able to wrap the kid in his capture weapon when he was just starting out, but now he was giving him a run for his money. The kid had always been fast, of course. There was a reason that had been his original MO, after all. But now that he had months of experience with parkour and stealth under his belt, Shouta would have been almost proud of how hard it was to keep up with him if he wasn't so annoyed. Why wouldn't the kid just let them help him?!

Aizawa(sighing): Because he's right about one thing. The Commission won't let a quirkless vigilante become a hero.

The kid dropped off another rooftop and Shouta skidded to a stop as he tried to figure out which way to go. He heard the clink of a marble hitting something and couldn't help smiling. Viridian was still a kid, wasn't he? He was probably trying to use the old trick of creating a diversion in the opposite direction that he planned to go. Shouta shook his head and headed in the opposite direction to the noise.

Midoriya: Um... about that...

It was only a matter of time before he tracked the kid down.

Izuku held his breath as Eraserhead took the bait, then slowly uncrouched from his hiding place behind a dumpster and ran in the same direction that he'd shot the marble, being sure to keep to the shadows as he made his way home. It wouldn't take long for Eraserhead to figure out he'd tricked him, so Izuku didn't waste any time taking off his hoodie, tying it around his waist to hide his weapons and switching streets, heading toward the nearest train station, wiping away the tears that were starting to flow again despite his best efforts.

(everyone stared before Midnight started laughing)

Midnight: Shou he tricked you!

Mic: He actually outsmarted you!

Aizawa: Yes I can see that.

This was going to make things a little more difficult.

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