oneshot from Extra Early izuku lol. warning for uhHH lots of blood? i describe it a lot but im not terribly good at gore or fights
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There's blood dribbling down Izuku's chin. His mouth tastes like copper and he can't breathe. Every attempt to suck in a breath just fills his lungs with blood and jostles the knife stabbed deep into his guts. Izuku's losing feeling. His hands, sticky with red blood as they clutch at his stomach, ache with pins and needles, though it's vastly overshadowed by the fading pain from his wounds. The ground below him -- there's just blood. Blood, and blood, and blood. Izuku's eyes are welling with tears, and he hiccups with a sob, or at least the best he can manage. He doesn't -- he doesn't want to die. He might have gotten into this situation, but he'd though that he, or luck, would get him out safely. But, looking into the smug face of his killer, Izuku knows it's too late. The world is fading, and Izuku isn't sure if his hands are still even on his stomach. Where was he? Where were his friends? All Might? He doesn't want to be alone.
His world jostles, and it's another few moments before Izuku realizes he's laying on his side, on the ground. His eyes can't focus, but he can see the concrete sprawling out before him. His cheek is warm and sticky -- belatedly, he realizes that's blood, too. What wasn't blood? Izuku couldn't be sure, as he slowly looks up. He thinks he sees somebody's face, meets their eyes, but he's just not sure. Where ...?
"Izuku --!"
And then Izuku's world is just -- gone.
---
Izuku wakes up.
He feels wrong. Very, very wrong. There's something pulling at his skin, there's something on his skin in all the wrong ways. He feels sensations where he shouldn't be feeling them, and it's all wrong. There's adrenaline coursing through his veins, however, and then, in another moment, Izuku is on his paws, unsteady and claws unsheathed as he prepares himself to fight -- but there's nothing. Not another living, breathing being anywhere in his radius. And Izuku -- why's he ... standing like this? What's wrong? Why does he smell so much blood? Even more than when he'd passed out? Why...?
Izuku is shaking as he looks down. He doesn't understand. Looking at where his feet should be firm on the ground, Izuku simply sees two paws. Two, blood-soaked paws, with claws and green fur, beneath the crimson. Izuku doesn't understand. Where is he? Why does he have paws? Why isn't he dead? Why Why Why? His breathing is labored as he twists his body, trying to look behind him. However, without any concept of balance, the Maine Coon topples to the ground with a whimper, feeling and hearing the wet ground squelch beneath his weight. Taking a moment to get over the shock, Izuku looks over his shoulder, and all he sees is red. He has thick, green fur, but it's all red. It's stuck down and sticky with the crimson and it's all he can smell. The ground is stained red, too, and he wants to cry. He's nauseous, he wants to throw up, knowing that it's blood making the ground so wet. Was it his blood? It had to be, there wasn't anything nearby to have caused it. But he doesn't feel any pain. He's not even sure there could be this much blood contained in a body this tiny, there wouldn't be any left over. He doesn't ... he doesn't get it. Izuku wants to go home. He wants to see his friends, and he wants his mom, and -- Izuku's breath hitches as he sobs, tears gathering in his eyes and then rolling down his face in the next moment. He doesn't get it. He doesn't know why he's a cat or why he's alone or how he got here. He just wants to go home, he doesn't want to deal with villains or cats or blood. He doesn't get it. He doesn't get it. Unconsciously, Izuku's body slowly curls in on itself, all matted, bloody fur and fear. He's dead. He has to be. There was so much blood, and he couldn't breathe, and the knife --. Izuku's body is shaking with the force of his sobs, tiny, needle-sharp claws scrabbling against the ground. He wants to go home. He'd rather gave up his quirk, rather give up One for All, than sit in this pool of blood in a tiny, green-furred body any longer.
