Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Hitoshi Shinsou crouched down on the dimly lit catwalk, balancing his weight on the balls of his feet. He wore black, loose fitting cargo pants that were tucked into tall, gray athletic boots, secured with orange velcro straps. The boots were chosen for their flexibility and support but the choice had resulted in his mentor, Shouta Aizawa, teasing him for choosing “baby shoes”.

But Shinsou liked the quickness and security of the velcro, babyish or not. On top, he wore a simple dark gray t-shirt and his father’s old motorcycle jacket. The old leather made for good but comfortable protection from scrapes and scratches.

His black knee pads cushioned his knees as he lie in wait, like a wolf waiting for the right moment to pounce on its prey. The comparison of him to a wolf might be typical, but he felt a kinship with the creatures. Like them, he had faced prejudice and hatred because of what he was capable of.

Fingerless gloves protected his hands and he turned the knob on his mask. The mask gave him the ability to mimic the voices of others, which aided in the activation of his quirk; Brainwashing. Whoever responds to him verbally gives him the power to take control of them, to dictate what their bodies can do, while the brainwashed person watches on, powerless to stop him. The power that he held often caused others to mistrust, dislike or even hate him. And many times he was powerless to change their perception of him.

The metal walkway creaked as Shinsou shifted his weight. He peered over the railing to look out at the vast gray space below him. It had been Aizawa’s idea to rid the large warehouse of its “roaches”. After a couple of days of surveillance, he had determined that a drug running organization had set up camp there. And several days later, on Saturday, he decided that’s when they would be taken down.

Aizawa called operations like these “collecting the garbage”. Shinsou nodded to himself, that was a good way of putting it. His mentor, pro hero Eraserhead, often focused on crime like this. He was more than capable of taking on more dangerous foes but illegal and often lethal drugs were just as bad as super villains in his mind.

“Besides, if everyone’s focusing on the large and noticeable villains, it allows other crime to run free,” he had told his student. But Shinsou also believed he chose this work as it mostly kept him out of the spotlight. Take down a flashy super villain and the press wants to interview you, but if you take down a drug operation in a gross warehouse that everyone forgot about? Nah, it just doesn’t sell as well.

Shinsou’s gloved hand gripped the railing. The sound of running feet pounding against the concrete met his ear. It was time. He pulled himself up and balanced on the edge of the railing. He tugged on one end of his binding cloth, loosening it. Aizawa had taken out most of the operatives down in one blow but he had radioed Shinsou to let him know that one had escaped. His plan was to chase him out into the open, where his student could take him down. And so far, it looked like it was working. Soon, he could hear a man’s frantic breathing. He pulled out a long length of cloth from around his neck and drew his arm back.

Glancing down, he saw the man’s shadow appear. In a few seconds the man would be directly below him.

He threw the cloth forward and it launched into the air. The end of it wrapped around one of the building’s many support beams. Gripping the cloth tightly and ignoring the potential risk, he jumped off of the railing. His stomach dropped as he soared through the air and his hair blew around his face. It was exhilarating. The speed and falling sensation reminded him of a roller coaster, but unlike the amusement park ride, there were no safety features. No straps or harnesses. If he miscalculated his trajectory he could find himself as a splat on the cold, hard ground. Adjusting his grip, he stretched his right foot out ahead of him, preparing himself to knock the man out with a single blow. The beam groaned under his weight and shifted. The cloth’s grip came loose, causing him to miss his target’s head by just a few inches.

“Huh?!” The man exclaimed and stumbled to the side.

Shinsou swore under his breath and released the cloth. He positioned his feet in front of him, to prepare himself for the landing. Just after making contact with the floor, he rolled himself forward and stopped in a crouched position, throwing an arm out for balance. He whipped his head around to see the drug dealer staring at him in confusion.

“Wha— You’re just a kid! Did you take the others down?”

A wide, malicious grin broke out on Shinsou’s face. Now, it was time to unleash his power. He lifted a purple eyebrow, “That’s right. Got a problem with that?”

The skin around the man’s hands pulled back to reveal metal clad fists. “Doesn’t matter if you are one or not, you’re going down.”

The man charged forward, his fists at the ready. Suddenly, pitch black tendrils clouded his vision and then complete darkness slammed into him, engulfing him; smothering him. All of his senses faded to the point of not knowing if he was even still standing. He wanted to scream, to lash out, but the darkness surround him and filled him, preventing it. Then like being tossed around in a wave, a falling sensation came next, causing a sickly feeling to form in his stomach. Not being able to make sense of any of it, he silently begged for it to stop. 

Then the next thing he knew, his legs froze and he fell on his face. His senses had returned but the control over his own body hadn't.

The boy snickered and stood up. “I think you just went down.”

He tried to respond, to move, to fight back, but still his body didn’t listen to his commands. His body obeyed the tall, purple haired boy’s orders.

“Sit up and put your hands behind your back.” His opposer strode up to him.

To the man's horror, his body complied. The boy knelt down on one knee and and fastened the man’s hands with an orange zip tie.

“Stand up.”

The man’s body slowly got to his feet.

“Walk towards the door and honor the police with your presence.”

Flashing red lights shone through the dirty and broken glass windows. His body walked towards the large bay door and soon afterwards, an officer arrested him.

With the same speed that they had attacked him, the black tendrils pulled away and the man realized he could move of his own accord. But it was too late for that now.

Rage coursed through him as he turned to look at the kid. “Damn you!”

Shinso felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around to see Aizawa. His mentor wore his signature black jump suit, gray utility belt and tall black boots. His long, loose hair covered most of his face.

“Good work. We got them all.”

Shinsou kept his expression neutral, but inwardly he relished the praise. His teacher did not give it out freely.

“What do you feel like needed improving on?” Aizawa asked as he reeled his binding cloth up.

“Well . . . I forgot to test the strength of a beam that I had used to swing on,” he sheepishly admitted and tugged on his cloth. It released its grip and fell to the floor in a pile. He should have remembered to do that but the excitement had gotten to him. He wrapped it back around his neck. “And it shifted, causing me to miss. I brainwashed him after my first plan failed.”

“Hmm,” his teacher replied.

“I know, that was a major oversight,” Shinsou sighed. It disappointed him that he had made such a rookie mistake.

“Don’t beat yourself up about it. Just remember to do that next time,” Aizawa replied and patted his student’s back. “Let’s get out of here.”

Shinsou made it back to his apartment around 3:00 am and quietly walked through the living room. He lived with his mother in a small, one bedroom apartment. She had opted to give him the room and as a result, she slept on the couch. She snored quietly as he snuck past. Her metallic silver hair caught the light from the building across from them and it glowed, acting as a guiding light for him.

Quietly, he closed his bedroom door behind him and kicked off his boots. He was satisfied with the mission but it had left him exhausted. Who knew that running around on endless catwalks to find out where people were hidden would be so tiring? Suppressing a yawn, he shrugged off his jacket. He was supposed to meet someone tomorrow but luckily it would be in the afternoon, so he had time to sleep in. Without another thought, he collapsed onto his bed.

Chapter Text

Shinsou yawned and blinked his bleary eyes. If he had his way, he’d still be in bed, but his mom had insisted that he eat breakfast.

“How did it go?” She asked as she placed an omelet on his plate.

“Good,” he muttered sleepily.

She placed the pan back on the stove and knelt beside him.

“Any injuries?” She asked as she pulled his t-shirt up.

“Mom!” He tried shoving away her hands.

“Oh, stop being so bashful. I’m your mom,” she snapped. “And besides, unfortunately, I’ve seen plenty of bodies.” His mother worked as an EMT and had seen her fair share of injuries. Because of that, she constantly fretted over him.

“Oh, I see some crusted over cuts,” she sighed. “Time for first aid.”

Well, the jacket could only do so much.

Groaning, he pulled his shirt off. “Hurry up, my eggs are getting cold.”

“OK, Mr. I-didn’t-want-to-eat-breakfast-earlier.”

A tapping sound coming from the kitchen window caught their attention and they turned to see Aizawa perched on the windowsill.

Mrs. Shinsou rolled her eyes. “Hasn’t that man heard of a front door?”

“Nah, it’s not really his style,” Shinsou snickered.

Sighing, she unlocked the window and Aizawa slipped into the apartment.

“Good morning,” he greeted them.

“Mornings are never good,” Shinsou retorted.

“Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed.”

“I shouldn’t have woken up at all.”

“Oh hush!” His mother ordered as she cleaned his scrapes. “You need to be presentable for later today anyways.”

Aizawa pulled a wad of rolled up papers out of his back pocket and placed them in front of Shinsou. “Read them over, it’s a brief for our next operation.”

“Ugh, OK.”

The Shinsou family cat sauntered up to Aizawa and rubbed against his legs. “Is she the only one in this apartment that likes me?”

Mrs. Shinsou laughed. “Maybe?”

Shinsou bent forward and picked the gray cat, who he named Floofy 2.0, up. “Hey, you’re mine. Stop paying attention to him.”

She meowed in protest.

“I think she likes me better,” Aizawa said and disappeared out of the window.

Later that day

Shinsou entered the expansive mall and paused, taking in all the people milling about. Normally, he would never choose a location like this; there were way too many people for his liking. He got uncomfortable if there was more than one other stranger near him. Heck, even just one person could be more than enough. But he was ignoring his social unease today, as he was meeting a special person in particular.

Walking at a brisk pace, he passed by the interior stores and dodged the other shoppers. Suddenly, he came to stop. About ten feet away stood a teenage girl with her back to him. Her pastel pink hair was worn loose and stopped at the middle of her back. She wore strawberry red Mary Jane’s that complimented her bright blue dress.

“Hey—” He started to say.

She spun around.

“Toshi!” She ran up to him and threw her arms around him in a tight hug. After a moment, she stepped back and smiled at him. "It's been so long.”

“Hey, isn’t that Shinsou?” Ochaco Uraraka asked, pointing at the boy with the unruly purple hair. Izuku Midoriya paused beside her and nodded his head.

“Yeah, it is. Though, I’m surprised to see him at a mall,” he scratched his freckled face.

“Oooh, he’s with a cute girl!” Denki Kaminari exclaimed. “He’s on a date!”

“So?” Shoto Todoroki asked, bewildered at his excitement.

“Well, if he is, we shouldn’t be ogling him,” Mashirao Ojiro spoke up and flicked his tail.

“That’s exactly what I was going to say Ojiro!” Tenya Iida chopped the air with his arm. “Alright, let’s give him some privacy.”

The next day.

Shinsou placed his tray down on the cafeteria table.

“Hey, there!” A short, blond boy with a doofy expression cheerfully greeted his fellow student as he claimed the seat next to him.

“Oh, hi,” Shinsou replied quietly.

Kaminari took a seat and pulled his tray towards him. Ever since the joint training exercise between class 1-A and 1-B Kaminari had taken a liking to him and he didn’t understand why. They were nothing alike and the only things that they had in common were that they attended the same school, U. A. High, and were in the Hero Course.

“How was your weekend?” Kaminari asked, while struggling to rip open a back of chips.

Shinsou watched the ensuing battle between the student and the chip bag. “. . . It was good.”

Kaminari wiggled his eyebrows. “And was there a particular reason why?”

“Uh.” If Shinsou had his way he’d be eating lunch on the roof, not wasting his time with the goofball. The constant crinkling grated on his nerves and without thinking, he yanked the bag out of his hands. He deftly ripped it open and dropped it in front of the surprised student.

“Oh, hey, thanks man!”

“No problem . . .”

Uraraka approached the table and she smiled at the two boys. Midoriya stood behind her. “Do you mind if we join?” He asked.

“Sure! I mean, no, sit on down.” Kaminari replied before Shinsou could even open his mouth. Great, all hopes of having a quiet lunch went out the window.

“We saw you yesterday,” Uraraka stated.

Midoriya nodded his head and took a sip of his apple juice.

“We were going to say hi but we thought it would be better to not bug you,” she continued.

Why can’t they not bug him now? He lamented.

“Congratulations,” Kaminari randomly spouted.

Shinsou leaned away from him. “For what?”

Uraraka and Midoriya shared a knowing smile.

“Cause you have a girlfriend!” Kaminari blurted out, as if it had been a secret he had been tasked with holding for a long time.

Shinsou raised his eyebrows in surprise and leaned even further back.

“I think you’re one of the first students to be dating,” Uraraka stated.

“And he’s going to be the last one to date,” Shota Aizawa, homeroom teacher of class 1-A, announced.

The four students jumped in their seats and Shinsou grabbed the table, to stop himself from falling out of his chair. Their teacher had snuck up on them, even despite Shinsou being the one facing his direction.

“Mr. Aizawa, how long have you been standing there?” Uraraka asked, completely surprised by his stealth.

“Long enough.” He pointed at Shinsou, “I expect to see you after class.” With that, he turned on his heal and walked out of the loud cafeteria. The three of them swiveled their heads to look at Shinsou. He felt his face burn from embarrassment and what little remained of his appetite disappeared.

Later that day.

As it had turned out Aizawa just wanted to check with him, to make sure he had read the notes that he had unceremoniously placed in front of a him a day ago. He answered the questions that Shinsou had and then sent him on his way. The teacher had made it seem like he was in trouble just to troll his student. That was Aizawa for you.

Shinsou sat on the floor, his back resting against his bed. Absentmindedly, he rubbed the burn scar on his stomach. Thanks to Recovery Girl’s healing quirk, the scarring had been greatly reduced, but it was there, nonetheless.

“Hey, are you awake?” Emica asked and tucked her pastel pink hair behind her ears. She lay, stomach down, on his bed.

He looked up at her. “Sorry, I zoned out.”

She reached out and tugged on a tuft of his purple hair. “You’ve been doing that for as long as I known you,” she chuckled. “Hey, wanna go out and get some ice cream?”

“Sure, why not?” He couldn’t think of anything else and it would be better then spending the rest of the day sitting around.

Minutes later they stepped out the door.

She poked his shoulder with her finger. “I’m so glad we’re able to hang out again.”

He smiled down at her. “Me too.”

They found a little frozen treat kiosk and afterwords they sat themselves down on a sidewalk bench. Emica had ordered a three scoop, pastel colored ice cream cone and she licked the bottom scoop.

“You’ve got some on your nose,” Shinsou stated and reached over to wipe it off. Someone placed a paper napkin in his hand and he looked up to see Aizawa standing behind the bench.

“Ah!” Shinsou exclaimed and jumped back.

Emica burst out laughing and struggled to keep her cone balanced in her hand. “Toshi! I wished you could have seen your face,” she slapped her knee.

Aizawa raised an amused eyebrow.

Shinsou burned a bright red a second time in one day. What was with Aizawa’s sneaking around?

Emica’s laughter had subsided into giggles, “are you going to introduce me Hitoshi?”

Shinsou glared up at Aizawa and the teacher returned the stare. The bad thing for him was that Aizawa had plenty of practice.

Blinking, Shinsou gave up. “Ugh . . .” He slowly stood up and gestured at Emica. “Emica, this is Mr. Aizawa, my teacher and—”

“And his father,” Aizawa interrupted.

Emica’s pale pink eyebrows rose up in surprise. “Really? You don’t look anything like my father’s brother.”

It was Aizawa’s turn to raise his eyebrows.

“I’m Emica Shinsou. Hitoshi’s cousin.”

Aizawa gave Shinsou a well-this-is-news-to-me look.

Shinsou shrugged. “I would have gotten around to telling you about her but the occasion never presented itself.”

His teacher nodded. His student wasn’t one to spout facts about himself.

“So, care to explain, Toshi? Where did you dig this guy up?” Emica jerked her thumb in Aizawa’s direction.

“Well, like I said earlier, he’s my teacher and—,” Shinsou looked up at Aizawa, uncertain of how to continue.

“I adopted him, without all the paper work,” Aizawa finished dryly.

“Oh, I see,” Emica replied, utterly unimpressed.

“Don’t look now but your cone is about to meet its death,” the teacher gestured at Shinsou’s melting treat.

“Oh! Right,” he started eating it.

“So, do you typically follow Hitoshi around?” Emica inquired and raised her right eyebrow.

Aizawa mimicked the action with his right eyebrow. “No, I just happened to be here and I saw you two. It’s easy to notice my student. He’s the only one who’s hair looks like cotton candy.”

“Hmm, that’s one way of describing it,” she licked her treat and raised her left eyebrow. “So, what in my dear Toshi did you see that made you want to “adopt” him?”

He lifted his left eyebrow as well. “You seem fond of him. It’s probably for the same reason that you like him so much.”

She rapidly lowered and raised her eyebrows. “That so?”

Aizawa wiggled his eyebrows in response. “Yes.”

Shinsou groaned. “Ugh, I get it, you two can enter the eyebrow Olympics.”

They turned to look at him, as if just now realizing he had been sitting there the entire time.

“Well, I really must be going,” and like that, Aizawa cast his capture weapon out and scaled up a building.

“He’s got an interesting mode of transportation,” Emica remarked.

“He’s interesting in general,” Shinsou responded.

Chapter Text

Shinsou entered the school hall with Emica right behind him.

“I’m so honored that they let me spend a day with you,” she said.

He turned his head to look at her. “Me too. I’ll finally have someone I want to talk to during lunch.”

She laughed in response. “You anti-social edge lord.”

“I’m serious. I can do torturous small talk but I hate it.”

A well built student walked past the pair. His short blond hair was brushed forward and ended in shaggy bangs but his most striking feature was his large, tan tail. The student glanced at Emica curiously but didn’t so much as look at Shinsou.

“Who was that?” She asked as she watched the furry tip of his tail disappear around a corner.

Shinsou quietly sighed. “That’s Mashirao Ojiro. Uh, he and I don’t really talk.”

Every since Shinsou had brainwashed the tailed student during last year’s Sports Festival, Ojiro had been wary of him. Most notably, refusing to talk to him. And normally, Shinsou wouldn’t have minded. But it pained him because it was caused by the use of his power. He understood why Ojiro was upset but he was allowed to use his power, just like everyone else was. OK, so maybe he should have asked him to join his team for the Cavalry Battle instead of brainwashing him into it. But he had been so eager to prove his strength, so eager to be transferred to the Hero Course; and a part of him had feared that he would have been turned down had he asked normally anyways.

“Hey!” Kaminari waved his hands above his head to catch their attention as he made his way towards them.

“Who’s that?” Emica asked.

“A moron,” came her cousin's reply.

“Toshi! Be nice,” she admonished.

“I am, I haven’t tried killing him.”

She burst out laughing. “I swear . . .”

The blond boy came up to them and held out his hand to shake hers. “Hey, I’m Denki Kaminari, Shinsou’s buddy!”

“Well, that was a lie,” Shinsou muttered underneath his breath. His comment resulted in Emica’s elbow in his ribs.

“Hi, I’m Emica Shinsou, nice to meet you.”

Shock covered Kaminari’s face. “Wait, you have the same name?” He paused, “are you guys married?”

Shinsou dropped his books in surprise as Emica hooted with laughter. Several other students paused to looked at the unfolding spectacle.

“No dumbass, she’s my cousin!” Shinsou barked.

Understanding dawned on Kaminari’s face. “Oooh.”

Tears ran from Emica’s eyes. “You’re hilarious!”

“Wait, that means . . . you’re not dating,” Kaminari touched his fingertips together and smiled at Emica. “And I happen to be single.”

Shinsou threw his arm out in front of his cousin. “Ew! That’s not happening in a million years.”

“Hey, I am more than capable of saying no, if I so wish,” Emica protested.

“Then say no,” Shinsou frowned.

A maniacal grin broke out across on her face.

“Emica, I mean it,” he growled. Knowing her, she would agree to a date with Kaminari just to tick him off.

“Oooh! Look at Shinsou being all protective of his girl!” Mina Ashido squealed and clasped her hands together. “And she has pink hair, like I do!”

Shinsou gritted his teeth. This had to be one of the worst starts to a school day in recent memory.

“Who gives a shit?” Katsuki Bakugo shouted at no one in particular.

“This hallway has been filled with terrible darkness,” Fumikage Tokoyami declared and shook his head as he squeezed past the knot of people.

Emica noticed the small boy with the bird head and smiled. “Eeee! You may be gloomy but you’re adorable Birdy Boy!”

Without a second look, Tokoyami dashed down the hall.

Kaminari beamed at Emica, awaiting her answer. She opened her mouth to give a response but then a tall boy in the crowd caught her attention. His striking miss-matched gray and blue eyes peeped out from underneath a mop of red and white that was evenly split down the middle. A large pink scar covered most of the left side of his face, but it did nothing to detract from his handsome features. Her mouth dropped.

“Who’s that?”

“Who?” Shinsou asked, utterly bewildered.

The boy with the miss-matched eyes walked past Emica and her cousin, his books tucked underneath his toned arm.

Kaminari’s face fell.

“Ugh, of course you’d notice him. That’s Shoto Todoroki, unofficially dubbed the best looking guy of class 1-A.”

Emica placed her hands over her face and blushed. “I can see why.” She turned her head to see where he was going. Shinsou grabbed her shoulder. Ugh, it seemed like every girl liked Todoroki. “Oh, no you don’t!”

She paused and then looked up at her tall cousin.

“Oh! Um, yeah.” She glanced back at Kaminari and pet his head. “Sorry, I’m going to be busy, but you’re pretty cute. I’m sure you’ll find a girl.”

A huge grin broke out on his face and he jumped up.

“She thinks I’m cute!”

A thin gray cloth wrapped around Kaminari’s body and jerked him to the ground.

“And I say you aren’t,” Aizawa growled and tightened his grip on the binding cloth.

“Aw, come on! Lemme have my moment,” the captured student whined.

“Everyone, to their respective class rooms now,” Aizawa barked and dragged a protesting Kaminari behind him.

To Shinsou’s lament his lunch was anything but quiet.

“What school do you go to?” Uraraka asked his cousin.

“I’m actually privately tutored and my teacher gave my time off, so I can visit my Hitoshi!” Emica leaned over and pinched his cheek teasingly. He swatted her hand away.

“Wait, so you two are related?” Iida adjusted his glasses, genuinely confused.

Emica flipped her hair behind her shoulder.

“Yep, we’re cousins but we’re basically siblings. Actually, he’s my best friend,” she squeezed Shinsou’s upper arm. “Wait, a second! Is that some muscle I feel?” She pulled his uniform sleeve up to confirm her suspicions.

“Oooooh,” Ashido giggled.

“Emica!” Shinsou turned a bright red and slid down in his seat.

She turned to look at his classmates. “You know, he used to be such a twig. And because of that he used to be hard to hug cause he would just wriggle his way out. But thanks to his newly acquired buffness that won’t be so easy.”

“Being physically fit is an advantage,” Midoriya piped up.

“Yeah,” Emica elbowed Shinsou in the shoulder, “and maybe it’ll help him get a girl. He really needs to stop holing himself up in his room so much.”

Shinsou nervously scratched his wrist. “I’m not in my room all the time,” he protested. “I hang out with Aizawa.”

Emica made a face. “He’s your teacher . . . not a girl. If you had someone that you were committed to it would probably benefit you greatly,” she paused, “have you considered Ashido?” She gestured at the pink skinned girl that sat next to her, who giggled in response.

“Emica!” Shinsou practically jumped out of his seat. She had the terrible skill of driving him insane and was using it in full force.

Ashido’s face fell and her yellow horns drooped. “I’m that bad?”

“What? No, no, I-I didn’t mean that way,” Shinsou hurriedly said, holding his hands out in a placating gesture. “You’re cool, it’s just that Emica’s being annoying as hell.”

“So, you do like her?” Emica leaned forward, her face an inch away from her cousin’s.

All eyes in the cafeteria turned towards their table.

Shinsou’ stomach sank and he nervously looked around. Why did she have to do this to him? “I-I, uh, um . . .”

“It’s OK, Shinsou,” Ashido stood up and carried her half empty tray away.

He grimaced. He really hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings, it’s just that he never reacted well whenever he found himself cornered. His fellow students murmured among themselves and he slid even further down so that only his eyes were visible above the table.

“If you slide down any more, you’ll wind up in the abyss,” Tokoyami stated as he bit into an apple.

“Is he always this dramatic?” Emica whispered to Uraraka, who nodded.

“I would give anything to be in abyss right now,” Shinsou muttered.

Chapter Text

“Aw, come on, don’t be like that,” Emica pleaded with Shinsou as he made as much distance as he could between them. The two teenagers were outside, the large school building looming behind them.

“You have just made this the worst day of school," Shinsou snapped.

“Don’t be so dramatic, it was fun,” she protested.

He whipped his head around to face her. “For you, maybe.”

“Hitoshi, stop being such a grumpy grape!”

“You know what, just-just stop talking.”

She came to an abrupt stop and placed her hands on her hips. “Maybe I talk as much as I do because you can’t seem to be able to speak more than two sentences.”

“I do talk more than that,” Shinsou growled, thoroughly annoyed. “I just don’t like making a spectacle of myself.”

“I know, that’s why I do it for you!” Emica cheerfully stated. “Stop being so serious. Learn to loosen up.”

The statement caused Shinsou’s anger to flare and he clenched his hands by his side. He opened his mouth to launch a retort but paused. Todoroki, lost in thought, walked along the path leading out of the school. Emica noticed him and her eyes lit up.

Panic seized Shinsou. That last thing he needed was her bugging or making a spectacle of Todoroki.

She turned to walk up to him but Shinsou lurched forward and grabbed her hand. “Don’t.”

“Hey, let me go,” she tried tugging her hand free but he held firm. “You have gotten stronger. But seriously, Shinsou, you have no say in what I do. Now let go.”

“I mean it Emica, knock it off right now,” he ordered, his voice low and with a menacing edge to it. “I’ve put up with enough of your crap for one day.”

The red and white haired student had noticed them and now stood still, watching them. Crud.

“I’m going up to say hi, if you like it or not,” she snapped and started to turn her head but paused. After a moment of darkness and utter confusion washed over her, it hit her, she had no control. Her body remained still, despite her willing it to move.

“We are going to walk home,” Shinsou said. “Have a good day Todoroki.” He walked away from the school with his cousin following behind against her will.

“Uh . . . you too,” Todoroki replied, completely confused at what had just happened in front of him.

The cousins cut their way through the crowded sidewalks. Holding her hand, Shinsou led her onto the train and they rode in silence. He tried to reassure himself that if he can just make it back home, he would be alright. Nervously, he glanced at the faces around him and scratched his wrist. Did they know that Emica was brainwashed? No, how could they? But what if they did? Wait, why was that man looking at him like that? Quickly, he lowered his head and stared down at the floor. How he hated public places. How he hated people with their ideas and opinions.

He swallowed. He tried to remind himself that no one would guess. No one would confront him for using his powers on her. They don’t know. They can’t know. They can’t guess. His wrist was scratched raw by the time the train pulled up to the station. Without wasting another second, Shinsou led her off of it.

They made their way up to his apartment and he quickly fished out his key to get in. He guided her in and closed the door behind them. Exhaling, he felt relief wash over him. He was home; away from other people. Dropping his bag on the ground, he stepped into the kitchen to see Aizawa seated on the floor. The teacher stroked his cat and lifted his head at the sound of his student’s footsteps.

“What’s with Emica?” Aizawa asked, instantly noticing her unusually subdued state.

“Oh.” Shinsou grimaced and his stomach dropped. How would he explain using his quirk on his cousin? He knew he couldn't lie and he didn’t want to fib anyways. For a split second, he considered brainwashing Aizawa out of his home but quickly kicked the thought out as soon as it had come.

“I, uh . . .” His stomach twisted and he finally released Emica of his control.

Aizawa put the cat aside and stood up. “Shinsou, did you—”

Emica stormed into the kitchen and grabbed her cousin's arm, turning him to face her. “Hitoshi Shinsou, you damn bastard!”

Alarmed, Aizawa walked over to them. “Emica, did he brainwash you?”

She curled up her hands into fists and shook one at Shinsou. “He did!”

Shinsou flinched and quickly scooted back. He knew he shouldn’t have done it but he just couldn’t take her anymore. Her antics had left him mortified and caused his anxiety to flare up. She had pushed him to his wit’s end.

“It was awful!” Tears stung Emica’s eyes. “It was horrible, having my body’s control taken from me like that.”

Aizawa’s eyes widened and he marched up to Shinsou.

His student slowly lifted his head and met his severe gaze. “I—” He paused for a split second as Aizawa drew closer. “I’m sorry,” he hastily finished, alarmed at how fast he was approaching.

“You better be,” the raw anger in Aizawa’s voice caused Shinsou’s insides to shrivel up. “You had no right to do that what you just did. What you did was extremely invasive and wrong. And you know that.” He released his quirk. His red, glowing eyes bored into Shinsou’s. The kid felt his quirk slip away as a result of the erasing power and he teetered on the verge of vomiting. 

Emica watched silently, her hand over her mouth.

“M-mr. Aizawa, there’s no need for that,” Shinsou pleaded.

“Prove it to me,” he growled. “Because from what you’ve just shown me, I do think there is a need.”

Shinsou gulped back tears. This was far worse than the humiliation that Emica had put him through. If he had just held out a little longer, if he had just let Emica be, this wouldn’t be happening. You idiotic loser, he berated himself.

“You have great power Shinsou and it’s not to be used lightly.” Aizawa cut through his thoughts. “It’s dangerous to be so loose with it.”

Anger exploded inside of Shinsou and finding the strength, he pushed himself up. “I know that! I’ve been told that since the day my quirk first manifested! I get it. I’m horrifying; a monster.”

“Toshi, no,” Emica whispered.

He ignored her. “I’ve been told countless times that my power is better suite to villainy and sometimes it seems like it’s all that it’s good for!”

