Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Yagi-san, there's an underground hero on call for you."

"I'll pass it on to All Might," Toshinori said into the receiver. 

"She's not calling for All Might, Yagi-san. She's asking for you. "

A thousand thoughts flew through his head. Yagi Toshinori, the quirkless secretary, and All Might, the Symbol of Peace, were two separate entities. It may be old-fashioned, but a secret identity had given him a layer of privacy and personal protection that he wouldn’t have otherwise. If someone finally saw through the deception….

"Have you run her hero license through the hero network yet?" he asked.

There was shuffling on the other end as Ebina, his agency's hero respondent, found papers on her desk, "Results just came back. Hero name: Madam Nighteye. She's underground, so info on past cases and correspondence are limited, but she doesn't have any reprimands or complaints. Graduated from Ketsubutsu five years ago, hit the ground running, and signed on with the IUCA immediately, oh, I just found her peer reviews. No signs of corruption, remarks about her hard work and dedication are the most reappearing, and she has one note from the IUCA head claiming, and I quote, 'Nighteye is the one bitch who not only turns in her paperwork on time but also helps others stay on top of it. If some spotlight agency poaches her, I will personally blacklist every hero within the prefecture.' "

Okay. Not a villain or vigilante posing as an underground hero. Just a fellow hero. But what would a fellow hero want with Yagi Toshinori?

"Put her through, Ebina," he said, deciding to hear the woman out. There was a pause and then a click as the phone changed lines.

"Is this Yagi Toshinori?" came a calm voice on the other end. 

"This is he," Toshinori answered, "How might I help you?"

"I was hoping I could meet up with you, Yagi-san? I'm having trouble with a case, and you are the only avenue of investigation left."

Toshinori sighed. Great, another fan who thought All Might was their only hope. The agency had a hero referral and review office for a reason.

"Ma'am, if this is because you want to work with All Might, then I must insist that you--"

"Shimura Kotaro is dead."

Toshinori's brain shut down. 

"The Shimura family was killed in an accident on March 6th. As the sole hero handling the case, I currently hold custody of Shimura Tenko, the only survivor. I was hoping to break the news in person, but I've already exhausted two weeks trying to find a suitable guardian. I wasn't about to let the only sane candidate hang up."

“What--” Toshinori swallowed the growing lump in his throat. His master’s son, entire family, dead, “What happened?”

“Officially? Young Tenko’s quirk came in late. It’s extremely destructive and he lost control, killing first his dog, then his sister, then the rest of his family.”

There was something more there, Toshinori had been working in the hero business long enough to tell, “And unofficially?”

“How safe is this line, Yagi-san?”

“Safe enough for you to say what you must, I assure you.”

“Would you bet your life on it? Mine? Young Tenko-kun’s?” Toshinori was about to answer, but the woman cut him off, “Personally, I wouldn’t. Of course, that could be me being paranoid, but I find paranoia very, very helpful in this line of work. I’m going to be honest, Yagi-san. I dug up a lot of information on the Shimura family while researching this case. And if the dots I’m connecting are true, then this could lead to villains even your boss would hesitate to Detroit Smash without backup.”

“This is what’s going to happen,” she continued, “You are going to send me a meeting time and place for some time this Saturday afternoon. I am going to arrive with Tenko-kun and a suitcase load of files. You and Tenko will spend the day getting to know each other while I supervise. Once Tenko tires himself out and inevitably falls asleep, I will tuck him in and spend the rest of the night breaking down everything I know about the case and starting the first steps of the adoption process if you choose to go that route.”

“I’ll email you with the details?” the blonde man asked into the phone.

A sigh was heard on the other side, “Good. Good. Yes, an email would be appreciated. Oh, and Yagi-san?”

“Yes?”

“If the old coot’s still mentally sane and he was just fucking with me when I tracked him down earlier, bring Gran Torino into the fold. I attempted contacting him twice before, once as a civilian and once with his hero identity, and both times he acted like a late-stage Alzheimer’s patient.”

“....I’ll get on it,” after hanging up, Yagi Toshinori collapsed back into his desk chair and covered his eyes.

“Fuck,” he said to an empty room after a few moments of silence. 

The blonde reached for the phone and punched in a number, “Torino. Sir, we need to talk.”

This was going to be a long week. 

*****

Sorahiko watched as Toshinori nervously scampered around his apartment, trying to make it as neat as possible. Normally, he would try to calm down his student when he got like this, but normally, Toshinori’s nerves weren’t completely justified.

The truth was, Sorahiko was nervous himself. As per Nana’s wishes, neither he nor Toshinori had contact with Kotaro after she had officially entered him into the foster system for his own protection. He had thought of the boy often, imagining what the kid would have been like had he still been a part of his life. Sorahiko filled in a lot of blanks with his own imagination: the kid’s hobbies, aspirations, first romance. Everything. In a kinder world, he would have known it all.

But this was not that world.

He had been gutted when Toshinori had given him the call. His best friend’s kid was dead. He was with his mother now, probably getting reunited and making up for lost time. But the Shimuras apparently had a family curse, and Kotaro had unintentionally repeated his mother’s actions and left a son behind.

“If I hadn’t hung up on that heroine, this all would have been done with by now,” Sorahiko thought to himself. 

His old man defense was an awfully strong deterrent against telemarketers and annoying UA kids who wanted to be taught by All Might’s homeroom teacher. He hadn’t thought twice about using it against a woman claiming that she needed to get in contact with Sorahiko Torino, and again when she tried to ask the same thing of his hero identity. 

Sorahiko was cursing himself out for it now. He’d looked at the background check Toshinori’s employee had run when the heroine made contact. Madam Nighteye had a history he could respect. A history that kind of looked straight out of one of Nana or Toshi’s old comics, tragic childhood and all, but a respectable history nonetheless.

Nighteye had overcome deadbeat parents abandoning her into the foster system with the maturity and grace he knew most adults lacked. Hellbent on making the best of a shitty situation, she had quickly and efficiently taken up the role of caretaker amongst the foster home she had been placed in. She proved herself to be a perfect angel in school and then used that reputation to put her foster parents behind bars when she went down to the police office one day and showed them a video of her foster father beating the shit out of one of her foster siblings.

The cops had taken one look at the video, Nighteye’s spotless reputation, and the foster father’s history of public intoxication charges, and promptly transferred custody over to Nighteye’s oldest foster sibling. 

Sorahiko was impressed with the girl’s scheme and how well it worked out. There were plenty of places for things to have gone wrong, but the fact that an eleven-year-old could successfully map out and then pull off such a tricky plan of action boded well for how she’d turn out as a hero.

Records of Nighteye tapered off a bit from there. She completed her education, consistently landing in the top five of her class. After graduating middle school, she enrolled in a then unknown, but currently up-and-coming, hero school by the name of Ketsubutsu Academy. Her first-year hero internships were for a hero named Brass Dragonfly, but her second-year and third-year were all spent with the International Underground Crimefighting Association. Underground work apparently suited her much more than spotlight, as she signed on with the IUCA immediately, and there she stayed for five straight years without complaint. Now, at twenty-three, Madam Nighteye was the darling of the IUCA. Paperwork was turned in on time and correctly, villains were arrested quickly and without undue harm or property damage, she was well-respected by the police, and her fellow underground heroes would constantly sing her praises because she can, will, and has done their paperwork for them when they were in dire states.

“And,” thought Sorahiko, looking at where Toshinori was frantically dusting the TV stand, “She must be a pretty good information gatherer if she was able to connect the dots between us and the Shimuras.”

As much as Sorahiko respected his best friend’s wishes, he still worried about the little tyke that called him Uncle Torino. So over the years when he felt particularly nostalgic or worried, he would attempt to track down Kotaro and make sure he was okay. 

He’d never found him. Whatever precautions Nana had taken were good. Maybe even foolproof.

But not foolproof enough to throw this Madam Nighteye off the trail.

She had hunted down Toshinori after two weeks of searching, but she had found him after less than five days. If a single underground hero could piece together the story with enough time and dedication, then who else could? Toshi had told him about the heroine’s phone call, and how she suspected there was something more to the Shimuras’ deaths than what first met the eye. What if….

What if he was behind this?

What if all of the grief Nana had been put through, all of the precautions she had taken, all of the sacrifices she had made….was it all for nothing?

A sharp knock at the door shocked Sorahiko out of his musings. Toshinori squeaked and hastily threw the duster out of sight between the TV and the wall. He brushed himself off, plastered an extremely stressed smile to his face, and threw open the door.

“Yagi Toshinori?” asked a grave voice.

Sorahiko looked past his old student, and the first thought in his mind was, ‘fuck me, this is so unfair.’

Because the woman at the door was tall. Sorahiko had already accepted that he would forever be shorter than Toshinori. The kid was a giant, standing at seven-foot-two. But was everyone he would ever meet be a giant? 

The woman was six-foot-seven if he got her profile right, and she was wearing three-inch heels as if she looked herself in the mirror one day and decided that God hadn’t stretched her taffy-esc body long enough. And taffy-like was honestly the best way to describe her. What she had in height, she completely lacked in width. Oh, there was a fair bit of muscle on her frame, don’t get him wrong, but the woman was all straight, sharp lines and awkwardly long limbs. There wasn’t a hint of curves anywhere on her, and her face was all chiseled cheeks and solid jaw.

But beyond her height, she looked like your average salary woman with a good workout routine. Her white dress shirt, dark gray suit jacket, and matching gray pencil skirt wouldn’t look too out of place in a law office, or the middle of an executive’s meeting. The glasses she wore suited her face and didn’t appear to have any obvious function besides helping her see in twenty-twenty vision. The suitcase she had grasped in her hand was just a normal suitcase made of black leather and with two little latches by the handle. 

“When people say underground heroes don’t stand out, they really mean it,” thought Sorahiko, “If I passed her on the streets, I wouldn’t give her a second glance. Are all underground pros this nondescript?”

“Yes, that’s me,” said Toshinori, shuffling from side to side, “Are you Madam Nighteye?”

Nighteye reached into a pocket and pulled out a hero license. It, like all licenses belonging to underground heroes, had violet accents instead of the traditional scarlet.

Toshinori grasped the license, examined it, and then stepped out of the doorway, “Come in, Madam Nighteye. Make yourself at home.”

The heroine, however, didn’t step into the apartment. Instead, she turned around and whispered a question behind her, “Do you want to meet these men, Tenko-kun?”

Sorahiko kicked himself up using his quirk to take a look at who she was talking to. Behind her was a small boy barely five inches shorter than him. He had frosted blue hair that was black at the tips. Dry skin cracked around his eyes, neck, and lips, and his ruby-red eyes blinked up at Nighteye. The boy played with his hands, which were covered by a small pair of animator gloves, and nodded.

Once he stepped into the light of the apartment, Sorahiko’s breath caught. He took in the finer details of the boy’s face and compared it to the memories of his best friend. The mouth shape, the nose, the slant of his red eyes, the point of his jaw. It was all Nana’s.

“Hel-- hello,” the boy stuttered out, intimidated by the pure bulk of Toshinori.

Sorahiko hovered himself back down to the ground, “Hey squirt,” he said lightly, trying to break the tension, “Have you ever heard that you look just like your grandmother?”