It's a long time before Izuku calms down, whimpering and wailing and begging. He doesn't want to be here. He doesn't want to be dead. He wants his friends, he wants his mom, he wants All Might. Anyone, just so long as he's not alone. Even now, when Izuku looks at the forest before him, his face is twisted as fat droplets of tears simply don't stop. But he can't stay here. He can't. He needs to figure out where he is, and how he gets home. He can't cry forever, after all. (though he's sure his friends would claim he could. Izuku had always been a crybaby.) How had he stood up, earlier? Instinct alone had moved him to his paws then, surely Izuku could replicate that? His paws are shaking as he presses them to the crimson ground. The blood has long since dried, but Izuku can't help the pained noise that strangles its way from his throat. Blood. Blood. He's so tired of blood. Izuku looks away as he shuffles his hind paws underneath himself, and then carefully pushes himself up, the same way as he had earlier. Izuku stumbles heavily, and he squeaks as he falls back to the ground with a gentle thud, and his fur crackles. His next attempt is more successful, and the Maine Coon wobbles on his paws. He doesn't fall, however, and he simply stands there for a long few moments as he attempts to steady himself. His paws are still shaking when he's finally confident enough to take his first step. It's a gradual thing, but, slowly, Izuku manages to walk across to the next few trees. And then, as he gains confidence, he picks up pace. He needs to find water, or a stream, maybe. Izuku can't just -- he can't just leave the blood dried on his fur. He hates how it feels, hates knowing that it's blood and he's not sure who's it is. (is it even his? he doesn't feel any symptoms of blood loss, even excusing the amount --) So, step after step, the tiny feline marches onwards. By this point, only the occasional tear slips down his face, the green feline too invested in his new task to think too hard by this point.
For a long time, Izuku sees nothing but trees. They're tall, towering over the tiny being's figure. He's sure they'd have been tall even when he was human. (he sobs again, when he thinks of it.) It doesn't -- doesn't feel safe. His skin crawls with the sensation of being watched, and Izuku ducks his head. He wants to disappear. Had the blood attracted predators? Something else? Izuku isn't sure, but he wants to leave. Izuku attempts to pick up his pace, though he stumbles often enough that he's not sure it helped. Either way, it's a long time before Izuku hears the trickle of water, and his paws sting with every step and his pelt his itchy and his face -- hurts, with how many times he's fallen. Even so, the little feline beams(it's a very, very odd sensation) as he, after some power-walking, catches sight of the rushing river. There it was. Izuku feels sticky and disgusting, so with little regard for anything but how deep the water was, he clambers in. And then realizes this wasn't the greatest idea. The water flow, while not terribly strong, is too strong for Izuku, who was very small and, perhaps, had no clue how to balance himself on land, much less in the water. The water flow hits the little feline dead on, and a distressed noise is what escapes from him as Izuku is, predictably, knocked off his paws, and he falls face-first into the water. He sputters and flails, and suddenly he can't breathe theres liquid in his lungs is it blood oh god oh god -- but with the right push of his paws, Izuku resurfaces, claws latched onto a rock. His throat burns, and the tiny feline wheezes as he chokes up the water. He nearly vomits, and the green feline is left shaking and feeling strange as he stands in the water.
