Fanfic / What Is Owed And What Is Earned

Izuku knows that Kacchan has...issues. Anger issues, for sure. More than that probably. And Izuku isn’t dumb, he knows Kacchan isn’t his friend anymore, hasn’t been since they were little. That hasn’t stopped him from sticking around, daring to hope that a better version of Kacchan is still in there.

And maybe, with the right kind of help, he’ll get to see that someday..

What is Owed and What is Earned is a My Hero Academia fanfic written by yamadadzawa (liarielle). The hero academia between Izuku Midoriya and his childhood friend-turned-bully plays out the same with the key difference being that Aizawa, and the rest of the Yuuei staff, actually help the boys with their respective issues.

This fanfic provides examples of:

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• Adaptational Karma:
  • Even though Bakugou is going to get the help he needs, he does face meaningful consequences for his actions.
    • After his barbaric display in the Battle Trials, Aizawa tells him to "grow up" and they move on like nothing happened. Here, Bakugou's gauntlets are removed and he'll need to undergo anger management classes and additional counseling to better learn how to interact with his peers without hurting them.
    • During the Final Exam, his consequence for hurting Izuku was simply to get beat up by All Might and for him to swallow his pride. In the story, along with the pummeling, he fails the exam and is given a second warning.
  • It's mentioned that Mineta was expelled the morning of the USJ Incident.
• Adaptational Nice Guy: While he still has his rough edges, this version of Aizawa is more compassionate towards Izuku and offers him sincere support with his personal problems.
• Anti-Climax: The Ground Beta Fight between the two boys ends with Bakugou stopping himself just before he can strike Izuku.
• Armor-Piercing Question:
  • While thinking about the aftermath of the Battle Trials, Izuku ponders a question that sours his opinion of his bully.
    What kind of hero doesn’t care about hurting people?
  • During the Ground Beta Fight, after Bakugou asks "Why did it have to be you?", Izuku bites back with "Why shouldn't it be me?"
• Calling the Old Man Out: Izuku does this to All Might during the Final Exams after he chose to leave behind Bakugou.
• Character Development: Thanks to the help their homeroom teacher and their counselors provide, the two boys are able to grow out of their more problematic behaviors.
  • For Izuku, he's able to recognize when he's about to do something reckless, can stop himself from doing the action, and reevaluates how to proceed while keeping himself safe.
  • For Bakugou, he's able to better communicate his needs without being needlessly angry, especially when it comes to what he feels he's earned. And of course, he's fully aware that he needs to own up to his decade of terror to Izuku.
• Cooldown Hug: Aizawa gives one to Izuku after he breaks down crying in Ground Beta.
• Didn't Think This Through: Along with All Might making the grievous error of having First Years engage in battle practice without proper precautions beforehand, Aizawa also admits that he and the rest of the staff are also guilty of allowing him to go through with the exercise without being there to provide extra support.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: The therapy the two boys undergo pays off with Katsuki recognizing that he needs to own up for his decade of bullying and is willing to offer anything Izuku needs to help him with the healing process. Izuku himself is filled with relief and hope that he may regain his former friend given how he was able to change for the better.
• "Eureka!" Moment: Played for Drama. After Aizawa gives a detailed description of Bakugou's actions and consequences after the Battle Trials, Izuku realizes that any of his past teachers could have done the same thing but simply chose not to.
• Fearless Fool: Discussed. Based on his recent performances, Aizawa has learned that Izuku has a habit of being self-destructive and all too willing to hurt himself for the sake of completing his goal. To keep him from hurting himself any further, Aizawa encourages him to visit a school counselor to help him unlearn his reckless behavior.
• Hates Being Alone: Izuku fully recognizes that Bakugou hated him throughout their childhood and took every opportunity to hurt him, but a part of Izuku put up with it since it was a better alternative than being completely alone.
• Heart Felt Apology: Discussed in the final scene. Katsuki explains that he won't apologize to Izuku now because he hasn't earned the right to do so. He does intend to apologize, but only later on when both he and Izuku have worked out their respective issues and are ready for that level. Katsuki even offers to do anything to help Izuku with whatever he needs for the time being.
• In Medias Res: The story begins during the Surprise Fitness Exam with Bakugou charging at Izuku after he threw the ball with his new Quirk.
• In Spite of a Nail: Even though the Yuuei staff is made aware of Izuku and Bakugou's personal problems, Nedzu still had them paired up for the Final Exams.
• Internal Reveal:
  • After the USJ Incident, Aizawa ends up learning about Izuku's apprenticeship to All Might.
  • He also learns the truth about One For All.
• Just a Kid: While explaining to Izuku about his new counseling sessions, Aizawa reminds him that he's still a child and student. He justifies this by claiming that he needs to learn how to better take care of himself and learn how to be a better hero while out on the battlefield.
• Meaningful Rename:
  • As part of his therapy, Izuku is encouraged to use "Katsuki" or "Bakugou" when referring to his former friend instead of using his childhood nickname.
  • He also reclaims the name "Deku" as his hero name as proof that what he suffered through for ten years was real, that he can reclaim it for himself and use it to show the world that anyone can be a hero. Especially him.
• Point of Divergence: One of the biggest changes in the new reality is that Izuku informs Aizawa about Shouto's suffering at the hands of his abusive father thus leading to him to open a case against him while coordinating therapy and training sessions that'll keep Shouto safe in the long term.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Reconstructed during the Final Exams. After Bakugou punches Izuku out of pettiness, Izuku chooses to leave him so he can reach the city gates. When All Might appears and expresses disappointment in his decision, Izuku explains that he was in the right to do so since his so-called partner chose to harm him on the battlefield meaning that he couldn't trust Bakugou to work together. All Might agrees with his logic and apologizes for thinking otherwise.
• Seen It All: Given that he endured ten years of terror from Bakugou followed by every teacher victim blaming him, Izuku assumed that Yuuei would be no different. To his surprise, he's wrong.
• So Proud of You: Aizawa tells this to Izuku after he refused to help Bakugou fight All Might after the bully broke his nose while acknowledging that helping him would be self-destructive.
• Tears of Joy: Izuku sheds these near the end when Katsuki acknowledges the harm he did and genuinely wants to atone for his actions.
• The Stations of the Canon: The story follows through with the main canon events that occurred in My Hero Academia with Aizawa and his coworkers intervening to help Izuku and Bakugou with their personal problems.
• There Are No Therapists: Beautifully inverted. Aizawa reveals that Yuuei has a team of counselors ready to provide help for any students in need.
• Took a Level in Badass: Combined with his therapy sessions and Aizawa taking part in helping him train with his Quirk, Izuku is able to use 5% of One For All without hurting himself. It gives him a significant boost while competing in the Sports Festival.
• Wrong Assumption: After his homeroom teacher asks to speak with him the day after the Battle Trials, Izuku believes that he's going to scold him or expel him for hurting Bakugou which is what he was conditioned to accept in his past schools.

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