*****

I gently pulled the covers up to Tenko’s chin and sat at the foot of his bed. The kid had worn himself out looking at scrapbooks with Gran Torino and All Might all day. Tenko, at this point, still loved heroes and had been absolutely fascinated with the stories the two had told him about his brave, valiant grandma. He had even lit up like a Christmas tree when Torino said he was a hero too and had asked the old geezer a million questions.

“Well, he ain’t an old geezer right now,” I thought, and wasn’t that a shock. Gran Torino, while still tiny and still gray-haired, had a lot fewer wrinkles than I imagined he’d have. That might have to do with how he was fifteen years younger than he was in the anime, and a real person, not just a cartoon. 

My phone lit up with a buzz. I checked the notifications to see that I was getting a call. Glancing up at the still-closed guest room door, I hit accept and brought the phone to my ear.

“Well, Mirai, how’s the home visit going?” asked the cheery voice of Nedzu on the other end of the line. He was speaking in English, and by the sounds going on in the background, making a cup of tea.

“It’s perfect, if you ignore my anxiety over second-guessing my every action,” I snorted.

“Don’t you do that all the time anyway?”

“This is different.”

“I can’t imagine why. You’ve done home visits before as part of investigations. Considering that you haven’t bolted, made someone cry, or arrested anybody yet, I’d say it’s a success so far.”

“But all of those home visits haven’t been with canon characters!” I hissed in frustration, “The added layer of stress is unfathomable. I’ve been stuck in Stone-Cold Professional mode the entire time worried that one misstep would completely destroy the canon timeline.”

“Aren’t you destroying the canon timeline already by delivering one of the main villains into the hands of the number one hero?”

“Yeah,” I whined, “But I didn’t exactly know that it was Shigaraki. I just heard a crying kid and went, ‘oh fuck, my day off just got ruined. Time to go be a hero.’ And then he just clung to me like a barnacle because he’d already been surrounded by the remains of his family for over three hours at that point. By the time I got him back to the nearest agency and connected the dots, the case had been assigned to me and I couldn’t back out of it.”

“Fair enough,” Nedzu took a sip of tea and continued, “But why are you so worried about talking to Gran Torino and All Might. I’m a ‘canon’ character, aren’t I?”

“You, sir, are a vengeful God in the body of a genetically modified albino badger. You would have discovered all of my secrets as soon as you looked at me. Telling you about my past life and the future I know of via reincarnation shenanigans was an act of self-preservation. You would have chewed me up and spat me out otherwise, so I figured I should use every trick in the book to get you on my side first.”

Nedzu laughed, “Mirai, you flatter me. You overestimate my influence in the world. I couldn’t destroy you.”

“Yes you could,” I said, “You’re going to be the principal of UA one day. I have every confidence that you could take over the world if you really put your mind to it, All for One be damned.”

“Your faith in me is appreciated. But back to the reason I called. Have you decided what to do with your two problems?”

“Tenko isn’t a problem, Nedzu.”

“Tenko isn’t, but his custody is. And so is the lengthy conversation you’re putting off by talking to me on the phone. So again, have you decided what to do yet?”

I looked at Tenko sleeping peacefully on the bed and then turned back to the phone, “I’m going to tell them everything we’ve collected on All for One. All Might’s the holder of One for All. He should know what’s coming. As for Tenko….I’ll crash on the couch and stay for breakfast. Tenko should be able to decide who he wants to stay with. If it’s All Might or Gran Torino, fine. But if it’s me--” I cut myself off before I could finish that sentence.

“If it’s you, I know you’ll make an amazing mother, and I, your siblings, and your coworkers will be there every step of the way to help.”

I ran my fingers through my hair and shook out my tight bun, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. I wanted kids in my last life, and I still want them in this one. At least this way I won’t have to put myself out of a job for a year just to do it.”

“Good, we’re on the same page. Now go out there and give the Symbol of Peace a heart attack.”

We said our goodbyes and I hung up. Putting my glasses in place, I grabbed my suitcase and opened the guest room door. 

Time to bite the bullet, I guess. Here’s hoping I don’t accidentally kill All Might sooner than my canon counterpart.

Chapter Text

Nedzu placed his phone on the side table and took a final look at the essays from 3-I. His homeroom class was certainly impressive, and he knew that they were all dedicated and competent. He wouldn’t have allowed them to continue attending UA otherwise. 

It was their first assignment of the new school year, and Nedzu had wanted his students to give him their first drafts of a hero agency establishment form. He’d critique them, and then dive into the topic in depth tomorrow, but knowing his students’ starting point was important. 

As third-year business students, they needed to understand the duties and responsibilities of managing heroes. It wasn’t all merchandising and press releases. There were a million little things that, while not life-and-death, could either destroy or save livelihoods.

“Mirai puts it best,” thought Nedzu as he carefully put the graded essays away in a folder and that folder in his briefcase, “What is tedious for us, is vital for others. Every insurance claim we acknowledge as our fault, every petty criminal we beg leniency for, every quirkless and mutant-quirked citizen we hire, is one more person saved from a horrible fate. And if the expense we pay is a few hours overtime every week to ensure that our forms are in order, then that is a very easy price to pay.”

Nedzu pulled out his laptop and opened a series of personal files disguised as a spreadsheet dedicated to analyzing pre-quirk media. After entering dozens of passwords and bypassing each and every firewall on the encrypted file, Nedzu finally laid eyes on his planning notebook.

There were four sections of the notebook: the current timeline, the timeline Mirai knew of before she became a part of this world, the changes between the two timelines, and the ‘characters’ of the universe. Nedzu clicked on the characters tab and looked for the subsection dedicated to villains. He clicked on the file named ‘Shigaraki Tomura’ and renamed it ‘Shimura Tenko’. The renamed file was then dragged into the subsection dedicated to persons of interest. 

It was too early to properly declare the boy an ally, or even a neutral party. But Nedzu had observed how Mirai had interacted with the boy over these past two weeks, and how the boy had clung to Mirai in turn. As it stood now, young Shimura-kun would never become the villain Mirai had once known. There was still the possibility of the child becoming evil, but from here on out it would be the age-old battle of nature vs. nurture. And with the only three candidates for guardianship being Gran Torino, All Might, and Mirai, Nedzu was confident enough to remove the boy from the villain category.

Nedzu clicked back into the villains’ subsection and reviewed the individual files of the known villains. Re-Destro had just joined the ailing company Deternat; Nedzu was keeping an eye on the support company and was quick to buy stock whenever available. He should be the majority shareholder before the year is up, and could hopefully curb the villain’s influence. He loathed the Meta Liberation Army, but Deternat as a company held promise. If he could just flush out the fanatics that were willing to use Deternat as a cover and replace them with people who would actually provide support gear to those who needed it, then it would be killing two birds with one stone. The terrorists would lose their cover and their main means of recruitment, and people would be helped.

Curious and Skeptic had not yet entered the picture. Curious was getting her journalism degree at a local university, while Skeptic was bouncing around different gangs as a minor hacker. Other key members of the MLA were similarly being tracked by Nedzu, but they wouldn’t become important for a long while yet.

Dabi, Spinner, and Toga had yet to make their debut either. That, however, was due to age. Dabi was eight years old and had yet to flee the abusive Todoroki household. Spinner was five and had no Stain to draw him into villainy. Similarly, Toga was a toddler and had not even developed her quirk let alone show any interest in illegal activity. Those three were hardly the top of Nedzu’s priority list.

No, what Nedzu needed to focus on were the villains he could stop here and now.

Mr. Compress, Magne, Twice, Stain, and the hero student that would eventually become the villain Kurogiri were all currently in their teens. Kurogiri was the youngest, having just entered his first year at UA, and Magne was the oldest at nineteen, having just started her second year of university and coming out as a transwoman. Their existence hung over Nedzu’s head like the sword of Damocles. As Nedzu sat at his laptop, staring at their photos, a proverbial clock ticked down to the moments that would spell the point of no return for all of them.

Mr. Compress, while that was not yet his name, was the only one already classified as a villain. The eighteen-year-old was honing his skills as a magician by day, and a world-class thief by night. But paradoxically, he is actually the most moral of all of the League members, refusing to work with murderers, rapists, and those he viewed as too corrupt.

Twice and Magne were a bit of a puzzle. While Mirai had told him vague backstories of the two criminals, she couldn’t provide a timeline for either. Nedzu didn’t know what would cause Magne’s murder spree, or when Twice would have his mental breakdown. But when examining the current lives both led, he could certainly guess.

Stain, Nedzu had plans for. He had almost laughed when he’d seen what school the Hero Killer had enrolled in, but knowing that now, all he really had to do was monitor any villain activity near the school and watch for a student to step in, save a woman, and accept the money she gave them. From there, he just had to send Mirai in and let her handle it.

Kurogiri should have been the easiest one. All he had to do was make sure that the boy didn’t die within a year. But Nedzu wondered if death was so easily altered. He could make all the changes he liked, but what if death was the one thing set in stone? What if it was the one thing he couldn’t change.

“No,” Nedzu shook his head and moved onto another file, “My quirk is High Specs, not Foresight. I can’t think of certain things as set in stone. If I shackle myself to that idea, I’ll never be able to change anything.”

Nedzu’s cursor landed on a file. It was the file he spent the most time on, the one who Nedzu would constantly monitor, the one who Nedzu was frantic, no, desperate to stop.

Chisaki Kai. 

Villain name: Overhaul.

The man was scarcely a few years younger than Mirai and was already rising through the ranks of the Shie Hassaikai. Nedzu’s colleagues liked to laugh at his obsession with finishing off the yakuza, seeing them as a joke. The remnants of a long-gone era. But he knew better. Even setting aside the quirk-erasing bullets, Overhaul and his yakuza were the thing that Nedzu both hated and feared the most.

Because they were the ones that would take away the one person Nedzu truly trusted and loved.

Memories flashed through his mind as he reread Overhaul’s file for the millionth time. Memories of sterile labs that smelled like death. Of needles and injections and disgusting scientists in their long white coats. Of being paraded around and presented to others (statesmen, scientists, school children on field trips, everyone) as the pinnacle of modern genetic studies. 

Of a kind little girl with galaxies in her eyes and a raggedy old backpack. Of the first time human hands ever touched him without bringing him a world of pain. Of the girl that called him a name other than ‘Subject N3-DZU’.  

For all that Nedzu had the intellect and awareness of a human, he wasn’t. He was a badger. Nedzu wasn’t lying when he said he couldn’t destroy Mirai. Mirai was a part of his clan, and badgers would do anything for their clans. Anything. 

Including bringing about the end of criminal empires that have been established long before either of them existed in this world.

Including trying to save the lives of villains because once upon a time, his clanmate emphasized with the criminals and thought that they deserved better.

Including throwing caution to the wind and trying to change the very story a single author wrote into existence.

Nedzu clicked out of Overhaul’s file and went to Mirai’s. Thanks to his manipulations, she was sitting in a prime spot moving forward on whatever path she chose. If Mirai continued to serve in the underground, he knew she’d be sitting at the head of the IUCA before the age of thirty. If she wanted to become All Might’s sidekick, he’d help her win over fans and become the best sidekick the number one hero could ask for. If Mirai decided she needed to retire from heroics and get a safer job to raise Shimura-kun, Nedzu knew of two different hero schools that would hire her as a teacher. 

