A Tarnished Hero

Izuku's eyes opened wide, sunlight glaring at him as it filtered through the blinds. He yawned; arms stretched above his head as he tried to let the last vestiges of his drowsiness fade into the void. Tasting the air, contaminated as it was compared to the fresh wind in the Lands Between, Izuku slowly got up from the soft, cushioned mattress, something he had missed using whenever he went to sleep.

Fitting into his fuzzy slippers, courtesy of Nezu populating his temporary lodging with a bunch of living necessities such as clean clothes, footwear, and food aplenty, Izuku groggily strode out of the room and into the bathroom just across the hallway.

When was the last time he had a good night's rest ever since he got thrown into the Lands Between? Well, there was the time he had to sleep in the Roundtable Hold, but there were no mattresses, and he wasn't too keen on sleeping on Fia's bed with her hogging the sheets.

Plus, she just creeped him out, period…

Twisting open the door, Izuku headed inside the bathroom and made a beeline straight for the sink. Opening the valve, a rush of water escaped the faucet and Izuku was all too eager to scoop the water in his hands before splashing it across his face, the cold liquid sending shivers down his system.

And if some of it went down his throat, even better. He was sick of drinking from lakes with who knows what living within.

His lethargy a semblance of the past, Izuku stripped down to his birthday suit before heading into the shower to freshen himself up. He didn't think soap would be one of the things he would miss of the modern world, but going without the damn thing for months made him cherish the utilities a modern world has over those stuck in the medieval period.

Plus, toilets. He hated wiping his ass with leaves. It was prickly, and he needed to suffer just to find a smooth leaf, but even then, there was still a hint of prickliness to the thing.

A few minutes in the shower while scrubbing himself down was enough to lift his spirits. He felt clean, skin as smooth as silk, something he would never take for granted again. Wading through lakes and swamps does things to a person.

Shutting the valve close, Izuku wiped himself down with a smile on his face. Grabbing the clothes neatly folded in one of cubbies, he dressed himself up, lips formed into a thin line as he spied the distasteful print in the front.

It had the face of Nezu smiling with human-like lips and teeth, monochrome in color and creepy as the Cemetery Shade. He didn't know whether this was Nezu's inexplicable sense of humor or a message, but the cotton was enough to stay his hand.

It was just that comfortable.

The pants, however, were a bit too stiff for his liking. They were kilometers better than those found in the Lands Between, but the jeans were just a bit too tight for him.

Exiting the bathroom, he then headed for the kitchen to make himself something to eat. Now the processed food in the fridge was a tad unhealthy, but screw healthiness. He died way too many times to care about his health anyway, and he wanted some good food like yesterday damnit.

Opening the fridge, the cool air escaped out into the room. The breeze was soothing, bringing another smile on Izuku's lips. Always being stuffed in his armor was hell for his temperature, so being able to feel the cool breeze without any kind of danger lurking nearby was a godsend.

He frowned. There was a bunch of vegetables, some meat in the freezer, pitchers of water, and fruits. And with him being rusty on the stove, he refused to burn the damn house down. Just because he knows how to roast over an open fire doesn't mean he cannot burn down a kitchen.

Just one look next to the Church of Elleh was enough of a reason. Apparently, from the memories he'd lost when dying multiple times, cooking was one of those to go the way of the dodo. Kale nearly lost his mind trying to put out the fire before he banned him from ever cooking without supervision.

At least he passed Kale's judgment when roasting things over an open fire, and the stove in front of him could be the devil for all he cared.

Sighing, he closed the fridge and looked within the drawers of various cabinets. He found some utensils, plates, saucers, knives, and more, but it was the last one that got his attention. A stash of instant ramen.

Surely he couldn't burn water, right?

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Yes, he couldn't burn water, so his instant ramen was safe. Long story short, it was delicious. That being said, that was hours ago and Izuku was currently sitting down next to the Site of Grace in his basement. During his exploration of the Lands Between, one of the most exciting parts was finding lost Sites of Grace. The aura hovering around the site was pure tranquility, even if most other people still sane enough to reason couldn't see or perceive it.

So, here he sat, relaxing in the silence. Melina was nowhere to be seen, as usual for the spectral woman. She only showed herself if she wanted to, and every time she did so, she regaled him with some snippets from Queen Marika herself.

It was quiet, soothing… He could just sit here for an eternity and gaze at the hovering source of light for years. Nezu told him that he wasn't required to show himself until the start of next week, during which classes will resume.

With the abundance of time he had found himself with, he was stumped on how to spend it. Back in the Lands Between, when he had nothing to do, he would go and explore, his excitement at finding new things rising with each and every dungeon or secret he managed to unveil.

Here? Here he was stuck. Nezu forbade him from ever leaving, and frankly, Izuku agreed with the rat. There was nothing outside the walls of the U.A. High School he could see himself indulging with. He was broke, with Nezu funding for his living state until he could get his first paycheck (Nezu's words, not his), and much like the Lands Between, this world was reliant on money. No money, no living. In the Lands Between, it's even worse for him, because no runes, have fun getting mauled to death by giant rats of all things.