Aizawa’s eyes returned to their normal gray color and his hair fell around his face. “Shinsou—”

Seething, his student pushed passed him and retreated to his room. He slammed his door behind him. Normally, he wouldn't have done that, due to the fear of appearing childish. But now, he couldn’t care less. He threw himself on his bed. He had messed up royally.

Now even his own mentor didn’t trusted him. Aizawa, who he now viewed as a father, hadn’t believed him and the pain of knowing that cut into him like a knife. He punched his fist into his pillow. Dammit. Why did he have to go and mess up? Most people already feared him, why did he have to go and antagonize two of the few people that were close to him? Did they fear him now? Hate him?

He tried to tell himself that he was being overly dramatic. They still cared about him but convincing himself of that felt like an uphill battle. Why couldn’t he have been quirkless? That would be so much easier then carrying the weight of his power. Whenever he got in a bad fight or someone got mad at him, he always wound up doubting his value. He knew it was stupid, but that didn’t stop his thoughts from spiraling out of control. Would his real father be mad at him like that? Would his real father temporarily remove his power if he could? Despite it being the power that he had passed onto his son? But he would never know, his father was dead.

Shinsou woke to a hand stroking his hair. He blinked his eyes open to see his mother; her face etched with concern. She sat on the edge of his bed, still dressed in her uniform.

“What’s wrong baby?”

He bit his lip; shame prevented him from admitting to what had happened. It would disappoint his mother to know that he had used his quirk in an un-heroic way—in a bad way. He decided it would be easier to withhold parts of the story instead.

“Emica and I got in a fight.”

She slowly nodded. “It must have been a bad one, you’ve been crying.”

He swallowed. “Yeah.” He hated it whenever it happened, it always made him feel like a little, helpless child.

“But you’ve guys have fought like cats and dogs since you were toddlers. You’ll make up.”

He looked away.

“Come here,” She pulled him up into a hug and rested her head on top of his. She rubbed her cheek against his hair. “If you want to talk, I’m here.”

But her presence was enough, he took in her comfort and warmth. Finally, he wrapped his arms around his mother.

“It’ll be OK,” she whispered.

Chapter Text

Shinsou slept fitfully throughout the night and as a result, he slept through his alarm clock.

“Toshi!” His mom opened the door. “You’ll be late for school!”

He jerked his head up. Crap. Luckily, he had slept in his school uniform so he didn’t need to worry about changing but he would still miss breakfast. His mom handed him a hastily prepared bento box and shoved him out the door. Normally, he would be living in the U.A. dorms but he had opted to return to his apartment for the week that Emica was visiting. Speaking of Emica, he hadn’t seen her that morning and it worried him. Did she go back home? It wouldn’t surprise him if she had. She had every right to be mad at him.

Shouta Aizawa looked up to see fellow teacher and pro hero, Hizashi Yamada, enter the teacher’s lounge.

“Morning Shouta,” he greeted the black clad man that sat on the couch, nursing a cup of coffee.

“Hmpf.”

“Stay up to late last night?” Yamada asked and plopped down next to his friend.

“Yeah. Shinsou is giving me a headache, that’s why.”

“Kids excel at that. They can give aspirin the head ache of its life, I should know,” the father of two replied.

Aizawa shook his head. “I don’t know how you do it . . . and don’t you have a third on the way?”

Yamada nodded his head and his giant blond tuft of hair hit the wall behind him. “Ongaku is due in six months.” He rubbed his forehead, “the pregnancy has been hard on her.”

The erasure hero looked at his friend. At first, he could barely believe that Yamada had managed to find a woman that was willing to settle down with him. But as it turns out, his wife is wackier than he is, thus perfect for the loud and extroverted man.

They had met at a karaoke bar and after she had wumped him in a match, he was smitten with her. Five years later they married, Aizawa being Yamada’s best man. Actually, if it hadn’t been for Aizawa, they might not have tied the knot.

Yamada had been trying to get the nerve to ask Ongaku to wed him for several months but had always chickened out at the last moment. Fed up with it, Aizawa had dragged him to her house, made him get on his knee and finally, after all that, Yamada proposed.

The newly married couple had a rematch at the wedding reception but Ongaku beat him yet again, maintaining the very unofficial title of Karaoke Champion of the Universe.

A loud rock anthem started playing and it startled Aizawa, who almost jumped out of his seat.

“It gets you every time!” Yamada laughed as he answered his phone. “Shinigami’s Morgue, how may I help you?” He answered in a sing-song voice.

Aizawa rolled his eyes.

“I’m looking for my husband’s body,” came his wife’s voice.

Yamada snickered. “You’ve found him. How can I assist thee?”

“Do you know where you left the paperwork for Kakyoku’s field trip?”

“I thought I left it on the kitchen table.”

“The papers aren’t there,” she paused. “Oh . . . no . . . Songu turned them into paper airplanes!”

“Mom, Songu also stuffed one down the toilet,” came a young girl’s voice over the phone.

Aizawa put a hand over his mouth to stop himself from laughing.

The father adjusted his orange tinted glasses. “That’s Songu for you! Always creative,” he cleared his throat, “and destructive . . .” He glanced over at his fellow teacher, who desperately tried to cover his snickering.

“Mom! Songu shoved some bits of paper up his nose. It’s gross!”

“No kidding,” Ongaku snapped. “Alright, Kakyoku! Let go of your brother’s throat, please and thank you.”

Unable to contain himself any longer, Aizawa burst out laughing.

“Hey, hey, hey, it’s not a total waste, Shouta’s enjoying it.” Yamada tried.

“And that helps me how?” she asked.

“Well, uh, it means he’s less of a grump and in turn, won’t annoy me as much, which will result in me not annoying you as much,” he flashed a megawatt grin.

Aizawa, finally able to get himself under control, took a deep breath of air.

“Hmmmm,” Ongaku considered her husband’s reasoning. “I might let you live one more day.”

“I’ll change Songu’s diapers for the rest of the day,” Yamada offered.

This earned him a laugh from her. “No, that’s work we should share, to maintain our sanity.”

“That’s why I love you.”

“Hehe, I know. Alright, I guess I’ll let you go. Say hi to Sir Grump-O.”

“Sir Grump-O says hi,” Aizawa replied.

“Oh! One more thing,” Yamada quickly said.

“Yes?” she asked.

Yamada slapped his phone against Aizawa’s head. “Give Sir Grump-O some parenting advice. His purple haired child is giving him a headache.”

Aizawa jerked his head back in surprise.

“Throw him out with da trash,” Ongaku joked.

“I don’t think his hair will fit in my trashcan,” he dryly replied.

“OK, then on to plan B. Love him no matter how evil he is.”

Aizawa sighed. “I do.”

“OK, then plan C. Weather the storm. It’s always worth it in the end. Sometimes you’ll just have to put up with the crap he comes up with, other times you’ll have to get after him. It’s knowing when and how, and you’ll have to figure that out for yourself.”

Aizawa nodded his head and then remembered that he was talking on the phone.

“And remember, maintain your authority without being a tyrant. Our authority is for the good of our children, not for us. Also, you always have friends you can count on for support.”

A child’s scream sounded in the background and she sighed. “Well, that’s my cue. Gotta go. Love ya Zashi. Goodbye Sir Grump-O!” And she hung up.

Aizawa nodded approvingly. “She’s a smart woman.”

“That’s why I married her. Cause someone’s gotta compensate for the fact that I only have two brain cells,” Yamada elbowed his friend.

“Very true,” Aizawa stood up and threw his cup in the trash. “Time to get to work.” He felt a little bit better now.

Lacking an appetite, Shinsou shoved his breakfast into his school bag and morosely trudged up the path to his school. He avoided eye contact with his fellow students and made his way to his classroom. Aizawa’s words rattled around his brain all day, making it impossible to focus. His head ached and his throat felt dry by the end of his first class.

Finally, after what felt like eons had passed, the bell rang. Shinsou shouldered his bag and silently slipped out of the classroom, ignoring his classmates. Then it hit him, in fifteen minutes he would have to go to class 1-A’s homeroom. Where its teacher, Mr. Aiawa, waited for his students.

What if Aizawa had detention planned for him. What if he planned to tell the whole class about Shinsou’s failure, to use him as a teaching example? No, he tried to tell himself, he wouldn’t do that. But what if he did? Shinsou was losing the battle with his crushing thoughts and now unable to face his teacher, he veered off to the side.

He ducked into a stairwell and sat down to catch his breath. He started scratching his wrist but the pain reminded him that he had overdone it yesterday, so he scratched at his neck instead. Slowly, he realized that he was hearing the breathing of someone else. He turned around to see Todoroki sitting in the corner of a landing, several steps above him. His knees were pulled up with his head resting against them.

Shinsou bit his lip. Todoroki didn’t seem to know notice his presence. Should he go up and talk to him? But what would he say? Asking if he was alright would just be stupid. Anyone would know he was upset. Well, maybe except for Kaminari. Shinsou’s face clouded at the memory of his classmate’s stupidity but then he hung his head. Kaminari wasn’t being malicious, annoying, yes, but not mean. If anyone was mean, it was him.

Todoroki lifted his head and quickly got to his feet. He brushed his hair over his red rimmed eyes.

“Wait,” Shinsou held his hand out and then quickly dropped it. Where was he even going with this?

Todoroki paused.

“It’s OK, I feel like crap too,” he finally finished.

“My brother is still out there,” Todoroki spoke, his voice burdened by sadness.

Shinsou nodded. That was Todoroki for you, getting straight to the point.

“Doing who knows what? How many people has he murdered since we saw him last? How many more people has he burned since he burned you?”

Instinctively, Shinsou’s hand went to his stomach.

“It bothers you, doesn’t it?”

“I, uh,” he pulled his hand away from his stomach and stared at it. Todoroki was right though. He curled his fingers up.

“Sometimes, yes . . .” That was an understatement. After awhile, his brain had finally registered his injury, making things hard for him at times. Shinsou’s mother had woken him from horrible nightmares. Fortunately, they were not frequent but when they happened, they were bad. Sometimes, when he thought about his injury too much, he felt like he was being crushed by an invisible weight, smothered till he couldn’t breath.

“You’re downplaying it, I know it because I do that all the time,” Todoroki responded. He picked up his books and walked past Shinsou. “It’s easier to put up walls than admit to our weakness.”

Shinsou finally stepped out of the stairwell and walked into the halls. He stared at the floor, again refusing to make eye contact with anyone. A person strolled up beside him. Warily, he titled his head to see the black feathered head of Tokoyami bobbing up and down beside him. The small boy held a large stack of paper.

“Don’t mind me,” he spoke in his surprisingly deep voice. “We just happen to be traveling in the same direction.”

Shinsou opened his mouth to respond but suddenly a blond boy streaked by and accidentally knocked Tokoyami to the side. He stumbled forward and his papers slipped out of his arms.

“Damn you Kaminari!” Bakugo bellowed as he chased after him. The pursuer ran through the cascade of falling papers, causing them to flutter in every direction.

“Darn,” Tokoyami’s frustrated red eyes watched the paper disperse around him.

Shinsou put his books aside and quickly started gathering them. Tokoyami knelt down and picked up the ones closest to him. Soon, all of the paper was collected, albeit out of order now.

“Thank you,” Tokoyami said as Shinsou placed the paper he had collected into his arms.

He responded with a nod, picked up his books, and started to walk away.

“Shinsou?”

He paused.

“Are you alright?” Tokoyami asked, genuinely concerned. By now, he was used to Shinsou’s quietness and lack of interaction but he was also good at reading people’s moods; his mother had called it his second quirk. He sensed that something was eating away at his fellow student.

Shinsou blinked, slightly surprised by his question. “Uh, yeah.” And he walked away.

“Lies,” Tokoyami muttered to himself.

A ping came from Shinsou’s phone and he pulled it out. It was a text from Emica: hey, can you meet me at the park just down from your school?

Instantly, he responded: I’ll be right there.

And he ran out of the building. It didn’t matter to him that he had several hours left, he just wanted to apologize to Emica, to set things right. He just wanted everything to go back to normal. His feet pounded against the sidewalk and he didn’t slow till he reached the green grass. He pulled out his phone: where are u?

A second later, she responded: Since it’s still school hours, meet me in the shop right in front of you. He looked up to see a brick building with one large front window.

Shoving his phone in his pocket, he walked towards it and opened the door.

Then everything went black.

Chapter Text

Shinsou blinked his eyes open and slowly, a dim room came into focus. He tried to lift his arms but couldn’t. He looked down to see that he was bound to a metal chair. A piece of duct tape covered his mouth.

“You’re awake,” a tall teenager stepped out of the shadows. She wore a black tank top and a pair of camouflage cargo pants, tucked into combat boots. A black mask covered her lower face and her striking neon yellow eyes peered over it.

Her neon green hair was pulled back into two French braids that ran down her back. But the must striking feature were her arms. Many black knives clung to her well muscled arms.

Shinsou’s eyes widened. What had he gotten himself into? Wait, where was Emica?

She held her hand up.

“Calm down, I’m not going to hurt you. But do know this,” she held up her arms. The knives slowly floated up and hung above her head, rotating like a deadly halo.

“My quirk is Knife Bearer. I have the power to manipulate any knife and if you try anything funny, I’ll be sending one in your direction.”

Inadvertently, Shinsou made a face, that was hardly reassuring. She walked up to the table that he was involuntarily seated at and sat down across from him.

“You’ll be communicating with this,” she pointed at a paper pad and pen in front of him. “I know how your quirk activates.”

Shinsou clenched his jaw. It frustrated him how easily his power was rendered useless.

“We have a lot to talk about,” she started and a knife floated towards him.

He grimaced as the knife cut the zip tie that bound his hands. Slowly, he pulled them up.

“I’m going to leave your legs tied for the time being. You U. A. High kids have a tendency to leap into action whenever it presents itself. Oh, and don’t think of taking the tape off of your mouth.”

Shinsou grabbed the pad and quickly scribbled out: WHERE’S EMICA?

“She’s safe and sound. Don’t worry, we’ll talk about her later,” she leaned back in her seat and propped a boot up on the table. Her eyes looked him up and down.

He stared straight ahead, as if she wasn’t there. The knife that had cut the zip tie hung near his head.

“It really isn’t fair you know.”

He ignored her.

“To be ostracized because of your quirk, something that you couldn’t help having. I understand what that’s like. People weren’t fond of the idea of a young girl being able to whip up a storm of knives,” her finger tapped a knife that hung near her head. “People were horrified to learn what I was capable of.” She sighed, “it was hard living with what I had. Many times I wish I were born quirkless. Sure, I would have been bullied for being without powers, but it would have been easier than being hated for what I did have.”

Shinsou swallowed. Her well rehearsed words had struck a cord. Countless times he had shared the same sentiments. Being hated or feared was hard. It was horrible; an awful burden that he had been experiencing since he was five. Everything had changed once his quirk had manifested.

“You know, I was told that my quirk was great,” she paused, “if I wanted to slaughter people. That’s all everyone could talk about when it came to my power. Those unimaginative jerks.”

He clenched his fist around the pen. He knew what that was like all too well.

“You could make someone jump off of a building!”

“If you controlled a bus driver you could take out a lot of people. The passengers, other drivers and pedestrians.”

“What if you controlled a super powerful hero, like All Might, and caused serious death and destruction?”

“Imagine you being able to make someone cut themselves up.”

“How does it feel to be so powerful but so powerless. Nobody would want you to use it!”

“It always frustrated me how all everyone could focus on was the worst that we could do,” she scratched at her ear. “If I had been raised differently, I might not be like the way I am now. There are plenty of pro heroes with quirks similar to mine. Take Snipe for example: he can control the trajectory of his projectiles with perfect precision. He could do some really nasty things if he wanted to.”

He found himself nodding; she had a very good point. And people, ruled by their fear, didn’t account for things like that.

She crossed her arms. “tthere were some who thought I could do good with my powers. They said that I could become a hero, but why should I become one? Is my power only acceptable if I reach that level?”

Stressed and fed up, Shinsou scrawled on the pad: I don’t want to hear your life story.

She chuckled and sat up. “Too bad Purple Boy, I’m not done talking. My older brother and I were ostracized by my family because of our quirks. We were despised by people that were supposed to love us unconditionally. We became targeted by people that didn’t trust us. We became feared,” her eyes met Shinsou’s. “You’ve been directly affected by that prejudice and hatred.”

Her words cause his stomach to sink, he knew what she was going to bring up. Shaking, he tried to write but gave up and slammed the pen down on the table.

“Your father was murdered by an anti-mental quirk radical who believed that the world would be better off without someone like him. Had the man known about you, you probably would have been killed as well.”

Shinsou clenched his jaw and glared at her. Anger surged through him. Anger at the world for ostracizing him, his family, his father. Anger at her for bringing his father’s death up. Anger at himself for disappointing Aizawa. Anger at Aizawa for reacting so harshly.

“I understand exactly how you feel,” she stated.

Slowly, he wrote out his next words: what do you want?

The corner of her mouth pulled up in a grin. “Ah, yes. The group I am a part of is trying to grow in size, and I want you to join.”

Alarm crossed his face. She quickly held up her hand.

“No, we are not trying to assemble the League of Villains 2.0. We aren’t uncivilized,” one knife rose above the rest of them, “One, it would be counter intuitive; people fear us because they assume that we will resort to violence.” A second knife floated up beside the first one. “Two, it would have people associate us with villainy, which is not want we want, as we have a bad enough image already.”

Shinsou tilted head, as a way of saying: what’s the point of this?

“The group’s goal is to find every last person that has attacked, harmed, or encouraged that against people such as yourself, and bring them to justice. Before you freak out again, I repeat, we are not going to hurt them. We will mostly be gathering intel and once we’ve gathered enough proof against someone, we bring them to the police. We leave the justice to our messed up system so we can stay out of jail ourselves.”

He found himself nodding again. It surprised him, but he really appreciated the idea of that. It wouldn’t be illegal per say and they could potential prevent someone from losing a parent, like he had, or a sibling or friend.

Can I take this tape off please? He wrote.

She nodded her head. He ripped the tape off and gasped; that had stung. Fine purple hair clung to it. Well, there went all of his peach fuzz.

“Sorry, that’s all I had on hand,” she apologized. “I felt like I had to resort to capturing you as you wouldn’t talk to me willingly, at first. I think that’s U. A.’s fault though. It hates anything that it doesn’t deem heroic.”

He opened his mouth but paused. He had so many questions, he didn’t even know where to start. Emica. “Where’s Emica?”

“She’s alright. Probably shopping in a mall somewhere, you know, typical teenager stuff,” she didn’t sound impressed. “We snitched her phone off of her this morning.” She held up a smart phone with a sparkly orange case.

“How . . . ?”

“Remember how I mentioned intel? We’ve been gathering a lot on you since your debut at the Sports Festival. I know all of your direct family member and friend’s names, addresses, quirks and so on. We’ve been watching you for a long time, waiting for the right moment to reveal our mission,” she continued, “When it was discovered that your cousin was visiting we realized that would be the best time to come forward. And my plan worked out perfectly; using her phone to lure you in,” she finished proudly.

Shinsou made a face. No kidding, they had been gathering information. Then that meant they more than likely knew about Eri. The idea of that didn’t sit well with him for some reason. True, she was being kept at the U.A. dorms for her safety and that had resulted in him not being able to see her for a bit . . .

“Though, it was a slight risk; texting you during school hours.”

Her words snapped him back to reality and he blinked.

“But it was the only time I could speak to you,” she said. “Well, I’m not going to keep you any longer. Do I have an answer?”

“Uh, I, I’ll have to think about it,” he tentatively stood up. “But . . . you’re right about so many things . . .”

She stood up and handed him Emica’s phone along with his. “My number is in your contacts now, it’s under a false name and it’s untraceable.”

“. . . Thanks . . .”

"You can do so much good, more than if you just conform to society's standards and become a hero to prove that you're worth keeping alive."

She held up a black bag. “You’ll have to put this over your head so I can lead you out of here.”

He took it and stared down at it. Thoughts bombarded his already anxious mind and now he had to trust this stranger to release him.

“Hitohsi.”

He looked up.

“Remember this, your quirk does not determine who you choose to be, you do.”

The sky had darkened when he finally emerged from her chosen meet up place. He found himself back at the park. Suddenly, a wave of exhaustion hit him. Thoughts whirled around his head. Would he really join her? He barely knew her. What if she was lying and wanted to use him for something else that she hadn’t mentioned? But what if she was telling the truth? What if she really just wanted justice?

His knees buckled and he gripped a lamp post for support. His heart pounded; his breathing came out rough and ragged. What was happening? It’s stress, he tried to tell himself. From Aizawa and Emica being mad at him for his stupidity to hearing about his father’s death and then having his anger about his treatment mirrored by someone else. Finally, after some effort, he got his breathing under control. He mentally berated himself for his moment of weakness.

A strong hand grabbed his arm and pulled him up. He turned to see Aizawa’s peeved face.

“Where were you?”

“I-I, um, I—”

“Your mom has been worried sick about you. It’s almost dinner time.”

“S-sorry . . . I was just heading back.”

“Were you now?” Aizawa raised an eyebrow. “What happened to your face?”

Shinsou’s eyes widened. The tape. Crap. How would he explain that?

“Come on, she’s waiting for you.” He pulled his phone out and texted his student’s mother: I found your delinquent son.

She replied instantly: Thank goodness! Please bring him home.

Aizawa: Will do.

He slipped his phone into his back pocket. “All right, lets get you home.” He grabbed Shinsou’s wrist and pulled him forward, causing his student to stumble after him.

They rode the train in silence.

Shinsou stared at the window across from him. He didn’t want to talk to his teacher, let alone make eye contact with him. Aizawa noticed the two faint indents on Shinsou’s wrists.

“Shinsou?”

“. . . What?”

“Where were you?”

“None of your business.” He knew that he would probably get in trouble for skipping class but at this point, he couldn’t care less.

Mrs. Shinsou threw open the door before Aizawa could even knock. She then pulled her rumpled son into a hug. “You had me so scared!” After briefly checking to make sure he was indeed intact, she looked up at his mentor. “Thank you Mr. Aizawa.”

“Anytime,” he turned to leave.

“Won’t you stay for dinner? I’ve cooked more than enough food for the three of us,” she gestured at Emica, who quietly stood in the doorway behind her.

“I’m good, thank you.”

Mrs. Shinsou put her son aside and placed her hands on her hips.

“And when was the last time you ate?”

He paused, mulling over his answer. Fine, he’d tell the truth.

“Last night.”

“That’s ridiculous! Get in here and have something to eat,” she pointed at the table. No one argued with the tall, silvery haired woman and so Aizawa found himself seated at the Shinsou family table.

Chapter Text

You were just kidnapped, why haven’t you told anyone? Shinsou lowered his gaze. Yes, he knew that technically he should have told Aizawa, but something blocked the willpower to do so. Had he become so numb to his past experiences that the kidnapping simply didn’t register? Or was it because in the back of his mind, he agreed with her? A big part of his reason to become a hero had been to slap society in the face, to prove it wrong. But his father’s death and his own past attempt at leaving life had changed his reasoning; it had morphed into something beyond that.

He now recognized his value and becoming a hero wasn’t to prove it, like that knife girl had stated; it was something else. But fear played a role in his current mindset as well; fear that Aizawa didn’t trust him anymore. Fear that if he admitted that he agreed with the girl, Aizawa would declare him unfit for his aspirations. But was the fear unreasonable? His anxiety twisted and distorted reality into mirages of truth.

“Where were you Toshi?" Emica demanded as she sat down next to her cousin.

“Huh?” He looked at her, his eyes finally focusing on something.

“Will there ever be a day where you haven’t zoned out?” She shook her head.

Out of the corner of his eye, Shinsou could see Aizawa observing him. To a casual onlooker, the man looked relaxed and at ease, but his student knew him too well.

Then it hit Shinsou, he could make up an alibi for his absence. He asked a question of his own: “Did you lose your phone?”

“Yeah, I did.”

He held it up. “Here you go.”

“Thank goodness!” She gratefully took it back and flipped it over in her hands.

“. . . that’s why I disappeared,” He scratched at the back of his neck, “I figured it was missing because you hadn’t texted me at all today so I became determined to find it.” The boy made sure to sound sheepish.

“Wait, that’s why you vanished from the face of the earth?” His mother paused mid task.

“Yeah,” he quietly chuckled, “Once it hit me that I did all that for her phone, I felt incredibly stupid . . .” Inwardly, he grimaced. Despite being excellent at lying, he hated it, especially when it came to his mother, but his current situation necessitated it. “I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Aizawa shift his gaze. Had his fib fooled his teacher?

“Oh, thank goodness,” Mrs. Shinsou visibly relaxed, “I know how you laser focus on things and then completely forget about everything else.” Well, she took it hook, line, and sinker.

“Oh yes!” Emica chimed in, “he’s had that peculiar habit for a long time.”

Shinsou looked at his hands, he had been able to use his circumstances and personality as a perfect backdrop for his lie. Wait, was that another reason why that girl took Emica’s phone? To give him an alibi? Did her group really know him that well? A shiver ran down his spine.

“Emica was freaking out all day,” Mrs. Shinsou stated and heaped food onto Aizawa’s plate. “Between her missing phone and her missing cousin, she didn’t have a good day.”

The teacher, who had maintained a neutral face throughout the entire conversation, raised an eyebrow at the growing pile of food.

“That’s enough, thank you.”

She ignored him.

Pulling a face, Aizawa looked at Shinsou.

To Shinsou's own surprise, he threw his head back and laughed. It was great seeing someone best his mentor.

Emica giggled. “Yeah, it’s illegal to turn down Mrs. Shinsou’s cooking.”

“So I’ve learned,” Aizawa deadpanned.

Mrs. Shinsou flashed him a grin and took a seat besides Emica. “How is it Mica Mica?”

“It’s good! Besides seeing you two, it’s my favorite thing about visiting here.”

“It’s very good, thank you Mrs. Shinsou,” Aizawa admitted after a hesitant bite.

Shinsou’s mother beamed at the praise. “I’m one of the best cooks at my station. Fights have broken out over the leftovers.”

Grateful that the conversation wasn’t focusing on him anymore, Shinsou contributed to the discussion. “I’ve seen it. Don’t get between a bunch of hungry firefighters and mom's food.” The incidents of the past slipped out of his consciousness and he found himself enjoying dinner.

Emica cackled. “That must be a sight!”

A smile crept onto Aizawa’s face; he secretly enjoyed hearing about the Shinsou family’s lives.

After dinner Aizawa volunteered to help Mrs. Shinsou with the dishes, as a way of thanking her for feeding him. Her son sat on the living room floor, his class books spread out in front of him. Emica sat next to him, peering over his shoulder at his homework. He hadn’t even had the chance to apologize to her yet, but she seemed perfectly content to be by his side again.  

“Well, that’s going to come to -251 and—” 

“Emica,” he gave her a look, “I was going to figure that out.” She was well aware of his difficulty with math and liked to “help” him when she could. He rubbed his face in frustration; it seemed liked the numbers rearranged themselves on the paper every few seconds. He sighed; his brain ached and he had to resist the urge to chuck the book across the small room. 

Emica stood up. “You need a break, have any ideas?” 

“Sleep,” he quickly replied. 

“It’s too early for that!” She adjusted the big bow on her blouse.

“Not for me . . ,” he looked up at her. “Oh, I really should have said this sooner . . .” He paused. 

“Yeah?”  

“I’m sorry about the other day, I shou—” 

The next thing he knew, she tackled him into a hug. “You’re really stupid sometimes but you’re still my best friend,” she declared.  

It felt so good to hear that after the stresses of the past few days and he just sat there, soaking it in.

“The fact that you aren’t trying to escape my hug is slightly alarming,” Emica made a dramatic face. “Where’s the real Toshi and what did you do to him?”  

“I dunno, I think I accidentally let the alley cats take off with him,” he snickered and then sat up to see Aizawa watching them. 

“That fact that she successfully tackled you to the floor . . . was impressive,” Aizawa commented. “A different sort of combat technique,” He then glanced over at an amused looking Mrs. Shinsou. “You’ve got an interesting family.” 

The mother laughed and then shrugged. “She could probably topple skyscrapers with them.” 

Emica beamed at the praise. “No one escapes my hugs!” 

“Am I a sky scraper?” Shinsou titled his head.  

“You’re tall enough to be one,” Emica lowered her brows. “And that’s why you got a concussion from dancing . . .” 

Shinsou grimaced. “Oh, don’t even mention that."

 “It’s too bad you don’t dance anymore,” his cousin stuck out her bottom lip. 

“He’s still flexible alright,” Aizawa said, “he likes to concern me with that from time to time.” 

“Hah, that’s awesome!” She grinned at him.  

He smiled in return; he was feeling better than he had in a long time.

Once the dishes were finished Aizawa took his leave, stating that he had something that needed dealing with that evening.

Chapter Text

Shinsou opened his eyes to the darkness of his room. He glanced at his alarm clock. 3:02 am. Yawning, he sat up. As tired as he was, he just couldn’t sleep. Emica slept on his bed while he lay on an air mattress in the middle of his room. He crawled off of it and opened his door. A light was on in the kitchen and he could see Aizawa seated in one of the chairs, his back to him. The top of his jumpsuit was pulled down to his waist and he stared at his hands. Mrs. Shinsou stood behind him, cleaning the blood off of a gash on the back of his right shoulder.