Nedzu would leave All for One to All Might. Let the generations’ old fated enemies destroy each other. So long as Mirai was happy and successful, Nedzu couldn’t care less about the fate of the world.

*****

Yagi Toshinori watched as Madam Nighteye left the guest room and rolled the tension out of her shoulders. The heroine had been, well, awkward was the best word for it. Stone-faced and cold-stared throughout the day, the woman hadn’t once addressed either him or Gran Torino in anything less than an immensely professional manner. The only time that shield of etiquette and social niceties dropped was when young Tenko had looked to her for reassurance or comfort. In those moments, the woman absolutely melted. Toshinori couldn’t have imagined that the ice statue that spoke to him and the teddy bear that carried Tenko off to bed were the same people.

Now, as the woman pulled her hair into a low ponytail, her expression was morphing back to the cold, calculated business glare, with the tiniest hints of fiery determination melting her clenched jaw into a thoughtful scowl.

“So,” she said, looking at first Toshinori and then Torino, “Are you two aware of the identity of the villain that killed Shimura Nana?”

“Yes,” said Gran Torino, “Are you?”

“You’d think that an underground hero would know of the villain widely regarded as the king of the underground,” Nighteye retorted. She sat down on the rug across from them and opened her briefcase.

She started laying out pictures, graphs, and papers with highlighted lines. Once every paper was in place, she pulled out a ball of string and connected paragraph to picture, picture to graph, graph to paragraph. In the end, there was a neat, interconnecting conspiracy board of information, minus the literal board.

Madam Nighteye pointed to a paragraph highlighted in pink ink, “This,” she said, “Is the first time I ever came into contact with All for One. While I was still a hero student intern during my second year, my mentor, Thunderclap, had me reviewing past cases as an exercise in information gathering. Neither of us expected me to actually find anything new, let alone the thread that would lead to the official reopening of the All for One case. For the rest of my second year and third year, the veterans, the ones who had experience combating All for One, used any information I and others found to start rooting out people with connections to All for One.”

Toshinori grabbed the paper. Highlighted was the phrase, ‘Project Insight,’ with an arrow pointing to a note that read ‘Possible reference to pre-quirk supervillain plot where villain organization infiltrates hero organization + plots to kill superheroes and other important people.’  

“By the time I graduated Ketsubutsu and signed on with the IUCA as a full-time hero, I was officially brought onto the case. I asked permission to bring in a close friend and colleague as a consultant, and from there we got to work.” 

Nighteye placed her finger on the string, and followed it to the next connected item, a mugshot of a hairless woman with bright orange skin, “This was our first arrest. Hase Kyou, officially, was a small-time drug dealer with a history of posting bail after spending a few nights in jail. Problem is, she doesn’t have enough money to repeatedly do so. That was until we noticed that every time she was arrested, a prisoner died. After we interrogated her, we found that she uses her quirk, Avatar, to make a single rubbery copy of the prisoner, which was then cremated in the inmate’s place. She had a service on the black market where, so long as the buyer paid for her bail and then an additional extra, she’d break out the criminals. She’d been exclusively working for a single mysterious employer for nearly two years. There was no name given, but so long as the employer paid extra, Hase was fine with asking no questions.”

“Deciding that the mysterious employer could be All for One, or related to him, we investigated the people Hase broke out of prison,” Madam Nighteye traced the picture of Hase Kyou to multiple various documents, all of which showcasing or detailing gruesome crime scenes, “For some, we only found corpses. A few times, we were lucky to even find that.”

Torino grabbed a picture of a brutalized corpse, and then put it back, “The sick bastard. What else?”

Nighteye traced to different documents, “A few were found alive, but quirkless. That only validated our All for One theory, and I and the others became more determined to find All for One. We continued to look for the escaped convicts, and eventually, we found that all were accounted for except for six. At this point, a fellow underground hero by the name of Void asks my opinion on a series of cases she’s handling. 

“Six different missing person cases were filed across Japan in a week, only for the missing people in question to show up immediately with reasonable excuses, and claimed that nothing happened. They are identical to the missing people, quirk and all. But when Void conducted follow-up interviews to see if there was a villain with a memory-altering quirk at play, she found that the loved ones of the missing people were noticing odd behaviors. Habits that the subjects had for years were suddenly gone. Important memories, when referenced, weren’t recognized. Favorite movies, TV shows, foods, and activities suddenly didn’t bring the same amount of joy they once did. Void thought it could be the effects of the hypothesized memory-altering villain, but I recognized immediately that we had just found our six missing convicts.”

Nighteye held up a picture of a corpse, “Meet Hironaka Misao. Quirk: Metamorphosis. He had the ability to permanently change the appearance of other people. Our working theory is that All for One took his quirk, and then used it to permanently change the appearance of six lackeys. He then kidnapped six people, stole their quirks, gave the quirks to the lackeys, killed the original citizens, and sent the lackeys to replace the victims.”

“Why?” asked Toshinori, “Why would he do this?”

“That’s the question, isn’t it?” asked Nighteye, leaning back onto her hands, “We looked into the people All for One replaced. They weren’t very important. Weren’t politicians, or heroes, or celebrities. Nothing big. Just two elementary teachers, a babysitter, a small-time lawyer, a dentist, and a manga editor” Madam Nighteye tapped a single picture, a snapshot of who Toshinori recognized as Tenko-kun, “It wasn’t until I met him that it all came together.”

“Shimura Tenko was officially diagnosed as quirkless at the age of four. At the age of five, he developed a freak mutation quirk and accidentally used it to kill the rest of the Shimura family. The Shimuras were extremely private. The only people that saw them on the regular were Tenko-kun and Hana-kun’s teachers, a young woman who would babysit when needed, a family friend who coincidentally happened to be the lawyer in charge of the Shimuras’ wills, the dentist that Shimura Kotaro worked for as an assistant, and the editor of the manga Shimura Nao was in the process of writing.”

Toshinori grit his teeth and tightened his fist, “He intentionally gave young Tenko a destructive quirk in the hopes that he’d kill his family.”

“He did,” Nighteye nodded in agreement, “In the days between contacting Gran Torino and finding out about you, Yagi-san, I looked into everyone else that could possibly take in the boy. When all viable candidates were revealed to be the convicts we were already investigating, it became very clear what the common thread was. We detained the convicts and started to interrogate them. We eventually found out why, exactly, All for One went to such lengths to kill the Shimura family but leave Tenko-kun alive.”

Nighteye followed the string to the last text, a small printout of an interrogation. Gran Torino picked it up, read it, and then went red with fury. As his mentor got up and started angrily kicking the reinforced wall, Toshinori read the transcript.

‘ Golden Sage: You mentioned All for One’s previous interest in the boy. Can you tell me what the interest entails, exactly?

Ogata: Go to hell.

GS: Should I start guessing, then? The boy was quirkless before this, so it wasn’t him wanting his power. It wasn’t leverage because the kid’s entire family is dead. Hmm….was All for One looking for a bed warmer, perhaps.

Ogata: The fuck did you just say?

GS: I mean, it’s only logical. Who wouldn’t want a sweet, innocent kid that they could shape into the perfect cockslut?

Ogata: You shut your whore mouth. The boss ain’t no pedo. He was just looking for a successor, and he thought the kid would make a good fit.

GS: Successor? Now that’s interesting. What would the successor be expected to do?

Ogata: I ain’t tellin’ you shit. Now get the fuck out of my face.

Madam Nighteye: Golden Sage, we’ve got enough for the day.

GS: I hear you loud and clear, Nighteye. Ogata-san, thank you ever so much for cooperating.

[the sound of GS standing up and leaving the room as Ogata yells explicates at the hero]

MN: Golden Sage.

GS: Yes, Nighteye.

MN: I respect you as both a person and a fellow hero, but let me make one thing clear. If you ever call Tenko-kun or any child one of those disgusting names again, I will personally rip your testicles off and force them down your throat. Do I make myself clear?

GS: Lay off, I didn’t mean a thing I just said. It was just to rile up the criminal--

MN: I said, do I make myself clear, Yasui Kin?

GS: ….yes, ma’am.

MN: Wonderful.’

Toshinori crushed the paper in anger. The nerve of the interrogator. The nerve of him. To kill an entire family, for what? The sake of molding his master’s grandson into a copy of him. He thought of young Tenko and the sheer joy the child held earlier that day when he asked after his grandmother and Gran Torino’s hero careers. Of how he babbled on about how cool Night-sama was, and how she let him meet so many of the heroes she fought alongside every day to make sure people were safe. Hah. If All for One wanted to turn young Tenko into a villain, then Toshinori wished him the best of luck. The kid was a hero fanboy through and through.

When Torino finally stopped doing his best to kick a hole through his walls, he sat down and studied the heroine that had presented this information, “What does this mean for Tenko?”

Nighteye started to clean up her conspiracy web and pulled out a yellow notepad, “That depends on All for One. The only, and I mean only reason he didn’t successfully kidnap Tenko-kun is that he wanted the boy to give up the hope that a hero would rescue him. The man left Tenko surrounded by the corpses of his family, wallowing in guilt, for three hours. He most likely would have left him for longer had I not arrived on the scene first. The fact that I was able to find Tenko-kun, help him, remove him to a safe location, and maintain his faith in heroes was nothing less than pure dumb luck. If All for One tries to kidnap Tenko-kun again, I don’t know if I’ll be as lucky.”

“Have more attempts been made?” asked Toshinori.

“No. But I refuse to take that as proof that there will never be another attempt. For the sake of Tenko’s safety, I and my colleagues at the IUCA will need your full cooperation moving forward.”

“Whatever you need, we will give,” said Toshinori assuringly.

The woman relaxed a bit in relief and started to read off her notepad, “Firstly, I would like to officially request any information that the heroes Gran Torino and All Might may have pertaining to the SSS-class villain, All for One. If either you,” she pointed at Torino and then turned back to Toshinori, “Or your boss would like to become an official hero on the case, we at the IUCA will gladly accept the help.”

“And secondly?”

“The matter of Tenko-kun’s custody must be addressed. From what I can determine, there are three viable candidates as of now: you two and myself. I will admit that I have become quite attached to young Tenko-kun over the course of these past two weeks, but I refuse to address this matter until Tenko-kun can give his piece on the matter. I want your two’s word that we will do our best to fulfill Tenko-kun’s request, whatever he decides.”

“I accept,” said Torino, “Let’s just hope it’s one of you two. God knows my place isn’t exactly kid-friendly.”

“I too, accept these conditions.”

The heroine laid back with a sigh of relief, “Thank you. Now, do you mind if I crash on your couch? I’d promised Tenko-kun that I’d make pancakes in the morning.”

Chapter Text

Tenko is taking Mon for a walk because that’s what the hero in the cartoon did to help their neighbor. Mon is wearing a top hat, a black tuxedo, and a tie that looks like one of the ones Night-sama let him pick out for her to wear to work.

