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“He’s six, correct? He should have his quirk by now, but if it hasn’t come in yet...I’m afraid you’ll have to give up.”
“B-But doc-!”
“I’m sorry, there’s nothing I can do. I can’t delay the quirk registration any longer. Of course, it’s very possible he does have a quirk, even if we do mark him down as quirkless, but I assume if it hasn’t revealed itself yet that it must have a very specific activation procedure.”
“...What do you mean? He does have a quirk? But you just said…?”
“I meant that as far as we know, to activate his ‘quirk’ he would have to jump into a river every Saturday at 8:15am sharp for six months, or balance on his head while singing happy birthday backwards, or heck, take exactly seven steps North and nine South, all while doing the Macarena.”
“Huh?”
“What I mean, Mrs. Midoriya, is that Izuku’s ‘quirk’ could have a very specific way to activate it, and that’s if he even has one. Sure, he lacks the toe joint, which usually is a sign of a quirk, but it’s not always the case. It’s uncommon but not entirely rare or anything of the sort to have a quirkless without the toe joint.
“So, in my opinion, it’s best to just give up.”
“I...see. Thank you, Doctor. I apologize for impeding on your time,” the green-haired woman stated sadly, standing from her seat and taking the hand of her shocked son’s.
“Don’t apologize, it’s no problem. Anyway, have a good night Mrs. Midoriya, little Izuku.” The doctor also stood, making his way to the door to his office and holding it open for the pair to leave. Not before handing the lady a lollipop for her currently unresponsive son, of course.
“You too.”
And with that, they left.
Part two of her plan succeeded.
Don’t get her wrong - she hadn’t wanted this. Why on earth would she have wanted to crush her son’s dream? No mother ever wants to do that.
But, as his mother, she had a duty to do so. She had a duty to keep him safe, and this was the only way.
...wasn’t it?
Her baby would get hurt trying to be a hero! She’d known that from the start, but it only cemented that belief once she realized that his quirk was forcing him to do whatever he promised to others.
Villains wouldn’t hesitate to take advantage of her small, innocent Izuku. They wouldn’t hesitate to harm him, to maim him, to maybe even...kill him.
Which is why she couldn’t let him go on believing he could be something so dangerous. Something he couldn't ever be.
That was part of the reason she never told him about his quirk when she’d realised what it was. Firstly, once he learnt he had a quirk, he’d want to be a hero even more. Secondly, he’d tell everyone what his quirk was, and then people would take advantage of her sweet son. People were cruel - Inko knew that, but Izuku didn’t.
So Inko had to make him stop chasing a fruitless career that would only get him killed. It’s not like they were going to go short on heroes any time soon - there were plenty of other kids who wanted to be heroes. Like little Katsuki. He’d make an amazing hero! He was brave and brash and had the perfect quirk, not like her lovely little Izuku.
She tried to drop hints, mentioning other careers, pointing out other jobs and pathways Izuku could follow that weren’t heroics. She even mentioned construction hoping that maybe something else dangerous would capture his attention, but only ‘paramedic’ seemed to grab his attention and only for a small amount of time before he returned to his fixation on heroics. She was running dry on ideas before she realised…
...why was Inko going to all this trouble trying to convince him otherwise when she could easily forbid him another way?
First off, she needed to show him just how dangerous it could be as a hero. When she tried showing that video of All Might’s debut - something she thought was scary - he was just inspired by it and fought harder to become a hero. In all honesty, she didn’t understand it. Either way, step one had failed. Lucky that it wasn’t necessary.
Secondly, she needed to convince him that he didn’t have a quirk. That was easy - he was six, still with no signs of a quirk and their final doctors appointment coming up in a few weeks at the time she planned it. It was a success, to no surprise.
Finally, she needed to make him promise to her that he wouldn’t try to become a hero. That he wouldn’t become a hero full stop. This was the step that the plan was relying on. Get him to agree, and he physically couldn’t become a hero.
Her Izuku loved her, so that step wouldn’t be very hard.
Since step one was had failed and step two was completed, it was time for the final part of the plan. Slowly, she opened the door to the study, planting on a sad face, internally scowling at the sound of All Might’s laugh. He must be watching the video again.
“I-Izuku, honey?” She asked, slowly walking towards her son, hands clasped together. Izuku slowly span the chair until he was facing her. Tears were running down his face and he looked distraught. Pleading. Desperate.
“M-Mama, can I...c-can I be a hero too?”
“I’m sorry Izuku, I’m so sorry!” The older greenette cried, throwing herself down at Izuku’s height and hugging him like her life depended on it. “You’re quirkless...it’s too dangerous!”
Inko could almost hear his heart breaking. Instead of the rush of satisfaction she expected to feel, all she felt was...empty. No matter, this was for his own good.
“Promise me, Izuku, that you won’t try to become a hero. Please, promise me. It’s too dangerous and you’ll get hurt- no, killed!”
Inko could see he was struggling to answer. She could see the war raging between his passion to become a hero and his love for her. She could see how close she was to losing. She couldn’t lose.
She couldn’t lose.
She pushed tears to her eyes, shoving down the guilt of seeing her beautiful son panic upon seeing her teary orbs. The guilt of tricking him. It’s for his own good.
“I...I promise, mama.”
“Thank you, Izuku,” Inko smiled ‘tearily’, “I couldn’t stand it if you got hurt.”
Part three was a success. Izuku couldn't be a hero anymore! Inko should have been ecstatic, thrilled that her plan worked and her son was no longer in danger.
So why did she feel so numb?