Several weeks ago, Aizawa had returned Shinsou to his apartment after a particularly rough mission. The kid had made it out unscathed but his teacher had not been so lucky. Mrs. Shinsou’s inner medic kicked in and she demanded that she treat his wounds before he set off into the night. Grudgingly, he had sat down and let her help. But, after that, he decided that he trusted her more than himself when it came to treating his injuries. And it was better than going to some ER or clinic. So after that night, whenever he needed it, he utilized Mrs. Shinsou’s kitchen clinic.

Not only did Mrs. Shinsou care about Aizawa’s well being but she also thought of it as a way of giving back, especially after all that he had done for her son.

“I swear Mr. Aizawa, it seems like you brought a lemon to a knife fight,” she stated as she coated the padded part of an adhesive bandage with antibiotic.

He chuckled quietly. “Sometimes, yes.”

“Hmm, maybe next time bring a knife?” She pulled her large utility knife out of her pocket. “Here, borrow mine until you get your own.” She placed the matte black knife in his bruised hand.

He held it up and then pulled the blade out. “Good grief, this is practically a sword. What do you do with it? Murder your patients?”

She laughed. “No doofus. But there are times where I’ve had to wave it around in order to deter some people.”

Shinsou sat down in his doorway and leaned against its frame. He didn’t have anything else to do, so why not watch the two most important people in his life bicker?

“Hmm,” Aizawa responded.

“I’ve been kicked, pinched, slapped, punched, spat on, puked on, and pissed on,” she counted the incidents on her fingers, “and sadly the knife can only deter some of some that.”

Aizawa turned his head to look at her and raised his brows. “What do you deal with, super villains?”

“Sometimes it feels like that,” she replied and she carefully placed the bandage over his wound. “How’s that?”

He closed the knife, placed it on the table and then circled his right arm to test his range of motion. “Not bad.”

“Good. Alright, let’s see this wound on the back of your neck,” she gestured for him to turn his head away from her. She then carefully gathered his black locks in her hand and looked around for a way to fasten them up. Spying a yellow chip clip that lay on the table, she leaned over and secured his hair with it. “It ain’t stylish but it’ll have to do.”

Shinsou covered his mouth to hide his snicker. The sight of Aizawa with a chip clip securing his hair was rather amusing. Turning back around, he grabbed his phone. He took a clandestine picture with it. Blackmail for later.

Aizawa’s hand felt the clip. “Is that a chip clip?”

Mrs. Shinsou swatted his hand away. “Yes, don’t doubt my methods.” She picked up a wad of gauze and dabbed the cut with it.

“I wouldn’t dream of that.” But he wasn’t being sarcastic; he appreciated her work ethic, sensibility, and good nature.

“In my field of work you have to come up with all sort of bizarre solutions, for serious issues to the little dumb things.”

He nodded. “I’m sure.” He titled his head. “What made you choose this line of work?”

Pausing, she gathered her thoughts. “Well, it was a combination of things. I think that, for me, the biggest thing was my admiration for what first responders do,” she started dressing his cut. “. . . After some EMTS saved a family member . . . I just— I don’t know, it’s hard to explain.”

“Sometimes things can’t be explained nor should they be.”

A small smile formed on her face. “Yes,” she stepped back. “I’m done.” She then pulled off her plastic gloves and threw them in a trash bag, along with the other waste.

Aizawa reached up and started to pull the clip out of his hair. He paused once he realized it was tangled in.

“Oh, hang on,” Mrs. Shinsou stepped back over.

Shinsou’s eyes slowly closed and his head slumped forward. Sleep had finally found the purple haired kid.

“I’ve got it,” and Aizawa gave it a hard tug, which he quickly regretted. “. . . ouch . . .”

“I told you to wait. You’re as bad as Hitoshi now.”

To his surprise, she easily pried it out of his hand; she was stronger than he

had thought. “What, patience wise or messed up hair wise?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Both,” she firmly replied.

“I am offended.”

“Haha, too bad!” She slowly worked his hair out of the clip. “Of all the stupid things to happen.”

“It was your idea,” Aizawa responded.

“I know that dumbass.”

A laugh escaped the normally serious man.

She paused; she had never heard his laugh before. She found the sound of it rather pleasant and warming.

He lifted his hands up, “oh, I’ll get it out—”

“I’m almost done, jeez-o-flip!”

His hands dropped to his side, he figured he better wait. Finally, after some more hassling, the clip came free.

Mrs. Shinsou held it out in front of her. “This thing is evil. It must be disposed of.”

“It shouldn’t go to waste. I’ll use it for my chip bags if you despise it so much.”

“Fine,” She leaned over and clipped it onto his nose.

Aizawa stared at it, cross-eyed. He really didn’t know what to make of what had just happened. Well, now he knew where Shinsou got his sass from.

Slowly, he pulled it off and gave Mrs. Shinsou a what-the-hell-is-your-deal look.

She snickered and put the first aid kit away. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist.”

“Well, that was evident,” he shook his head and hid his smile. He pulled his t-shirt back on and tied the arms of his jumpsuit around his waist. “Thank you for your assistance.”

“Anytime.”

He turned to leave and noticed the slumbering Shinsou. “Hmm, it looks like your offspring has escaped his bed.”

She turned and smiled at the sight of her son. “He does that sometimes. I once found him sleeping face down on the kitchen floor . . .”

Aizawa made a face. “Fascinating.”

At the same time, they stepped towards him. They paused and looked at each other, waiting for the other to go first.

Mrs. Shinsou shrugged. “Let’s get him to bed.” She knelt down beside her son and carefully placed her hand around his arm. Aizawa crouched down and took his other arm. Together, they gently pulled him upright.

“Huh . . .” Shinsou asked, yawning. “What’s up?”

Aizawa and Mrs. Shinsou exchanged another look. She shook her head at her kid. “You’re supposed to be in bed.”

“I know that,” He yawned again.

“He’s mouthy, even when he’s barely awake,” Aizawa observed as they walked him over to the air mattress.

Shinsou flopped down on it and his mother pulled his blankets over him.

“How many does he have?” The teacher asked, scratching his head.

She chuckled. “A lot. He likes to burrow.”

“Goodnight mom, dad," Shinsou snuggled up underneath his covers.

“Goodnight Toshi,” they replied at the same time.

Mrs. Shinsou closed the door behind them and they walked back to the kitchen. Aizawa unlocked the kitchen window.

“Thank you for all you’ve done for Hitoshi,” she said as he climbed over the sink.

He paused. “Thank you for letting me be a part of his life.” And like that, he slipped out the window and disappeared into the night.

“Some amazing people come in all sorts of strange packages,” Mrs. Shinsou said to herself.

Chapter Text

Glancing up at the classroom’s clock, Shinsou scratched his arm. He still hadn’t made up his mind about the knife girl’s proposal. You really shouldn’t join shady organizations he told himself. But what she said made so much sense to him. And she seemed genuine. But it could easily be an act . . . He wanted make a decision; but what he knew he really needed to do was talk to Aizawa, first and foremost. But how would the teacher react? Especially knowing that Shinsou hadn’t said anything about it yesterday. Congratulations for being a dumb brick and not mentioning you were kidnapped. Shinsou sighed and covered his face with his hand.

“Mr. Shinsou?”

He jerked his head up. “Uh, yes?”

“Do you know the answer?”

“Um, no sir,” and he stared at his desk. He had zoned out for the hundredth time today.

“And why is that?”

“Uh—”

A loud crash startled the class. The building shook.

Shinsou gripped the edge of his desk out of surprise. The school alarm sounded.

“Everyone, stand up and get in orderly lines,” their teacher shouted above the chaos. The students calmed down and did as they were instructed.

Aizawa charged down the hallway, his goggles over his eyes and his capture weapon stretched out in his hands.

Shinsou swallowed. “Get back safely,” he found himself saying out loud. The building shook again and one of the students shrieked.

“Everyone, to the stairs!” Present Mic’s voice carried over the din. Shortly afterwords Shinsou found himself crammed in the stairwell. Aizawa will be fine, he tried to reason to himself. He knew he probably shouldn’t worry but he couldn’t help it. A student’s elbow hit him in the back, causing him to lean over the railing. He looked down to see Ojiro gazing up at him from the lower floor. The look in the tailed student’s eye was unreadable.

“What?” Shinsou blurted out loud but his voice was lost among the frantic chatter.

The students were escorted outside, which was disaster free. Police officers directed them away from the building and towards safety. Shinsou turned his head see that most of the glass had been knocked out of cafeteria's big windows. Massive chunks of ice filled most of the room.

Panic gripped him and he paused. Had someone tried to attack Todoroki? Was it Dabi? Had he returned? He needed to see what was happening. Just as one of the officers turned his head, he ducked away and crept towards the building. All of his training with Aizawa made the task a breeze. His brain berated him for being moronic but his body moved forward. He just wanted to make sure Todoroki was OK.

Aizawa was crouched on the floor, his hair floating above his head and his eyes glowing red. He cast out his capture weapon and it disappeared behind a wall of ice. After a hard jerk, he pulled a struggling figure out from the ice. Todoroki was bound by his capture weapon, struggling to break free.

“Stop right now Todoroki!” Aizawa barked at his student. The captured student fell to his knees.

Shinsou’s mouth dropped open.

Later that day

Shinsou sat on his bed, his quilt wrapped around him. He stared at the wall.

“Hey . . .” Emica entered his room.

“Hi,” came his quiet reply.

She sat herself next to him. “Is the incident that happened at school bothering you?”

“Yeah,” he cleared his throat. “. . . this is probably stupid of me to think this way, but I can’t help but blame myself. I knew he was in distress and . . .” He met her gaze, “I failed him. I should have done something.”

Slowly, she shook her head. “You don’t know that. Don’t blame yourself unless you’re one hundred percent certain. Otherwise, it’s not fair to yourself.”

He sighed, “I suppose so.” With his pointer finger, he traced the long scar on his forearm. “I’ve been worried about him for awhile now. I have a lot of physical scarring, but most of Todoroki’s is mental.”

“And that’s the hardest to deal with,” she finished.

“Aizawa tried reaching out to him but I guess it just wasn’t enough.”

“Well, maybe he can get some help now,” Emica offered.

Shinsou’s shoulders sagged. “Maybe.”

The doorbell rang and they paused. It was rare when someone rang the Shinsou apartment.

“What?” He glanced at Emica, who simply shrugged. Grudgingly, he stood up and answered it.

Several police officers stood in the hallway. A female one approached the doorway and she warily eyed purple haired kid that stood in front of her.

“Uh, are you Hitoshi Shinsou?”

“. . . I am,” he replied.

Emica walked up beside him and he gave his cousin an uncertain glance. What was going on? Her eyes asked.

“We have a warrant for your arrest,” another officer spoke.

“I didn’t do it,” Shinsou quickly wrote out on a piece of paper that had been shoved at him.

“Shoto Todoroki was brainwashed. After he was stopped by Eraserhead he went limp and became non-responsive. When he woke in the hospital he had no memory of what had happened. And that’s what happens to people after you’ve used that quirk of yours on them,” the officer that sat across from him pointed an accusatory finger at the boy.

Shinsou’s face fell. Pain and confusion weighed down on him.

After he had been arrested in front of his cousin, a muzzle had been clamped on him and he was dragged down to the police station. Having the muzzle forced on him was humiliating. It felt like he had been reduced to an animal, a dangerous creature that needed to be caged. The police officers refused to make eye contact or talk to him. One had roughly shoved him into the backseat of a cruiser. The overly tightened handcuffs had cut into his wrists but no one dared loosen them, as if they afraid that if they did, he would somehow unleash his quirk on them.

He tapped at the piece of paper in front of him, to show that he stood by his written statement. But that didn't deter the officer.

“It’s awful to think that a messed up kid has this great power. It’s sickening and I’m going to make sure you don’t get off easy.”

Shinsou growled in frustration.

“That’s right. Just because you’re a kid that doesn’t mean I’ll take pity on you,” he sneered.

Shinsou glared down at the table. How he wished Tokoyami’s mentioned abyss would come and swallow him up.

The door opened and a figure stepped in.

Chapter Text

“Ah, Eraserhead,” the officer stood up to greet the hero.

Shinsou’s head shot up and he looked at his mentor questioningly.

“What has he said?” Aizawa asked, his voice low.

“He insists that he didn’t do it but he’s not fooling me,” he pointed at the prisoner. “That brat has it coming to him.”

The pro hero ignored his statement. “Could I have a couple of minutes with him? I might be able to get something out of him.”

“Why not? He’s all yours,” and the officer walked out of the interrogation room.

Aizawa walked over and sat himself down on the edge of the table. He looked down at his student.

Shinsou swallowed. Surely he didn’t think that he brainwashed Todoroki? He tried to maintain eye contact but faltered, his eyes darting away.

Leaning over, his teacher unstrapped the muzzle. Shinsou held still as his fingers pulled the straps away from his face.

Aizawa drew his arm back and threw it into the corner of the room with more force than was necessary. The clatter of it hitting the floor echoed in the nearly empty room.

“Thank you,” Shinsou whispered.

“The police aren’t taking any chances. They fear you, greatly,” Aizawa stated severely, his voice still low.

“I already told him that I didn’t do it.”

He crossed his arms. “That’s not enough. Let’s look at the case. Todoroki was brainwashed after he has been missing since yesterday afternoon. You too were gone yesterday afternoon and a student had spotted the two of you talking before you both disappeared," he continued, "And after I found you, you refused to state what you had been up to. And the day before that you had used your quirk on your cousin." After a moment's pause, he finished; "It’s only rational to conclude that it was you.”

Shinsou’s stomach sank. The evidence was damning and all he had were his words. Unless . . . Should he tell Aizawa about the knife girl? But now would he even believe that? It would be a little too convenient to believe. And if they did believe that she existed they would probably think he did it, acting for her and her group. Fear that it would get him in even more trouble kept him silent.

“I had nothing to do with Todoroki’s brainwashing. Yes, I talked to him yesterday but that was it, I just talked to him. He had been crying . . . And I tried to comfort him,” Shinsou stared down at the table, his fingernails dug into his scarred arm. “But I had nothing to do with his disappearance and brainwashing.”

A sigh escaped Aizawa and he crouched down on the floor beside his student, his eyes searching the boy’s face.

“Hitoshi, I want to believe you. But rationally speaking, I shouldn't have much reason for it but . . . I took the muzzle off because I want to trust you.”

Shinsou pulled his hand away from his arm to see that his nails had cut into his skin. His mental distress blocked out the physical pain of what he had just done. Blood beaded up over the cuts.

Aizawa placed his hand on the kid’s arm and turned it towards him. His brow furrowed.

“A bite mark was found on Todoroki’s upper arm, crusted over with blood.”

Shinsou grimaced. “Was it self inflicted?”

“I don’t know, Todoroki said he doesn’t have any memory of doing it. He told me that he hasn’t self harmed but I’ll be honest . . .” Aizawa’s gray eyes clouded over, “I’m not sure if I believe him.”

“Y-yeah,” Shinsou agreed, his voice shaking slightly. “I-I know everything’s stacked against me, but I also know I did not brainwash him. And you may not believe me but to say anything otherwise would be a lie,” his voice found its resolve at the end of his statement and he made eye contact with Aizawa. “I’m innocent.”

The man stood up. “Alright. I accept what you have said,” he turned to leave but then paused. “Prove the police wrong Hitoshi.”

Shinsou stood up and opened his mouth to respond but before he could speak, Aizawa pulled his miserable son into a hug.

The door to the room flew open and the detective stepped in. “Eraser, Todoroki’s been kidnapped!”

“What?” Aizawa looked up in alarm.

Bewilderment crossed the boy’s face but then an inkling of hope appeared. Maybe, just maybe, it would help the police believe him.

“Yes, he was taken from his hospital room. The officer tasked with watching him was found, pinned to the wall with two knives. It happened so quickly he couldn’t react. Someone with a quirk that renders people unconscious stopped him from witnessing the abduction.”

Shinsou’s head shot up. The girl with the knives. He had to tell.

“Aizawa, I do have something to tell you,” he blurted out.

“What is it?” He demanded, knowing Shinsou had been hiding something the entire time.

Darkness enveloped them.

Chapter Text

Shinsou woke to a beam of sunlight shining on his face. Annoyed, he rolled over and closed his eyes. Suddenly, his eyes flew open and he sat up. He lay on a white platform bed in an unfamiliar room.

“Wha—”

The walls were white and the floor light bamboo. Clean and minimally decorated, it came across as surreal. The furniture consisted of a gray wooden dresser, and a metal side table, topped with a gooseneck lamp. A large window filled most of the back wall of the room.

“A hospital . . ?”

He looked down to see that he was still dressed in his school uniform, his tie loose around his neck. Confused, he scratched at the back of his neck. This place didn’t strike him as a medical facility. He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. Slowly, he looked around and spotted his ratty white sneakers sitting on a wooden shoe rack. The room had two white doors. He cautiously walked up to the one near the window and opened it to reveal a clean bathroom.

“Wow,” he found himself saying. It was nicer than all of his apartment combined. Closing it, he made his way towards the other door. His hand reached out for the knob and the door opened.

He froze.

The girl with knives walked in, except there were no knives and she wore a purple tank top and baggy gray sweatpants.

“Ah, sleeping beauty has risen,” she stated. Shinsou caught his reflection in a mirror above the dresser. His hair stuck out every which way, his eye bags were more pronounced than usual, and his mouth was partially open in surprise. Hardly a sleeping beauty.

“Where am I?” He ventured, realizing that she looked more like her age in the natural light.

“Mars.”

“And you must be an alien,” he raised an eyebrow.

“That’s right. You’re in our space ship and will be brought to our leader.”

Well, he had regretted his snarky comment.

“So, a lot has happened,” she tapped her chunky wristwatch against the door frame.

His face bunched up with annoyance. “No kidding. Last thing I remember was being—wai—where’s Aizawa?” Panic seized him.

She lowered her neon green eyebrows. “He was hurt, but he’s doing better.”

The news caused Shinsou’s heart to skip a beat. “Can I see him?”

“Not now, he’s not awake.”

“I don’t care.”

“No and that’s that,” she replied firmly. “But, the other kid is awake.” Todoroki.

Shinsou rubbed his forehead, perplexed. “Why did you guys kidnap him?”

“We didn’t, we rescued him.”

“From who?”

She rolled her eyes. “If you let me explain, you will find out why.” She turned and walked out of the door. “Follow me.”

Frustrated, he walked after her. He wanted to know what was going on, but what other choice did he have? They entered a white hallway and passed by several doors. “Where do those lead?”

“To other rooms, like yours.”

“How big is this place?”

“It’s big.”

“Where are we going?”

She paused and turned her head. “You’re giving me a headache.”

“You would ask as many questions as I am, if you were in my position.”

Titling her head, she considered what he had just said. “Nah, I’d be figuring out how to escape.”

“How do you know I’m not? My question asking could be to aid my efforts,” he retorted.

“That’s why I’m not answering them,” she replied evenly.

Finally, after what felt like forever, they walked into a large and spacious living room, which, like his room, was minimally decorated and very white.

Two white, plush sofas took up the middle of the room. They faced a large, gas powered fireplace.

He recognized the red and white mop of Todoroki and his heart beat finally slowed. At least his fellow student was OK. The boy sat on one of the couches, a gray blanket covering most of him. His missmatched eyes stared at the dancing flame in front of him.

Shinsou made his way over to him.

“Todoroki?”

He turned at the sound of his name and relief flooded his eyes. “Shinsou, you’re alright?”

The other student nodded. “I guess . . .” He sat down next to the him. Shinsou's fingers went to scratch his wrist but his fingertips felt gauze. He lifted his wrist up. “What?”

The girl sat down next to them and raised an eyebrow.

“Ah, yes, our medic found about your bad habit.”

He then noticed that the cuts caused by his fingernails were covered by a band-aid.

Todoroki leaned over. “Did you . . . self harm?” He asked quietly, his eyes searching the other kid's face.

Shinsou jerked his ahead away. “What, no.”

Doubting, Todoroki lifted his white eyebrow.

Shinsou lowered his purple eyebrows.

The girl raised and lowered her neon eyebrows rapidly. “Do you guys speak the language of eyebrow?”

They slowly turned their heads to look at her, sharing an identical look of confusion.

“Just asking,” she shrugged.

“Ah, the boys are awake,” an attractive woman, in her mid twenties, entered the living room. She wore a black knee length dress and red ankle length socks. The colors matched her smooth red and black vertical striped hair, which ended at her shoulders.

“She’s got your hair beat,” the girl said and gestured at Todoroki. He looked indifferent.

The woman laughed. It was strong but warm. “Yeah, I guess I do. My mom used to say that my hair looked like wallpaper. Not that I’ve ever seen red and black striped wallpaper. Anyways, I’m Mainjiru.”

“. . . I’m assuming you already know who I am and well,” Shinsou pointed at Todoroki, “and this Shoto Todoroki . . .”

“Call me Todoroki.”

“Sure, I can do that,” Mainjiru said.

“But I’m sure you already know that . . .” Shinsou added, still peeved that they knew so much about him.

The woman nodded. “Hey,” she gestured at the knife girl, “have you introduced yourself?”

She rolled her eyes. Shinsou and Todoroki shared a look.

“Ugh, who gives a flip? I’m Naifaeru.”

“Are you sisters?” Shinsou asked.

“We’re actually cousins; our names just happen to end the same way,” Naifaeru responded, sounding bored, like she'd been asked that question a million times.

He nodded and looked back at Todoroki. Did he know what was going on? Everything must be OK, or at least, the others were acting like it was.

“Alright,” Mainjiru sat down on an ottoman in front of the couches and crossed her legs in a business like manner. “I know you boys have a lot of questions.”

Shinsou sat up.

The action caused Naifaeru to stifle a chuckle.

“What?” He asked, noticing her muffled sound.

“Nothing,” she refused to admit she found his sudden stand to attention endearing.

Mainjiru snapped her fingers. “Excuse me Naify.”

“Sorry,” she said, without sounding the least bit apologetic.

“Anyways,” Mainjiru cleared her throat, to give herself time to think. “We rescued Hitoshi and you, Todoroki from an anti-mental quirk radical.”

A shiver ran down Shinsou’s spine.

“A anti-mental quirk radical?” Todoroki asked and glanced at Shinsou.

“A person who hates those with mental quirks, such as Hitoshi, with his brainwashing quirk. They often view those with such powers as inherently corrupt and dangerous. And often resort to torture or murder to “stop” them . . .” The woman paused.

Shinsou swallowed. Torture? He dug his nails into his other wrist. Did-was his father tortured before he was murdered?

“But I don’t have a mental quirk . . .” Todoroki responded. “Why was I targeted?”

“We are guessing it’s because of your association with Hitoshi,” Mainjiru said. “But it’s just a gue—.”

“Why was Todoroki brainwashed?” Shinsou interrupted.

A brief look of sadness flashed across her face. “From what we gathered and from what it looks like, the radical wanted to frame Hitoshi by having someone with a brainwashing quirk control Todoroki. And whoever chose him, knew a lot about him. It’s no surprise that one of the strongest students was chosen as the victim.”

Todoroki looked down at his right hand, which rested on his knee. “Was anyone hurt because of me?”

“No, you really did beat up the cafeteria though.”

The dual-powered student grimaced.

“It’s not your fault though,” Mainjiru gently stated.

He held up his hand. “But I don’t remember anything. The last thing I remember before waking up here, was waking up in a hospital.”

She ran a finger though her black and red hair, “we’ll get to that. Sadly, from what we can tell, the other brainwasher was murdered after completing the task.”

Fear knotted up Shinsou’s stomach and Todoroki looked away.

“I know. We were devastated when we found out, as it’s been our mission to protect those with mental quirks. We, uh, basically think that the radical had framed Hitoshi, a budding student at the prestigious U. A. High, to help fuel the spread of his ideology. And to show, that even if he had good intentions, he would be tempted by his power and turn.”

Shinsou bit his lip. Why couldn't he have been born quirkless? Everything would just be so much easier.

“As for you not remembering, we just think that was a side effect of the other brainwasher’s power. Unfortunately, it's a lot of guess work.”

“Wait,” Todoroki raised his hand, “why didn’t you tell the police about us and have them guard us?”

“Because we figured things out before they did and they would have been too slow,” Naifaeru spoke up. “And I don’t trust them and their so called justice, not with the man that murdered Hitoshi’s father being released in a month because of “good behavior”,” she spat.

Shocked, Todoroki looked at the purple haired boy.

Shinsou stared down at his white socks. Few people knew about his father’s fate and it was hard hearing it said out loud in front of other people.

“That’s . . . awful . . .” Todoroki finally spoke.

“And,” Mainjiru held a finger up, “the radical could probably find out where you guys were being guarded by the police, while, on the other hand, he doesn’t even know about us.”

Slowly, Shinsou nodded his head. It all made sense.

Chapter Text

Mainjiru stood up and brushed the wrinkles out of her skirt. “That’s enough for now. Are you guys hungry?”

They shook their heads at the same time. Neither one of them had an appetite, not after what they had just heard.

Todoroki rested his tired head in his hands, “how long are we going to be with you?”

“Until we find the radical,” she replied firmly. “And I don’t know how long that will take.”

“Can-can we talk to our families, to let them know they that we are alright?” Shinsou asked, alarmed by the news.

“No, to do so would be stupid,” Naifaeru replied. “We cannot risk the radical finding out about you guys.”

“I know it’s going to be very hard on your parents, I’m sorry,” Mainjiru offered and shot the girl a look.

“OK . . . ,” Shinsou found himself saying. The idea of his mom desperately waiting for a word from him made him sick to the stomach but he was too exhausted to argue. He would have to bring it up later. Wait, what about his teacher? “Is Aizawa awake?”

Naifaeru looked down at her phone. “Nope.”

“Relax, once he is, I’ll let you know,” the woman gave him a warm smile.

"Does he know about all of this?" Shinsou asked incredulously.

"Yes, he approves of this plan," she responded, "I know it's a lot, but please bear with us."

Shinsou lowered his brows in slight annoyance but kept silent.

“Wait,” Todoroki spoke through his hands.

“Yes?” Mainjiru paused.

“What is the name of your organization?”

“We are the Masayoshi,” she replied. “We stand for what is right.”

As it turned out, Todoroki had been placed in the room right beside Shinsou’s. The two of them now sat in Shoto’s room, which was almost identical, except that his bathroom was on the opposite wall.

Shinsou sat on the floor beside the bed and scratched the back of his neck, his brain still trying to process everything from the debriefing.

Todoroki sat in front of the window with his eyes closed. The sunlight bathed his face in golden light. Shinsou looked over at him, uncertain of what to do.

He found Todoroki’s presence calming but yet perplexing. There was so much he did not know about him. He wanted to talk with him, to get to know more about him; but he didn’t have the courage to. He had so many unanswered questions from the encounter with Dabi several months ago. But how to start? Was it really upsetting to learn that your brother had turned into a murderous creep? That wasn’t a good question and if someone had asked Shinsou that, he would have kicked em, hard.

“Did your father love you?” Todoroki’s quiet voice disturbed Shinsou’s thoughts.

“. . . Y-yes . . . he did,” he said, dumbfounded by the sudden question. He hesitated, wondering if he should elaborate. Deciding against talking, he walked over to him and sat down besides his classmate. Glancing at him, he saw a tear run down the boy’s cheek.

“For most of my young years I thought that all fathers were like mine. I assumed that the way he treated me was normal and was merely to better me. I hated it but I justified it because he was my father,” Todoroki placed his hands in his lap, “only after I entered my teenage years did I learn there was a name for what he did to me. Abuse.”

Shinsou chewed on his lip, waiting for him to continue. Todoroki cracked his eyes open and stared down at the floor. “But even after that, it took me awhile to understand that it had happened to me. Abuse only happened to other people. I heard about it in the news, in stories. But I refused to believe that it had experienced too,” he stared down at his hands. “Only after learning about how a father is supposed to treat his son did I accept that I was abused.”

Shinsou lifted his hand up, to put it on Todoroki’s shoulder, to reassure him that he would be OK. But changing his mind, he dropped it.

"He was responsible for Touya's downfall."

Todoroki then turned his head to make eye contact with his fellow student. “Tell me, what was it like having a loving father?”

“Uh,” Shinsou paused. How does one even answer that question . . . ? “I-I don’t remember much . . . He was killed when I was six. I only have very faint memories.” He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I remember my grief better than I remember my dad. And it’s weird, knowing of grieving for someone, but not really knowing the person I grieved for.” He wiped his foggy eyes. Darn it, he really didn’t feel like crying again.

Todoroki nodded in response.

“But my mom has told me stories. She said that I used to charge up to him after he come home from work and would wrap myself around his legs, sometimes tripping him in the process. But he would laugh about it and pick me up, telling me how strong I was,” a faint smile formed on his face. “One time, after my mom had given me a hair cut, my dad protested, saying he like my hair long, so he could tousle it . . . and well, it’s been long ever since . . .” He looked up at the pink and orange sky.

“Here’s something that I do remember. My dad was the first person who told me I could be a hero. Other kids had teased me or other family members had said that I should be realistic and go into another field. But not my dad. He said with a quirk like mine, I could help so many people. He told me that I could become a great hero.” He lowered his hands and placed them on the bamboo flooring that had been warmed by the sun’s now fading rays. “I still have the drawing he made of me in a hero costume that he designed. My mom taped it above my bed, to remind me that I could be a become one,” his expression clouded over and he pulled his hands away from the warm floor, “despite being cursed with the quirk that I have.”

“You’re very brave Shinsou.”

Confused, he titled his head. “How?”

“For staying true to what you want, what you believe in. It’s not easy.”

Shinsou blinked. That was quite a compliment and it warmed him, but yet, he didn’t feel that he deserved it.