“Don’t get the tie dirty, Mon,” Tenko says to the dog, “Night-sama wouldn’t like it if you ruin it.”

Mon yips at him, and then says, “Night-sama doesn’t get mad. And besides, she doesn’t wear ties a lot. She wouldn’t be sad if this one was dirty. She’d just put it in the washing machine.”

“Night-sama does too get mad.”

“Does not.”

“Does too.”

“Does not.”

“Does too.”

“Does not,” Mon yipped again, “Night-sama hasn’t yelled at you for playing heroes. And she didn’t hit you when you played with the stuff on her desk. Dad hit you really really hard when Hana-nee said you took the picture of Grandma. But Night-sama didn’t hit you. And she hugged you after you told her you hurt Hana-nee and Mom and Gram-Gram and Gramp-Gramp.”

Mon turned his head to one side, top hat nearly sliding off of his head, “Well. I guess Night-sama would be mad if she knew about Dad.”

Tenko’s blood ran cold.

“That was an accident. I didn’t mean to hurt Dad. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone. It wasn’t my fault. Night-sama said it wasn’t my fault.”

Tenko looked back at Mon, only to see that the dog had grown bigger and was now standing on his back two legs. Mon’s yip sounded lower and grittier. Almost like a bark of laughter, “Dad was different. I and Hana-nee and the others might have been accidents. But my boy, don’t you remember?”

“Remember?”

“When you reached out to your father, you were smiling.”

Tenko started to shake as Mon grew even bigger, fur shedding off of his body. Mon’s snout squished in, and his face morphed into that of a man’s. Tenko didn’t know who Mon-turned-man was, but there was an itch in his mind like the day he had discovered his quirk. Like he feels that he should know. But he didn’t, couldn’t place Mon-turned-man’s face.

“Hello, Tenko.”

“Who are you?” he asked.

“You might not recall, but we’ve met before. I was the one to give you your quirk.”

“Go away! Where’s Mon? I want Mon! Or Night-sama! Or Torino-san or Yagi-san!”

“My, my. You must have more memory troubles than I first thought. Can’t you feel the blood on your hands, Tenko?”

“What are you--” Tenko looked down at his hands only to see that they were now drenched in blood. He screamed and started to wildly shake them, trying to get the red off of him.

“If it was that easy to undo a murder, there’d be much fewer killers in this world. And besides,” Tenko continued to scream as Mon-turned-man grabbed his hands and cupped them together, “Didn’t it feel good to make sure your father would never hurt you again? Didn’t it feel right to punish the people that never helped you? Didn’t you feel powerful knowing you held people’s lives in your hands? What am I saying, of course, you did. You’re just like me.”

Tenko tried to yank his hands out of Mon-turned-man’s grasp but failed. He wanted to wipe away the tears that were falling from his eyes, but instead, he was forced to look at Mon-turned-man through a blurry gaze as he continued to speak, “Don’t cry, Tenko. You’ll be where you belong soon enough. It was foolish of me to allow Gran Torino and other allies of past One for All holders to live, but I’ll rectify that mistake soon enough. The hero organization drafted by my brother and the second and third especially needs to fall.”

“I don’t want to go anywhere! Night-sama! Yagi-san! Torino-san! ANYBODY?”

“Calling for help is useless, Tenko. There’s not a person strong enough in the world to beat me. And why would a hero like your precious Night-sama ever help a murderer like you?”

“Because Night-sama’s a hero, and that’s what heroes do!” Tenko yelled at Mon-turned-man and finally pulled his hands away. He pulled off the gloves Night-sama had told him to wear when he didn’t want to use his quirk and dived to the ground. Tenko watched as the sidewalk below him began to crack and crumble. The cracks spread out, breaking down everything they touched. 

When they finally reached Mon-turned-man, he just gave a grim smile and looked back at Tenko, “See, Tenko. Just like me.”

And with that, Mon-turned-man fell apart into a mess of blood, guts, and organs.

*****

Tenko snapped awake. He brought his still-gloved hands to his cheeks and wiped at the tears cascading down his face. He looked around to see that he hadn’t fallen asleep on the futon Night-sama laid out for him every night, or in one of the spare bedrooms of the hero agency Night-sama worked at. He hugged the blanket around him and sat up.

“NIGHT-SAMA!”

A wham sound came from the other room followed by footsteps. A quick knock on the door soon followed, “Tenko-kun? Are you alright?”

“Nigh-- Night-sama….”

“I’m coming in,” the door opened and there stood Night-sama in her PJ-pants and worn-out Ketsubutsu t-shirt. Night-sama took a few steps towards him and sat down at the end of the bed, “Another nightmare?”

Tenko nodded.

Night-sama sighed and lifted her hand towards him questioningly. Tenko lunged towards her side. She pulled him close, snuggling his head to her chest. Tenko felt the steady rhythm of her heart as Night-sama rubbed circles into his back, “I’m here, Tenko-kun. I’m right here. No one will ever be able to hurt you, not even the bad man from your dreams. Especially not him.”

“It-- it was the same man.”

“The one you told me about?”

“Yeah,” Tenko sniffed and rubbed at his eyes again. He heard a whisper come from Night-sama. Something about wondering if ‘that man had no other way to spend his time at night than harassing little kids.’

“Can you sing to me?” he asked, “One of those old lullabies you know? The ones that no one else can sing?”

“Absolutely. Which one, Tenko-kun?”

Tenko thought for a moment, “The thankful one.”

Night-sama nodded, understanding exactly which song Tenko wanted her to sing. She sat up straighter and adjusted him in her arms, keeping one hand rubbing circles into his back, as the other started to comb through his hair. She took a breath and started to sing.

“I see trees of green,

Red roses too.

I see them bloom,

For me and you.

And I think to myself:

What a wonderful world.”

Tenko clung to Night-sama’s shirt, pulling her closer and leaning into her touch. The longer she sang, the more he was able to put the memories of the man out of his mind.

“I see skies of blue,

And clouds of white.

The bright blessed day,

The dark sacred night.

And I think to myself:

What a wonderful world.”

Tenko’s eyes started to close on him, and he yawned. Night-sama’s circle-rubbing and hair-playing started to gradually slow down, but the singing kept on.

“The colors of the rainbow

So pretty in the sky,

Are also on the faces

Of people passing by.

I see friends shaking hands.

Saying ‘how do you do?’

They’re really saying,

‘I love you.’”

On the ‘I love you,’ part, Night-sama booped him on the nose and gave him a tired smile. She shifted him so that he was laying down again on the bed.

“I hear babies cry.

I watch them grow.

They’ll know so much more

Than I’ll ever know.

And I think to myself:

What a wonderful world.”

Night-sama tugged the blankets up to his chin and tucked him into bed. Tenko yawned again and burrowed deeper under the warm covers.

“Yes, I think to myself:

What a wonderful world.”

As Night-sama ended her song, she slowly shifted back up off the bed. With a quick kiss to his forehead, she slowly exited the room, “Goodnight, Tenko-kun.”

“Goodnight, Night-sama,” as Night-sama closed the door, Tenko turned on his side and fell back to sleep.

“If all of this is a dream,” he thought to himself before sleep overtook him once more, “Please never wake me up.”

*****

The second I left Tenko’s room, I came face-to-pec with All Might.

I looked up to meet his gaze (and wasn’t that an unusual occurrence. One of the best things about my second life was my height. I had barely hit five-four in my last life, and I absolutely adored being the tallest person in the room in my current one. Having to look up at someone was weird and unfamiliar in an almost nostalgic kind of way. Like trying to fall back into a long-forgotten habit years after it was broken.), “Yagi-san. What can I do for you at this fine,” I looked around for a clock and caught the time off the stove in the nearby kitchen, “Three-twenty-seven in the morning?”

“Nothing, you’re perfectly fine, Madam Nighteye! I just heard young Tenko’s cries earlier and wanted to check in and see if he was alright!”

I blinked up at All Might and his sincere smile. 

I hadn’t finished explaining All for One until almost midnight, and then I didn’t fall asleep until well past one because insomnia’s a punk-ass bitch. So how the fuck was he this awake at three-twenty-fucking-three AM?

Did he have a secret quirk? Had he gotten a hold of Nedzu’s Hell Coffee recipe? Was it drugs? I’d be down for becoming a drug addict if the high left me feeling like I actually slept for more than four hours a night.

All Might, oblivious to how much he was making me contemplate questionable activity for a hero, only smiled wider, “However, it seemed like you had the situation well in hand! I’ll let you get back to sleep.”

“Yeah, you should head back to bed too. I wouldn’t want you to leave the good people of Japan high and dry tomorrow just because you were too tired to go to work.”

All Might, instead of politely agreeing and lumbering off to bed as I expected, instead stiffened, genuine smile turning forced, “Whatever do you mean by that, Madam Nighteye? I’m just a secretary. I don’t handle anything more important than filling out paperwork and handling All Might’s schedule.”

I froze and cursed myself out in my mind. Fuck. All Might doesn’t know that I know about his cover story. Keep calm, Mirai. Just play it cool. Play it cool. Cool.

“I’d hardly call that unimportant, Yagi-san. If there’s one thing I know about hero work, it’s that it comes with a lot of paperwork. I don’t envy you or any of the others at the Might Tower. Didn’t your boss clock in over a hundred arrests and nearly a thousand people saved just this week? That must be a lot of insurance claims, potential lawsuits, PR scandals, and interviews to map out over such a short period of time. And don’t even get me started on merchandising. How spotlight heroes can handle that particular circus of monkeys is beyond me.”

All Might relaxed more and more as I continued to babble, “Yes. The merchandise in particular is pretty difficult to deal with. All Might’s been the number one hero for nearly a decade at this point, and you’d be surprised at how many knock-off products we’ve had to deal with over the years. The fanart is fine. It’s an open secret around the office that All Might is immensely flattered whenever he sees that people are inspired enough by him to make art of him. But some more….risqué products come  to mind.”

I snorted, “Like what? Body pillows? Y/n fanfiction? All Might porn?”

He nodded along with my words, “You’re not wrong, per se. But let’s just say those are all rather tame in comparison to some of the more extreme things I and the team have seen over the years.”

“What’s the worst one?”

All Might thought for a moment, “That’d probably have to go to the line of All Might-inspired dildos and vibrators some company in America made about a year ago.”

I was struck dumb as he flashed a mischievous smile. In an instant, All Might was miming into a fake microphone and fast-talking like an American salesman, “Hey you! Yes, you, right there. Can I interest you in one of our lovely All Might sex toys? As hung as the Symbol of Peace himself, Detroit won’t be the only thing getting smashed tonight! For only nineteen-ninety-nine, you will get your choice from our luxurious United States of Smash line. Order within the next thirty minutes and shipping is free!”

All Might shot me a crazed smile, eyes flashing with mirth. I took one look at his face, and I lost it. 

“Sweet Jesus! How did-- how did All Might react to that one? Did he….did he….” I wheezed a bit from laughter and tried to catch my breath, “Did he lose it?”

He chuckled a bit before answering, “All Might was so confused. When the dildos were first brought to his attention, he only heard the word ‘toys,’ so he absent-mindedly said, ‘Well so long as the makers aren’t using toxic materials, I think we can let the toys slide. I’m sure they’ll make plenty of kids happy!’ I don’t think I’d ever forget Maita’s look of pure horror until the day I die.”