He gets over his near drowning experience quickly, at least -- he'd only been a little misplaced, and it was only for a second. Izuku has to lean against a nearby sticking out from the water to feel any bit secure though, and so wearily looks down at his fur, nearly fully submerged in the water still. He was a very small thing, after all. He's shocked there was anything shallow enough for him at all -- this was a terribly idea, honestly. Or maybe this was just ... a particularly strong stream. Izuku wouldn't know. In any case -- his fur, his fur. The reminder of his current perdicament makes Izuku waver, a few tears building in his eyes before, hurriedly, Izuku brushes them away with his paw. And nearly falls back into the water due to it. Either way -- he can't cry now. He can't. He may have fur, but it's still stained with blood. Sure, the worst of it came off, and if that wasn't a relief, Izuku wasn't sure what would be. Still, his fur has a red tinge to it that just makes him nervous. He'd been practically drowning in blood earlier, he needs it all off. So, shaking, Izuku makes to scrub away at his pelt in some way -- it's very hard, without hands. His balance is still very bad, after all, and for another moment he's submerged in the water when he's anything but perfect. After a while, though, he finds it acceptable -- anywhere he can reach is cleaned, and anywhere that isn't, he can just ... ignore. So, slowly, warily, the tiny feline wobbles his way out of the river, soaked to the bone and shaking and freezing. His fur hangs from his body, and it feels heavy. Izuku knew he'd had a lot of fur under all of the blood, had realized it while washing it, too, but he hadn't realized he had this much. It was -- it was kind of funny, in a weird, weird way. A hysterical way, maybe. Izuku still hasn't fully accepted that this happened, that -- that he's a cat, right now. It scares him. He remembers bleeding out and dying, so why was he here? What quirk turned him into this? Why was he all alone in a forest? ... Izuku really hopes his classmates are okay. He hopes he was the only one hurt badly, or killed. He wonders what'll happen if he doesn't manage to get home? Will he be forgotten, in a few weeks? It's what Izuku always expected would happen, after all. He'd always just been ... the weird quirkless kid nobody would care about if he just -- died, or disappeared. He wonders how his friends are. But he can't ... think anymore about this, right now. Not when Izuku is so vulnerable and all he can feel are the eyes on his back -- they hadn't stopped, not even when he was watching the blood away. It's ... scary. Who was watching him? Why? Why'd they stick around this long without doing anything? Izuku isn't sure he can defend himself in this state -- does he even have his quirk, right now? This isn't something Izuku is quite ready to test out.
So, slowly, the feline wobbles away from where he stands. The water continues to drip from his fur as he does so, and the ground where he'd stood for maybe a minute was -- drenched. Very muddy. Izuku decides to diverge from the river, after a minute -- it felt too open. His skin is crawling with the weight of the stranger's gaze, wherever it may be, and he just wants to -- hide. Really wants to hide and wait it out. He doesn't ... doesn't know where to go, though, or what to do. He'd gotten some basic survivalist training, of course, but it was all for nothing now that he didn't have hands. He couldn't exactly build a shelter or anything, and -- could he eat berries? Cats were carnivores, would it make things worse? Izuku doesn't know. Though -- he might try the berries thing later, if he gets desperate. I mean -- there were enough abnormalities already. Izuku's fur was green and cats shouldn't be able to cry, but there he'd been. He sighs.
It's another while of walking, when Izuku's fur is no longer dripping but is still definitely wet, that something finally happens. He's wandering through the woods when he hears -- a voice, maybe. It's very weird, very distorted, but in a very clear way? Like -- simultaneously, it's a growl and English. Which definitely isn't a good combo, and it makes Izuku's head spin. He knew a lot from Present Mic's classes, but he wasn't fluent, he didn't think.
"What's a little kid like you doing alone, huh?" The voice says, harsh and almost ... menacing. It's a few moments before the Maine Coon finally deciphers the words, and by then, the speaker has stepped into the open, and Izuku -- his heart stops. The creature is much, much taller than him, bulkier, too. Orange and striped and a menacing sort of delight dancing in its eyes. A tiger. An actual tiger just spoke to him -- in English. Was this -- some sort of elaborate fever dream? And what did she mean little kid? Izuku was a teenager, not a little kid. The little feline is shaking as he meets the larger being's eyes, because he just doesn't get it. How was he supposed to get away from a tiger? Izuku wasn't familiar with this body, and it wouldn't even be on par with an entire tiger if he tried anyways.