“I don’t know . . . I grew up very bitter and I’ve resented those with socially acceptable quirks. Part of that had fueled me to become a hero and to act the way I did at the Sports Festival. I don’t really deserve your praise.”

Todoroki shook his head in silent protest. “But we are all human. The fact that you want to help others with that immense power of yours, despite knowing that most people at least fear it, if not hate it, speaks volumes about your character. So many people would have easily given into their selfish desires if they had your power.” He placed his hand on his shoulder. “Hitoshi, people don’t give you enough credit. You don’t give yourself enough credit.”

To Shinsou's surprise and embarrassment, tears welled up in his eyes. Todoroki’s words had moved him unexpectedly; the sincerity striking. He wasn’t saying it to give him cheap hope or to disband his fear and doubt. He was saying it because he sincerely believed them.

“I’m sorry,” Shinsou wiped his eyes with his tie.

“Don’t be. I’ve been a like a fountain these past weeks,” Todoroki stated quietly. “You’re in good company.”

Shinsou gave him relieved smile. “OK.”

“You guys are adorable,” Naifaeru spoke up behind them. They whipped around at the sound of her voice.

“Why bother knocking if your door is wide open?” She held up two black bags. “So, I’ve got you guys a change of clothes. We’ve figured that you would grow tired of traipsing around in your school uniforms.”

She threw the bags down in front of them. “While we are on that subject, we can’t let you guys outside unless its absolutely needed. We haven’t finished building our outside defenses yet and we don’t want to risk anyone recognizing you.”

Chapter Text

Shinsou stepped out of his bathroom, now dressed in his new change of clothes. He had been given a pair of black, baggy shorts that ended at his shins and an over-sized pale purple sweatshirt that hung off of one shoulder.

Naifaeru put her hand over her mouth, to hide her smile. “So, it looks like Mainjiru messed up on the sizes. Of course.”

“Yeah . . .” He looked at his reflection in the now darkened window.

Naifaeru secretly found the slim boy in the over-sized clothes adorable, his exposed shoulder adding to the charm.

Todoroki walked into the room, dressed in a pair of proper fitting red cargo pants and a black t-shirt.

“Don’t you look dapper,” she said dryly.

“Why do your clothes fit?” Shinsou asked, confused.

A laugh escaped Naifaeru. “I don’t know,” she lied. After some bugging, she had been allowed to dress Shinsou and picked out what she thought would be cute on him.

“Thank you, for all you’ve done,” Todoroki spoke up.

“You’re welcome you bozo.” Naifaeru then stepped over to Shinsou, who glanced back at his reflection

uncertainly.

“So, is it really that bad?” She asked the silent boy. “I mean, you’re comfy, right . . . ?”

“I like oversized clothing, but,” he tugged at the collar of his sweatshirt, “it’s weird to me that despite knowing so much about me . . . you can’t get proper sizing,” he turned to look at her, “unless you knew that I like baggy clothes.”

“No, that was coincidence. . . but I think it looks cute,” she mumbled.

Shinsou didn’t pay any attention to her comment as he now fiddled with a loose thread.

Todoroki raised an eyebrow at her, as if to say: I heard that.

She flapped her hand at him; a silent order to keep his trap shut.

“Oh my, we’ve got strangers!” Mainjiru declared as she entered the room. “I must say, you guys look very different when you’re out of uniform.”

Shinsou nodded his head and pulled his sweatshirt over his exposed shoulder.

Naifaeru made a face and Todoroki raised his other eyebrow. She pulled a face at him and he raised both of his eyebrows.

She stuck her tongue out in response.

“Dinner’s been served,” Mainjiru interrupted their eyebrow argument.

They sat themselves down at a long gray table that stood in the middle of yet another white room.

Shinsou watched wordlessly as Naifaeru piled his plate full of food.

“You need to keep your strength up,” she explained.

Todoroki was left to fend for himself.

One of the dining room’s doors opened and a man in a black sweater and pants entered the room.

“Eraser!” Shinsou jumped out of his seat. He ran over to him and wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug.

“Hitoshi,” Aizawa placed one arm loosely around his student. Shinsou looked up at him to see a bandage taped to his forehead.

“What happened?”

“He was attacked by someone working for the radical,” Mainjiru replied.

Aizawa briefly touched the bandage. His black hair was pulled back into a low ponytail and his face was freshly shaven. The sight of it threw Shinsou off. It was weird seeing his teacher so tidy looking. It was almost unsettling.

“Sit down,” Mainjiru pulled out a chair next to her.

Slowly, Shinsou dropped his arms and watched as Aizawa took the offered chair.

“Sit on down and eat skinny boy!” Naifaeru said and bit into her meal.

“I’m not as skinny as I used to be,” he protested as he took a seat.

Todoroki rolled his eyes and started eating his soup.

“So, are you hiding out with us?” Shinsou inquired as he pushed the food around his plate.

The teacher nodded his head. “For the time being. Until things are figured out. Did Maina fill you guys in?”

“Yes,” Todoroki replied and finished the last of his soup.

Shinsou skewered a block of tofu with his chop stick and glared at it. Did Aizawa just refer to the woman with a nickname?

“What’s wrong?” Naifaeru asked. “Does the food taste gross?”

“Nothing and no,” he muttered and put the piece of food in his mouth. His once rumbling stomach had suddenly gone silent.

The five of them now sat in the living room. Aizawa sat in the corner of one couch, Mainjiru seated right next to him. Todoroki opted for the ottoman while Shinsou and Naifaeru shared the other couch.

The purple haired boy sat with his knees pulled up, the neon haired girl perched next to him.

“I find it so strange how calm it is now, compared to what happened a day ago,” Todoroki broke the silence.

Mainjiru nodded her head. “I know, it’s strange. But I’m grateful for the calm moments.” She smiled at Aizawa, who stared at the fireplace. “Right?” she poked his rarely exposed ear.

“Yes.” He turned his head and captured her finger with his hand. He looked down at it and then at her.

She giggled and he gave her a small smile.

Shinsou lowered his eyebrows and gave his teacher a side-eyed look. What the hell? Since when did Aizawa get all chummy with a woman that he had met that day?

“Oooh, I see a couple forming,” Naifaeru whispered into his ear. His shoulders tensed up and he slowly turned his head to look at her.

“No . . .” He found himself responding.

“No what?” She asked, genuinely confused.

“Cause, uh, he-he doesn’t date,” he blurted out.

The three other people in the room turned to look at him.

“What?” Todoroki asked.

Shinsou’s face flushed red. Crap, how much had they heard?

Aizawa gently pushed Mainjiru’s arm away and stood up. “Are you alright?”

“Uh, yeah,” he swallowed and looked away.

“You’re tired, why don’t you go to bed?”

Shinsou screwed his face up. “I’m fine.”

Leaning over, Aizawa took his arm and pulled his student upright. “No, you sound like a cranky toddler. To your bedroom, now.” And he dragged a reluctant Shinsou behind him.

“How long have you known her?” Shinsou asked as they came to a stop in front of his door.

Ignoring him, Aizawa pushed it open and tugged him inside.

“Get in your bed.”

Shinsou crossed his arms. “Answer my question.”

“Hitoshi Shinsou, get in your bed now.” Aizawa pointed at the bed.

“Shota, are you coming back?” Mainjiru asked from the living room.

He turned his head. “In a moment.”

“What’s your deal?” Shinsou asked through gritted teeth. “And who is she?”

“My gosh,” Aizawa sighed. He placed his hand on Shinsou’s shoulder and gripped it tightly. “Listen here, and listen closely. Stop behaving like a petulant child. My personal life is my business, got it?”

Shinsou swallowed. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. But this was Aizawa, his father figure. He should be relieved, right? He was safe, after being attacked. The three of them were all safe. But it felt all wrong. There were still so many question he wanted to ask, but now it felt like he couldn't.

Pissed, Shinsou tried to shove Aizawa’s hand away, but, because of the teacher’s firm grip, he merely pushed the sleeve of his sweater up, to reveal a deep bite mark on the man’s forearm.

Shinsou quickly looked down, to hide his surprise expression. “OK, sorry.”

“That’s better,” Aizawa turned on his heel and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Unease twisted Shinsou's already sore stomach. Why did his teacher have a bite mark?

Chapter Text

Sleep eluded Shinsou that night and he grumpily slid out of bed when Todoroki came to wake him at six am. After being deposited in his room the night before by Aizawa, he had anxiously paced for several hours and then crashed from exhaustion, only to keep waking up and dozing off over and over again.

“Why so early?” He groaned. If he had his way, he’d be sleeping in till two . . . or three in the afternoon.

“That’s how early I normally wake.” Todoroki replied.

Ugh, of course that was the case. “Damn you,” Shinsou snapped.

To his surprise, the other student chuckled.

“Oh, and by the way, they gave us toiletries,” Todoroki ran his hand through his freshly washed hair.

“Hmpf,” Shinsou responded from his awkward position. He hung upside down from his mattress, his upper back against the floor, his knees bent against the mattress and his feet in the air. “I’m not worried about that right now.”

“Are you always this foul in the mornings?” Todoroki shook his head, amused at the kid’s grumpiness.

“You better believe it bub.”

“Suit yourself.”

Something caught Todoroki’s eye and he walked over to the window.

Shinsou rubbed his nose and stared up at the ceiling. “Spot some pretty birds or something?”

“Well . . . I see two love birds,” Todoroki offered, sounding oddly perplexed.

Instantly, Shinsou rolled over and made his way to the window to see Aizawa and Mainjiru.

“What the hell?” He pressed his hands against the glass.

The two adults sat on a black metal bench. Aizawa’s arm was wrapped around Mainjiru’s shoulders. She looked up at him, a smile on her face. She pulled a strand of hair loose from his bun and twirled it around her finger.

“Ew,” Shinsou muttered. “Yuck.”

“Why has Aizawa’s hair been pulled up every time we’ve seen him since we got rescued?” Todoroki wondered to himself.

“Exactly, thank you,” Shinsou glowered at them. “And where did his stubble go? He’s only ever ditched it for the press conference after the whole Bakugo fiasco.”

“Maybe he cleaned up for her?” Todoroki suggested.

“But he literally met her yesterday.”

The other boy slowly turned his head and raised his eyebrows. “You don’t know that.”

“Aizawa wouldn't date behind my back . . ."

“Uh, I understand that you guys are essentially father and son, but he doesn’t have to tell you everything.”

“It just doesn't make sense. He’s never talked about romantic mushy stuff. So why now, all of the sudden?”

“Mainjiru did mention that he approved of the plan, maybe he’s been working with her for a bit now . . . ?” Todoroki shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe he’s been afraid to tell you, because of how you’d react. And I’ll be honest, you are not reacting well.”

Shinsou made a dour face, it wouldn’t have made sense for Naifaeru to kidnap him then. “Jeez Todoroki, don’t you get it? He’s not acting like himself.” He looked up to see Mainjiru take Aizawa’s face in her hands and pull him close.

“Oh, hell no,” Shinsou flipped the latch on the window and yanked it down. He leaned out of it and cupped his hands around his mouth.

“Don’t do it Mr. Aizawa!”

The two them looked up to see the purple haired kid precariously dangling out of the window.

“If you’re gonna kiss someone, kiss my mom!”

Mainjiru’s face turned bright red and Aizawa angrily stared at the intrusive kid.

“Shinsou!” Todoroki grabbed his over-sized sweatshirt and yanked him back into the room. They fell in a heap on the floor.

“Hitoshi Shinsou!” Came Aizawa’s furious voice.

Aizawa yanked a stumbling Shinsou behind him. He jerked him down the stairs to the base’s surprisingly small basement. He then threw him on the floor.

Shinsou’s heart pounded in his chest. He had never seen him so mad; madder than when he had found out that he’d used his power on Emica.

He pushed himself up with his hands to see a livid Aizawa standing over him. He swallowed and realized that his arms were shaking.

“In case you couldn't tell, you’ve pissed me off,” Aizawa growled.

Shinsou simply nodded. He wanted to verbally respond but he was afraid that it would only make his teacher angrier. He swore at himself, he had managed to tick him off twice in one week. Fantastic.

“My personal life is none of your business, like I told you yesterday. Can you get that through your thick skull?”

Shinsou responded with a brief nod, his eyes locked on the floor; anything to not make eye contact with him.

Aizawa knelt down beside his student and grabbing a fistful of his hair, he pulled his head up so that Shinsou’s purple ones met his gray ones.

The action caused reactionary tears to form in Shinsou’s eyes. He blinked.

“Can I get: I understand sir?”

“I understand sir,” he muttered.

Aizawa tightened his grip and jerked his head. A tear escaped the boy’s eye.

“I didn’t hear you.”

“I understand sir,” Shinsou forced himself to speak clearly.

Satisfied, Aizawa released his grip and stood up. “Don’t come upstairs until it’s dinnertime. Do you understand?”

Shinsou nodded again and wiped away the tear. He set his mouth in a straight line and glowered at Aizawa’s back as he made his way upstairs.

After the door closed, he stared at it in furious silence. Aizawa had no right to treat him that way.

He then curled up into a fetal position and stared off into the darkness. Afraid to even move, he lay there. Why had Aizawa been so nasty? Was he just really fed up with him? Had he decided that he was done with Shinsou and just wanted him gone? No, that can't be the case. He was being overly dismal again. But, he'd never seen his teacher that angry.

But then again, it didn’t line up with his previous actions. Aizawa had gotten mad at Shinsou for using his power because he did care about him. But here, he was furious at him for something that was actually really stupid. Normally, he would have ignored him or made him do jumping jacks or comb his ridiculous hair as punishment. Something dumb like that, not throw him in a basement and hurt him.

His nails dug into his arm. It didn’t make sense. How he wished he could talk to his mom. He desperately wanted to see her again, to receive her warm and comforting hugs; to hear what she had to say about the his actions. She must be beside herself with worry and he had no way of telling her that he was OK. Can she even work with the stress of knowing that her son had vanished?

Finally, sleep overcame him and he dozed off.

Chapter Text

“Shinsou?”

The person in question woke to find Todoroki crouching down next to him, concern showing on his face. “Are you alright?” He continued.

Shinsou cleared his throat and regretted the action. It was sore.

“That was not really an answer,” Todoroki said.

Sighing heavily, he rolled over to face him. “Yeah, sure.”

Shinsou's sweatshirt had ridden up in his sleep and Todoroki, noticing the burn scar that marked his stomach, looked away. That was the first time he had seen it since the fight with Dabi. “W-why are down here, of all places?”

“Oh, I-I—”

“Hey,” Naifaeru pushed opened the door and descended the stairs.

“Crap,” Shinsou muttered as his face blushed from embarrassment.

“I’ve been looking all over for you bozos,” she came to a stop in front of them. “Why are you dow—” Pausing, she noticed his red face. “What happened?” She asked as she knelt down beside him. A quiet gasped escaped her when she saw his large scar.

Realizing that she was looking at his stomach, Shinsou quickly yanked his top down and turned away from her. Why couldn’t he just be left alone?

She reached her hand out but Todoroki gently pushed it down, shaking his head. Then he stood up and slowly meandered around the room. She watched him with her neon eyes.

Noticing a shelf stocked with emergency blankets, he grabbed one and dropped it on Shinsou’s head, "Here, hide your embarrassment with this."

The action caused Naifaeru to chuckle.

“Thanks,” Shinsou made a face at him.

“Anytime,” Todoroki lifted up his sleeve to scratch his upper arm. A bandage covered the bite mark.

Shinsou’s eyes widened. The bite mark. Why did both Todoroki and Aizawa have them? Aizawa had said that they found it after the boy had been brainwashed. Shinsou jumped to his feet. “It makes sense now!”

The other two both looked at him. “What does?” They asked at the exact same time.

He paused. “Oh, uh . . .” Crud. “I finally figured out the math word problem that had been bugging me,” he lied.

She raised an eyebrow. “Really?” Her tone of voice indicated that she needed convincing.

“Well, that is your worst subject,” Todoroki offered.

“Jeez, thanks bub . . .” Shinsou stuck out his bottom lip.

The other student shrugged in response.

“What time is it?” Shinsou asked, in an effort to change the subject.

Naifaeru pulled out her phone. “It’s almost five thirty.”

“Wait, what?” Shinsou shook his head in disbelief. “I’ve been down here for eleven hours?”

“You must have been exhausted,” Todoroki stated. “I’ve mostly napped since being here too.”

Naifaeru put her phone away. “At least you guys are getting your beauty sleep.”

“Hey, where are our phones?” Shinsou asked, suddenly realizing he hadn’t held his in more than a day.

“They are being locked up for safekeeping. For security reasons I’m not allowed to give them too you.”

“Oh . . .” His face fell. “I just hope Mom’s OK.”

She gave him an understanding nod. “That’s tough. But it’ll be worth it in the end.” Her tone of voice had become softer.

Her phone pinged and she looked down at it. “Oh, it’s chow time.”

They made their way to the dining room to see food already placed on the table.

“Mainjiru won’t be joining us tonight but she hopes you enjoy the dinner she made. Whoop whoop.”

Todoroki nodded, “tell her thank you.”

Shinsou tugged on the loose string that hung from his sweatshirt. “What about Aizawa?”

“Her boyfriend won’t be coming either,” Naifaeru replied sarcastically as she sat down next to him.

A knot formed in his stomach. A concoction of dread, anxiety, and anger swirled around in him, ruining his appetite a second night in a row.

The two boys wished Naifaeru a good night and trudged back to their rooms. Just then, Shinsou remembered what he needed to talk to Todoroki about. Not wasting another second, he grabbed the other kid’s wrist and dragged him towards his room.

“What are you doing? Please don’t tell me you’ve found some sort of new found affection for me,” Todoroki asked, completely bewildered.

Shinsou shut the door behind them and dropped his arm. “What on this pathetic earth are you talking about?” He asked, exasperated.

Todoroki crossed his arms. “What is going on? You have been acting rather strangely since last night and you’ve got me concerned.”

“Thanks mom,” Shinsou frowned. He grabbed Todoroki’s upper arm, shoved his sleeve up and ripped the bandage off.

“Hey,” Todoroki shoved him away with more force than he had intended, causing Shinsou to slam against the door.

“Ow! I’ll get you back later,” he muttered as he rubbed his now sore back. He looked up to see Todoroki’s confused face staring at him. “Oh,” he held the bandage up. “Look at your arm.”

Slowly, Todoroki did as he was told.

“What do you see?”

“A bite mark . . . ? Shinsou, what is going on?”

“Aizawa had one on his arm too. I saw it last night, after he made me go to my room.”

Understanding dawned in Todoroki’s eyes. “ There's a connection . . . ”

“Exactly!” He threw his hands up triumphantly. “Eraser’s has been acting strange since last night. The last time I saw him before that, I was in the police station. He had actually mentioned your bite mark and how it had investigators confused, especially after you denied doing it.”

Todoroki’s eyes grew wide in alarm.

“Do you remember the person who brainwashed you at all?” Shinsou prompted.

He shook his head. “I don’t remember much . . . at all . . . The past few days have been such a fuzzy blur. And even now, it feels like my brain is still in a fog bank.”

“OK,” Shinsou let out a disappointed sigh. He didn’t have much to work with it. Slowly, an idea came to him. “Wait a second . . . We need to find Aizawa.”

“What do you have in mind?”

Chapter Text

“Aren’t you guys supposed to be going beddy bye?” Naifaeru asked as the two of them approached her. Luckily, she sat all alone in the living room.

“Can you help me with something?” Shinsou asked with a friendly tone that masked his ulterior motives. Todoroki glanced at him; the other kid acted convincingly.

“Anything for you precious,” she sighed and stood up.

Shinsou exhaled. He felt his mind reach out and seize hers, like fog enveloping everything in its path. And just like that, she now stood under his control. “Take us to see Aizawa, but, do it carefully. We don’t want anyone to see or know about us.”

Wordlessly, she led them out of living room and into the hallway that they had traversed countless times before. She walked all the way to the end of it and opened the door to the basement.

Todoroki grabbed Shinsou’s elbow. “Wait, do we know what we are walking into?”

“But we have to find Aizawa.”

“OK,” Todoroki didn’t sound happy but they didn’t really have a choice. They needed their mentor. Slowly, they followed her down to the small dark room. Empty.

“What now?” Shinsou stated his thought out loud.

Naifaeru walked up to a closet, opened its door and shoved several heavy coats aside. She pushed on one of the dark wooden panels and a pop sounded. She then pulled the panel out like a lever and pushed the wall aside. A hidden door.

Todoroki eyed it warily. Shinsou shared his trepidation. They had no clue who lurked in there. She walked through the closet.

Shinsou bit his lip.

“After you,” Todoroki motioned at him.

“Why me?”

“It was your plan,” he responded evenly.

“Ugh, OK.” He quietly walked into the closet and stepped into a gray, cinder block hallway. “Stop,” he ordered Naifaeru and she did as instructed. It stretched out before him. So that was why the main basement was so small. Todoroki stepped behind him, his breathing low and controlled.

After a quick visual sweep confirmed there weren’t any cameras, Shinsou told her to continue.

Naifaeru walked to the end of the hall and carefully cracked opened a black metal door. Directly behind her, Shinsou had her stop and then took her hand off of the knob. He peered through the small opening. The door belonged to a large, white sterile room. Todoroki looked over his shoulder. A glass enclosure took up the back wall. Several gray cabinets lined the two other walls perpendicular to the enclosure. A round metal table stood in the center of the room, surrounded by four chairs. Besides that, it was an empty, white space.

Shinsou looked to the left of the enclosure and stopped himself from gasping. Aizawa sat in the cage, his hands cuffed to the wall behind him. Most of his hair had fallen loose from his bun and covered his haggard face.

“What?” Todoroki breathed.

Shinsou made a frantic gesture to silence him. Another person stepped into Shinsou’s field of vision. Mainjiru.

The woman knelt down beside Aizawa and placed one hand on his face. Slowly, she turned his head towards him. She said something unintelligible.

Aizawa jerked himself free. She frowned and her hand shot out and hit him across the face.

Shinsou’s stomach lurched. This was really bad.

Sensing something behind them, Todoroki turned his head to look back down the hallway and gasped.

A swarm of glinting shards headed their way.

Chapter Text

Todoroki shoved the two other kids into the room. With a blast of ice, he stopped the shards in midair.

Groaning, Naifaeru’s hands went to her head. The action of being thrown to the ground had released her from Shinsou’s control.

Not wasting another second, Shinsou jumped up and dashed towards his imprisoned teacher.

Aizawa lifted his head to see his student pressing himself against the glass.

Mainjiru gripped Aizawa’s chin. “Don’t come any closer boy,” she held a knife to the man’s throat.

Shinsou slammed his fist against the glass in frustration.

“Hitosh—,” came Aizawa’s weak voice through a vent in the glass.

“Stop talking,” she ordered and looked up to see Todoroki slam the door and seal them in with a barrier of ice.

She pulled up Aizawa’s sleeve and bit his arm.

Without a second thought, Shinsou charged towards the door that led into the cell. He paused at the sight of Aizawa sitting up and his eyes staring straight ahead.

Moving swiftly, Mainjiru stood up and released his wrists. “Erase Todoroki’s quirk.” She pointed at the kid standing guard at the door.

Shinsou’s heart sank as his teacher got to his feet and his eyes glowed red.

Todoroki looked around in alarm. Where had his power gone?

Naifaeru jumped up and lunged at him.

Shinsou swore underneath his breath; he had no other choice. If Todoroki were to get his powers back, he'd have to take Aizawa down. He threw open the cell door.

“Defend yourself against the kid!” Mainjiru barked.

Doing as he was commanded, Aizawa’s hand shot out and hit a stunned Shinsou straight in the chest. The power of the blow sent him staggering backwards and out of the cell.

Naifaeru and Todoroki wrestled in front of the door. To his shock, he wasn’t well matched against her without his quirk. Twisting at the hips, she threw him against the door and he blinked in surprise. She wrapped her muscular arm around his neck and slammed him to the floor. Before he could even think about his next move, she kneed him in the chest.

If Shinsou could just get in the way of Aizawa’s vision, Todoroki could beat her.

“Shota, keep your eyes on Todoroki. I’ll take care of the punk,” Mainjiru walked towards the kid, her knife held out in her hand.

Shinsou slapped his face, he had been so stupid. He dashed forward, just as she charged towards him. He slammed the cell’s door in her face and locked it. The solution would be to block Aizawa from the outside. But first, Todoroki desperately needed some help.

Shinsou ran over and with a well aimed kick, clocked Naifaeru in the back of her head. She slumped forward but at the last second, caught herself with her hands. Taking advantage of the surprise attack, Todoroki shoved her off and rolled away from her reach. A grin formed on Shinsou’s face. They could do this.

Wait . . .

He looked up.

The ice around the door shattered as someone threw it open.

A tall man, with neon orange hair and dressed in a gray, sleeveless jumpsuit stepped into the room. He surveyed the scene before him with piercing neon orange eyes. “I leave for a just three days and I come back to this?”

Chapter Text

Countless shards filled the room. Shinsou went still as several stopped in front of him. They pointed towards his neck. Todoroki still lay on the ground, now with a swarm hovering above him. He glared at the man in frustration.

“Are you alright Naify?” The man asked.

The girl held her head in her hands. “Gosh, that hurt!”

Shinsou smirked. Good. He turned to see that Aizawa still was erasing Todoroki’s quirk. Dammit. For a split second he considered a last ditch effort in blocking the erasure hero’s vision, but he ignored the thought. If he did that, he would probably just wind up as a vary large pincushion.

“Well, I’d have to do this sooner or later . . . Allow me to introduce myself, I am Togatta. The leader of the Masayoshi,” he cocked his head, “and you are our prisoners.”

Shinsou jerked his head in Naifaeru’s direction and glared at her, anger clouding his face. “This is nothing like you told me your group was,” he growled.

The girl bit her lip and looked away.

Sighing, Togatta knelt down beside a pinned Todoroki. The shards made way for him. “She told you want you wanted to hear. My goals are different from her stated ones.” With a rough hand, he pulled Todoroki’s bangs away from his face to fully reveal his burn scar.

“Then what does your group want?” Todoroki spoke through clenched teeth.

“It’s not the most original thing I’ll admit. Some would call it revenge,” his finger felt the rough skin of the scar. “Have you ever wanted it?”

Todoroki ignored the man’s statement as he continued feeling his face. “Get your hands off.”

“You can’t tell me to do anything, child.” He paused and tilted his head questioningly. “Who gave you this scar?”

Shinsou watched in livid silence.

Todoroki tried turning away but Togatta grabbed his chin and forced his head back to face him.

“Answer the question.”

“It’s not your business.”

A shard started to fall, aimed towards Todoroki’s heart. He flinched.

Togatta stopped its fall a hair widths above his chest.

“Leave him alone!” Shinsou blurted out, breaking his intentional silence.

Shaking his head, Togatta gave him a dower look. “Naifaeru, get some duct tape. We can’t have him using his quirk on us.”

Silently, she obeyed his command.

Shinsou swore. He had lost his last chance.

Togatta looked back at Todoroki. “You know, you could make things a lot easier for yourself if you answered my simple question. What’s stopping you? Pride? Fear?” He leaned closer, “trauma?”

“Maybe because it’s non of your business,” Todoroki responded evenly.

Togatta raised a brow. “Damn, you kids have way too much attitude. Had I spoken to my parents like that I would have been whipped.”

Shinsou frantically looked around as he ran scenarios though his head. There had to be a way they could break out. But how? Naifaeru approached him and ripped a piece of duct tape off the roll. He grimaced, not again. She placed it over his mouth and pressed down, to make sure it stayed on. He glanced to the side, not wanting to make eye contact. Humiliation joined his ranks of anger and fear.

“Sorry.” But this time, it sounded genuine. She stepped away and threw the roll onto the table. “He’s muffled, happy now?”

“Yes,” Togatta returned his attention to Todoroki. “Now, who caused your scar?”

The kid ignored him.

He raised a brow. “I don’t know what you’re so hung up about . . . I have plenty of scars. And I’m not shy about talking about them. Oh, let me guess, it’s how I’m asking? Is that it?”

Todoroki maintained his silence.

“You’re an idiot for being so picky. I’m the one holding all the cards. Naifaeru, unlock the cell.”

She did as she was told. A pissed Mainjiru stepped out and she gave Shinsou a nasty look. He ignored her; at least he had the satisfaction of ticking her off.

“Mainjiru, have Aizawa rough up Shinsou a bit.”

“Sure thing,” she grinned, “Shouta, kick him around a bit.”

Shinsou and Todoroki’s eyes grew wide.

“Wait!”

Everyone but Togatta froze at the sound of Todoroki’s now frantic voice.

The man’s eyes lit up at the boy’s outcry. “Yes?”

“My mother did it.”

Shinsou shook his head in surprise. All this time he had assumed it was because of the dual powered student’s quirk. Maybe an accident that had happened when he had first started experiencing his quirk or from training. Never had it crossed his mind that it came from one of his parents. But if the thought had occurred, he surely would have blamed Todoroki’s father.

“Is it now?”

“Yeah,” Todoroki exhaled. “But it wasn’t her fault,” he quickly added. “And no, revenge will do nothing for me.”

“Well, aren’t you rather stoic. But at one point you wanted revenge, I’m sure of it.” Togatta stood up. “We have a lot of things to discuss.”

Chapter Text

The three prisoners found themselves seated around the table with Togatta’s shards placed against their throats.

He clasped his hands together. “My first plan failed. You,” he glared at Shinsou, “were too smart for your own good but . . .” He then turned his angry eyes on Mainjiru, “your stupidity didn’t help. And because of that, I’m forced to take a route I’d rather not.”

Mainjiru responded with a sullen expression while Naifaeru stared at her feet.