My shoulders shook with laughter as I choked on my cackles, “He did not.”

“He did. And you want to know the worst part of it all?”

“It gets worse?”

“Somehow,” All Might waved his hands in an all-encompassing confused motion, “Okay, so procedure states that anytime we have to deal with contraband merchandise, we have to store it at Might Tower for a few days for our PR and legal teams to scrutinize the products. That’s fine, it’s standard. But here’s the thing. After the dildos made their rounds and PR and legal did their jobs, the merchandiser found that over a dozen or so dildos were missing.”

“No.”

“Yes.” 

“No!”

“Yes! But wait, there’s more. It never mattered before, because we’re professionals that do our jobs, but apparently, if more than five products are missing from a container, we legally have to buy the entire container from the merchandiser. So now, there’s an industrial-sized crate filled with nearly five hundred All Might dildos just sitting in storage at Might Tower. All because a handful of employees all decided that they wanted to fulfill their office fantasies of sleeping with the boss.”

“Oh my God. This is how I die. Not from a villain, but from fucking All Might dildos,” I laughed even more.

“Go ahead and laugh now, but All Might was mortified. I-- he’s not the best with social interactions despite his fame. So for weeks, he got flustered around every single employee at Might Tower because, in the back of his mind, he was wondering if they were one of the ones who stole a dildo.”

“Did you ever find out who took them?”

The poor man shook his head as he stared off like he was having Vietnam flashbacks, “Nope. It’s been months now, and no one’s come forward to admit it. I don’t know if they’re worried about repercussions, but at this point, it’s become a living legend around Might Tower.”

I finally got a hold of my laughter, “Well that’s one thing that would never happen at the IUCA. Our brand of shenaniganry is a bit more PG.”

“Come now. Every agency has its horror stories. I think it comes with the territory of having so many highly skilled individuals in one place. You must have something as entertaining as the dildos.”

“While not as hysterical, I do have a few tales ingrained into my mind.”

“Such as?”

“Well. I can’t imagine you’d have much knowledge about the IUCA, but one thing you must know is that every single underground hero is simultaneously stoic and absolutely bonkers. We’ve all mastered the stony glare and no-nonsense attitude for dealing with criminals, policemen, and spotlight heroes who want to spew nonsense about taking credit for our work. But we’re also essentially a group of vigilantes who trust absolutely no one without an underground hero license. So when you’re filling out forms at any given IUCA agency, you’re often going to bear witness to no less than four different prank wars, two NERF gunfights, and various heroes doing God knows what at two in the afternoon.”

“I can imagine the headlines now if some top-ten was found to endorse wacky office hijinks. But I guess that’s part of the fun of staying away from the spotlight,” I said, “We’re underground. We don’t get news coverage, we don’t have merch, we can’t sell our rights to different movies and TV shows, we can’t endorse products. Heck, we don’t even get coverage from the Hero Public Safety Commission.”

“You don’t?” All Might asked in surprise.

“Our founders established us with the intention of us essentially being an elite task force for the NPA. We get a lot more extra hazard pay, and all of our insurance is covered by the state, but because we all directly report and work alongside the police instead of the HPSC, we don’t get those extra bonuses the HPSC gives out to spotlight heroes for saving more people or for doing so well in the rankings.”

“That must be tough.”

I shrugged, “Eh. I don’t think I’d say no to the extra money, but I’d take the NPA over the HPSC any day. The NPA is a bit of a mixed bag, but their Internal Affairs takes all of our accusations seriously, and there are plenty of checks and balances between the NPA and the IUCA to curb corruption. The Hero Public Safety Commission, on the other hand? The entire organization is rotten, and it’s just getting worse. And say what you will about underground heroes, but you know they’re in it for the right reasons. If they wanted to be a hero for fame or money, they’d go spotlight or sign on as some prestigious hero’s sidekick. But when they’re out there every day, risking their lives for not even an ounce of recognition, you know they mean it.”

The conversation tapered off from there. We exchanged a few awkward good nights before All Might excused himself. I stumbled back into the living room and collapsed onto the futon. All Might, the westaboo he was, had one of the western futons that folded from a couch into a bed instead of just a mattress. I curled up and tried to fall back asleep, hoping beyond hope that Tenko wouldn’t have any more nightmares.

*****

Toshinori gently closed his bedroom door and dropped down in front of it.

“Oh master,” he thought to himself, “I feel like I’m failing you.”

Toshinori hadn’t known what to do when young Tenko had called out for help in the night. When he’s All Might, he never hesitates to jump into danger for the sake of saving someone.

But he didn’t know jack when it came to saving a little boy from the fears conjured up in the dead of night.

Nighteye hadn’t hesitated. She had calmed Tenko down like it was nothing, lulling him back to sleep with coos and cuddles and a lullaby so sweet it was nearly heartbreaking. He should probably feel more guilty about listening to the two’s private moment, but he just couldn’t pull himself away as Nighteye had masterfully laid the boy’s fears to rest. He had made it up, anyhow, when he’d gotten Nighteye to laugh. 

The woman just continued to surprise him. The dry, uncontrollable, wheezy cackles of a few moments ago would have never have come from the ice queen that initially knocked on his apartment door. Nighteye, he was finding, was an enigma. One he was certainly going to enjoy working alongside.

“You’ve lost, All for One,” he thought, “You might not know it yet, but you have. You should have never gone after my master’s family. I will find you and ensure you get the justice you deserve. And if what Madam Nighteye says is true, then you’ve got hundreds of underground heroes ready to take you down, too.”

Chapter Text

Toshinori woke the next morning to an achingly familiar smell wafting from the kitchen. There was a single moment where he groggily wondered if David had gotten his long-promised teleporter up and running before deciding that that couldn’t be the case. He would’ve given him a phone call and excitedly screamed about science if that was true.

Deciding that he had to investigate either way, Toshinori rose from bed and threw on a plain dress shirt and some navy slacks, checking his alarm clock as he went. It was a little past seven, which was a late morning for him. Usually, he’d have already gotten up, worked out, downed a gallon of protein shakes, and been on the clock for over an hour at this point in the day, but he’d cleared his schedule for the rest of the week after learning that young Tenko would be meeting with him.

He followed his nose to the kitchen and saw that Madam Nighteye was up and fully dressed. Her suit jacket was sitting on the back of one of the kitchen chairs, and her sleeves were rolled up so as not to tempt a stain from whatever she was in the process of stirring. Nighteye’s shoulder was shrugged up to her ear, and she was talking into a smartphone squished between her ear and the aforementioned shoulder. As Toshinori stepped into the room, he caught her side of whatever conversation Nighteye was having.

“You’re a lifesaver, Yoshino-chan. Thank you so much for agreeing to cover my patrol today. I’ll try and explain the second I get the green light from the others on the case…. I know it’s not fair, but I’m not the head of the investigation and I don’t have the power to involve every hero I think could help. But if I’m right, it’s going to become an underground-wide event sooner rather than later…. Yes, it’s that serious….Yes, I’ll handle any incident reports from the extra shift…. No, I will not be filling out your backlog of missing forms…. Yoshino that was due two weeks ago! If you don’t have that filled out by the end of the day, there’s no guarantee that it’ll be processed in time to be used as evidence in the Kawashima trial!.... I don’t care if you think paperwork is ‘the worst,’ do you want a rapist to walk free because you didn’t fill out the incident report stating that you caught and arrested him in the act?.... Fine. I’ll fill out the report. But you are going to sit through the intern lecture about why we must turn in necessary forms on time…. Yeah. Talk to you later. Bye.”

“Friend of yours?” Toshinori asked.

“Coworker. Yoshino’s a, sidekick isn’t the right word for it because the IUCA doesn’t do sidekicks, but she’s not a full underground hero,” Nighteye explained, turning her full attention to the stove, “Her father’s a cop and he agreed to bankroll her education at Shiketsu on the condition that she go underground until she’s twenty-one. Something about wanting her to understand that being a hero isn’t all glitz and glamor and that there are thousands of people in the NPA, the IUCA, and the medical field that do twice as much as some spotlight heroes with not even half as much credit. She’s nineteen and just figured out that being a hero is a grizzly, dangerous job that doesn't revolve around looking badass for the camera. She’s still figuring out that sometimes she has to put on her big-girl pants and do her goddamn paperwork or else others will suffer.”

Nighteye chuckled bitterly and flipped something in a frying pan, “The worst part of it all? She’s a good kid with a good quirk. She would be a damn good hero in either the underground or the limelight if she put the effort in. But before that can happen, she has to get over herself and wake up to the reality that she isn’t the best there is. If she keeps up her ‘this vital part of the heroics industry is beneath me’ attitude, the only future she’ll ever have in the industry is as some two-bit D-lister who can’t even break the top thousand.”

Toshinori winced, “Sounds complicated.”

Nighteye sighed and pushed around whatever was in the frying pan again, “It is, but I’ve got faith in her. A lot can happen in two years. God knows I’m not the same hero I was at twenty-one. If she’s still like this after she heads her first investigation, busts her first sex trafficking ring, and watches her first guilty criminal walk with nothing but a slap on the wrist, then I’ll start worrying.”

Toshinori’s mind flashed to the first time all of those things happened to him. As much as he hated it, there were always a few firsts in heroics: the first civilian you failed to save, the first suicide victim you couldn’t talk down, the first time you let a villain get away. If you survived as long in the industry as he has, you get a whole other round of firsts: first archnemesis, first murderer who only killed to get your attention, first time you face a criminal who went into villainy because you failed to save them or someone they love. A hero’s true nature always showed in how they handled those situations. Did they break under the pressure, or did they carry on? Did they wallow in self-pity, or did they focus on the mission at hand? Did they show compassion or cruelty? Did they acknowledge their shortcomings, or brush them under a rug?

“Yeah. I’d be pretty worried too.”

“I and the others will cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, I’ll just be thankful that a semi-competent heroine is willing to fill in for my missed patrol today. And speaking of that, can you take a note for your boss?”

“Of course,” Toshinori grabbed a napkin off the kitchen counter and pulled out a pen, “What do you need to get to All Might?”

“Tell All Might-san to come to the IUCA Central Tokyo Agency at one o’clock. I and the other heroes on the All for One case will be ready to meet then and officially bring him on.”

“I’ll tell him,” Toshinori said, resisting the urge to jump into his All Might persona right then and there (it was a temptation he always had to resist in times like this. Just once he’d like to go through with the prank. Just once.)

“Great. Do you mind waking up Tenko-kun? Breakfast is ready.”

Toshinori stood and meandered off to his guest room. He knocked on the door, and when he received no answer, opened it halfway and popped his head in, “Young Tenko! Madam Nighteye says that breakfast is ready!”

“Is it pancakes?” the boy asked, stretching out a bit in the bed.

“I do not know. But whatever it is, it smells delicious.” And very familiar. Was that what woke him up this morning? The smell of pancakes?

“Okay. I’m up,” the boy stood up and revealed the Yoroi Musha pajama set he had slept in last night.

