"I have to be able to say that I am still here," All Might stammered as he forced himself forward, one hand clutching his gut as he tried to walk out of the hospital.
Every step sent a jolt of pain through his body, his breath uneven, shallow. The fluorescent lights overhead blurred as sweat beaded on his brow, yet his back remained stubbornly straight. Even now, he refused to bend.
Sir Night Eye stood frozen behind him, eyes wide with terror as he watched the man he revered destroy himself one step at a time.
"PLEASE STOP IF YOU CONTINUE LIKE THIS YOU WILL FACE OFF AGAINST A VILLAIN AND DIE AND UNSPEAKABLY GRUESOME DEATH!" Sir Night Eye begged, his voice cracking with desperation.
All Might did not turn around.
He did not slow.
The warning fell on deaf ears, swallowed by the steady echo of retreating footsteps down the hallway. The doors slid shut behind him with a hollow hiss, leaving only silence in their wake.
Nighteye's hands trembled at his sides.
For a long moment, he stared at the closed doors, his future, his vision, burning vividly behind his eyes. No matter how many times he saw it, no matter how clearly fate screamed at him, All Might would not listen.
"...Why," Nighteye whispered to the empty corridor.
His shoulders sagged, the weight of inevitability pressing down on him. Turning away, Sir Nighteye walked out of the hospital, his steps slow and heavy, heart filled not with anger—but with despair.
He had warned him.
And that made it hurt all the more.
...
Reinhard saw All Might in the hallway before he heard him.
The sound came first. Uneven footsteps. A strained breath that did not belong to someone who should be walking at all.
All Might was moving toward the exit.
His hand was pressed hard against his side, fingers digging into the fabric of his shirt as if he could hold himself together by force alone. The bandages beneath were already stained through. His steps were slow, deliberate, every one taken with visible effort.
Reinhard's chest tightened.
He had been there.
He had felt the shockwave of the blow. He had moved too late. For all his strength, for all his so called divine protection, he had still watched All Might fall.
"All Might," Reinhard said.
The hero stopped.
When he turned, relief flickered across his face, quickly replaced by concern. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again as Reinhard rushed forward.
"I am sorry," Reinhard said, bowing his head. His voice shook despite his effort to steady it. "I was there. I should have protected you. I could not."
The hallway seemed too quiet.
All Might stared at him for a moment, then exhaled slowly. Instead of answering, he stepped forward and pulled Reinhard into a hug.
It was not gentle at first. It was firm, grounding, as if All Might was afraid Reinhard might break if he did not hold on tightly enough.
Reinhard froze, then his hands clenched into All Might's shirt.
"It's okay," All Might said.
Reinhard's breath hitched.
"I knew what I was getting into," All Might continued, voice low but steady. "When I chose to be the Symbol of Peace, I accepted that this would happen someday. I accepted the pain. I accepted the risk."
Reinhard shook his head slightly, unable to look up. "But I was there."
All Might's grip tightened.
"It's okay, son."
The word struck deeper than anything else.
Reinhard pressed his face against All Might's chest, shoulders trembling as he fought to keep his composure. He did not cry, not fully, but the sound that escaped him was close enough. All Might rested his chin against the top of Reinhard's head, standing there in the hallway while nurses and doctors quietly pretended not to see.
...
Outside, Sir Night Eye sat on a bench near the hospital entrance.
He was hunched forward, elbows braced on his knees, hands clasped so tightly his fingers had gone numb. His glasses reflected the pavement, the world blurred and distorted.
The vision replayed again.
All Might walking forward. The moment of impact. The end.
"I warned you," Night Eye muttered.
His jaw tightened. He forced a slow breath, then another, but it did nothing to ease the weight pressing down on his chest.
Footsteps slowed nearby.
"Um... sir?"
Night Eye looked up.
Two boys stood a short distance away. They did not approach right away. One of them, taller and broad shouldered for his age, shifted his weight awkwardly. The other lingered behind him, clearly unsure if they were intruding.
"You dropped this," the taller boy said, holding out a hand.
Sir Night Eye glanced down. A folded handkerchief lay in Mirio's palm, one he had not even realized had slipped from his suit pocket.
"...Thank you," Nighteye said, taking it.
The taller boy nodded, then hesitated instead of leaving. "Are you okay?"
Nighteye considered brushing them off. He should have. Instead, the words slipped out before he could stop them.
"I failed someone important to me."
The shorter boy swallowed. "That... sounds really painful."
"Wait you look super familiar!"
Nighteye closed his eyes briefly.
"My name is Sir Nighteye," he said after a moment.
Recognition dawned slowly, not explosively.
The taller boy's eyes widened. "Wait. Sir Nighteye? All Might's partner?"
Nighteye nodded once.
"...Wow," the boy said softly. "I'm Mirio. This is Tamaki."
Nighteye studied Mirio now, not as a hero, but as a man who had lost hope and was searching for it again. The boy stood awkwardly but did not look away. There was no fear there. Only concern.
"You admire All Might," Nighteye said.
Mirio smiled, small but sincere. "Yeah. He's why I want to be a hero."
Something shifted.
A young All Might.
"Mirio," Nighteye said carefully, "your quirk. What is it?"
"Permeation," Mirio replied. "It's... hard to control."
Nighteye exhaled slowly. Difficult quirks. Strong ideals. Familiar traits.
"I cannot promise anything," Nighteye said. "But if you are serious about becoming a hero, I may be able to help."
Mirio blinked. "You mean... training?"
"Yes."
Mirio hesitated, glancing toward the hospital doors. "I want to, but my friend is inside. I need to check on him first."
Nighteye nodded and handed him a business card. "Speak with your parents first. If you still feel the same, contact me."
Mirio accepted it carefully. "I will."
Tamaki looked at Mirio, happy for his friend.
...
The automatic doors slid shut behind him with a soft hiss, cutting off the sterile brightness inside. The evening air felt cooler against his face, carrying the distant sounds of traffic and the low murmur of the city moving on as if nothing had happened.
His eyes were still red, the sting lingering, but his breathing had finally evened out. The tight weight in his chest was gone, replaced by something quieter. He felt... lighter.
"Reinhard."
He looked up.
Mirio was jogging toward him from across the sidewalk, his expression caught somewhere between relief and worry. Tamaki followed a few steps behind, slower, shoulders slightly hunched, eyes searching Reinhard's face as if checking for signs of something being wrong.
"We were worried," Mirio said, stopping in front of him, hands braced on his knees as he caught his breath.
Reinhard lowered his gaze. "I am sorry," he said at once. "I did not mean to worry you."
Tamaki shook his head, a small, earnest motion. "That doesn't matter. We just wanted to make sure you were okay."
Reinhard looked at them then. Really looked. The concern in their eyes was genuine, unforced. It warmed something deep inside him.
They fell into step together as they turned back toward the road leading to school. The walk was quiet at first, the earlier tension slowly dissolving with each step.
For a brief moment, everything felt normal.
Then Tamaki spoke, his voice low and hesitant.
"...Our teacher is going to be very angry."
Mirio let out a long sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah. We are definitely in trouble."
Reinhard stopped walking.
He stared ahead for a second, then let out a quiet sound, half breath, half laugh. It surprised even him.
Then, softly, he laughed.
A/N: It seems that some things are simply destined to happen. Anyway, I hope you're enjoying the story! We've officially reached 20 chapters now. I hope the pacing feels just right, not too fast and not too slow