Aizawa, who sat blindfolded and now free from the woman’s control, spoke: “What do you want?”

“I want Shinsou,” Togatta replied. The boy bristled at the sound of his name. “To help me out with some tasks. The two of you will be to make sure he doesn’t get out of line.”

Todoroki glowered at the leader.

Togatta payed him no mind. “Shinsou, look at me,” he ordered.

He ignored the command. That last thing he wanted to do was to obey, fearful that if he did, there would be no going back.

“Don’t be stupid . . .” Togatta made a gesture with his hand and a shard scraped against Todoroki’s cheek. The kid flinched as a bead of blood ran down his face.

Angered and panicked, Shinsou finally made eye contact with him.

“You two have got to be the some of the brattiest kids I’ve come across. I don’t know how Aizawa puts up with you.”

“Maybe I do because they put up with me,” the teacher replied, ticked at the condemnation of the boys.

“Whatever,” Togatta said. “Now that I have your attention. If you,” he jabbed his finger in Shinsou’s direction, “if you refuse to follow my orders. They pay. I am more than willing to give Todoroki some more scars and ruin the rest of his face. If you do anything to tick me off, they pay the price. Do you understand me, boy?”

Despite it being that last thing Shinsou wanted to to do, he forced himself to nod. He rubbed his clammy hands against his shorts. While glad to finally understand what was truly going on, he really wished he had figured it out in a clandestine manner.

“Good. And now, on to business. We are still a developing group and with your help, you’ll assist us in reaching our goal,” Togatta continued.

“Which is?” Todoroki interrupted him.

“Like I stated earlier; revenge is what most people would call it. But I believe it’s actually justice. We are going to right those that have wronged us. Those who have attacked, killed, and ostracized others purely because of their quirks,” he gestured at Naifaeru, “I made my parents pay for their treatment of me and Naifaeru and I’m only getting started.”

His sister grimaced at the mention of their parents. Shinsou noticed and she looked up to see his eyes on her. Quickly, she glanced away.

“If Mainjiru’s quirk is brainwashing too, why do you want Shinsou?” Aizawa asked.

“Because he can do things that she can’t do easily or not at all. It’s important to have multiple players on the field,” he made a face, as if the question was incredibly stupid. “For instance, it would be harder for her to brainwash in public due to how her quirk activates. Whereas, he only needs to talk to his victims. Controlling quirks are rare and those who have them are incredibly powerful.” He spread his hands out, “with two, I will be a force to be reckoned with.”

A sickly feeling formed in Shinsou’s stomach. When he wasn’t hated for his power, he was wanted by those hungry for it. It seemed like he was destined for disaster.

Todoroki gave him a sympathetic look.

“Sucks to be you,” Naifaeru muttered.

“I see,” Aizawa replied, unfazed by the declaration. “Back to Mainjiru, the strength of your control depends on the strength of your bite.” It wasn’t a question, it was a fact.

Shinsou filed this information away. The teacher spoke in a conversational tone but he was trying to gleam as much information as possible.

The silence confirmed his statement.

“She has mastered it well,” he continued. “Did you teach yourself?”

“I did,” Mainjiru admitted, pleased at his attention. “I have several states in which I can control people. Lucid, complex, and basic. I was controlling you at the basic level to keep Shinsou contained.”

“You were controlling him in a lucid state last night and this morning,” Todoroki finished.

She nodded. “Lucid allows me to control the person while the individual maintains a sense of awareness and even some control. They will act mostly like themselves but not only can I tell them exactly what to do, they also can’t do anything that I don’t will,” she continued, “also, I can choose to remove a person’s memories during the time I controlled them. That’s why you couldn’t remember what had happened Todoroki.”

“That’s enough.” Togatta brought his hands down on the table. 

Mainjiru rolled her eyes at the interruption but didn’t speak further.

Shinsou held his hand up, as if he were in class.

“What?” The man gave him a look.

He gestured for something to write with.

“Naifearu, get him some paper,” he sighed.

The teenager did as asked and slammed a notebook and pen in front of him. Warily, Shinsou picked it up and began writing.

“Be quick about it,” the leader ordered.

I wasn’t in danger of being attacked by a radical, was I? He held up his written question.

Togatta shook his head. “No, you were not. I had hoped that you would agree to join us during your meeting with Naifaeru but when she informed me that you declined to decided right there and then, I panicked. I was sure you would go to Aizawa . . . But, I had hoped, that after some particularly bad treatment as a result of your quirk, you would be swayed to our side. Hence Todoroki’s brainwashing and the whole U. A. incident.”

Shinsou scratched the back of his neck; that was a very bold move on their part. Togatta did indeed want his power.

“I considered letting you sit in jail for a bit but I’ll admit," he continued, "I was impatient, and I decided to pull both you and Todoroki out. We didn’t want the police to have any more information than the already did.”

“You contributed to the mess,” Mainjiru stated bluntly. “And it was your dumb idea to kidnap the kid. He probably would have joined had you not done that.”

Understanding dawned on Aizawa’s face. So that’s why Shinsou had gone missing that day.

The leader gave her a peeved look. “Ha, you told me you had everything under control and I come back to absolute chaos. And you’re the one that insisted on taking Aizawa with us.”

“Well,” Mainjiru stood up, “First off, your smoke screen was going to dissipate sooner or later and I took Aizawa as insurance. Shinsou is far more likely to listen to us, now that we have two people he cares about.”

“That is a lie.”

The six of them turned their heads to see a tall, wiry, twenty something woman enter the room. Her matte black hair rejected the bright light that shone above it. Her black, reflection-less irises inspected the people seated around the table.

“Kuragari,” Mainjiru made a face. “Nice of you to join us . . .”

She rolled her eyes. “Your stupid personal motives is what made you screw up royally.”

That would explain why Mainjiru had brainwashed Aizawa into being receptive to her romantic approaches. Shinsou clenched his jaw. That woman revolted him.

Mainjiru shot her a thoroughly ticked look. “We don't need your opinions, ma’am.”

"Too bad," She chuckled and scratched the side of her head. Her bizarre, light rejecting hair was buzzed on the sides while a bun contained the top. Black spacers filled her ear lobes and she wore all black, save for her forest green suspenders and bow tie.

“We are done here,” Togatta stood up. “Naifaeru, put them in the cell.”

Chapter Text

Silently, Naifaeru walked over and opened up the doors on either side of the holding cell. Shinsou hadn’t noticed it earlier, but a glass wall divided it in two. After being shoved into the left cell, Todoroki now sat on the ground with his hands secured by white metal cuffs that attached to the wall. Aizawa and Shinsou were forced into the one on the right. Due to there only being one set of cuffs in the left cell and being perceived as the weakest one, Shinsou was allowed to sit wherever he wanted in the small cage. It’s not like he could do much anyways, not with some of Togatta’s nasty shards hovering above him.

“Here,” the leader pulled three small throwing knives out of a sheath clipped to his belt. He handed them to Naifaeru. “Mainjiru and I have things that need to be done, you and Gari will watch them for now.”

“OK,” she spoke quietly and took them. After tossing them into the air, she directed them towards the prisoners and they came to a stop, hovering near their throats.

With a twist of his wrist, Togatta’s shards dissipated. A muffled gasp escaped Shinsou as he watched the ones above Aizawa fade. They shattered into tiny pieces, which acted as prisms that momentarily cast countless mini rainbows around the room. And then they dissipated entirely.

“Let’s go,” Togatta closed the cell doors and motioned for a pouting Mainjiru to follow him out of the room.

Aizawa sat with his back against the wall. “Are you hurt?” He quietly asked and then realized that tape probably still covered the kid’s mouth. “Because I can’t see you, tap once for yes and twice for no,” he quickly added.

Hesitantly, Shinsou pulled his sweatshirt up and looked at his chest. A purple and blue blob had formed form where he had been hit. His chest was still sore from the blow but he didn’t consider it a serious injury, especially since being burned by Dabi. Feeling watched, he glanced up to see Naifaeru looking him over. He quickly yanked his sweatshirt down as his face flushed red. Turning his back to her, he tapped the ground twice.

“. . . I know it wasn’t my fault,” Aizawa kept his voice low, “but I feel guilty for hurting you.”

Desperate to properly communicate, Shinsou pulled the tape away from his upper lip. Despite facing away from the guards, he still took precautions, as he made the gesture look like he had scratched at an itch. “Did Mainjiru do anything to yo—”

“No,” understanding Shinsou’s fear, Aizawa quickly replied in an effort to dispel it. “Kuragari kept me safe, that and you being a little shit and yelling at us.” He chuckled. “Thank you for that.”

A lopsided smile formed on Shinsou’s face but he found the claim about Kuragari questionable. “She really did that?” He asked in disbelief and awe. “Everyone here seems so rotten.”

“Yes, she did,” he confirmed. “But I don’t know why she did . . .” After a moment of silence, Aizawa spoke again: “Hitoshi?”

“Hmm?” Noticing the change in his tone, Shinsou waited for him to continue.

“Why didn’t you tell me about what happened?”

Detecting a hint of pain in his voice, the boy looked down at his hands. It didn’t matter that a blindfold covered the man’s eyes, he still couldn’t bring himself to look at him. “Because I’m really fucking stupid.”

“You’re not stupid and I want to know why you didn’t tell me,” Aizawa spoke gently.

Shinsou glanced over at Todoroki, who sullenly stared at the floor. “I-I thought your anger towards my previous actions would cause you to disbelieve me or that me getting kidnapped would make you angrier or-or, I don’t know!” He curled his hands into fists in frustration. “I actually was going to tell you, but then after the whole incident with Todoroki at school, it just escaped me.”

A sigh escaped from Aizawa. “Toshi—”

“I’m sorry,” Shinosu swallowed in an effort to maintain his composure. “I don’t know why the hell I thought I could be a pro hero when I couldn’t even immediately tell you about my kidnapping,” he blurted out. His self loathing had crept back. It frustrated him beyond belief that he could handle a serious injury and recovery from fighting a super villain but couldn’t bring himself to inform his father figure of something incredibly important after a familial spat.

“Stop right there,” Aizawa said. “Self pity only contributes to a downward spiral.”

Shinsou went silent as he dug his fingernails into his palms.

“Besides, we don’t know what else they could have done so don’t blame yourself entirely for this,” he titled his head, “after all, they managed to steal us from a police station and we still don’t know how they did that.”

“O-oh,” he replied. Technically, Aizawa’s statement made sense. Despite their small size, the Masayoshi were truly a force to be reckoned with, but that did little to curb his feelings of inadequacy and stupidity.

“You need to tell me everything you know about them and we are going to figure a way out of here,” Aizawa leaned forward.

“Yes, sir,” Shinsou glanced back at Todoroki, who now watched them. The trick would be coming up with a plan that got all of them out alive.

Naifaeru slouched in her chair as Kuragari redid her braids. She idly watched the prisoners but didn’t consider them much of a concern at the moment, not with the two strongest being chained up and with her knives lying in wait. Besides, they didn’t even know what Gari could do with her quirk.

“I saw you eyeing Shinsou . . .” The woman mentioned as she tied off the first braid.

Frowning, Naifaeru swatted her hand. “Yeah, so what?”

“So what?” She chuckled quietly. “I think you have your eye on him, and I don’t mean as in the watching-the-prisoners kind of way.”

“Gari, shut up will you?” Naifaeru growled.

“Well, I know I’m right,” she replied breezily. “A word of advice though,” she placed her hand on the girl’s shoulder and leaned forward as if she might be overheard. “Don’t let the others know.”

“Why?” She asked, genuinely confused.

“Because everything’s a tool or weapon to Togatta.”

Naifaeru turned her head to make eye contact with her. “It’s not like Shinsou’s actually going to reciprocate. This isn’t some dumb novel where a prisoner falls in love with an abusive captor or something.”

This caused Kuragari to laugh. “OK, true . . . but, who knows.”

She rolled her eyes in response. “Shinsou’s going to be figuring out how to escape, that’s what.”

Chapter Text

Aizawa woke with a start. He hadn’t even realized that sleep had overcome him. What time was it? Normally, he was good at keeping time in his head but Mainjiru’s brainwashing had thrown him off and being kept in an underground room most certainly didn’t help. The sound of Shinsou's slow breathing alerted him to the fact that the boy had fallen asleep as well. After a few, otherwise silent, minutes passed, he tried to pull his wrists forward but the cuffs held fast. A frustrated sigh escaped him.

The guilt of not being able to save his biological children years ago hadn’t dissipated. And after watching over Shinsou in the hospital, he came to understand that the guilt had amplified his fear of losing his students, particularly Toshi. Moments like this made him regret his decision to be a teacher at U.A. Admittedly, it was emotionally easier when he kept to dark alleyways and kicked creeps off the street by himself. Aizawa shook his head, he didn’t need to spiral out of control. He had already experienced that at the hospital and didn't want to endure the pain of it again. 

The room’s door opened and Kuragari stepped in. Togatta, who now sat at the table on guard duty, greeted her with a brief nod.

“Todoroki’s still awake?”

“Unlike the other two, yes . . . It’s almost 6am,” the leader rubbed his eyes.

“Gotcha,” and cautiously, she approached Todoroki’s cell.

The student looked up to see her come to a stop in front of the glass barrier. His miss matched eyes met the piercing, pure black ones. She lifted her hand up and snapped, which echoed around the room. The lights flickered and Todoroki’s eyes closed. He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

“He’s out,” the woman informed Togatta and stepped away.

“To make things easier for us, we are going to have to keep him knocked out most of the time.”

She slowly nodded. “Makes sense. How much are those quirk canceling collars you mentioned?”

Togatta shrugged. “Too much for us . . . which is why we need to rely on psychology.” He leaned back in his chair and glanced at Shinsou. “Knaify likes him, doesn’t she?”

“What prompted this idea?” Kuragari hesitantly spoke.

“If the boy feels the same way, that could be used to our advantage.”

“That’s a huge if . . . and sounds inane,” she said, hoping he wouldn’t seriously pursue it. “I know I wouldn’t randomly fall in love with someone who helped kidnap me.”

Togatta rolled his eyes. “First of all, you’re a woman, you’re gonna being pickier, second of all, this is a teenage boy we are talking about. And guys can very easily be swayed.”

“Don’t dumb him down like that,” she scoffed. “If you’re going to use psychology to your advantage, treat it like a chess game.”

“Eh, we’ll have to see,” he shrugged, annoyed at her push back.

“And I’m tired of the way you have been using her.”

Togatta raised a neon orange eyebrow. “Have you now?”

“She’s still just a kid.”

“Look at you being all concerned,” he mocked.

The woman shrugged. “You’re failing in the big sibling department, so someone has to.”

A shard floated up into the air and he glowered at her.

Kuragari warily eyed it and scratched her chin. “I just think she should be allowed to enjoy her pre-adult years while she can.”

“Too bad, that’s not going to happen,” the shard hovered near her neck.

“Oh please, I’m the only one that can keep Todoroki down for extended periods,” she cocked an eyebrow.

“Ah, too true . . .” The shard returned to Togatta’s arm. “Don’t worry, I know your value.”

“As you should,” she shifted her gaze and watched Shinsou.

T he kid lay curled up, his back still facing them. “Do you have a plan B ?” She finally spoke again.

“What do you mean?” Togatta glanced back at her.

“You’re planning to wage psychological warfare,” Kuragari paused, “What are you going to do if you break Shinsou?”

“That’s a risk I’ll have to take,” the man’s neon orange eyes settled back on the boy’s slumbering form.

Chapter Text

The door to Shinsou's cell opened and Togatta entered. The light from the ceilings reflected off of the shards that clung to his arms and cast the surrounding area in bizarre, alternating beams of light and shadow.

Aizawa instinctively sat up.

“Wake up,” Togatta barked at the kid.

Shinsou blearily opened his eyes and, at the sight of man, started to scoot towards his teacher.

“Get over here,” the leader pointed at the ground next to him.

After a brief nod from Aizawa, Shinsou hesitantly stood up. Eyeing Togatta distrustfully, he stepped over to him as his heart hammered in his chest.

A shard positioned itself at the kid's throat. “Follow me.”

With one last glance at Aizawa, Shinsou did as instructed and walked after Togatta. He noticed Kuragari watching him as he crossed the room. The woman’s matte black eyes followed him. To Shinsou, they reminded him of what he imagined a black hole would look like. And for a second, he thought he spotted a flicker of pity in the woman’s strange eyes.

Togatta led him to down the blank hallway and opened black door to the right of the cage room. Goose bumps crawled up Shinsou's arms as he entered. Gray storage lockers took up most of the wall space and a black desk stood in the center of the room. A muscular man in his early thirties lifted his head at the sound of them entering. His iridescent white hair was parted in the middle and ended at his jaw. He wore black pants, boots and a thick brown jacket.

“So, he’s ready?” His deep voice filled the room.

Togatta nodded. “As ready as he’ll ever be, I suppose.”

The leader directed Shinsou to a stool and sat him down. “This is Ikasama. He’s in charge of intelligence gathering and field operations. He will brief you about each mission and deploy you.”

Shinsou’s head shot up at the mention of missions. His heart jumped in his chest. What would they have him do? Would they demand that he kill someone? Hurt or torture someone? But could he do that? Even if he knew Todoroki and Aizawa would be punished if he failed?

Togatta held his hand up, as if he knew tumultuous thoughts assaulted the kid.

“He’s also in charge of our armory . . . and an excellent shot.”

The prisoner nodded his head as his heart sank. Wait, if he used a firearm, did that mean he’s quirkless? A tiny sliver of hope appeared. Maybe he could take him after all. He just had to get the gun away from him. Or maybe his quirk had to do with guns . . ? He grimaced.

“You will do everything he says, understand?” Togatta’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

He nodded again and swallowed, willing his panicking heart to slow down.

Togatta then grabbed the edge of the tape and ripped it off his face. Shinsou’s hands flew to the raw skin around his mouth.

“Listen carefully. You are not allowed to speak. If you do, I'll beat the living daylights out of you.”

The kid stopped himself from scowling, sure that if he did, he’d get hit.

“Alright, briefing starts now,” Togatta gestured at Ikasama to start.

After the briefing, Togatta brought Shinsou up to the dining room.

“You’ll eat breakfast before you go,” he stated.

Shinsou shook his head, his knotted stomach didn’t want food.

“Too bad,” he snapped just as Naifaeru entered with breakfast on a tray. She carefully placed it in front of the silent boy.

“Hey, I get it, you aren’t hungry, but if you don’t eat now, it’ll come back and bite you later,” the girl said gently. She then paused and lifted his chin up with her finger. “Oh crap, we really shouldn’t have used duct tape. You have a beard of red skin.” She looked at her brother. “Can’t we find something better?”

“He’ll remain tape free, if he doesn’t speak,” he responded with a crabby tone of voice, annoyed at the teenager’s concern.

Exercising great will power, Shinsou forced his breakfast down.

Once done eating, Naifaeru sat him down on one of the sofas and she balanced a bottle of lotion between her knees.

“Hold still,” she squirted some onto her hands.

He leaned away from her.

“I’m trying to help, idiot,” she gripped his shoulder and pulled him forward. "You'll thank me later," she started rubbing it on Shinsou’s irritated skin. He made a face as it stung.

“Sorry,” she chuckled. “I’m really sorry.”

He lifted a surprised eyebrow. She sure was awfully caring for someone was part of a nasty organization. And what happened to her I-don’t-give-a-damn attitude that she sported earlier? Just a day ago, he had kicked her in the head, hard. He found the constant, revolving states of panic, anger and then sudden calm and quiet, exhausting.

Satisfied, Naifaeru stuffed the bottle in between the couch’s cushions and wiped her hands on her gray camouflage pants. A red tank top took the place of her usual black one. He glanced down. Only a couple of days ago he had been safe and sound in his apartment, watching his mother tease Aizawa with a chip clip. But now he sat here, a prisoner. He balled up his fingers into a fist.

“Hey,” taking pity on him, she placed her hand over his.

He flinched at her touch.

“It’ll be OK. Just do as they ask, and you’ll be fine . . . I am.” She pulled his fist apart.

Surprised, he looked up at her.

“Alright, lets go,” Ikasama’s deep voice interrupted them. “Put this on and cover all of your hair,” he handed a black beanie to Shinsou.

Shinsou found himself in the backseat of an old black pickup. He gripped his seat belt as Ikasama drove over the deep ruts in the winding dirt road that led away from the base. A black bag had been placed over his head. But while the man wasn’t looking, he had pulled it up just enough to get a bearing on his surroundings. If he and the others were to escape, he needed to know how to get out of there. As it turned out, the base happened to be a mansion covered in dull brown paint to blend in with its environment. At one point he could tell it had been very stately but now, the exterior had fallen into disrepair.

About an hour later they entered the main highway heading towards the city. Just before they drove onto the major roadway, Shinsou had been instructed to take the bag off, to avoid any suspicions.

It was a relief, plus, it enabled him to figure out the potential way to freedom. He memorized every road sign and landmark and mentally stashed it away. As part of his training, Aizawa had taught him to study anything and everything. You never knew when a tidbit of knowledge would come in handy.

Finally, after about a two hour trip, they pulled up to a ratty restaurant and Ikasama parked the truck. He turned to look at the kid.

“Alright, this is going to be a simple one. It’s going to be in and out, understand?”

Shinsou nodded and bit his raw, chewed lip. Another one of his bad habits had finally caught up with him. He took a deep breath while telling himself that he could do it. He had to, Aizawa and Todoroki’s well being depended on it.

After some tracking and digging, Ikasama had found out where two anti-mental quirk radicals would be exchanging information on people with mental quirks. To the field’s operator's surprise, they were doing it the rather old fashioned way, with paper files. Had it all been digital, he simply would have launched DoS attacks. But then, that was more than likely why they were avoiding virtual document exchanges. Fortunately for the Masayoshi, they had Hitoshi Shinsou now. And he was on a mission to mess up the anti-mental ’s plans.

Once four weeks of surveillance had passed, Ikasama had been able establish when and where the exchange would take place. Mainjiru would be across town to make the receiver of the information late so Shinsou can steal the files from the informant.

In fact, Shinsou’s mission sounded rather easy. Just go in, take control of her, snatch the files, and then scram. And the thing was, he wasn’t entirely against it. When he first learned of his target, fear that he would be ordered to lead her to a violent end caused a surge in his already crushing anxiety. But violence wasn’t on the agenda today, much to his relief.

Nervously tucking his hair into the beanie, Shinsou hopped out of the truck and strolled towards the restaurant. He tried to keep his gait fast and loose, like he had someplace to be but still had time. Keeping his breathing even, he pulled open the heavy glass door and stepped into the crowded building. The heavy aroma of food, people, and alcohol hit him. Loud conversations, running TVs, and laughter filled his ears. Normally, that would have grated against his nerves. But now, he could use it in his favor; it would make him far less noticeable.

No one seemed to pay attention to the arrival of the tall boy with the overstuffed beanie. Not wanting the establishment’s staff to notice him, he pushed past the crowd at the front of the bar and quickly made his way deeper in the building. Battling his fear, he strode further in. Repeatedly, he told himself that no one would know what he planned to do. But his breathing became shallow and his went mouth dry. The use of his quirk, outside of official training, caused him considerable anxiety. Sometimes, the anxiety even bothered him during official missions. Fear of what other people would think, or do, if they found out about his use of it, tormented him. Some days, he could fight it, push back and prevail, but other times, like now, he struggled to function.

“Come on,” he urged himself. The mission was simple. He could do it and no one would get hurt. He tried to pull up memories of Todoroki and Aizawa, to keep himself going. He had to do it for them. By the time he made it to the middle of the eating area, his hands shook and cold sweat stained his sweatshirt. He frantically glanced around for his target.

After digging through her social media, they obtained a picture of her. She was a bleach blond, fifty-something year old woman with a round face and thin, wire frame glasses. If he were part of a movement with shady ideology, he knew he wouldn’t be out in the open. And sure enough, he guessed correctly. He spotted the woman in a mostly obscured booth in the far corner of the restaurant, right next to the exit. Perfect; as soon as he had the documents, he could easily flee.

Shinsou lifted his foot up to walk towards her just as a drunk man threw his arm around his shoulders.

“Hey, sonny, I’ll buy you a drink,” he slurred into his ear, his bad breath blasting into the kid’s face.

His eyes widened and he staggered underneath the man’s weight. “I-I’m good, thank you,” he tried pushing him away.

“What, no you’re not. I’ll get ya one,” he snapped, annoyed at the boy’s refusal.

Panic gripped Shinsou but he kept his voice even. “I’m meeting someone here and she’s waiting for me,” he responded, hoping the fact would deter him.

It didn’t. “Relax, we won’t take long,” the man muttered and tried pulling him towards the bar.

Officially pissed, Shinsou elbowed the man in the ribs, and jerked himself free. It happened so fast, he wound up on the floor; now several feet away from the goon.

“What the hell—You shit,” The man took a step towards him.

A blond woman stepped between the boy and the man. “Leave him alone you creep! Hey, someone kick this disgusting piece of shit out of here!” She bellowed.

To Shinsou’s surprise and relief, the man turned around and ran out of the exit. The next thing he knew, the woman held her hand out towards him.

He blinked. It was her; his target.

Chapter Text

Surprised, he took her hand and she pulled him upright.

“Th-thanks.”

“I’m so sorry that happened,” she adjusted her glasses.

“It wasn’t your fault.”

She led him to her booth, “here, take a seat.”

Grateful, he sat down. He placed a hand over his racing heart. If this keeps up, I’ll have die of a heart attack before any villain can kill me, he thought to himself. A quiet gasp escaped him. He had been in such a state of shock that he hadn’t even thought to brainwash the man. How easily he could have rid himself of his assailant.

So he can brainwash his cousin for a stupid reason, but when he had every right to, he didn’t use his quirk. Feeling like a complete and utter failure, he stared at his hands.

“Are you alright?”

The woman’s voice brought him back. Right, he now had to brainwash her-

He lifted his head. “Yeah.”

“Are you sure? And what are you even doing in here?”

“Well, I—”

“You’re how old? Twelve?”

He jerked his head back in surprise. “I’m sixteen!”

“Oh, sorry,” she chuckled, “Well, that would explain your mature sounding voice. It’s actually quite nice sounding, you should become a news anchor or something.”

“Um . . . er, thanks.” He had to stop beating around the bush. The job was simple. Do it! His mind ordered him.

“But, even at sixteen, I found your presence questionable.”

He nodded his head, and like that, his mind reached out, seizing the woman’s. She went still. It was done, she was under his control.

Shinsou slammed the truck’s door behind him.

“Did it go well?” Ikasama asked.

He nodded and handed a file folder to him. It had gone well, extremely well.

“Very good,” the man replied approvingly. “The operation only took twelve minutes. And no one, besides that now bewildered woman, is non the wiser about it,” he stated as he backed the truck out.

Only twelve? Shinsou shook his head. It felt like he had been trapped in there for hours.

“Excellent,” Togatta clasped his hands together.

Shinsou now sat in the living with Ikasama so the leader could be briefed.

“He did it exactly as I told him too. One of the smoothest operations yet. He even waited to release her, so that she couldn’t see him. I hadn’t even thought of that,” Ikasama jotted down some notes. “That was a failure on my part.”

“Because you’ve done well today, Todoroki and Aizawa get to eat. Naifaeru, get them something.”

“Alright,” the girl jumped off the couch and disappeared into the kitchen.

Shinsou finally let himself relax slightly. He had done it and done it well. Considering how violent the Masayoshi could be, it had been a surprisingly harmless mission. And Aizawa and Todoroki were still OK.

“About Aizawa,” Mainjiru entered the living room.

“What about him?” Togatta turned at the sound of her voice.

“You said I could have a prize, for all my hard work.”

Shinsou glared at the woman with the red and black hair. “Aizawa is not a prize!” He growled .

Ikasama slapped the back of the boy's head and the force of it caused him to fall on his side. Shinsou curled up and placed his hand over the now sore spot.

Togatta held his hand up and addressed her. “You did get it, remember? You spent your time with him.”

“That wasn’t enough,” she protested. “Gari stopped me before I could do anything fun.”

“I don’t care,” his tone indicated that he didn’t want to hear her speak again.

Mainjiru turned on her heel and stormed out of the room.

“That woman is ridiculous,” Togatta muttered.

“I’m no fan of hers,” Kuragari said from the dining room, “especially since her only goal in life seems to be brainwashing guys.” She then stepped into the living room and leaned against the door frame.

Carefully, Shinsou propped himself up on one elbow to hear her better.

“She’s a piece of work,” the woman with the matte black hair continued.

“But she’s very necessary,” Togatta stated. “And she does deserve to see justice, after the way she was treated.”

“But she’s not helping her cause if she’s brainwashing innocent people,” Kuragari responded. “I joined your group because of my brother. He was driven to suicide because of how people treated him due to his quirk. Mainjiru brainwashing innocents helps prevent that, how?”

Ikasama nodded, “she’s got a point.”

Shinsou raised an eyebrow, so the group didn’t necessarily get along.

“I’ll talk to her later,” Togatta responded and abruptly walked over to Shinsou. The boy looked at him in alarm.

“What did I tell you about talking?” His hand shot out and hit him across the face. The leader then turned around and stalked out of the room.

Shinsou’s hand went to his lip and he felt blood. But he hadn't regretted his outburst. He glanced up to see Kuragari crouching down in front of him.

She held out a napkin. “For your lip.”

Slowly, he took it and pressed it against his mouth.

“Jeez, kid, your face is, um, unfortunate looking.”

Due to his pronounced under eyebags, red, irritated skin, and chapped, chewed lips, the remark was an understatement.