“Come! Let’s meet our heroine in the kitchen!”

Toshinori led young Tenko to the kitchen and helped him into a seat at the table. Gran Torino was up by now as well, waiting not-so-patiently next to his coffee machine, watching like a hawk as it slowly filled the coffee pot. There was a large stack of pancakes in the middle of the table, along with Toshinori’s gallon of milk, a new jug of orange juice, and some homemade hashbrowns.

“Breakfast,” said Nighteye as she turned away from the stove, frying pan in hand, “Is served.”

She placed the frying pan on a hot pad, and Toshinori finally saw the reason he had woken up this morning. There in the frying pan, crispy and greasy and absolutely glorious was bacon.

American bacon.

Not the pre-baked ham that most stores sold. Genuine, fat-inducing, magnificent bacon. Toshinori swore that he could cry just looking at it.

“Calm down, Toshinori!”

“Yagi-san, leave some for us!”

A resounding clap echoed through the apartment as Toshinori was knocked out of his daze.

“I made one pound of bacon. You have eaten three-fourths of that pound in less than a minute. Let us eat some, Yagi-san,” said Nighteye, taking the frying pan out of his grasp.

Toshinori bit back a whine as he absent-mindedly reached for the bacon. Realizing exactly how foolish he looked, he instead used his hand to rub at the place on his forehead where Nighteye had smacked him, “But, but bacon.”

“I know, Yagi-san. Perhaps if I gave you the name of the grocery store that sells me the American-style bacon, you can make it for yourself on occasion.”

“Please”

“I’ll get on that. Tenko-kun,” Nighteye turned to the boy, “There’s a big thing we have to talk about.”

“Am I in trouble?”

“Not at all. Just. Hmmm. Oh, I know. You remember that hero video game you like to play with Void-san?”

Young Tenko sat up straighter and smiled, “Mecha Hero Trainer III?”

“Yes, exactly. Do you remember what happens when you reach level five?”

“You get to choose your first Hero Trainer!”

“Well, you’re the player, and Yagi-san, Torino-san, and I are your Hero Trainers. As hard of a decision it is, you have to choose one of us to live with. You’ll still get to visit with the others as much as you want, but only one of us will be able to see you every day and take care of you like your Mom and Dad did.”

Young Tenko cocked his head to the right and thought for a moment, “Why can’t I choose all of you?”

“It doesn’t work like that, squirt,” said Torino.

“It does in the game. Multi-classing is introduced at level ten. And by level twenty, you can learn from all three original choices if you want to.”

“Okay, maybe the video game analogy wasn’t the best idea--”

“Nighteye-san. Who says young Tenko can’t be a multi-classer if he wants to,” asked Toshinori.

Nighteye looked at him in confusion, “Are you recommending joint custody?”

“Why not? We both live in the Tokyo region. We both have time-fulfilling and dangerous jobs, you as a hero and myself as the right hand of All Might. And besides, you’re much more capable at this parenting gig than I am currently. If I were to suddenly become solely responsible for young Tenko, I believe that there is a very good chance I would accidentally scar him for life within the week.”

Madam Nighteye looked contemplative as she stewed over his offer, “I could take weekdays, you’d get weekends. And he could stay with Torino during school breaks and the odd few days where we’re both swamped with work. It could work.”

“Would something like that even work in a case like this?” asked Torino, “Adopted children can have joint custody, yes. But that’s usually with two parties who are already related to the kid. None of us have a leg to stand on there. I don’t know how the courts would split the kid’s time if we file as civilians. We could make the argument that as pro heroes, Tenko needs the extra circumstance, but that would be thrown out when Toshinori’s day job is made known. Unless….”

Gran Torino trailed off and made eye contact with him. Toshinori shook his head in dismissal. If he filed for custody as All Might, he knew that every court in the country would bend over backward to make sure his demands were met to the letter, tricky three-way joint custody and all. But that would also put a target on young Tenko’s back. All for One would have double the reason to go after the boy, not to mention all of the other villains who would just love to kidnap and ransom All Might’s son. It would be better to brave the courts as Yagi Toshinori, quirkless secretary.

“I’ll ask around the DA’s office to see if there’s any precedent for an adoption like this. Worst comes to worst, you both have fostering licenses, right?” Nighteye asked.

At Toshinori and Torino’s nods, Nighteye continued, “Then we can just pass Tenko-kun between our three houses like a game of hot potato.”

“So….does this mean I’m a tri-class hero?” asked young Tenko.

“Yes, Tenko-kun. You’re a tri-class hero in training and we’re your clueless trainers trying to cover what the others don’t know. Now eat your breakfast. The pancakes are getting cold.”

*****

All for One looked up at the screen in front of him as he took stock of the list of all established heroes. It was so easy to manipulate the Hero Public Safety Commission into doing what he wanted. Creating the organization was easily one of the best decisions of his career. Having such an organization, one that tracked heroes, built up the ones he wanted to, tore down the ones he despised, and delivered him the quirks he desired was nothing less than a godsend. But the information it provided was almost as valuable as all of those other services combined.

In front of him was a list of all two-hundred-and-twelve Japanese heroes with the word ‘Night’ in their hero name. Along with that were the fourteen odd foreign heroes with the word in their real name. That left him a list of two-hundred-and-twenty-six possible suspects that could have stolen his successor from under his nose.

The king of the underground scowled to himself, “How did he get away? I orchestrated everything perfectly. I administered the quirk at the right time, ensured that Tomura would kill the remnants of the Shimura family, replaced all people who would have contact with the family with my own lackeys, and even used nearly a dozen quirks to erase the Shimuras from existence and keep the entire neighborhood from ever approaching my successor. So where is he?”

As a rule, All for One didn’t like oversights. Oversights were weaknesses, and weaknesses toppled empires. To not plan contingencies for visiting heroes randomly assisting Tomura was an oversight of the highest order. Now, he was scrambling to locate the boy before his hold was lost forever.

Tonight was the last night he could have used the quirk ‘Waking Nightmare.’ Now that it had officially been more than twenty days since he had last seen Tomura face-to-face, he couldn’t use the power to enter the boy’s dreams and find out more information. He’d have to continue with what little he knew from here on out if he wanted to find his successor again.

Night-sama. That was his biggest clue. If he discarded the heroes that were confirmed to be out of the country or in a different part of Japan with no possible way to get to Tokyo in the block of time Tomura was taken, that narrowed down the list from two-hundred-and-twenty-six to ninety-seven heroes. 

Ninety-seven possible kidnappers.

That number was completely disgraceful. There was no way he could personally comb through ninety-seven heroes in a timely manner. He’d either have to delegate (undesirable. The fewer people that knew of Tomura, the better) or give up (unacceptable. There was no other option that would devastate the current One for All holder. It had to be Tomura) the search.

As All for One picked up a phone and started making calls throughout his underlings, he swore that in the back of his mind, he could hear the sound of his brother’s laughter.

*****

Somewhere in the mindscape connecting the quirks of All for One and One for All, Shigaraki Yoichi laughed and laughed and laughed.

“Alright, Yoyo. You can cut the laughter already. You’re starting to sound a little unhinged,” said Niko, his first lover. He and Sanruku, their other lover, had been watching him laugh for the better part of the last ten minutes.

“You do have to admit, Niko. It is kind of funny that the old bastard is investigating every single hero in Japan except the one that has the kid,” Sanruku said with a bit of a snort.

“How he doesn’t know about the underground hero agencies, I’ve yet to comprehend,” said En, “You three created the entire underground hero system. You heard what the heroine said. They’ve kept the All for One case open. The new generation of underground heroes is being taught about All for One’s existence and actively combating him. You’d think he’d notice the uptick in heroes raiding his criminal empire.”

“And not to mention, five out of seven of us were underground heroes. How the hell hasn’t he caught on yet?” asked Hikage.

“Nii-san’s always underestimated Batman and Tony Stark in every single fight. Even though they always prove that their lack of powers means nothing,” said the first user. Between breaks of laughter, Yoichi wheezed out something else.

“What’d you just say?” asked Daigoro.

Yoichi wheezed again, “I said. That nii-san. He only knows. About one underground agency.”

There was a moment of silence as the others comprehended the first user’s statement, “I’m sorry, what?”

“Nii-san. He thinks that the entire underground. Is made up of our original agency in Kanagawa. He doesn’t know. That we branched out into other prefectures.”

Yoichi wheezed again as the truth slowly dawned on the other users. One by one the others started laughing along with him until the mindscape was filled with breathless ghosts.

“Oh, sweet Kami. There were what, sixty-something agencies when I died? If all agencies have like, twenty heroes, that’s one-hundred-twenty more heroes than he’s expecting. And that’s being generous to All for One,” said En.

“And with the underground still reporting to the NPA instead of that fake hero organization, the bastard’s not going to know about the extra heroes or the whereabouts of the kid. He’s going to run himself ragged looking for his supposed successor, all while Yagi’ll be preparing to face him head-on,” Niko gave a final chuckle, “I’d kill to be a fly on that wall when he finally realizes how much of a stupid mistake he’s made.”

“Who knows, Niko,” said Sanruku, “We might just be able to see it through Yagi’s eyes. Here’s hoping we get the satisfaction.”

“Hey, Nana. You doing okay?” asked Daigoro, “You’ve been awfully quiet.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine,” Nana sniffed and wiped at her eyes, “It’s just still sinking in, is all.”

Any remaining laughter died at her statement. The other users had all been there when Nana had learned about what All for One had done to her family. The look of pure and utter devastation on her face would most likely live with all of them for the rest of their afterlives. They all knew what it was like to lose mentors, friends, lovers, and students to the fight against All for One. It came with the territory of being a hero and a holder of One for All. But to lose your husband, your son, your granddaughter, and almost your grandson to the clutches of that monster? That was an experience that Nana and Nana alone knew.

“Hey. Nana-chan, look at me,” said Yoichi, reaching out to the younger hero, “My brother is never going to hurt your grandson again. He’s never going to find him. Because he’s made a single fatal mistake: he’s gotten our successors involved. Don’t you see? It’s not just Yagi in this fight now. We all fought and lost because my brother isolated us. But Yagi is going to have hundreds of heroes at his back, and good people like the heroine that saved Tenko working alongside him to bring my brother down. He’s going to win this fight. I know it.”

Nana wiped her eyes again, “I want to meet her. I want to thank her so much. For saving Tenko, for helping Toshinori. For everything.”

Yoichi hugged her and bit his lip. He glared at his lovers as they bit their tongues and stopped themselves from speaking the truth that they all knew. Unless Madam Nighteye became the ninth use or One for All, Nana would never meet the woman that had done so much for her boys.

Chapter Text

Breakfast passes quickly enough after we finish our conversation about Tenko-kun’s custody. It takes less than an hour to finish eating, wash the dishes, jot down the name of the grocery store I always buy my bacon and pints of Ben & Jerry’s from whenever I need some comfort food (it was usually a toss-up on what things existed in both this world and my last one. Thank God, or, well, Horikoshi, that a few of the necessities survived), and help Tenko-kun tie his shoes before I hustle us out the door.

Tenko-kun’s gloved hand squeezes in mine as we make our way to the subway station, “What did you think of Yagi-san and Torino-san?”