"I --" Izuku tries, even the beginnings of the sentence strange and heavy on his tongue. His tail gives a nervous sweep as he fixes the adolescent tiger with a hesitant look. She snorts and sweeps her tail. "I don't wanna hear it, kid. You're in the wrong place," She says simply, and -- oh. Izuku catches sight of her claws, and he's really not sure of his survival chances, anymore. Just a claw was bigger than his entire paw, and she could probably crush him, anyways. No. He doesn't -- he doesn't wanna die again. His quirk? What about his quirk? Izuku, figuratively, reaches tentatively for the sheer power of One for All, just a sliver, but he can't ... reach it. It's there, he just doesn't know how to use it. It's -- like when he'd first received the quirk, but worse. Izuku doesn't have any time to think on it, though, because the next thing he knows there's claws digging deep into his skin and it hurts -- he'd dealt with a lot of injuries, of course, but they were always kind of just -- broken bones and bruises and scrapes, nothing that tore into his skin quite like this. He can't help the little yowl that escapes his maw as he's sent flying. In other words -- just kind of rolling quite a few steps. The pain is sharp and the adrenaline hasn't quite set in yet and it hurts. He can feel the blood welling from the wound within a moment, heavy and flowing and no no no -- He's sick of pain and blood and he wants out. He doesn't even understand. Why was she attacking him? For fun? She hadn't ever given Izuku a chance to speak before she'd done this, and he doesn't get why the tiger can talk or why Izuku can speak and he's just -- scared. Scared out of his damn mind. And that's -- that's really funny. He'd been through a lot, after all, and without even breaking a sweat. That'd all been undeniably worse -- and this was what got him scared? One opponent? Just one? (this was hardly a healthy mindset, in all honestly -- Izuku was overwhelmed and all he knew was blood)
The feline stumbles to his paws, though he nearly gives when he feels the sting of his leg. Oh dear. There's -- that's pretty deep. He swallows down his nausea(blood and knives and nononono --), and, shakily, focuses his full attention on the stranger, despite the pain. It's familiar, anyways. One, two, three -- then she's there, delighted as he claws rake down his cheek(and some of his neck, worryingly enough). Izuku yelps, and he's still so small and he's still shaking and there's blood, but in the next moment, shockingly, his paw lashes out, and -- oh, claws. The larger tiger looks somewhat stunned as she rears back, giving the much smaller Izuku a somewhat indignant look. There's something -- more delighted, malicious, maybe.
"You do have some fight in you!" She crows, delighted. More manic. Who was she? Why -- why, why why. Why did she want him to fight? It's not like Izuku had hurt her, anyways -- just a little scratch across her nose. But it's too late to wonder, because in another moment there's only orange and oh, oh ow -- he yowls, because her teeth are snared around his ear and it hurts as she bites down hard and tears. For a moment, Izuku wonders if his whole ear is gone, and in a moment of hysteria, hops and reaches. There's blood dripping down his leg and face, but that's okay. It's fine. He's fine. There's tears gathering in his eyes because he doesn't get it, he wants it to stop, but it's -- he's just. Here. Bleeding and in a fight he hadn't asked for in the least. His claws snag onto the tiger's skin, and suddenly she straightens up and the world spins but he just -- can't let go. Not only because she'd probably kill him, but he's just -- frozen, claws scrabbling against her neck and face. One paw is caught on her eye, and he's just -- why, why him? "Let go!" She screams, and then Izuku doesn't have a choice in the matter as she furiously shakes her head and dislodges the smaller feline. For a single second, less, probably, there's just -- air, and then with a thud Izuku hits a tree. The blunt force is more familiar, really, and though it aches, he can live with this better than whatever else, even as his ribs feel bruised and even struggling to his paws makes it hurt. They're not broken, though -- probably not even bruised, just painful. In any case, it makes keeping his paws under him very problematic, and if he can't manage it by the time his attacker strides back up to him, that's not fully his own fault. She's angry. He sees it in the bleary, unfocused way he looks at her face -- how was she so expressive? He doesn't understand, seeing the way her face moves in familiar near-human patterns. He can't linger on it long, as his vision goes red with her next strike -- it barely misses his eye, but it's just so jarring and oh, oh dear. He stumbles, off balance when -- oh, another, down his shoulderblades. What was he, her punching bad? Was she angry with how he dared to cling to her? Izuku is getting annoyed now, just beneath the surface of fear and confusion. There's a strange sensation just under the surface of his skin -- something powerful, something crackling. Was that --? It was. He doesn't hesitate to take it in his paws, however much he could manage without injuring himself, and suddenly everything seems to right itself. It's not perfect -- he's still a cat, of course, but seeing the familiar blue-green crackling of Full Cowl is comforting, even if it's -- subtly different, in a way. Nothing else seems important, anymore, not his wounds or the blood or the strange patterns of the electricity-like ... something. Izuku's claws dig into the ground, and he whirls on his paws, the real adrenaline finally flooding him. It doesn't really feel hopeless, anymore -- after all, if Izuku couldn't naturally beat somebody this large and naturally strong, just by his own, then maybe with aid he could.