She fished around her waistcoat pocket and pulled out a tube of lipbalm.

A look of mild concern crossed his face .

“Don’t worry, it hasn’t been used. I always get a ton for Christmas and I don’t know why. I still haven’t finished the one from three years ago,” she chuckled and placed it in his hand.

He stared at it and dropped it in his short’s deep pockets.

“Alright, time for you to go back kid,” Ikasama said as he stood up.

“I’ll take him there,” Naifaeru replied as she strode into the living room.

Chapter Text

“Sit down,” Naifaeru gestured at a dusty bench.

Quietly, Shinsou did as instructed and took a seat on the wobbly piece of furniture. No wonder it had been delegated to the basement. Waiting for her to speak, he scratched the back of his neck.

“So, Aizawa and Todoroki are doing OK, considering their circumstance,” she sat down next to him. “Actually, Todoroki just woke up from Kuragari rendering him unconscious.”

“How does her quirk work?” He asked and then quickly covered his mouth with his hand. He had forgotten to remain silent, yet again.

“It’s OK, it’s not like you’d actually be able to accomplish anything by brainwashing me.”

Confused by her statement, he dropped his hand but remained silent, as he still wanted an explanation for Kuragari's quirk.

“Well,” Naifaeru looked up at the door that opened to the basement. “Her quirk is called Blackout.”

Shinsou raised a purple brow.

“She has the ability to render anyone she wants unconscious with the snap of her fingers. Actually, she can shut down any form of energy,” she corrected herself. “So she can turn off any technology in the room she’s in. As you can probably guess, she is a security camera’s worse enemy.”

"So that’s why I blacked out once I entered that building. That’s how you guys were able to get us out of a freaking police station.”

“Yeah,” she nodded. “You know . . . I really wish it hadn’t come to this.”

“If your mission was truly what you stated it was, I wouldn’t have been against it.” Shinsou found himself admitting.

A small smile formed on Naifaeru's face only to quickly fade. “But my brother and Mainjiru run the show. They chose to use me to talk to you because of our similarity in age. They thought that you would be more willing to trust someone your age; a peer.”

“Huh,” he scratched his neck again. “They really did try to think everything out.”

“They tried alright, but as you are all too aware of, it didn’t really go to plan.” She wrapped her arms around her knees.

Shinsou looked at her bare arms. “I just realized, you don’t have your knives.”

“That’s because they don’t let me have them.”

“Why not?”

She lifted her face to look at him. “Because I’m a prisoner too.”

“What?” For a split second he thought he had misheard her. 

“But, I am allowed more freedom than you are.” She sighed, “I never wanted part of this. I just wanted a normal childhood; to be loved by my parents.”

“W-what happened to your parents?” Shinsou spoke haltingly, almost afraid to hear the answer, “. . . your brother had mentioned making them pay . . . for the way they treated you two.”

Naifaeru wiped her eyes. “O-oh.”

“You don’t have to answer,” he hastily said.

“No— It’s fine. It’s only fair; I talked about your father’s death,” she rubbed her arms as if she were cold. “My brother murdered them, after Mainjiru had them will all of their wealth to the two of them. That’s why we have this mansion.”

Shinsou's body tensed up at the revelation. Then it dawned on him; that meant that Togatta’s threats actually had weight to them. “Shit.”

She nodded. “But in Togatta’s mind, he was extracting justice,” she gripped the edge of the bench, her knuckles white. “As bad as my parents were, I didn’t wish for their death. Not that he cared what I wanted , he murdered them on my thirteenth birthday and declared that it was his gift to me.”

“What the actually hell?” He breathed.

She gave him a bleary look. “I sent a knife flying in his direction.”

“Seems like a rather understandable reaction,” he offered.

She lifted a hand up and moved her stiff fingers. “ And I’ve been his prisoner ever since.”

Shinsou wanted to see her use Togatta for target practice now.

“He’s convinced that I’ll change my mind once his plans finally work out.” She looked back up at him. “I’m so sorry for dragging you and the others in. Believe me, I never wanted to.”

All of the anger that Shinsou had been carrying towards her vanished, disintegrating to nothingness.

“I’m sorry for being mad at you earlier, and kicking you . . .” He mumbled, now feeling guilty for his behavior towards her.

“Don’t be. I deserved it, I mean, I was attacking Todoroki and all.” She lowered her hand and placed it on on his.

He looked down at it in surprise.

“I really wish we could have met in better circumstances,” she said quietly. “I’ve never had a friend”

Shinsou looked up at her, meeting her neon yellow eyes. “I grew up mostly friendless too, but my family has been there for me.”

Slowly shaking her head, Naifaeru smiled at him. “I don’t understand how someone could hate you. The way you came to your teacher’s side, without a second thought. How you jumped to Todoroki’s aid, it spoke volumes about your character.”

“Um, I can be a total jerk though,” he grimaced.

“Duh,” she laughed. “You’re human. Aren’t we all?”

She had a point but at he didn’t feel like replying. He appreciated knowing more about her and in turn, about the organization but now it raised so many new concerns. Why did she tell him? Was it a ploy to get him to trust her? But so far, everything she said lined up with what he knew. At the same time, he really didn't know that much and it was so hard to act on little knowledge. 

“Wait, somethings missing,” Naifaeru broke the silence that had settled on them. Before he could respond, she yanked his beanie off, releasing his bush of purple hair.

He made a face . “Excuse me?”

“When I first saw a photo of you, I thought you were adorable, with that giant plume of purple hair,” she smiled, looking quite pleased with herself. "And I wanted to see it again," she dropped the beanie on the bench.

“Gosh,” he shook his head as his face started to flush. “Why you like my crazy hair is beyond me.”

“I know, we always view ourselves harshly,” she reached out and ran a hand through his hair. He looked up at her hand, crossing his eyes in the process.

She giggled. “Agh, that was too cute.”

His face burned red and he hid it with his hands. 

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” he lied.

“Hey,” she gently pried his hands away from his face.

He grinned at her sheepishly.

“Aw, you’re blushing!”

“Sorry.”

“What? No, it’s adorable.”

Confused, he lowered his hands. “Why is it you find everything I do cute?”

She paused, “Well . . .”

He raised an eyebrow, demanding an answer. 

“Cause it is.”

“That’s not an answer,” Shinsou replied rather seriously.

With a smile, she leaned towards him and took his face in her hands.

Alarmed, he blinked, “ Em— ” That wasn’t a normal thing to do mid conversation. Not that they were really conversing now . How did it even get to this point? Would it really not be worth brainwashing her? Could he accomplish something by taking control of her?

“Hey,” her voice caught his wondering mind. “I can show you,” she leaned closer.

Crap, this escalated quickly. He quickly pulled away.

The door creaked opened.

Naifaeru quickly turned around to see Togatta push it all the way open.

Shinsou scooted backwards and bumped into the rough wall behind him.

“Why isn’t he in his cell?” The leader asked as he reached the bottom of the stairs.

“I just thought he deserved some time out of it, for doing such a good job,” Naifaeru replied evenly.

He snapped his fingers, “well, it’s time for him to go back.”

“Fascinating,” Aizawa quietly replied to the information Shinsou had given him. He still sat in the cell, blindfolded. “That is unexpected, but . . .” He paused, running scenarios through his mind. “We might be able to work that to our advantage.”

Shinsou, who sat next to him, rubbed the side of his face that Naifaeru had touched.

His teacher lifted an eyebrow above his blindfold. “ What’s bothering you ?”

Shinsou grimaced. “ I— Well . . . ”

“Spit it out, I don’t have all day.”

“But, you actually do.”

“Shinsou,” came his annoyed voice.

“Alright,” he scratched the back of his neck. “I’m wondering if Naifaeru likes me . . .”

Aizawa nodded, “ Don’t be dumb, of course she does .”

“How did you know though?”

“I know when someone is making goo goo eyes at my kid,” he snapped. “Also, I would be gravely concerned if any of the adult women took a liking to you in that way.”

“Oh . . .” Shinsou mumbled.

“As perceptive as you can be, you are also rather dumb.”

“Hey,” the kid made a face.

“Go find some more braincells.”

“Eraser!” He protested.

“I see you have yet to learn the ways of the world child.”

Shinsou poked Aizawa’s shoulder. “Knock it off.”

“I’m the authoritative figure here, you knock it off.”

Annoyed, Shinsou crossed his arms.

“Let me guess, your bottom lip is sticking out.”

Slowly, he dropped his arms. “How did you—”

A quiet chuckle escaped him. “I know you too well.”

“Apparently,” Shinsou huffed.

“So, she didn’t mention any attempts or even interest of escape?”

“No, she seemed very resigned to her role in Togatta’s plans.”

Aizawa tilted his head. “I have an idea, on how to create an incentive for her to help us out.”

“What is it?”

“Make her fall for you.”

“D-do what now?!” He squeaked..

“Keep your voice down,” Aizawa ordered. “She probably doesn’t want to escape because she doesn’t think she has anything to gai—”

“No, no, no,” Shinsou quickly protested.

“Hear me out,” he snapped.

His student went silent.

“If she thinks that she’s gained you, she’ll be much more likely to fight for your freedom.”

Shinsou shook his head. “And what if it doesn’t work? What if I just make her mad and vengeful because I’m not being sincere. Or what if she's lying about everything?” At this point, he didn't think she had lied to him, but he wanted to discourage his teacher's plan as much as possible.

“Shinsou.”

He scrunched up his face.

“No matter what you do, there’s always going to be risk involved.”

“It’s such a gamble.”

“We gamble with human nature all the time. It's part of our job and it's how we survive.”

Shinsou resisted the temptation to curl up into a ball. As much as it pained him, Aizawa was probably right and like he always, he was being rational. And the man had more of a plan than he did, especially considering that all he was doing was coping.

“Toshi?”

“What?” He huffed. Sometimes Aizawa’s rationality really pissed him off. And it wasn’t that he disliked Naifaeru, he just didn’t like the idea of pretending to be in love. And he excelled at pretending. He could lie like it was nothing, but he had not the slightest clue on how to act romantic. The concept was so foreign to him, he might as well study Hyperbolic Geometry and expect to get straight A’s.

“I’m not saying this is the one and only way to freedom but we need to consider all of our options.”

“Yeah,” Shinsou grudgingly admitted. In theory, the plan could very well work.

“So far, they have only let you and, of course her, outside of the cells. If the two of you worked together, we might have a chance.”

“Do you think Togatta would kill her if we failed?”

After a moment's hesitation, Aizawa spoke. “I think there’s the risk of death, no matter what you do.”

Shinsou turned away from him and rested his head on the glass that separated him from Todoroki. The boy had been on the receiving end of Kuragari’s blackout again and lay in the corner of his cell. It must be terrifying for him, to be constantly rendered unconscious and having no way to stop it. Shinsou rubbed his arm.

They were being very careful with the powerful student, so he couldn’t be relied on when it came to an escape plan. Dammit. Aizawa was right. The fate of three other people's futures were in his hands. His anxious, terrified hands. Shinsou curled his hands up, digging his nails into his palms. He was going to put Tokoyami’s abyss on his Christmas list.

Chapter Text

Shinsou thrashed in his sleep. The man from the restaurant chased him in his dreams, and no matter how fast he ran, he couldn’t shake him. And now, the man was gaining on him, his hand outstretched. He stumbled and fell. The man reached down.

He woke to someone shaking his shoulder and he opened his eyes to see Naifaeru standing over him. “Hey, breakfast is ready.”

“Five more minutes,” he rubbed his eyes and rolled over. He had barely slept the night before. Besides the dream, it was hard getting a restful night’s sleep, with being held hostage and sleeping on a chilly, hard floor.

Sighing, she took his arm and pulled him upright.

“Hey,” he protested. He looked over to see Aizawa, who had his head tilted in their direction. Right . . . Convince a girl who’s parents have been murdered and who has been held hostage since she was thirteen that he’s in love with her. What could go wrong?

“Get up bozo butt.”

Finally, he relented and followed her to the kitchen.

Kuragari looked up to see the two of them walk in. She sat at a breakfast bar and lifted her Pop Tart in greeting.

“Top of the morning to you.”

“Morning Gari,” she replied and pulled two bowls out of the cabinet.

Shinsou gave her a tired look. “I hate mornings and they hate me.”

The woman raised an eyebrow. “I thought he wasn’t allowed to speak,” she said to Naifaeru.

He made face. Cr ud .

“I let him talk to me, cause if he were to brainwash me, I wouldn’t be able to do too much. And he knows that Todoroki and Aizawa’s livelihoods are reliant on him, so he won’t.”

A frown formed on his face at the mention of his fellow hostages. Yet another reminder of how everything fell on him.

“Or you can shut up while I do all the talking. No risk of me brainwashing you there,” Shinsou said in response to their discussion of his speech.

“The sass is strong today!” Naifaeru declared as she pulled out a pot of soup.

“You’ve taken everything else from me, at least allow me my sass,” he mumbled.

This resulted in a laugh from Kuragari. She then lowered her voice and placed her hand by her mouth. “I wouldn’t mind it if he did all the talking around here Naify.”

The girl chuckled and a smile briefly flickered on Shinsou’s face.

She placed the two bowls of soup on the counter and shoved a spoon into Shinsou’s hand.

“Eat boy. Consume thy food.”

Kuragari laughed again.

Shinsou merely raised an eyebrow.

“Seriously, eat!” She bellowed.

He leaned back at the force of her words.

Laughing, Kuragari slapped her knee. “I swear Naify.”

“Ahehehe,” Naifaeru started sipping her hot breakfast.

Silently, he ate his meal. It was actually rather tasty but he refused to enjoy it.

“Do I have a mission today?” He asked warily as he rinsed out his bowl.

“Nope,” Naifaeru replied. “But, they are working on a second one for you. Planning can take awhile, is all.”

“Yay,” Shinsou replied, about as enthusiastic as a convicted person being lead to the gallows.

“Are you sure you like him?” Kuragari asked and tugged on her ear. “He’s as dry as a desert experiencing a drought.”

“I’m saltier than the ocean, you mean,” Shinsou replied.

“I’m fine with dry deserts and salty oceans,” Naifaeru relied.

After cleaning up after themselves, Naifaeru left the kitchen, stating she had to fetch something for Shinsou. Not sure what to do, the boy sat himself down on a stool. Curious, he pushed off of the baseboard with his foot, and sure enough, the stool spun. He smiled to himself and spun himself around again, being sure to spot the red toaster oven each time he spun past it, to prevent himself from getting dizzy. It was a little tip he had picked up from his dancing days.

“Hey, let’s see who can go the faster,” Kuragari challenged him and sat down on the one next to him.

“It’s on,” Shinsou grabbed the marble top of the breakfast bar and, using all of his upper strength, he pushed off.

Kuragari laughed at the sight of his crazy purple hair spinning round and round. He brought himself to a stop and paused.

“OK, I think I’m dizzy now.”

Kuragari snickered and reached out to grab the counter just as Mainjiru stalked in. She made a face at the black haired woman.

“What is going on?”

“We are have a stool spinning competition, care to join?”

“No,” and she walked over to the fridge.

Kuragari made faces behind her back as she rummaged around. Shinsou covered his mouth with his hand to conceal his snickering .

The foul woman then walked out of the kitchen with a bagel in her hand. Kuragari stuck her tongue out after her.

Shinsou broke out in laughter and started to slip off of his stool.

She grabbed his arm. “Steady there lad.”

“That was great.”

She grinned in reply.

This entire time, she had been very careful to not reply to him, Shinsou realized. And she did it with ease; she knew exactly what she was doing.

“Hey,” Naifaeru walked into the room with a bundle of folded clothes. She paused, noticing their amused expressions.

“What happened in my absence?”

“Just some good old fun,” Kuragari replied and returned to her Pop Tart.

“OK,” she turned her attention to Shinsou. “So, here is a fresh changed of clothes,” she handed them off to him.

“OK . . . ?”

“Togatta wants you to take a shower. Nothing clues people off faster that you’re being held against your will than a messy, dirty appearance.”

“Oh,” he understood now.

“Yeah, and it’s kinda gross, knowing you haven’t showered in a couple of days,” Naifaeru leaned forward and sniffed him.

“Hey!” He jerked away.

“You don’t smell that bad,” she admitted.

“What?! That’s unheard of for a teenage boy,” Kuragari stated.

Naifaeru laughed as Shinsou’s face turned bright red.

“You stay out of this!” He barked.

Her jolly laugh filled the room.

Naifaeru led a mortified Shinsou out of the kitchen. He followed her to the hallway and she opened a door that opened up to a spacious bathroom. Shinsou noticed a window but his heart sank as soon as he realized it was blocked by a large, very heavy looking crate. Scratch that off as a possible escape route.

“Behold! A wondrous thing called a shower resides here and it wants you,” she pointed at him dramatically, “to use it!”

He forced his mouth into a straight line.

“Take a shower, idiot,” she responded to his dower expression. “There’s soap and towels in there too.”

He shut the door in her face.

Reluctantly, Shinsou wondered over to the sink and paused, noticing his reflection in the mirror. His greasy hair hung around his face, concealing most of it. His dark eye bags peaked out from underneath his mop and his skin looked more pallid than it usually did. He poked at a forming pimple and quickly regretted the action.

“I look fantastic,” he muttered to himself.

How Naifearu found him cute was beyond him. Now, if she fell for Todoroki, he’d get it. That guy someone always managed to look fetching, even after coming back dirtied from a fight. Yeesh, he’s got more than two quirks apparently. He pulled off his sweatshirt and slowly felt his chest. A large purple bruise took up the center of it and the discolored skin was tender. He quickly withdrew his fingers and glanced down at his stomach, where the burn scar covered most of it. Gripping the edge of the sink, he looked back at his reflection. What a pathetic mess he was; it was almost laughable.

Here he was, Hitoshi Shinsou, student of the prestigious U. A. High, a hero course student, and he looked like a disaster. But even worse than that, he felt like one. But a hero can rescue himself and others, right? It was weird. If someone had asked him that question earlier, he would have responded with a resounding yes. Yes, he could rescue himself and others. He had a powerful quirk, he was clever and was getting better and better at combat. He had an excellent teacher, mentor, and father figure. He had an incredible mother and cousin. His deceased father had believed in him. But he hardly had any faith in himself now. Sighing, he stepped away from the mirror.

A freshly showered Shinsou stuck his head out of the bathroom to see Naifaeru seated across from the door. She looked down at her phone.

“Um, I’ve utilized the shower . . .”

She looked up to see him step out. He had been given a fresh pair of the same style of shorts and his top was now an over-sized gray sweatshirt. She laughed at the sight of his hair plastered to his head.

“I have a blow dryer, hang on a second,” she went charging towards her room. Seconds later, she returned and held up a hot pink blow dryer triumphantly.

“I’ll scare the water away with this bad girl.” She aimed it in his direction.

He raised an eyebrow. “OK, then . . .”

He found himself seated on sofa in the empty living room. Naifaeru perched next to him, aggressively blasting his hair with hot air. He closed eyes, in the fear that they’d be blown out of his head.

“I know what I’m doing,” she insisted.

“Whatever you say,” he replied, not convinced in the slightest.

“Shaddup you bozo.” Satisfied that it was dry enough, she turned it off and then finger combed his mass of hair down. The only other people who had done that were his mother and Emica. He wasn’t sure how he felt about her doing it.

“Jeez, you’ve got some seriously thick locks.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I accidentally ate fertilizer when I was younger and it resulted in this.”

She paused, her eyes wide. “Really? That’s crazy. And you didn’t get sick from eating it?”

Bemused, he turned to look at her. “Naifaeru, I was joking!”

“Oh,” she sounded embarrassed. She responded by smacking his partially exposed shoulder.

“Stop abusing me,” he replied.

Naifaeru rolled her eyes and continued in her effort to tame his air. To better admire her handy work, she sat back. “It looks OKish.”

“I probably looks better than it did before.”

“And even better, it’s grease free.”

He made a face. “Yeah, and that.”

“I could have bottled it up and fried something in it.”

“Ew.”

Naifaeru stepped off the couch. “Lemme look at you.”

Shinsou was a funny sight, hunched up, in his over-sized clothing and with partially wet, semi tamed purple hair.

She grinned.

Tilting his head, he looked at her. The action caused his hair to flop to one side, obscuring half his face.

“You’re so adorable,” she leaned over and pinched his cheek.

“Ow,” his hand pushed hers away.

She facepalmed. “I swear Hitoshi, sometimes you’re down right pathetic.” And after that statement, she jogged out of the room.

Shinsou rubbed his pinched cheek. He had come to find that he didn’t mind her company. In fact, he had almost forgotten that he was a prisoner. And he liked that. It was nice to forget, if just for a bit. But, he didn’t want to pretend to have these feelings that he did not have towards her.

It wasn’t fair, not to her nor to him. He could see them being friends, good ones possibly. But not once, did he wonder what being romantic with her would be like. He scratched the back of his neck. The problem was he could actually see the stupid plan working. But he didn’t know if he could get himself to work along with it.

“I forgot to give these to you earlier,” Naifaeru walked into the room with a pair of fresh socks and threw them at him. He manged to catch one sock as it flew towards him but the other one caught on his hair. The sight of it reminded her of clothes blown off of a clothesline and getting caught on nearby shrubbery.

“Thank you,” he blandly replied as he put them on.

He sat back down on the couch and let his eyes wander over the room. The living room had several large windows but they were covered with heavy drapes. He had no idea what was behind them. Was it just a sheet of glass? Was that all that stood between him and freedom? But, maybe those windows were blocked too and he didn’t dare go up and look right now. If he was caught, Todoroki and Aizawa would surely be punished as a result of his actions. And that thought reminded him yet again that he was the one who had to get them all out.

Absently, he rubbed his stomach as he desperately tried to think of an escape plan; one that didn’t involve toying with her emotions. But if he found a way to rescue all of them, she might agree, without the whole stupid faux romance thing. Sneaking Todoroki and Aizawa out would be hard though. As far as he knew, they were hardly let out of their cells and they were constantly watched. Kuragari and Togatta were the scariest. They could take out the prisoners easily, Kuragari could do so extremely easily. And if they got caught? He dug his nails into his stomach. What would happen then . . . ?

“Ow,” Shinsou said softly and quickly pulled his hand away.

“What?” Naifaeru had been sitting quietly, watching the boy think. She scooted over to him.

He looked at his hand. “Nothing.”

“Are you sure?” She pulled up his sweatshirt to reveal his scar. She quickly spotted the indents in his skin caused by his nails.

Shinsou watched her, uncertain of how to react. He wasn’t accustomed to people, save for his mom, yanking up his shirt. And the fact that it was a girl romantically interested in him made it even weirder for him.

“Hitoshi? You seriously need to stop hurting yourself,” she sighed as her eyes looked him over.

“Yeah,” he replied, with no intent of stopping. Thoroughly uncomfortable, he pulled his top free from her grip and quickly tucked it into his shorts.

“OK,” Naifaeru didn’t sound convinced. She leaned against him, slipping her arm behind his back and rested her head on his shoulder.

Shinsou sat still, not knowing how to respond to her affection. His eyes went to the fireplace in front of them and he let out a quiet sigh. He, and especially his friends, where in danger and yet, he was snuggling on a couch with a girl that he didn’t have feelings for. How he hated Aizawa’s idea.

The door opened and Kuragari stepped in. “Oh my,” she raised a brow. “I’ve interrupted the lovers!”

“Gari!” Naifaeru laughed.

Shinsou covered his face with one oversized sleeve to hide his blushing. 

Naifaeru looked up at his face. “You made him blush. It’s adorable whenever he does that.”

The woman shrugged. “Happy to be of service?”

Further embarrassed, Shinsou brought his other sleeve up to his face.

“Well, sorry to bug you two, but Togatta wants him back in his cell.”

Shinsou sat with his back to the wall and with his knees pulled up. He stared straight ahead. Today hadn’t been terrible. But . . . how far would he have to go in his effort to convince her that he viewed her like she did him? He could handle the hair combing and he could barely tolerate the hugging. But he wasn’t sure about anything else and he preferred it when his shirt actually covered him.

“How did it go?” Aizawa asked.

Shinsou turned his head to look at his teacher. “Um, OK. I, um, ugh . . . I don’t know.” He really didn’t want to talk to him about it, as he was still resentful of the plan.

“Oh?”

“Nothing,” and he rested his head on his knees. Movement from the other cell caught his attention and he glanced over to see Todoroki. The other student slowly pulled himself to his feet, his movements slow and clumsy. Finally, he stood up and held his arms out to catch his balance as he swayed.

Kuragari, who stood watch, noticed and approached the cell. Seeing her, Todoroki stumbled back into the wall. He held a hand out, as if to say: leave me alone.

The woman crossed her arms. They were not taking any chances with him. Slowly, the student slid back down to the floor, in an effort to seem as non-threatening as possible. Kuragari watched him carefully but he remained a lump on the ground. Satisfied that he wasn’t up to anything, she walked back to the table and sat down.

After waiting a minute, Shinsou sat up and scooted over to the glass barrier. “Hey, Todoroki I don’t know if you can hear me but—”

The other boy lifted his head at the faint sound of Shinsou’s voice. He quickly glanced over at Kuragari and then slowly shuffled his way towards him.

“Yeah, I can hear you,” his voice sounded hoarse and tired.

“Have they given you anything to eat or drink today?”

“No,” Aizawa replied. “How are you faring Todoroki?”

“I feel like shit,” Todoroki replied.

Shinsou nodded his head. “You look like shit.”

“Thank you,” he replied dryly.

Shinsou raised an eyebrow. “How can you jest at a time like this?”

“Would you rather have me curl up and cry?” Todoroki responded. “This is the first time I’ve been awake in what feels like weeks.” He made a face “It hasn’t been that long, has it . . . ?”

“No,” Aizawa shook his head. “This is the third day we’ve been held.”

Shinsou looked up at his mentor. “Only three days? But it does feel like it’s been weeks.”

“Hopefully we won’t be held for weeks.” Aizawa replied.

Shinsou glanced down. Right, the plan. The stupid, moronic plan.

Chapter Text

That evening Shinsou was let out of his cell for dinner. “Can Todoroki come too?” He asked Kuragari. She paused, thinking. Then she pulled out her phone and called Mainjiru.

“Yes?” Came the woman’s peeved voice over the phone.

“Can you put Todoroki in a lucid state of your control?”

“And why the hell would I waste my energy on that?”

“Shinsou wants him to come up for dinner and I figured that would be the best way of doing it. The kid can eat, Shinsou gets to hang with his buddy, and we don’t have worry about being turned to ice cubes or being barbecued.”

Todoroki raised his eyebrows at the description of his powers.

The other woman went silent for a moment. “Hmm, sure,” she finally replied and hung up. Moments later, she sauntered into the basement.

Kuragari opened the cell door and the other woman entered.

Shinsou watched as she approached an apprehensive Todoroki.

“Hold out your arm,” she ordered.

After a moment's hesitation, he did as he was told. He flinched as she bit down on it. Satisfied that she had bitten hard enough, she dropped his arm and stepped out.

“Alright, he’s all yours.”

Shinsou ran to the cell and threw open the door. He gestured for Todoroki to come out. The other student took a wary step forward, but gaining confidence, he finally walked free of his prison. He lifted up his hands, willing his powers to work, but due to the state he was now in, his powers remained closed off.

“Alright you two,” Kuragari made a sweeping gesture with her arm. “After you gents.”

They exchanged a look and Todoroki looked amused at her goofiness. They walked out of the sterile holding room and towards the dining room.

Kuragari explained Todoroki’s presence to a suspicious Togatta and Ikasama. But after her explanation, they relaxed, with Ikasama even admitting he thought it was a good idea.

Shinsou scrunched up his face, what a weird existence, eating with the people that held you prisoner and sitting besides them, as if they were friends or family. But, for the first time in awhile, his stomach demanded food and he allowed himself to eat properly. Todoroki sat beside him and ate his fill. That was good. He and Aizawa had been withheld food and drink today, which angered him. He made a mental note to slip some food to Aizawa. It wouldn’t be much, but he had to do something. The adults conversed about something unmemorable while Shinsou, Todoroki, and Naifaeru ate in silence.

The three teenagers then left the conversing adults behind and took up residence in the living room. Todoroki took a seat on the ottoman and stared at the fire while Shinsou and Naifaeru sat on the couch. Shinsou took his usual corner and she settled in besides him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest. Despite his growing discomfort at her contact, he didn't move.

“I must admit, this is rather strange,” Todoroki spoke and lifted his hand. Again, his powers refused to activate.

Shinsou nodded. “Sorry, I wouldn’t have asked if I had realized that you’d be controlled again.”

“How were you to know? And as bad as it is, it’s not as bad as being knocked out all the time. At least I have control of most of my thoughts.”

“Most of your thoughts?” A perplexed Shinsou asked.

Todoroki nodded. “For instance, I can control my speech but I have no desire or will to fight or escape. I can say: I want to escape, but my mind doesn’t actually want to.”

“So basically you can’t make yourself run . . .” Shinsou finished. “That is some complex control.”

“Yes,” he replied and finally dropped his hand. Noting Naifaeru’s silence, he turned to see her nuzzle Shinsou’s neck. He raised his eyebrows at the sight. Shinsou noticed and froze, mortified. Todoroki didn’t know about the plan and to make matters even worse, he didn’t know that she too was being held against her will.

“So, collusion with the enemy?” His voice came out calm but Shinsou could detect the underlying anger in it.

Naifaeru glared at the boy seated on the ottoman. She then cast a quick glance at the kitchen and whispered. “I’m not who you think I am.”

“Is that so?” Todoroki challenged her.