He begins swinging our arms back and forth, keeping step with my shortened stride, “Yagi-san’s nice. He’s big. But not big in a scary way. Big in a big dog way.”

“A big dog, huh?” I asked with a small smile. Big, dopey, golden retriever sounded like All Might to a T, “And what about Torino-san?”

“Grouchy. And short. Is he younger than you and Yagi-san?”

“No. Why in the world would you think that?” I asked, moving to the line for the train pass machine. I fed the reader my and Tenko-kun’s cards. They were returned and I led the two of us over to a semi-empty waiting area. Having started out a little later in the morning than I usually did to get to work, we’d missed the morning rush of workers and students on their way to school.

“He’s shorter than you and Yagi-san. So doesn’t that mean he’s younger? Bigger people are bigger. So Torino-san’s bigger than me but smaller than you and Yagi-san. And Yagi-san’s bigger than you.”

“That’s not always how it works, Tenko-kun. Torino-san is older than me and Yagi-san. He was friends with your grandma, after all.”

“But so was Yagi-san. So Yagi-san is probably old. Like forty. And Torino-san’s a little bit younger. Thirty.”

“Tenko-kun, I’m twenty-three. If Torino-san was thirty, he’d have fewer wrinkles like I do. I had to look up Torino-san, and he’s fifty-five. Yagi-san….huh. I don’t think I actually know Yagi-san’s age,” I said, coming to that sudden realization. All Might had never given a concrete number in any of his interviews. I knew that there was a range because All Might was in the same college year as David Shield, but Shield had skipped grades in the past, so there wasn’t any definite answer. His UA years were similarly vague, and he never talked about his life before then.

In fact, if it wasn’t for my memories and what I knew from them, I would have even less information to go off of. And isn’t that a scary thought? This man, this hero, the hero, was practically an unknown. He didn’t offer any personal information beyond the name of the high school that he graduated from. All Might’s face, symbol, and brand was plastered everywhere, but no one knew anything about him beyond what he stated to journalists, and those could very well be lies. A facade put on for the public. 

I knew that All Might had a very, very good reason to keep himself and his life private. Two, if you counted All for One and One for All as separate entities. Three, if he wanted to hide the fact that he used to be quirkless. But was the rest of the country just expected to trust All Might with their lives, no matter what potential skeletons could be hiding in who knows how many closets? And if that lack of transparency was standard amongst spotlight heroes, then how many heroes are hiding something? Double dealings, tax evasions, excessive force, deaths on the job? 

No wonder Endeavor got away with a quirk marriage and years of abuse. 

“Night-sama, the train’s here.”

Tenko-kun’s words snapped me out of my ponderings. Right. Priorities. Kid, All for One, then fixing the mess that is hero society. Punching Endeavor should also be on the list somewhere. 

“Let’s find a seat. And as I was saying, Yagi-san is younger than Torino-san but older than me. That means he’s somewhere between the ages of fifty-five and twenty-three. If we average it, he’s thirty-nine. So let’s say thirty-nine until proven otherwise.”

We step onto a train car and find it fairly empty. I sat Tenko-kun down on a free seat and handed him my smartphone opened to the game app he’d become obsessed with: The Sorcerer’s Magical Mystery. I sit next to him and open up my briefcase quietly. I dug around until I found the tablet inside.

While underground heroes may not have the ground-breaking tech like that that David Shield made All Might, Mana-nee kept our support gear in good condition and provided us with all the tools we needed, often making them look like everyday objects. The Kindle-like reading tablet was one such device. To anyone else, it’d seem like I was just reading a standard e-book, but in actuality, I’d be filling in my fellow underground heroes on the events of the previous day.

Mama Nighteye: Just left Yagi’s apartment.

Mama Nighteye: Okay, who keeps changing my name?

24 Karat Gold: Not me.

Thunder & Lightning: Not me, kid.

I Stare Back: not me. but it suits you

Tesla but make it Japanese: ^

i of the storm: ^^

Sequins: ^^^

Glitter: ^^^^

Goddess of Wisdom: ^^^^^

The Boss™: I’m pretty sure it was the rat.

God™: It was! But only this time.

Mama Nighteye: I’ll keep it because it’s Nedzu, but know that whoever started this is on thin ice.

Tesla but make it Japanese: anyways. how’s my little nephew? is Yagi going to fight you for custody, or am I officially an aunt?

Mama Nighteye: In accordance with Tenko-kun’s wishes, we’re going to look into shared custody. I’ll need to ask Matsuno at the DA’s office if that’s even possible with two parties that are unrelated to both each other and the child in question, but it’s what Tenko wants.

I Stare Back: how’s time going to be split? i need to make preparations for when i’ll have tenko for video games/when i won’t.

Mama Nighteye: If it all works out, I’ll have weekdays, Yagi-san will have weekends, and Torino-san will get him on some holidays and whenever both Yagi-san and I are filled with work.

i of the storm: [who-are-you-people.jpeg]

Mama Nighteye: Shimura Nana was Yagi-san’s foster mother until her untimely death, in which his custody went to Torino-san. They both express interest in being in Tenko-kun’s life, though Torino-san has stated that he should most likely not receive full custody, as he is a hero, over the age of fifty, and admitted to not being that good with kids under the age of twelve.

i of the storm: thank

24 Karat Gold: Not to be quirkist

Goddess of Wisdom: Choose your next words very carefully🔪

24 Karat Gold: But I just skimmed Yagi Toshinori’s file, and he’s quirkless. Does he have a steady source of income? 

24 Karat Gold: If not, we still need a new receptionist at the front of the agency, and that pays above the average minimum wage. We all know how shitty the quirkless population is treated, and how sometimes they lose their jobs unexpectedly because of their quirk status.

Mama Nighteye: Oh, that won’t be a problem.

God™: Yagi-san is All Might’s personal secretary, and has been ever since he returned to Japan.

Sequins: He’s WHAT????

Glitter: damn

Goddess of Wisdom: me: all spotlight heroes are trash. All Might: [has a quirkless secretary and has not fired him after 10+ years of working for him.] me: all spotlight heroes are trash except for one (1) man.

Thunder & Lightning: Good on All Might for not letting biases get in the way of hiring competent employees.

Mama Nighteye: Speaking of All Might, this would be a good time to mention something else. But first, @God™ @Tesla but make it Japanese

Mama Nighteye: These devices can still be wiped whenever, right?

God™: Indeed then can!

Tesla but make it Japanese: yeah, why?

Mama Nighteye: Then I’m officially nominating the heroes Gran Torino and All Might to be inducted to case #00000001.

Mama Nighteye: I would also like to nominate the hero Reprise, but her admission is much less urgent, as I believe she isn’t yet ready to join the case, but I promised to nominate her as a favor for taking my patrol shift today.

The Boss™: I’ll accept Torino’s nomination. He was a big help against All for One back in the day. But why All Might?

Thunder & Lightning: Wait, does this mean I won the bet?

i of the storm: what bet?

Glitter: Why are we inviting the fucking number one hero onto an underground investigation?

I Stare Back: ^

Sequins: ^^

24 Karat Gold: ^^^

Tesla but make it Japanese: ^^^^

Goddess of Wisdom: No disrespect to the 1 spotlight hero I don’t hate, but All Might ain’t exactly subtle.

Mama Nighteye: I know that, but seeing as Thunderclap-sensei did win the bet, I think it’s important that we include him on the team.

The Boss™: Huh. Well, whaddya know?

The Boss™: Alright, All Might’s in. I imagine you passed on your patrol to Reprise because you’ve invited him over to the agency later today?

Mama Nighteye: Yes. He and Gran Torino should be over by one o’clock.

The Boss™: Then everyone should come prepared with all information on the All for One case. We won’t need the introductory packet. All Might and Torino have both fought All for One before. Just relevant information pertaining to AfO’s most recent actions. Someone catch up @Healing Trance and @Photosynthesis. And make sure the agency’s in tip-top shape. I refuse to embarrass ourselves in front of the #1 hero.

Tesla but make it Japanese: fuck

i of the storm: shit i need to clean.

Goddess of Wisdom: This is why you should keep a tidy workplace.

Mama Nighteye: Subway just stopped at my destination. See you in a few.

I signed off and bagged my tablet. I turned to Tenko-kun and lightly shook his shoulder. He looked up from my phone and saw that I was standing up. Quickly, he stood as well and grabbed my hand again. He closed the gaming app and passed me my phone, nodding at the open subway car doors.

“Did you beat the level you were stuck on?” I asked.

Tenko-kun nodded, “Yeah. But then I got stuck on level twenty-four. I was on my last life when we stopped.”

“You can play again once we get to the agency,” I said, “I’m also happy that you have those books from the library. Void-san is going to be busy cleaning when we get there, and won’t be able to play video games with you.”

“Why not?”

“Because later, we’re getting a very special visit from a very special hero.”

“Who?”

“It’s a secret,” I winked at him. I’d usually just tell the kid who was coming to the agency, but if I mentioned in a public venue that All Might was coming to my place of work, I’d be swamped with nosy people asking questions in an instant, “Now come on. I’m already late for work as is.”

*****

“Yoshino-chan!” I caught up to the young heroine right as she was leaving the office, “Can I use my quirk on you real quick? Because I won’t be patrolling today, I want to use it now and fill out any incidents you’ll cover today.”

“Of course,” said the blonde, “You’re saving my ass with the Kawashima report. And the less I have to fill out for today, the better.”

“Watch the language,” I grumbled, shooting a glance towards Tenko-kun.

Yoshino winched, “Sorry. I’ll have to quit the swearing before I go spotlight.”

Yoshino took off her white glove and held out her hand. I dropped my briefcase on the ground and grabbed it. There was a moment of awkward eye contact, and then my vision went dark around the edges and I was jerked into a vision.

Leave the agency and walk down the streets of Tokyo. Stick to back allies for the most part because Dad’s already lectured me about being low-key….After being called over by some tourists for some directions and a selfie, I make my way up to the rooftops. Maybe I’ll spot some more action up there….I dodge the next swipe at my midsection. What kind of dump quirk is controlling toilet paper? Oh shit, there goes my arm. Quick, what can get rid of toilet paper? Fire’ll be too dangerous. Water should work, right? What’s Izumi’s melody again? Da-da-da-da-dada-da-da-da? No, that’s Morishige-sensei’s. Izumi’s is more upbeat. Da-da-da-dada-dah-ah-da-ahah. There it is! Let’s see this sucker after a nice shower!....Should I get sushi for lunch or barbeque? Sushi, barbeque. Sushi, barbeque. Sushi, barbeque….Shit. Fighting colorblind is harder than I thought. Ugh. At least it’s not screwing with my depth perception….Finally! I can clock out! I just need to check in with Nighteye-san and ask for the paper-- what the fuck?

“That should be all, Yoshino-chan,” I said.

“Don’t you need a little longer to read through the day? Whenever I copy your quirk, I take forever to read any length of time longer than an hour into the future,” she asked.

