Suggestion

Chapter 2: Suggestion

Midoriya felt cold and wet. Something kept tapping him. Water? His limbs felt restrained. He opened his eyes slowly, coming out of a trance. Twins he'd never seen before stood in the room watching him. Both were about 12 from the look of them and had white shoulder length hair, wearing somewhat dirty white shirts that were fastened like a straitjacket. One wore white pants while the other wore a white skirt. Otherwise, they looked exactly the same with the same vacant expression. The girl was the first to speak.

"He's awake. I'll go inform the others." She left the room while the other stared at Midoriya.

"Who are you? Are you with the league of villains?"

Midoriya's eyes spoke volumes of his resistance. With his strength he could easily get out of his restraints. He was surprised they didn't just kill him, knowing he was going to put up a fight the first chance he got.

The door opened, and Shigaraki walked in. Midoriya's arm tensed as his knees shook slightly. This man was scarier than any of them. All he had to do was put his hand on Midoriya, and it was all over.

"Izuku Midoriya. It's been a while."

"What do you want, Tomura Shigaraki?" Midoriya activated One For All, readying himself to break away.

"Calm down. We just want to save you from them." Midoriya paused, confused. The twins walked closer. The boy started addressing Midoriya.

"Don't you remember how your classmates at UA cursed you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"They hated you, bullied you, they wanted you out of their way."

"You don't know what you are talking about."

"What about the heroes? Ever since you started hero work, you've seen how selfish they are," the young boy smiled. "Think about all the times you couldn't help people because they pushed you out of the way. They wanted all the fame for themselves." What was happening, Midoriya thought. His brain stung and felt unbelievably heavy.

The young girl gently whispered in Midoriya's ear, "Midoriya, I'm so sorry. I know how it feels to be unable to help the innocent people out there. How useless you must feel, how hurt..."

Midoriya whipped his head around, surprised he hadn't noticed the girl approaching him. Her face was pure and sweet, as she leaned in closer to rest her head on his shoulder.

"You poor boy. You've always felt so alone... All you ever wanted was a friend... right?"

Midoriya felt a tear run down his cheek. "I-" Midoriya stares at the girl, unable to grasp his own emotions. He thought hard. There were times his classmates showed kindness to him, right? That's what a hero should embody, but something is wrong. He can't remember. Deep in his memory he could see their faces, glaring back at him as he entered the classroom.

Shigaraki stepped closer. "Has anyone ever shown you mercy?" Midoriya shot his head up to look at Shigaraki. "If you have no one you can think of, we'd like you to stay with us." Midoriya tried to think harder, further back for someone- anyone who had made him feel good about himself. There was no one. He could only remember Bakugou bullying him. How defenseless he felt... How useless he was... One for All deactivated as Midoriya slumped in his chair in despair.

Shigaraki speaks up, telling Twice and the twins that they can show the kid around when he calms down. Midoriya looks up to watch Shigaraki leave, as Twice skips to untie him.

"It might be an adjustment, but I think you'll like it with us" Twice let the rope drop as his expressions changed with every sentence he made. "He's going to hate it! He'll be family!"

Midoriya jumps up, exclaiming, "I refuse to be a villain! I won't hurt people!"

Sauntering towards Midoriya, Dabi questioned him, "Who decided who were the villains and who were heroes?"

"Anyone who hurts the innocent are villains!"

"And aren't the heroes supposed to save the innocents? Tell me, do you remember ever seeing a hero save people for selfless reasons?"

Deku tried to think. "Well... On TV-."

Midoriya heard the young male twin interrupt him. "You know that doesn't count. The media can easily spin things in the favor of the heroes. You've been doing hero work for a while, right? You've seen up close what it's actually like." Deku goes silent, not sure what he can say.

The young girl in white leaned on Midoriya's arm as she whimpered, "You poor thing... You must feel so lost."

Dabi began to walk out of the room as he spoke back to Midoriya, "Just think about it."

Toga grabbed onto Midoriya saying she'd gladly give him a tour. Twice complained that it was his job as they escorted Midoriya around the dilapidated building, leaving Dabi behind. Midoriya couldn't focus on anything they said to him. Confusion and despair. Had he always felt like this?

Night fell, and like every other normal person, the group of villains gathered for sleep in the cleanest room in the building. Twice gave Midoriya a blanket and a pillow. Even though he planned to sleep on the cold floor. Toga happily wished him a good night's sleep. The twins huddled up together on the old, tattered couch. He didn't know where Shigaraki or Dabi was, but the rest showed him unending kindness.

Midoriya could not process everything. Until he could get a grip on himself, he still hated the villains for hurting people. It was best to get out instead of confronting them alone. They were in an old factory; dark, wet, and dingy from not being used for years. Dabi or Shigaraki was probably guarding the ground floor exits. Midoriya could easily put a hole in a wall, but that would alert the villains. If he remembered correctly, there were holes in the roof.

Most of the villains were sleeping on the bottom floor to avoid the rain. If he could find a hole in the roof, he could jump out without risking detection. However, he knew the league was smart, so it concerned him why they didn't keep him tied up or... kill him. However, there was no use overthinking with so little information. Midoriya snuck away from the group sleeping soundly nearby. Once he made it to the staircase, he moved cautiously to avoid the metal echoing through the room.

The facility was huge, twists and turns galore. Midoriya sighed with relief when he saw moonlight streaming in from the next floor up. When he got to the top floor, moonlight shone through the holes, exposing a standing figure. Meeting the emotionless eyes of the fire-wielding Dabi, Midoriya froze.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Regardless of what you said earlier, I can't condone what you all have done."

"I see...Well, I can't let you leave and expose us either." Midoriya braced himself for an attack. However, he was shocked to hear Dabi continue. "But I don't want to fight you." Dabi took steps towards Midoriya, putting him back on edge. "You've been through the same persecution as the rest of us. Can't you give us a chance? You might see we're not quite what the heroes made us out to be."

Behind Midoriya two white figures soundlessly appeared in the darkness. Midoriya spins around as they start to speak.

"Don't you feel lost?"

"I know you crave friends."

"I-" The pressure behind Midoriya's eyes began to give way to an endless stream of tears as Dabi patted Deku's head.

"What do you say, kid?"