Shinsou held up his hand. “Alright, let’s not go any further. If a scene is made we’ll be thrown back in the cells.”

Todoroki shot him an icy look and turned back to watch the fire. Shinsou looked down at Naifaeru and pushed some loose strands of her neon green hair behind her ear. He wasn’t sure if that was romantic or not but she smiled at his touch. His stomach sank. He wanted to pull himself free of her embrace and explain that he was a fraud, that he was only doing it so she would help them escape. But he kept silent.

“I’ll be right back,” Naifaeru excused herself and left the living room. Grateful to finally be free, Shinsou stood up and started pacing. He rubbed the back of his neck and chewed his lip. He looked up to see Todoroki standing directly in front of him. He opened his mouth in surprise at the boy’s stealth and speed. He could have sworn he was sitting down just a second ago. Todoroki had his arms crossed and his miss-matched gray and turquoise eyes glowered at him.

“What on this earth do you think you’re doing, being with her?” he hissed, keeping his voice low and unnoticeable to the people in the dining room.

Shinsou held his hands up. “It’s not what it looks like, I, uh . . .” His voice trailed off. He didn’t dare mention Aizawa’s plan out loud, not here. And he didn’t want to explain who she really was, as he didn’t know if she would get in trouble for revealing that she was being held captive. In fact, there wasn’t much he could tell him.

Todoroki’s hands reached out and seized Shinsou’s collar. “I never would have expected such stupidity from someone like you.”

Great, he had been insulted and praised in one sentence. Shinsou’s hands went to pry Todoroki’s away but they held fast. The shorter boy was stronger than he was.

“I can’t explain now,” he hastily said, “but I’m not doing what you think I am. OK? Can you believe me on that?”

Todoroki jerked Shinsou. “I don’t now. I’ve seen people do some really, really stupid stuff just because they fell for someone else. Romance has the ability to make the most rational people become complete morons.”

“I’m not really in love with her, OK?” He quickly whispered.

Todoroki furrowed his brow in response. “So you just want to get down her pants then? That’s low of you.”

“Ew! No!” Shinsou exclaimed in frustration. That was the last thing on this earth that he wanted to do. They both paused but the adults didn’t seem to notice. Todoroki still held him in a vice-like grip.

“That’s not what I’m trying to do,” Shinsou frantically tried to explain. Ugh, this was bad. The other student looked like he wanted to kick his butt and then some.

Slowly, Todoroki’s fingers released his gray sweatshirt. “I don’t know what you want with her, but,” he held up a warning finger. “Don’t get her pregnant.”

Shinsou’s face flushed a bright red and he wanted to vanish. It would be nice to be invisible like Toru Hagakure right about now. He stumbled backwards and quickly exited the room. That’s it. He was beyond done, beyond ticked. Thoroughly pissed, he was going to find Aizawa and give him an earful. He threw open the basement door and marched down the stairs. He stormed down the hallway and yanked open the black door that led to the holding room. He was going to let it loose. He froze.

Mainjiru stood in the doorway of Aizawa’s cell, one hand gripped the door frame and the other clutched a knife. He still sat chained up, but aware of her presence.

Forgetting what he had come down to the room for, Shinsou charged towards her.

She looked up just as he gripped her wrist, yanking the knife away from Aizawa’s direction.

Mainjiru turned her head and her teeth grazed Shinsou’s arm.

“Ack!” He jerked back to avoid her bite but the action caused him to lose his balance.

Sensing his lack of stability, she lifted her elbow back, slamming it into his chest. He gasped from the impact, she had hit him right where Aizawa had a couple of days ago. Clutching his throbbing chest, he stumbled to the ground.

After exiting the cell, she approached the boy, deftly holding the knife; she knew how to use it. Shinsou looked up in alarm and desperately scrambled backwards. His back hit the wall. Shit.

Rolling forward, he just missed her attack. She swore as the knife hit the cinder block wall that was once behind him. He brought himself up to a crouching position. Ignoring the pain that throbbed in his chest, he weighed his options. She was dangerous, unarmed. Armed, she was a force to be reckoned with. He glanced to his side to see Aizawa tugging against the restraints, but they weren’t about to loosen. But considering he was a liability and relatively safe at the moment, he could work with that. She straightened and watched him through narrow eyes. Neither one of them wanted to be the first to move.

Shinsou’s heart pounded in his ears and his breathing came out fast and shallow. They stared at each other, trying to anticipate each other’s moves. Slowly standing up, he spread out his feet and brought his hands up in front of his face, taking the defensive stance that Aizawa had drilled in to him. He had done it so much that his mother had seen him do it in his sleep. The thought of that reminded him of her and he felt a pang of sadness. He quickly shook off the thought. He needed to focus; to take her down. He had to try using his quirk.

“What’s your deal with Aizawa?”

She grinned at him and readjusted her grip on the knife.

“Please don’t tell me you’ve met before and for some reason you’re trying to exact revenge.”

His invitation to talk was tempting. Mainjiru had a lot that she wanted to say but she refused to give in.

“Has he wronged you in the past?”

She opened her mouth, desperately wanting to explain her perspective. At the last second, she stopped herself.

Realizing he wasn’t getting anywhere, he decided to take the first move. He feinted a move to her right, her dominant side, but at the last moment, veered to the left. She moved away from the wall in response, which is what he wanted. She was now in the open.

Shinsou stayed still, his body tense with anticipation. She quickly turned the knife upside down, and gripped the blade in between her fingertips. She drew her hand back and turned towards the cell.

Shinsou eyes grew wide. Did she really plan to throw it into the cell? “Eraser!”

The teacher raised his head in surprise as she whipped her arm forward. The knife launched into the air.

He turned towards Aizawa, in hopes of somehow running in there in time and shoving him out of the knife’s path. It was a mistake. The weapon wasn’t aimed directly at his teacher and he had exposed himself to her. He realized too late as she tackled him to the ground. She slammed Shinsou’s head into the concrete floor and he faltered. Darkness clouded his vision as he tried to feebly push her off. She seized his arm.

He yelped as her teeth sank into it. A heavy, black waved washed over him, smothering him in darkness, erasing all of his senses. It felt like he couldn’t breath, like his heart had stilled. It felt like being suspended in the air on a pitch black night. His open eyes stared at nothing. As soon as it had come, it went. Suddenly, his vision cleared and he found his eyes focusing straight ahead. His body went still, despite him willing it to fight her, to throw her off him. So, that’s what it felt like to lose control of yourself. It was awful.

“Stay there,” she ordered as she walked into the cell to retrieve her knife. The teacher, straining an ear for any signs from Shinso, remained still. Slowly, she stood up and wiped her mouth. It had been hard, but she had all the power now. She then strolled back towards Shinsou and knelt down beside him.

“Now, I’m more easily disposed to answer your questions,” she stated as she tapped the tip of the knife against his shoulder. He wanted to reach out and push her away, but his hands lay by his side, useless.

She tilted her head. “I was your age when I met my ex. We “dated” for six miserable years.” She tilted her head, a crooked smile showing on her lips. “Have you ever dated before?”

To his surprise, he felt his speech return. “I—” He didn’t want to answer her question but maybe, just maybe, he could control her. Could he? Todoroki’s quirk had been blocked by her but he wouldn’t know till he tried.

“I haven’t.”

“But Naifaeru has taken a liking to you.”

Shinsou felt tendrils of his power reach out but they quickly dissipated before he could reach his target. So, he did have his power, just very weak remnants of it.

He looked away.

“But let me guess, you wouldn’t want to be with her, right? Considering she’s part of a group that has captured you,” she poked his shoulder with the very tip of the knife. “You’re too good for her, aren’t you?”

“Maybe I’m just not interested?” He replied truthfully.

She rolled her eyes and pulled the knife up. “Oh, don’t lie. You guys are all the same. Women only have any value in your eyes if they can serve you.”

Inwardly, Shinsou grimaced. In a way, she was right, in that he technically was using her. To help them in their escape. But . . . it would benefit her too and he didn’t do it out of malice. And if had his way, he wouldn’t be doing it at all; but it had been because of Mainjiru and Togatta that he had even resorted to it in the first place.

“If given the choice, you’d use her for your pleasure.”

Without thinking, he shook his head. Now that was the farthest thing from the truth. “I wouldn't. I know it’s wrong. I was raised better than that.”

“My experience tells me otherwise.”

He raised an eyebrow at her statement. “Your experience is just that, yours. And choosing to view the world from that lens shows how narrowly you think. My mom’s experience is different.”

She opened her mouth to retort but then closed it, deciding to let him finish his reply.

“Yes, she’s been treated poorly before, but my dad loved her and treated her as if she was the greatest thing on this planet. Her coworkers, who are mostly male, appreciate her and view her highly," his words spilled out, "Aizawa respects her as a woman, as a human being and as my mother.”

“Well, isn’t she a lucky one,” she sneered. “But she’s just treated that way because she doesn’t have awful power like I do. The man I dated had convinced me that he was better than I was because of my quirk. And that I was only any good if I did as he said and wished. I lived like that, believing his lies, desperate to be held in high esteem by him.”

“I understand what that’s like . . .” Shinsou responded quietly.

“For six years I put up with his abuse. I was technically stronger than he was, he was quirkless, but I was held captive by his lies. And every time I did something that was against his will, he’d take this knife,” she held up the knife so that the light glinted off of it, “and cut me with it.” She lowered it and cut him across his right shoulder with the tip of it.

He grit his teeth as blood seeped through the cut in his sweatshirt. “What happened to him?”

A smile formed on her face. “I finally realized my worth and I killed him with the knife he used on me for so many years. I am so sick of people acting like they have the moral high ground. People like Aizawa, like you, like your school.” Sounded about right.

Understanding dawned in his eyes. “So you did what you did with Aizawa, because you believe he thinks he’s morally superior to you?”

She tilted her head to the side and tapped the knife’s blade against the concrete floor, right next to his ear. He started to turn his head away but she willed it still.

“Partially, yes. Also, I’ve wanted to have a man on my terms. After being controlled for so many years I wanted to be the one in charge.”

Shinsou’s stomach turned. He didn’t want to think about what that would entail. He tried reaching out and this time, he felt his power brush against her mind but again, it dissipated. But it had gotten farther than it had the first time. Maybe he could take control of her . . .

She glanced up to look at the the man that remained stuck in the cell. “You know, once Aizawa’s cleaned up, he’s actually rather good looking,” she looked back down at Shinsou. “And you would be too, when your face heals up and you do something about your ridiculous hair.”

“Being attractive has never been a concern of mine,” he snapped.

She laughed. “That’s evident. Besides your moral superiority syndrome, you and Aizawa have that in common.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re just projecting it onto him and me because you want a reason to be mad at us.”

Mainjiru paused, considering his words. Eventually, she shrugged. “But I know how you view me and the Masayoshi. We are villains in your eyes because we simply want to avenge others who have suffered. But that’s not acceptable in this messed up society. This society that still allows others to suffer simply because of their quirks.”

Shinsou raised a brow. “You seem to forget, I’ve suffered too. I don’t like what society has done nor do I approve of your “justice”.”

Sighing, she shook her head. “You are impossible.” She brought the knife up to his forehead and pressed the edge of the blade down. “People like you are why I’ve given up on reasoning with this world.”

He clenched his jaw as the blade cut into his skin. “Is that how Aizawa got the wound on his forehead? Because of you?”

She chuckled. “Yes, it’s my way of saying Mainjiru was here.” She then wiped the blood off the knife’s blade with his sweatshirt. “That was the most I could do with him. Gari made sure of that,” she screwed up her face at the mention of the other woman’s name.

Shinsou found himself wanting to hug the black clad woman. He exhaled quietly and extended his power again. It crashed against her and weak tendrils grasped at her mind but then they slid away. He would have to get her to talk some more. "You really should get along though, considering you're on the same team."

“She suffers from the superiority syndrome as well,” she spat.

He paused, gathering what little he had of his power and using every ounce of his strength, he unleashed it. It swept over her mind and finally seized control.

A maniacal grin spread across his face as she looked up in alarm.

“Got you, bitch.” Shinsou had done it, he had actually been able to take control of her. He was amazed and delighted at the same time. The tide could turn.

Confused, Mainjiru lifted her knife to strike him.

“Stop! Throw that thing out of reach.”

Slowly, resisting his orders, she turned and it slipped out of her hands.

Not quite what he had in mind, but it would have to do. He tried lifting his arms but to his surprise, they were still being held down by her control.

“I still control you . . . ” she replied, just as confused as he was about the state they were in.

He did have power over her, but due to it being weakened by her quirk, he didn’t have much control of himself, thus being unable to move.

“What the hell?” He muttered as she ordered his body to stand up.

“Smash your head against the glass,” she ordered.

“You smash your head against the glass!” He quickly commanded as his body walked towards the cell’s wall.

Because she stood closer to the enclosure’s wall, his orders were carried out first.

“Damn you!” She yelled as her controlled body threw her head against the hard glass. His vision went black and his stomach dropped, as if he fell from a great height. Suddenly, his vision cleared and he looked straight ahead to see his reflection in the glass that was now just an inch away from his face. Blood dribbled down from the cut on his forehead and he looked more haggard than he usually did. Slowly, he turned to see a knocked out Mainjiru slumped on the floor. He stared down at her in disbelief. He had done it, he had defeated her. He had defeated her power with his. To him, that was an immense accomplishment.

“You did great kid.” Came Aizawa’s voice.

Shinsou opened his mouth to reply but everything went black.

Chapter Text

The night before

“Why do you like Shinsou?”

Naifaeru jumped at the sound of Mainjiru’s voice.

The woman walked up to where she sat at the dining room table and took a seat.

“Why do you ask?” She replied as her cheeks turned pink.

“I asked you first” Mainjiru placed her hands on the table and gave the teenager a questioning look. “You know, I feel that the others like the idea of your romantic interest in him, as they see it as a tool or a weapon.”

Naifaeru shrugged, not wanting to discuss her cause for affection towards the boy.

“I wouldn’t be too quick to be yearning for someone that had just brainwashed me a couple of days ago.”

“He did that because he was worried about his teacher. If I were in the same position I would have done the same thing.”

“Ah, here come the excuses,” Mainjiru leaned forward. “Do you not understand the danger you would be putting yourself in if you pursued a relationship with him? He could brainwash you into doing anything, absolutely anything he wanted. If he wanted your body for a night, he could do it.”

Angered, Naifaeru quickly shook her head in protest. “Shinsou wouldn’t do that.”

“Oh? And how do you know that? You barely know who he is. Please don’t tell me that you think he has high morals because he attends U. A.? There are more than plenty of pro heroes who don’t practice their projected morals in private.”

The girl bit her lip. She had a point. “But he just doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who—”

“You don’t know who he is!” She slammed her hand down on the table. “If he’s not going to use his power badly now, he’ll probably use it for his whims later down the road. What’s to stop him?”

“I . . .” Nafiaeru’s voice trailed off.

“All he has to do is gain the public’s trust and then he’ll be even more dangerous than before. Once he has other people’s trust, he can do so much damage. People are idiots thinking that he’s just striving for the greater good.”

Naifaeru crossed her muscular arms. “You’re saying that because you have no self control; you’re blinded by your limited perception of humankind and your own greed.”

“That was quite the spiel,” Mainjiru replied haughtily. “Fine, pursue Shinsou. You’ll find out soon enough that it was a mistake.”

The confidence in her tone cause d Naifaeru to glance away in doubt.

"I'm saying this because I care about you."

Shinsou’s vision suddenly returned. He blinked his eyes in confusion. He still stood upright, his arms outstretched for balance. Mainjiru lay on the ground, unconscious. “Must have been the effect of her being knocked out . . .” He reasoned to himself . He took a deep breath, his lungs suddenly desperate for air. Wait, with Mainjiru unconscious that meant that Todoroki had been freed from her control. He whipped his head around to see Aizawa waiting in his cell. They could escape. “Eraser! We can run,” he said in disbelief. He knelt down and started searching Mainjiru’s pockets.

“Where’s Todoroki?” Aizawa demanded.

“Living room.” Shinsou swore under his breath as his hands felt for a key. Fear knotted up his stomach; they couldn't go anywhere unless he got his teacher free. His fingertips brushed up against a piece of metal. Bingo! “I found a key,” he breathed and yanked it from her pocket. Please work, he silently begged as he ran over to Aizawa.

The teacher tilted his head up, eagerly awaiting freedom. A nasty combination of nervousness and pain caused Shinsou's hands to shake. “Come on,” he hissed as he managed to work the key into the restraint’s lock, ignoring the pain. Hoping against hope, he twisted it.

It didn’t budge.

His stomach sank. No, this had to be the right key. It was the only key she had.

“Try again,” Aizawa spoke calmly, in an effort to ground his student.

“Right,” he took another deep breath, willing himself to stop shaking. He turned it again and with more force than before. A tiny click sounded. His eyes grew wide.

Without wasting a second, the man pulled his hand free and yanked his blindfold off. “I’ll have to take care of Gari.”

“Yes, she’s the scariest one,” Shinsou agreed as he undid the other restraint.

“Grab the knife,” Aizawa ordered as he stood up. “And you said they have guns?”

“Yes,” Shinsou replied as he jogged towards the weapon, his sneakers squeaking against the floor. “Ikasama: uses them; I’ll show you were they are.” He curled his fingers around the knife’s hilt.

“If worse comes to worse, we’ll use them.”

“Understood,” Shinsou nodded. Despite having firearm training, he hadn’t had the chance to use it out in the field yet. And admittedly, he didn’t want to use one, as he had seen the damage they could inflict. Gun violence victims were surprising common in Aizawa’s line of work.

“We also need to locate Todoroki quickly . . .” Aizawa’s voice faded at the sound of the door opening.

Naifaeru entered the room. She paused at the sight of a defeated Mainjiru.

“She started it,” Shinsou blurted out. Instinctively, he tightened his grip on the knife.

Aizawa kept silent, deciding to let his student deal with the potential threat.

“You’re trying to break free,” she finally spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.

Shinsou slowly nodded in response. His heart hammered in his chest but he maintained his calm facade. “Do you want to come with me?” He asked hopefully. He spoke deliberately, doing his best to use her desire to be with him in their favor.

Silence. M elancholic doubt replaced her usual confidence.

“I want to get you out of here and take you to safety.” He spread his hands out and then realized that he still held the knife. Not wanting to appear threatening, he quickly threw it to the side, but deliberately chucked it in the pro hero’s direction.

“But what if the outside world-society, doesn’t like my quirk . . . ?” Words finally emerged from the conflicted girl.

Great. Resistance. They were losing precious time.

But, it was a legitimate fear, this he knew all too well. “I can’t promise you paradise, but I can promise you freedom.”

Naifaeru slowly shook her head, “but I’m accepted here.”

Horrified, he shook his head. “No, you aren’t!”

She scooted back, caught off guard by his tone.

“If you were truly accepted they would let you do as you please, but no, here you are, a prisoner. You just have a longer leash than I have.” He kept his tone firm but sympathetic.

Aizawa cleared his throat. They had to leave, now.

“OK,” Naifaeru let out a deep breath, he had a point. “But let me ask you this,” she walked up to him and gripped his arm, her fingers accidentally digging into his scar.“Are you actually interested in me?”

“What?” He tilted his head, genuinely taken aback by her question.

“That’s what I was wondering,” she glowered at him, her grip tightening. The chilly air and the buzz of lights suddenly become overwhelming, burning his skin and scratching at his ears. His body ached to run out of the room and seek relief from the sudden sensory attack. But thankfully, he managed to keep the sudden panic at bay.

He maintained the eye contact. His purple eyes didn’t waver from the piercing yellow eyes. He had a job to do and he intended to carry it out. “I care about you, and that’s more important than interest. It’s because I care that I want to get you out of here.”

“I-I don’t know if I can believe you,” her voice cracked.

Time to switch up tactics. He wrested his arm free. The action caused her to give him an uncertain look. “You said you never had a friend. So here’s a lesson for you, friends don’t leave friends behind,” he pulled her into a hug. “If you want to stay, that’s up to you,” he stepped back and then placed his hands on her shoulders. “But don’t try to stop me.”

“Let’s go,” the teacher’s gravely voice interrupted them.

“Toshi—”

“What’s taking so long?” Togatta’s voice cut her short. The leader walked into the room, his eyes demanding answers. The sight of Mainjiru provided one.

Sensing movement behind him, Shinsou stepped to the side and yanked Naifaeru out of the way, accidentally pulling both of them to the floor. Aizawa, with his eyes blazing red, launched himself off the table, his foot outstretched.

Togatta threw his arm up in surprise. He couldn’t escape the man’s blow but it protected his head from the intended strike. The two of them crashed to the floor.

Naifaeru pulled herself free from Shinsou's grip.

“We can still get out of here,” he desperately whispered, his gaze inadvertently going to the fight by the entrance. The sound of a knife’s blade scraping against the concrete floor caught his attention. He looked back to see Naifaeru with her hand outstretched.

“Wha—”

It now hovered near his throat.

“I don’t know who to trust!” She cried. Her arm shook, which caused the blade tremble.

Aizawa still wrestled with Togatta. He would be impaled if he dare turn his gaze away from his him. Shinsou had to deal with her on his own.

“Why do you doubt me?” He asked, genuinely hurt by her hesitation.

She shook her head, fighting back tears.

“Dammit,” he reached out and seized the knife, moving his body away at the same time.

Naifaeru directed the knife out of his hands and he watched with helpless eyes as it rose above his head.

“Lower the knife Naifaeru,” he ordered.

He felt a cold hand grip the back of his neck.

“Don’t move,” Mainjiru’s voice rasped in his ears.

A quiet gasp escaped Shinsou.

“Did you see that?” The Mainjiru dug her nails into his neck. “He tried controlling you again . . . piece of shit.”

He curled his hands into fists.

“You’re awake?” Naifaeru finally registered the haggard woman’s presence.

Forgoing a reply, Mainjiru grabbed Shinsou's hair and jerked his head back to fully expose his throat.

The sound of Togatta and Aizawa wrestling could be heard in the background, reminding him that he had to get out of this alone.

“I think it’s about time we show this wanna be assailant a lesson.” The smile could be heard in her voice.

“Stop painting me with someone else’s sins!” Shinsou blurted, a tear threatening to escape.

“Wh-what do you mean?” Naifaeru’s eyes widened at her words. The knife still hovered above Shinsou's head.

“You’ll see,” she smirked.

A loud crash sounded from upstairs and the lights flickered .

Todoroki. They knew about him now.

Without another word, Mainjiru sunk her teeth into the back of Shinsou's neck.

He cried out in alarm.

Horrified, Naifaeru scrambled backward. The knife clattered to the floor.

Mainjiru nodded at the sound of the boy’s distress and she leaned forward to retrieve the knife.

A shadow appeared over her . Mainjiru froze and looked up to see Aizawa’s furious face. Togatta lay on the floor; a defeated mess.

Before she could react, he ran up, kicked his leg out and turned, directing all of his force into the blow. “Get your hands off my kid!” He clocked her square in the face. The force of the blow caused her head to slam into the wall. And just like that, she flopped to the floor.

Now in control of his body again, Shinsou caught himself with his hands. For a split second darkness overtook his vision. Despite his best efforts, tears fell from his eyes as his body trembled.

“Shinsou?” Naifaeru whispered.

“Let’s go,” Aizawa stood up to his full height and gestured for him to stand up.

“Right,” Shinsou sat up and lifted his head to look at his face for reassurance. It felt so good to finally see him free of that cell; free of Mainjiru.

“Come on, we need to fetch Todoroki.” His father figure gave him a small smile and held his hand up.

He reached up to take it.

A shot rang out.

Shinsou watched in silence as blood ran down his outstretched hand. As if under Mainjiru’s control, he remained frozen, his eyes transfixed on the blood. The warm, red liquid dripped onto the floor. Wait, why wasn’t he standing up? Who’s blood was this? His own body felt numb and heavy, as if a foreign entity were attached to him. Pain ebbed and flowed throughout his body, the exact location unidentifiable. Once again, his body betrayed him. It didn’t matter how much he wanted to jump to his feet and run. He remain locked in place. But why? They had to rescue Todoroki. They had to run away. He wanted to see his mom again. And he knew Aizawa wanted to see little Eri again. They both did. He had to graduate and become a pro hero. And Aizawa had to help him with that. He had to help a whole class. Wait . . . Aizawa . . .

After what felt like days , Shinsou finally tore his eyes away from his hand to see Aizawa crumpled on the ground.

His ears finally registered the sound of Naifaeru’s screams. Her choked, tormented screams. It wasn’t Shinsou's blood. He went pallid.

His gears slowly shifted and he managed to pull himself to his feet. Several hands pushed him back. He swung his fists but to no avail. T he next thing he knew, they pressed him against the floor and pulled his hands behind his back. The cold metal of handcuffs cut into his wrists. People swarmed him, blocking him from seeing his teacher. He tried to kick and squirm but his fading strength was no match for them.

“Eraser!” He cried out as they pulled him to his feet. He strained his ears for a reply.

“Shut up!” Ikasama barked as he shoved the teen towards the doorway.

“Eraser!” Shinsou had no regard for himself anymore. He just had to make sure his father figure was still alive.

A black waistcoat came into his field of vision. Gari. She held her fingers up, poised for a snap.

“No, no, no,” Shinsou begged, desperate to witness a sign of life from Aizawa.

“Sorry kid,” Gari’s voice sounded distorted. The sound of the snap rang in his ears. Again his autonomy had been robbed from him. Blackness invaded his vision. His body went limp.

Chapter Text

Todoroki woke with a start. The chilly air stung his exposed skin and the bright lights burned his eyes. A quiet gasp escaped him as he parted his lips to speak. Despite his wish to communicate, his words wouldn't cooperate.

“Get up,” Mainjiru’s voice shattered the silence.

And his body obeyed her orders. He now stood in his cell.

The unconscious form of Shinsou in the other cell caught his attention. The sight of the handcuffs and the lack of presence from Eraserhead immediately concerned him.

“Shinso tried to escape,” she spoke again as she approached the boy.

This just got worse. They must have separated Aizawa from Shinso to deter further escape attempts. And despite him gaining his powers back, Gari had gotten to him just after he had blasted one of the living room windows out. So much for being one of the most powerful quirk users at U.A . . . The lack of power and constantly being rendered unconscious enveloped Todoroki in a cloud of personal doubt. Useless. That’s what he was and he understood Shinsou’s frustration all too well. Except, he wasn’t persecuted for his abilities.

But all of this taught him something. He could not and should not rely on the others for freedom. Shinso and Aizawa had failed. Plus, there was the whole issue of Shinso being entangled with Naifaeru . . . He had to take action and win them their autonomy back. Or so, that’s what he assumed he must do. But how? Unlike Shinso, he had kept his contempt concealed and the flickering flames of righteous anger had been kept hidden from view. What if he acted his way out? What if he acted tame and docile so that they would lower their guard? He would have to figure something out.

But right now, he was powerless.

Shinsou lifted his head to see Mainjiru looming over him. The room was empty, save for Todoroki, who stood the enclosure’s cell door. Shinsou gasped in alarm. The indents from Mainjiru’s teeth marked his arm. Wait, Aizawa didn’t stand among them. Before his brain could start another round of panicked thoughts, she spoke.

“Get out."

“Why?” Shinsou remained still.

“Todoroki?” The boy turned his head at the sound of her voice, his eyes blank.

Shinsou’s heart sank.

“Drag the brat out.”

The boy marched into the cell and roughly grabbed the other kid’s arm. He then dragged a struggling Shinsou out of the enclosure. He tried to jerk himself free but Todoroki was unfazed by his attempts.

“Drop him.”

Todoroki released his now sore arm.

Shinsou caught himself with his handcuffed hands and looked up at Mainjiru, who circled him like a vulture circled a carcass.

“What do you want?” He asked, masking the fear in his voice.

“Todoroki, hand me the tape.”

She smiled as the silver roll of duct tape was placed in her outstretched hand.

Shinsou shrunk back as she knelt down with a piece of tape in her hand. She reached out and seized a chunk of his hair.

His heart hammered in his chest as she placed the piece over his mouth. What was she doing? He looked up at Todoroki, who stood guard nearby.

She stepped back and tilted her head. A contemptuous look covered her face.

“I’m going to punish you, for what you did to me last night . . .” She answered his unspoken question. “I know my value and I refuse to let someone like you,” she gestured at him, “get away with how you treated me.”

A shiver ran down his spine. Had cutting him not been enough?

“You should know better. Didn’t your mother teach you to respect women?”

Shinsou stared. What was he supposed to do? He couldn’t speak. And she had no interest in letting him defend himself.

“No?” She shook her head. “That’s unfortunate. Todoroki will teach you then.”

She snapped her fingers. The noise echoed in the sparsely furnished room. She pointed at the kid with the red and white hair. “Show him that he should be sorry for what he did to me and for trying to escape.” She distanced herself from them and walked over to the room’s door. Leaning against the frame, she watched. Her eyes rested on Shinsou as she anticipated him being beat by the other kid.

“Alright, the lesson has begone.”

Todoroki took a step towards him.

Shinsou shuffled backwards. Even though he was slightly taller than the dual powered student, he wasn’t nearly as strong, fast, or as experienced. Without thinking, his body assumed a defensive position and the cuffs clinked as he moved his arms up. But how to keep himself from getting beaten up when he couldn’t even properly fight? He might be able to continuously dodge him and maneuver around the room. But how long could he keep it up? And, on top of everything else, he didn’t want to hurt him. Then it dawned on him. The cell. He could run back to the enclosure and hold the door closed. No one would get hurt, or so he hoped. It would be a gamble and he didn’t want to think about if he lost it.