With boredom at the forefront, he thought of the friends he made back in the Lands Between. Roderika, Hewg, Rogier, Corhyn, Nepheli Loux, Diallos… Actually, maybe that's all of them. Sir Gideon was still a mystery, and his condescending tone made it hard to like him. The one standing just outside his room even more so. D was also a bit of a downer, but he did give him a map on how to find the one who would teach him beast incantations if he really wanted to. Fia still gave him the shivers, and Enia was as cryptic as Sir Gideon. The less said about the Two Fingers, the better.

As he was thinking about them, he felt a stir within his chest. His brows furrowed, before his eyes widened in surprise. Why didn't he think of this before? Wasn't the Lands Between separate from the Roundtable Hold? Does that still hold true because Japan was separate from the Roundtable Hold?

Focusing on the hovering Site of Grace, Izuku thought of the Roundtable Hold, willing himself to travel into the pocket dimension. Eyes closed, he felt the space around him ripple, the boundaries of reality broke down and were replaced with new ones… familiar ones.

The cold stone surface underneath his feet changed into smooth wood, the chilly air of the underground replaced by warm currents. Opening his eyes, he was greeted by the familiar round table that was the namesake of the entire place, the giant hovering vision of grace causing Izuku to float a smile up his lips.

Looking around, he saw D still sitting in that same spot, his armor giving him shivers, as always. Corhyn was as silent as ever, until he was spoken to, of course. Diallos was nowhere to be seen, and that worried him a bit. Did he go find Lanya himself?

No matter, the man'll survive. He is of House Hoslow after all, he is a warrior deep within. He'll survive.

Anyway, first order of business, Roderika. Hopefully, she's acclimating smoothly with the rest. After she found out about what happened to her companions… Yeah, she wasn't doing so well.

Heading to the east wing (at least, he dubbed it the east wing), Izuku came face to face with Roderika who was tending to the spirit ashes, her soft hands gently rubbing across the ashes.

"Roderika, how are you holding up?" Izuku crouched next to the blonde girl, her red hood nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, good to see you again! Thank you very much!" Roderika's smile was blinding, a complete contrast from the brittle one she had just a few months ago. "I have you to thank, don't I? For persuading Master Hewg?"

"Oh, the grumpy old man finally took you in?" Said grumpy old man was still busy toiling with the blade on the anvil, but the stink eye he sent Izuku told him that he was listening in.

"Yes, he did. Thank you so much for that." The girl thanked Izuku once more, offering a bright smile. "I can happily announce that he has taught me the noble toil of spirit tuning.

I'm as yet unsure of what I might be able to accomplish, but if I might be of any help to you all, I'd certainly like to try. And if there's a chance to ease the suffering of my dear men who were grafted.. Well, I certainly must try. Roderika the spirit tuner prentice. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Well, the spirit ash you gave me could always use some tuning." Izuku offered her the spirit ash she gave him, the Spirit Jellyfish Ash. Her smile grew brighter as she accepted the ashes and he gave her some gloveworts to power the process. Leaving the girl to her own devices, Izuku headed to Hewg next, the grumpy Misbegotten blacksmith hammering a blade, different from the one earlier.

"I spoke with the girl. She has a gift for spirit tuning." Hewg immediately started, hammer still swinging. The Misbegotten smiles ever so slightly, his hammering pace slowing down by just a tiny margin. "So I told her everything I know."

"So, you still doubting me?" Izuku questioned with arms crossed, causing the smith to wince slightly.

"I'm indebted to a spirit tuner I met long ago. It was all I could do to honor her." Hewg slammed his hammer down one last time, before he set aside the blade, tossed into a pile of weapons like a piece of junk. He stared at Izuku, face morphed into a frown as he bowed slightly. "I'm sorry I doubted you."

"... It's fine." Izuku waved him off, lips upturned. "I sometimes doubt myself with all this Tarnished business, but hey, I'm still learning."

"Hehehe… That you are." Hewg chuckled as he grabbed another lump of metal while his eyes narrowed. "That said, what are you wearing?"

Izuku followed his gaze and stared directly at his jeans. Izuku hummed, thinking on what to tell the man he considered a friend, and decided to tell him the truth.

"This piece of clothing is a common staple in my homeland." Hewg was still a bit confused, before he shook his head.

"Bah, no matter. If you want work done, lay out your arms." The Misbegotten laid the metal on the anvil and began the preparation to create a new blade.

Izuku shrugged and hefted All Strike into his arms. Humming a tune, he gave it to Hewg and watched the master smith do his work. He'd be here for a while, so might as well amuse himself by talking to Roderika.

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A/N: So, it looks like MHA x Fallout won. Time to fire up Jingle Jangle Jingle, cuz the Courier (alignment still pending) is comin' to alternate Japan.

Also... Bear, Bull, Bear, Bull, Bear, Bull, Bear, Bull

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