So, the Maine Coon's eyes narrow as he wobbles. The tiger in question looks surprised and a little unsure -- not scared, just unsure of what this meant for whatever was happening. He doesn't care anymore. Izuku doesn't care. He'd proven he couldn't match up to her as he was, being thrown off so easily, and he doesn't really want to truly injure her or anything, but -- he needs something. Something for the way his legs were shaking and how tears still burn in his eyes, lips drawn back in a snarl. Something, any at all. So, in another moment, Izuku is no longer on his paws, flying directly at the larger creature's chest. The instant his paws make contact with her chest, something -- changes. She yelps, the fur near his paws singing and smoking and burning. Like static, the rest of her fur stands up and he doesn't get it. His power had never involved electricity, after all, but she was hurting, what --. But then he's crashing fullbody into her chest, claws hooking to the back of her neck and shoulders as he scrabbles against her. And the tiger -- she screams. Her fur continues to sizzle and burn and like touching a hot stove, Izuku lets go. His heart is pounding and his hearing is fading because oh god, what was that --. A gouge of his burns is dug into her sides, where the bulk of his body had clung against her, and he can see pink flesh and its blackened and oh god oh god, nonono --
"What the fuck!" She screams, and even here Izuku can see the pained, frustrated tears in her eyes. She was only a kid, would only be a few years older than him in his terms, nonono, what had he done. Izuku's breath hitches and he's scared because he doesn't understand and he needs to leave because looking at that oozing, pink and black flesh is making his head spin because he did that. He did that he did that, but how, nonono he didn't mean to he didn't mean to -- she starts to scream something again, with words and anger and pain, but Izuku can't hear anymore, he's already turned around and he's running as fast as his quirk-fueled legs will let him because he needs to go, he can't see this anymore, can't face whatever he's done to her. Tears are rolling down his face and he doesn't understand. Doesn't understand how the electricity flickering around his body shifted and changed in such a harmful way, didn't ever want to hurt anyone like that again, wasn't him wasn't him wasn't him --
It's a long time before Izuku tires, adrenaline and quirk abandoning him all at once as, finally, he trips over the roots of a tree and collapses. There's not a lot of trees anymore, there's only fields, so perhaps tripping over one was stupid, but that's okay. He's not thinking anyways -- he's still shaken by the encounter, by the gouges and burns and smoke he'd seen and scented from her. He doesn't -- he doesn't want to do that again. Doesn't even want to use One for All again if it means he'll hurt somebody like that on accident again. Izuku hiccups as, slowly, he wriggles his way under the safety of the tree's roots. Not again. Not again. There's still blood, so much blood, on his fur, and he knows its his because of the way his head spins and the wounds gouged and the pain. He's bled a lot. Running wasn't a good way to let your wounds clot, because most of them kept on tearing open in the process. It doesn't matter, anyways -- Izuku doesn't have the strength to deal with it right now. So, slowly, Izuku curls around himself, still shaking as he buries his face beneath his paws and tail, trying to remain as hidden as possible. Going home be damned -- he'd figure it out someday, but now not, not today. He just ... can't. This is how Izuku falls asleep, bloodied with his fur staticked and hiding away.
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