Todoroki strode towards him, his hands curled into fists. He held them low at his side, not evening bother to protect his face or torso. Shinsou clenched his jaw. Mainjiru was well aware of Todoroki’s physical advantage.

It was now or never. Shinsou pushed himself off of the wall and made a dash towards the cell. His sneakers squeaked against the concrete floor as he charged towards what he hoped was his safe haven.

Todoroki veered to the left and reached his hand out. It grazed Shinsou’s arm, who jerked away. The cell was just a few feet away. Just a few hours ago he was resolved to get free from it but now he ran towards his prison. That’s what what the fight for survival did to people. He reached his hand out to take the door’s handle. Grabbing it, he swung into the room and slammed the door shut.

Todoroki’s hand seized the knob and he jiggled it. Shinsou placed his other hand on the knob and hung from it, using all of his relatively meager body weight to keep it shut. Bracing himself by placing one foot on the wall beside the door, Todoroki tugged as hard as he could. But Shinsou, desperate to not be attacked, held firm.

Mainjiru stood up. Once again, Shinsou had outsmarted her. His solution was simple but smart. But it wouldn't last long.

“Todoroki!”

He paused and looked at her. Shinsou looked up uncertainly.

“Light him up,” she replied.

Shinsou’s eyes grew wide as he saw Todoroki summon his flame. He held his flaming hand to the door knob and feeling the burning heat, Shinsou jerked away. Todoroki threw the door open and Shinsou scrambled backwards. Dammit, he hadn’t considered her letting him use his quirk. Just as he stood up, Todoroki’s fist shot out and it slammed into his chin. The power of the impact caused him to fall and his back hit the glass barrier. He slid to the side, just missing Todoroki’s second blow.

But before Shinsou could do anything more, Todoroki’s foot caught him in the ribs. A gasp escaped him as his hands involuntarily went to his now bruised side. Under the pain, he crumpled to the ground. Todoroki pummeled his back and side with powerful kicks. Shinsou curled up into a fetal position and covered his face with his hands. A cry escaped from underneath the tape but he clamped his mouth shut, not wanting to give her the satisfaction of hearing him in distress. The power of each blow sent shock waves of pain through him and he was helpless, powerless to stop it. He grit his teeth. How far was she going to take it?

“Stop!” Her voice interrupted Todoroki’s torrent of blows. The boy stepped back, his breathing heavy. His hands were still clenched at his sides.

She entered the cell and motioned at Shinsou.

Todoroki knelt down and rolled him over so that his face looked up at the ceiling. In a last ditch effort, Shinsou tried to push him away but Todoroki had pinned him down with his knees and he seized his arms in his hands. He forced them down. Shinsou turned his head to the side, to see Mainjiru’s boot. She knelt down beside him. Reaching out, she touched his face with her hand. He flinched at her touch.

“You may be smart, but your weakness always ends up failing you,” Mainjiru said quietly as she caressed his cheek. “It’s laughable, actually. You? A hero?”

Shinsou ignored her. He had been taunted before, he could take it. He would take it. The only way he could fight back now was to deny her any sort of acknowledgment or satisfaction. Physically, he had awhile to go. Mentally? He could put up a mighty fight. All of his anxiety, past depression, fear, doubt, pain, and turmoil had made him stubborn. That’s how he had been able to keep going all those years. After his father’s death, after being bullied for having an “evil” power, after being told he should just give up on wanting to be a hero. After his attempt, after being burned by Dabi. He had faltered from time to time but that had not stopped him.

“I don’t think much of your idea,” she looked up at Todoroki. “Isn’t that right Shoto?”

The other boy still held Shinsou down, his blank eyes staring at the ground above his victim's head.

“You won’t become a true hero. You’ll become corrupted by your power. You’ll just confirm people’s worst fears.”

Shinsou stared passed her, ignoring his disgust at the feeling of her touch.

She brought her hand up to his forehead and ran her fingers through his hair. “I feel sorry for your mother but then, it was her moronic idea to have a child with a brainwasher. Surely she knew that you would inherit your father’s quirk, the stronger of the two.” She brushed a strand of hair away from his eye. “And she knew what you would face growing up. That you would experience bullying, be tormented, doubted, and hated. But in her selfish quest to have a child, she kept you. Have you ever thought about the circumstances of your existence. How stupid it was of your two idealistic parents to conceive you?”

He swallowed. He had wondered why . . . But he had refused to think about it anymore. When he had, it had caused him to hate his being and to be angry at his parents, the two people who loved him the most. But now, he didn’t dwell on it. He was here and he had to deal with that.

“Ideally, neither of us should exist. But yet, here we are. And we and the world has to cope with that. My ex boyfriend couldn’t. But this is how it will end up, you’ll either become a hero and win people over. Having gained their trust, you’ll use your power as you please.” She paused, “or you’ll be rejected and in anger and sorrow, use your power as a form of revenge.”

She pulled her hand free from his hair and gripped his chin so that he couldn’t look away from her silver and red eyes.

“Don’t you see? You’re made to self destruct.”

Shinsou swallowed. Mainjiru had stated his greatest fear out loud. Her words hung in the air, like a cloud of choking smog that refused to dissipate.

He curled his fingers up, his nails scraping against the concrete floor.

She frowned at his silence. He was using all of his will power to contain himself.

Curiosity getting the best of her, she ripped the tape off of his mouth.

“Don’t you have anything to say?”

He looked at her with his steely eyes. Yes, he had plenty to say but he knew that she wasn’t about to let herself get brainwashed again. And he wasn’t going to waste his words on someone like her. His response would come later, when he would prove her wrong; her watching from her jail cell.

Disgusted, she stood up.

“Todoroki, go ahead.”

Shinsou’s eyes widened as Todoroki’s hands quickly closed around his throat.

Shinsou frantically clawed at the strong hands but they didn’t budge. Todoroki gripped tighter, cutting into his neck. “Agh!” Shinsou gasped for air. Tears ran down his cheeks as black dots floated in front of his eyes. Soon, he’d be unconscious, or worse. Somehow, with great effort, he lifted his knees up and managed to shove Shoto off of him. He protectively wrapped his hands around his neck as he took gasping breaths. Tears streamed down his face as he desperately tried to catch his breath. Todoroki knelt by him, awaiting Mainjiru’s orders.

“I’m not satisfied,” she said.

Todoroki brought his left hand down on Shinsou’s chest, causing him to cry out in pain and surprise as he burned his skin with the heat emitting from his hand.

She smiled at the sound. “That’s good enough! I don’t want it to be a bad one. Got to keep him able to do his missions,” she smirked. She gestured for Todoroki to leave the cell. The sound of the slamming door rang in Shinsou’s ears. She directed Todoroki to his cell and after she locked him in, she ordered him to sleep and he fell on his face.

Shinsou curled up and covered his face with his hands.

She brushed her hands on her skirt and finally satisfied, she walked towards the black door. Her echoing footsteps were the only sound in the now silent room.

Chapter Text

A Week Later

“Move,” Ikasama shoved Shinsou.

Shinsou stumbled forward. But he kept is eyes down as he slowly trudged past derelict buildings. He didn’t know where he was being taken; all he knew was that he had been ordered to brainwash someone into giving his captors a lot of money. He blinked and rubbed his irritated eyes. Redness still colored his face from crying that morning. He was surprised that he could even stand up, let alone walk.

“Are you alright?” A woman’s voice asked.

Shinsou glanced up to see a concerned, elderly woman, who leaned on a cane. ‘No’, he wanted to scream, ‘No, I’m not alright’. But he held his silence. Fear that danger would befall others sealed his mouth shut. It wouldn’t be worth it and he knew that he couldn’t bear the emotional fallout. He desperately wanted to stop and tell her everything; to get her to call the police, to tell her that he was being held by murderous thugs.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he forced himself to say and hastened his steps. He would do what he had to; to keep others safe, even at the cost of himself. He turned his head to see Ikasama walking about twenty feet behind him. With a heavy sigh, he looked forward. The man was tasked with handling Shinsou, to make sure he did what was asked of him. But he had been instructed to do it clandestinely, to not rouse suspicion. If it weren’t for the others, Shinsou would have taken his chances and taken off running. But he was being held captive by the knowledge that if he dare do such a thing, the others would pay, badly.

An immense blast of heat shot out behind Shinsou. He lurched forward in a sad effort to escape it. A muffled scream sounded from behind him. Panic gripped him as he jerked his head back to see the woman shuffle back into her apartment. A pile of ash took up the space that Ikasama had once stood on.

“Wha—” Gripping a splintered windowsill, Shinsou pulled himself upright. His legs trembled from the effort. He could be free. He could escape now. No one could stop him. But- What about the others? They would surely be killed for Shinsou’s “transgressions”. He had to go back, to make sure they would be OK. But how would he explain Ikasama’s sudden death? He jerked his head up. The immense heat . . . a pile of ash-

Dabi.

Shinsou whipped his head around to see a hand reach out and seize him by the shoulder. The next thing he knew he was being dragged into a dark, abandoned alleyway. He opened his mouth to cry out, to call for help but nothing came out. Dabi’s hands gripped his collar and threw him against a brick wall,

“Where’s Shoto Todoroki?” Dabi’s piercing blue eyes searched Shinsou’s clouded over purple ones. He shook the kid harder. “Where is Shoto?”

Shinsou opened his mouth but yet again his words refused to come out. He simply stared at him in shock.

“I know you brainwashed him! Tell me where he is now and I won’t burn you again.” Dabi lifted one hand up and a small flickering blue flame emitted from his two upright fingers.

Shinsou stared at the danger in front of his face. He knew Dabi didn't bluff. The man had no problem with using his quirk on him. He’d done it before. Desperate, Shinsou wanted to explain what had happened to the man’s brother, to tell him everything, but, instead, darkness crowded his vision and his eyes rolled up in his head.

Shinsou opened his eyes to see a grungy white ceiling above him. Carefully, he moved his hands and felt a pilled knit blanket beneath him. Swallowing, he turned his head to see that he lay in a small and stuffy room. A warped door stood in the right corner of the room and a small wooden door, that was cracked open, led to a tiny bathroom. He could make out a figure standing in front of the sink. Dabi.

He had been kidnapped from his kidnappers . . .

If he moved quietly, he could make his way to the big door and to freedom. He sat up slowly, for the fear of making the bed creak. The man didn’t seem to notice. 'Get out, get out' his brain screamed at him. But fear of being stopped weighed down on him. 'Now is your chance', he told himself. He hopped off the bed. With a mighty heave, he made a mad dash for the door. His hand reaching out for the knob.

Strong hands seized him and threw him to the floor. “Stop, right now,” Dabi growled and held out a flaming hand.

Shinsou scooted backwards. Dammit. He had failed. He looked up at the murderous man standing above him. It was hard to tell who was more terrifying, Dabi, or his other abductors.

Dabi crouched down and brought his flames close to Shinsou’s face. The heat pressed against his sore skin and the boy turned away from it.

Dabi reached out with his other hand and grabbed a fistful of Shinsou's hair. He paused. “What the heck . . . Why is your hair so greasy . . . ?”

“I-I, m-my abductors h-h-haven’t let me sh-shower,” the kid managed to spit out through trembling lips.

The man paused, considering his words. Was it a lie? But the terrified boy didn’t seem like he was fibbing.

“Just nod or shake your head from now on, got it?” Dabi finally spoke.

“OK,” Shinsou hastily replied.

“The people that captured you, do they have Shoto?”

He quickly nodded.

“Have they hurt him?”

He paused, but then slowly shook his head.

“Can you show me where he is?”

Shinsou nodded a second time and placed his hand on his heaving chest.

“Alright . . .” Dabi sat back on his haunches. Whoever had his brother was obviously dangerous.

“The man I burned earlier, he worked for the people that have my brother?”

Shinsou nodded as tears stung his eyes. “H-how did you figure he-he was with me?”

Dabi’s hand shot out and he slapped Shinsou across the face. “Dammit,” he muttered to himself. He pulled a beaten up notepad out of his pocket. ‘I could tell he was following you and you kept glancing at him, scared': he wrote out and held it up for the boy to read.

Slowly, Shinsou nodded. Dabi was observant.

Placing the notepad on his knee, he wrote out something else. ‘You and I are going to rescue my brother.’

The kid frantically scrambled backwards. “No!” He involuntarily cried out. “No, I’m not going back!” The tears that he had been holding now ran down his face. He wrapped his arms around his shaking body and curled up as tightly as he could.

“What the hell?” Dabi muttered to himself. The boy before him was completely different compared to the boy he had confronted months ago. When he had first seen Shinsou, the kid was calm, confident, and steely. He hadn’t seem fazed by Dabi’s power and had tried to take him down. Even after being badly burned, the kid had somehow managed to make it back to the others. There was no whimpering, tears, or tantrums.

Disgusted, he slipped the notepad back into his pocket and with great force, jerked Shinsou to his feet.

“Stop behaving like a baby!” He barked as Shinsou feebly tried to pry his hand off of him.

“I’m not going back, I’m not!” The boy insisted as Dabi shook him.

Fed up, Dabi shoved him back and he stumbled into the wall.

“I have no clue what Aizawa saw in you.”

Shinsou’s wet eyes looked up at the mention of his teacher’s name.

“Can’t believe he wasted all that time training you, only for you to end up like this.” He waved a dismissive hand at Shinsou.

“Aizawa is dead!” Shinsou screamed. He then fell forward but somehow managed to break his fall with his hands.

Dabi took a quick stepped back. What?

“He’s dead, because of me!” Shinsou sobbed. His tears dripped off his face and fell to the floor.

Dabi knelt down in front of him and grabbing his shoulders, he pulled him upright to face him. “What are you talking about?” He demanded.

Shinsou’s head flopped to the side as his eyes stared blankly past him. “It’s all my fault,” he whispered. “It’s all my fault.”

Dabi raised his eyebrows. What the fuck?  “Are you sure?” He pressed.

“Yes! He was shot in front of me!” Shinsou cried, his mouth twisted in agony. "I saw them bury his body . . ."

Still disbelieving, Dabi shook his head. The people who had his brother who truly a force to be reckoned with. Todoroki was in terrible danger.

“Listen to—”

Shinsou gagged.

Dabi jerked back just in time as the boy vomited on himself.

“Agh!” Thoroughly revolted, Dabi retreated several steps backwards. He resisted the temptation to punch him. This was going to be so much harder than he had thought. The key to his brother’s freedom was an emotionally destroyed boy and he didn’t know what to do. Mocking him sure hadn’t helped.

Shinsou sat on the floor, vomit covering his sweatshirt. His bleary eyes settled on the floor and his mouth hung partially open, as if confused. He remained still, marinating in his misery.

Releasing an annoyed sigh, Dabi knelt back down and pulled the soiled shirt off of the statuesque boy. Holding his breath, he brought it over to the sink and started washing it out. He swore as the vomit washed down the drain. “Stupid punk.”

Every once in awhile he turned his head to check on the boy. Shinsou remained motionless. Satisfied that it was clean, he put it on a hanger and hung it from the bathroom door. Hesitantly, he walked back into the room and crouched down next to Shinsou. His eyes widened at the sight of the bruising around the boy’s neck.

“What the fuck?” Dabi hadn’t noticed it earlier but it was very evident that some had choked Shinsou. Leaning in for a closer look, he inspected his neck. Shinsou stared past him, as if unaware that someone sat right in front of him. Dabi leaned back and he noticed the burn scar. The burn scar that he had caused.

“Huh . . .” A strange feeling twinged inside of him. Guilt? Quickly, he shook his head. A smaller, weaker burn marked his left chest. It was the shape of a hand. Had Shoto burned him? If he had, what for? Several shallow cuts criss-crossed Shinsou’s chest. Large, ugly bruises spotted his rib cage and back.

“What did they do to you?” He found himself asking out loud. He clenched his jaw. Shinsou had shook his head when asked if Shoto had been hurt. But what if that wasn’t the case? He was going to get his brother back, whether Shinsou liked the idea or not.

“Ugh,” he muttered as he grabbed Shinsou’s arms and pulled him upright. He walked him over to the bed and placed him back on it.

He scratched his chin. Now what? Slamming his fist down on the dresser that stood next to the bed, he resigned himself to waiting.

Chapter Text

Shinsou pulled his hands up to his mouth and nervously chewed on his finger. Hours had passed since his meltdown and it was now pitch black outside. He stared up at the ceiling. Should he attempt another escape? His last one had failed spectacularly. Biting down on his thumb, he weighed his options. Dabi wanted to rescue his brother and that horrified him. But, he wanted his fellow student to be safe. He had failed Aizawa. And if he ran, he’d be failing Todoroki too. And who knows what they would do to him before they killed him? What if his death would not be as swift as Aizawa’s? Of course he didn’t want that for Todoroki but he didn’t know if he had it in him to go back . . .

The main door creaked open and a lady in her mid-forties popped her head in.

“Mr. Ureiaen?”

Dabi was nowhere in the room. She paused, noticing Shinsou lying on the bed. Carefully, she stepped into the room and walked up to him.

“Hello,” she smiled down at him.

Slowly, he turned his head to look at her, his hands still covering his mouth. There was something unnerving about her grin, like it was hiding something that lurked below the surface of murky waters. She placed her hand on his bare arm and slowly rubbed it.

“Are you alright?” She asked, her voice low and oily.

Shinsou swallowed.

“Can’t you talk?” She started to lean down.

“Hey,” Dabi’s voice caused her to pause.

She turned around, her hand still on Shinsou’s arm. “I was looking for you Mr. Ureiaen.”

He crossed his arms, his lanky frame filling the doorway.

“Were you now? Because right now, you’re looking a little too interested in that boy.”

She laughed lightly and stood up, her hand finally releasing his arm.

Shinsou furiously scratched the arm that she had once held. desperate to rid himself of the sensation of her touch.

“You do realize that you’re two days behind on the rent?”

He rolled his eyes. “I told you earlier that I’d pay you on the weekend. That’s when I get the money.”

She sighed. “That really won’t do, I too need money now and I rely on my renters for it.”

“I would pay now, but like I said, I don’t have the money,” he recrossed his arms, as if to emphasize his statement.

She gestured at Shinsou. “So you have a boyfriend living with you now?”

He lowered his brows. “I don’t date children,” he spat.

“Hmm,” she nodded slowly and glanced back at boy. “I have a proposition.”

“What?”

Shinsou paused, his breath caught in his throat. Dabi’s murderous tendencies had caused fear to run rampant but he hadn’t considered the worse alternative.

“. . . I’ll forgive your rent . . .”

“Go on,” Dabi ordered hesitantly.

She casually waved her hand. “If you give me a night with the boy.”

Slowly, Dabi lowered his arms.

Dark, black, heavy fear hit Shinsou in the chest and he looked at them in alarm.

The woman walked back over to the bed and Shinsou scooted away from her. He pressed his back against the wall.

“Stop kid,” Dabi ordered him. His voice was low and emotionless, his face a blank canvas.

Shinsou’s heart pounded as she looked him over, like a person looked over a piece of meat before cooking it.

“Please, no,” he whispered.

The woman chuckled.

“So you do talk.”

The noise caused Shinsou’s skin to crawl and he found himself shaking. Suddenly, his earlier abductors didn’t seem all that bad.

Dabi looked stunned. Like he didn’t know what was going on or what to do. He stared at the cowering kid and the woman that looked at him with greedy, lustful eyes.

“Come here,” she cooed. Shinsou fully prepared himself to take control of her mind. This course of action ran the risk of upsetting Dabi but he didn't care at this point.

Suddenly, Dabi lurched forward. He seized the woman’s arm and jerked her away from Shinsou. He had been beaten to the draw.

She screamed in shock as she fell to the floor.

“Get up and get dressed,” Dabi barked as he closed the door behind him, trapping the woman in the room with him.

Relief and disbelief clashed against each other but Shinsou didn’t need to be told twice and made for the bathroom to retrieve his sweatshirt.

“How dare you!” The landlady sputtered as she struggled to get to her feet.

The serial killer stared down at her, rage tainting his eyes, despite the almost nonchalant expression he still wore. He held his right hand out in front of him.

Now dressed, Shinsou stood in the bathroom doorway. His heart hammered in his chest as he watched the two adults stare each other down. Was he about to witness another murder? Better her than me.

“Grab the bag,” Dabi gestured with his left hand and pointed towards a rucksack that sat at the foot of the bed. Again, Shinsou obliged, grateful that he didn't have to contend with her. 

The woman, now standing upright, placed her hands on her hips. “Oh, so you’re going to run without paying me?”

“Behind me,” Dabi snapped at the boy.

His heart leaped in his chest and Shinsou positioned himself with his back to them, in anticipation of the woman being lit up. He wanted to see as little as possible.

“Listen up, you piece of shit,” Dabi finally spoke to her. Venom clung to each word.

Instinctively, Shinsou brought his hands up to his ears but he allowed himself to watch out of the corner of his eye.

“No, you listen—”

And with that, Dabi swung with his right hand, throwing his hip into the blow. That’s how Aizawa had taught Shinsou to throw a punch. Back it with your body and it’ll be much more potent. Shit. A criminal punching a lady brought back memories. Numbness crawled up Shinsou's legs. 

She crumpled into a pile at his feet.

“Just know that I’m being merciful,” Dabi finished. “We’re out of here,” he grabbed Shinsou’s shoulder and yanked him out of the room. Suddenly the boy was more concerned with escape and his legs functioned again. 

The two of them made for the smokey smelling stairwell and cold air blasted against their faces as Dabi shoved the door open. “We’re going to be walking for awhile.”

Shinsou grimaced as the frigid air clung to his exposed skin. It had significantly cooled down since they had last been outside.

Why did you spare me from her? Do you actually have some sort of moral code after all? Why didn’t you kill her? Shinsou desperately wanted answers, genuinely surprised that Dabi didn’t allow her to have her way with him. Why didn’t you light the building up? It’s not like you’ve ever cared about casualties. Maybe he didn’t want to leave a trail for the police. Yes, that must be it. After all, he had killed Ikasama that morning. This morning? It felt like a week ago. But that didn’t explain Dabi’s other actions. Shinsou thought he had seen rage but the man looked like he was on the verge of truly snapping. Could he eventually get him to explain himself?

“Don’t think about running,” Dabi cut through his thoughts. “I’ll find your family and pay them a visit if you do.”

Shinsou looked at him in panic as a suffocating, vice like sensation seized his chest.

“That’s right,” Dabi flashed a vicious grin, relishing the look of terror on the boy’s face.

To Shinsou's alarm, tears stung his eyes and he quickly dropped his head. That wasn’t a bluff but a promise. The thought of something happening to Todoroki was bad enough but his family? If something happened to them there was no promise that Shinsou wouldn’t become a killer himself. Would he be no better than the Masayoshi? They knew about his family. Wait. Shinsou came to a stop. For the longest time he had been at the bottom of the food chain, along with Todoroki and Aizawa. With Dabi he was again at the bottom but the pit wasn't quite as deep. And no, he couldn’t defeat Dabi in a physical fight. But how good was the criminal at chess? But he didn’t have much time to plot. Shit, several people’s well being relied on him. Mom. Emica. Todoroki. Could he really bring himself to leave the fellow student to a horrible fate with that gang? Could he go back? Not as Dabi’s prisoner.

“What?” Dabi snapped at him.

“T-the Masayoshi—” Much to his regret, he hadn’t started out strong.

Confused, Dabi tilted his head and then gestured for him to continue.

“They are the ones who captured us, they’re the ones who have Todoroki.”

Dabi lowered his brow, the name of the group was obviously new to him. But curiosity shown on his face. He wanted him to continue.

Shinsou had the upper hand with the information. He kept his mouth from curling up in a satisfied smile. After the horror of the morning and evening, he could feel himself finally able to get a grip again. Something that he hadn't been able to do since Aizawa's murder. The thought of his father figure nearly caused his facade to drop. But he’d be damned if he let something happen to the rest of his family. He had no choice, this was his last bet.

“They know where my family is, they know!”

Dabi let out a sigh and rubbed his face. Weariness tugged at his features. He than yanked the notepad out of his pocket and scribbled something down. He showed it to Shinsou. If we go to Shoto, they won’t have a chance to do anything to them.

“There is more than one member, moron!” Shinsou stomped his foot in frustration. Anger had kicked fear from its podium. At this point, Shinsou couldn’t tell if he was acting or not.

Dabi muttered something under his breath as he slapped his hand across the teen's face. It was restrained, as he didn't want to attract attention to them.

Reactionary tears filled Shinsou's eyes but he persisted. “I need to know if they’re OK.”

The man quickly shook his head. He was obviously displeased that he couldn't verbal lash Shinsou.

“Then I won’t help you,” Shinsou now stood at his full height, which was just a little bit taller than Dabi. Determination marked his purple eyes. “What do I have to lose if I don’t know if they’re safe? Sure, you can wound or maim me, but I’m the only one who knows where Todoroki is,” he paused for effect.

“What, you’re not concerned about his well being?” Dabi scoffed in disbelief. He quickly shut his mouth but his contempt remained evident.  

“I don’t need you to help me rescue him,” Shinsou countered.

Exasperated, Dabi threw up his hands in frustration.

Play chess, not checkers. Shinsou now had control of the situation and he didn’t even need to activate his brainwashing. But should he? He could easily control him and have him turned into the authorities. He could then assemble a team and rescue Todoroki that way. Dabi be damned.

Dabi quickly held his hands up, as if he knew what the boy was thinking. “You’re still wanted by the police, you’re still a fugitive.”

Shinsou narrowed his eyes. Should he seize his mind now? Dabi knew the risk he was running, talking to him like that.

“And sure, you can go to them and claim that all these things happened but you don’t have any proof!” Dabi grabbed Shinsou's collar with one hand. “You do realize they’re going to hold you captive and interrogate you. And they’ll probably try to find Shoto but you’ll be held in a cell while they do and you won’t have any chance of protecting your family as a result.” He twisted the fabric in his hand.

Shinsou maintained eye contact, which hid his inner despair. It felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. That was something he hadn’t anticipated. The Masayoshi and Dabi were both so awful he had failed to account for the fact that he too had been lumped in with them. And now, here was Dabi, trying to physically intimidate him again.

“And tell me, do you trust the authorities to rescue Shoto? You know what these people are capable of.”

It was either just those two or a whole team. Dammit, Shinsou hadn’t considered that either. And now it looked like he had to fight using more than words. Brainwashing wasn't what he needed to do. He needed to command Dabi's respect or at least show him that he wasn't going to allow him to push him around. So, without allowing himself to think too much about the possibility of getting burned, he brought his fist up and squarely hit Dabi under his jaw.

"Shit!" The man faltered and quickly released his grip.

Shinsou shoved him away with his foot. “Pro-heroes are plenty capab—”

“But they don’t know that place, those creeps like you do,” Dabi rubbed his sore jaw as he glowered at the teen. He then slowly stood up.

Shinsou quickly drew his hands up, ready to full on brawl with this man. No, he knew he wouldn't win, especially not in his current condition, but he could give him a run for his money at least. Shinso didn't want to use his brainwashing and it seemed that Dabi wasn't too keen to use his flame, especially since they hid in the darkness. Nothing would give them away quicker than a burst of bright blue in the middle of the night.

Dabi finally lowered his hand. His blue eyes bore into Shinsou's. A grudging look of respect had replaced Dabi's previous contemptuousness. But what would his next move be? Shinsou's body tensed with anticipation. Maybe he should try running. Maybe this whole attempt at manipulating was a waste of time. Maybe-

Dabi finally spoke, his voice low.

“They won’t avenge Aizawa . . .”

Shinsou's eyebrows shot up in surprise. Ever since Aizawa had passed, grief and rage had filled his waking moments but fear had prevented anything else from taking their places. But revenge wasn’t something that pro-heroes sought. That wasn’t how justice worked. That’s not how he was raised. Even after learning that his biological father had been murdered, revenge hadn’t come to mind. Shinsou's mom made sure that he grew up knowing his father’s legacy; she raised him with Mr. Shinsou's personal philosophy. Revenge wasn’t something that the Shinsous sought. But that was before he was held captive and tortured. Before he watched his second father die in front of him. No, his mom wouldn't approve but Shinsou found himself beyond that. It was just him in this cruel world right now and his only companion was a wanted criminal. A criminal who technically saved him, twice . . . Things were rather different now.

Dabi ticked an eyebrow up. “That’s right. I don’t give a flying fuck about what happens to them, I just want Shoto back, safe and sound. Hell, I can toast a couple for you,” his tone was now almost jovial.

What if Shinsou accepted Dabi’s offer? Revenge sounded rather nice, he couldn’t lie. The idea of seeing Togatta and Mainjiru lit up almost sounded delightful. He shuddered as a giddy feeling replaced his initial hesitation. Society had already labeled him as dangerous. He was now a wanted fugitive. The Masayoshi had manged to treat him worse than everyone else. What did he have to lose? The only person Shinsou trusted as a guide and mentor for entering the pro-heroes' ranks was gone. And at this rate, even if he was able to prove his innocence, did he even want to be a pro-hero now? Naifaeru had a point, his value shouldn't be determined by what society could get out of him. What the heck did he have to lose now? It was just him now. Shinsou and Dabi. And he had been through so much, it was about time he called the shots.

“I know I’m probably not the greatest influence right now,” Dabi quipped, eager for Shinsou's decision.

“Fuck,” he muttered. Well, that hadn’t gone as planned. But maybe it was better than he had hoped for.

And with that Shinsou lifted his hand up, “I’ll help you get Todoroki but there are some things that I want done.”

To his surprise, Dabi quickly seized his hand and shook it. “Alright, let’s light some people up.”