“Ah, but you can only keep my quirk going for as long as you sing. I, however, get the full one-hour time limit and am a master at using it. You know how Foresight is kind of like watching a movie of the person’s life with their thoughts occasionally acting as narration?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, what I just did is put the movie at two-times speed. All the information’s there in my head, but I only focused on the major plot points, not the minor details you would normally pick up if you watched it like normal. I’ll be able to ‘rewind the movie’ during my one-hour time limit to catch the smaller stuff, but right now I have all I’ll need to fill out the incident reports for today.”

“Cool,” Yoshino-chan said, “I’ll be off then. See you around, Nighteye-san. Bye, Shimura-chan.”

“Bye, Reprise-san,” said Tenko with a small wave.

Yoshino-chan waved back and headed out of the front doors. I guided Tenko and I up to the front desk, which was being manned by Void today.

“Hey, Mirai,” she said. She stood up from her desk chair and took her gloves off. She leaned down over the desk and offered her free hand to Tenko-kun, “Put her there, kid.”

Tenko-kun smiled and pulled off one of his animator gloves and raised his bare hand. The two hands met in a quick high five.

I mouthed a quick ‘thank you,'  to my friend as she put her gloves back on. Void had been an absolute angel when it came to handling Tenko-kun, and the fact that his quirk didn’t work on her had helped him trust himself with human contact again a lot faster than it probably would have otherwise. While he still wasn’t super touchy-feely, the fact that he was happy to hold my hand while we walked and occasionally initiate contact with others was a near miracle after the shit-show that was his quirk manifestation. 

She mouthed back a ‘don’t mention it,’ and turned to the computer screen, “Your tardiness has already been excused by Morishige-san. He understands why you’re late and has given me a note to remind you that you have over seventy days of vacation and over a hundred office-only days saved up over the past five years and that you may use them at your discretion. I’m also reminding you as your best friend that our mandatory girls’-day-out is coming up soon and that your sister and I are not above forcing you into relaxing.”

“Thank you, Void. Where are you at with looking for a new receptionist?”

“We’ve put in ads with local newspapers, on the NPA webpage, and asked around outside of the costume. But a lot of potential workers are scared away by the NDAs they have to sign to work here. Because we don’t have the clout spotlight agencies have, we don’t have the reassurance that they’ll be safe and that they won’t be doing anything illegal.”

“It also might have something to do with how most spotlighters don’t have their employees sign NDAs,” came Mana’s voice as she walked around the corner, “Here’s the coffee you asked for.”

“What do you mean they don’t have to sign NDAs? Couldn’t that be dangerous for the heroes? Civilian employees could just go snooping into the heroes or the sidekicks’ personal lives and sell the info online with no repercussions?” I asked my sister.

“I mean, I’ve only worked as a support tech consultant, so maybe it’s different for full-time employees?” Mana shrugged her shoulders, “Either way it’s dangerous. If I really wanted to, I could sell the schematics of over twenty different top five-hundred heroes’ weapons and gear, and I’d get away with it scot-free.”

“Night-sama. I’m bored,” said Tenko-kun.

“Well, you can’t play video games with Void-san. And I’ve got paperwork to do, which is even more boring to watch than Mana-san, Void-san, and I talk. So what do you suggest?”

“Oo, oo! Tenko-kun could come clean the labs with me!” said Mana easily.

“Nooooooo. That’s even more boring.”

“How about Tenko-kun be my little go-for today?”

“Gofer?”

“Go-for,” said Void, “I’ve got a lot of important papers that need to be given to certain people, and it’ll be your job to go for me and hand them out.”

“I can do that,” Tenko-kun said quickly, “Just please, no cleaning. Cleaning’s boring.”

“Alright then, Void. I’ll leave Tenko-kun in your trusty hands,” I said, “Mana-nee, did you fix up my stamps?”

“Yep. Come down to the lab and I’ll outfit them for you.”

“....you just want to coerce me into helping you clean, don’t you?”

“Got it in one, little sister. Now come on. I’ve got a lab to clean and a number one hero to impress. If all goes well, he might even introduce me to David Shield.”

“You mean the future Mr. Imada Mana?” I asked, following Mana down to her lab in the basement of the agency.

“Hush.”

“With how often you gush about his inventions, I honestly wonder if it’s him you’re after, or his labs.”

“I said hush.”

“David Shield and Mana-nee sitting in a tree. I-N-V-E-N-T-I-N-G.”

“I should have made you some other foster parent’s problem when I had the chance.”

“But ya’ didn’t. And now you’re stuck with me. Foreeeeevvvveeerrrrrr.”

“I am texting the family chat, and I am exposing you for the annoying little shit you are.”

“One, that won’t be a surprise. Two, Nedzu, Orochi, and Michio will all take my side anyway once they learn that I’m teasing you about your ridiculous crush on David Shield. And three, wouldn’t you rather gush about Shield?”

“Shit, you’re right. I’ll go for the work chat.”

“They’ll never believe you.”

“Ughhhhh. Being your sister is the worst.”

“I try, Mana-nee. I try.”

Chapter Text

“Mana-nee?”

“Yes?”

“What did my weapons repair request say?”

“That you wanted a full refurbishing of your weighted stamps, and that you wanted to replace the two you lost in your fight against Gorgophone.”

“Right. So why,” I gestured to the fully-suited mannequin standing before me, “Am I looking at a fully-redesigned suit?”

Mana didn’t bat an eye before she started pleading, “Please!”

“We’ve talked about this, I like my aesthetic.”

“Your ‘aesthetic’ is just a tired actuary who is constantly done with everyone’s shit. That’s not an aesthetic, that’s just you if you started working nine to five.”

“My suit is subtle and helps me blend in when I need to go undercover. And I’d like to think I’d have a more interesting job than an actuary.”

“It has zero defense and so many problems logistically.”

“Hey, my jacket’s bullet-proof. And I haven’t noticed any problems with it.”

Mana gave me a look, “So you haven’t twisted your ankle because of your heels?”

“I’ve gotten better from my school days.”

“Or ripped your skirt while trying to kick villains in the head?”

“That hasn’t happened in months--”

“Or left your briefcase full of your only weapons up on a rooftop because you forgot to grab it before you jumped into a fight?”

“Okay, that was one time--”

“I think I rest my case,” said Mana, “But seriously, let me just walk you through the suit’s upgrades. I mean, look, look.”

Mana walked over to the mannequin and twirled it so it faced me, “The bodysuit has internal armor made of a mix of kevlar and carbon fiber, specifically engineered to give you as much protection and flexibility as possible. The outermost layer is slash-proof and treated with a chemical compound coating to make it fireproof. And that’s not even getting to the other goodies.”

She brought out a new briefcase, silver in contrast to the completely matte black bodysuit, and opened it, “Hyper-density seals and weighted briefcase to use as an improv-weapon, as usual. But I didn’t stop there. This visor not only has your usual prescription, but it also has a built-in HUD mechanic, a camera to record and review patrols, and infrared vision and night vision modes to find criminals. Also, how do you feel about a sword?”

“A sword?”

“A sword,” said Mana, pulling out an empty hilt. She gave the hilt a mighty swing towards her side, and there a blade now stood, “It’s collapsable. I know you mostly rely on your hand-to-hand for close combat, but that doesn’t always work for villains with reinforcement quirks. Thus, sword.”

“Any other weapons you want to thrust onto me?” I asked tiredly.

“Yes. Look at this belt,” she held up a long, long chain that could wrap around my waist a good four or five times. It was silver to match with the briefcase, and made of interlocking chains with lengths of roughly the diameter of a quarter, “Put it on quick.”

“Why?”

“Just do it!”

I grabbed the belt and brought it to my hips. The second it made contact with the area, it wrapped tightly and securely around me on its own, “Uhhhhh. Mana-nee?”

“Just trust me! Now, without moving, attempt to grab that empty soda can and throw it in the garbage.”

I looked at the can sitting on Mana’s desk and squinted at it, thinking about my sister’s instructions. Suddenly, one end of the belt shot out and skewered the can all the way through, pinning the poor object to the concrete wall. After a second, the end of the belt slithered back to me like a snake, and then passed me to the garbage can. It shook itself to try and force the can off, but it stayed stuck and wrapped itself back around me, skewered soda can and all.

“Huh. Guess that needs more testing.”

“Mana, what the hell?” I asked, “That is now way safe for patrol use. I’d leave someone full of puncture holes if I wasn’t careful.”

“Okay, so the belt’s a no-go. But the rest of it’s good! You need a suit upgrade, Mirai. You are one jacket-free fight away from dying out there. As your older sister, I am enforcing my right to make sure you come back alive at the end of the day.”

“Mana, I’m super glad that you care enough to go through all of this work. But I like the way I look in costume, and I like the few gadgets I have. If I start incorporating fancy goggles and a sword, I’ll need to completely change my fighting style.”

“Fine,” she said in defeat, “Guess we’re doing this the hard way.”

She tackled me into a tight hug and pinned me to the ground. I squirmed under her a bit, but returned the hug, “What are you doing?”

Before I could get an answer to my question, Mana rolled off of me, and I looked up to see a small barrel of motor oil hovering above me, suspended by Mana’s signature shimmering pink aura, “Mana-nee, don’t you dare!”

Unfortunately, my words came too late. She used her quirk to pour the motor oil all up and down my pantsuit. I screeched in outrage as I flew my arms over my face, protecting my mouth, nose, eyes, and glasses.

Mana caught the small barrel before it landed on me, and smiled down at me, sweet as sugar, “Oops! Looks like you’ll have to take that to Mizu’s to get it dry-cleaned. You should probably change into one of your backup suits. Oh, wait! All Might’s coming in less than two hours! You won’t have enough time to catch a train home, find a new suit, change, and then catch a ride back! If only there was another suit available for you to wear!”

“I hate you, Mana-nee.”

“No, you don’t.

“You are the worst big sister in the world!”

“I try, Mirai-chan. I try.”

*****

All Might walked into the IUCA building a quarter before one. It was styled after the NPA building scarcely a few blocks away and mostly went unnoticed by the people and tourists walking around looking for a quick lunch.

Neither of the men was in costume, both favoring simple business-casual attires as Madam Nighteye had said would be appropriate. However, unlike his cover of Yagi Toshinori, All Might was in superhero mode. His quirk was activated, tightening his muscles and forcing him to stand up to his full height, not allowing him to slouch and shrink into himself as he did as Toshinori. That, combined with his signature hairstyle and smile, made him look completely different to his secret identity.

He opened the front door of the agency, ducking to fit his head into the space, and walked confidently towards the woman sitting at the front desk. She was in a black bodysuit with accents on her sides and underarms that looked similar to snapshots of the Milky Way. Her eyes and hair were both black, and her hair was shaved on one side. The undercut was stylized into a sun with a crescent moon on either side. The half of her hair that wasn’t shaved went down to her shoulder in length.

She looked up from her computer at the sound of the opening door, and All Might could see the moment his presence had registered. The woman had stiffened, eyes blown in a mix of excitement and disbelief. To her credit, she recovered from her shock soon and schooled her face into a neutral expression.

“All Might, and who I assume to be Gran Torino, welcome to the Tokyo branch of the International Underground Crimefighting Association. You’re a bit early for the meeting. Have a seat, and I’ll take you back once my replacement comes to relieve me of my duties.”

“Thank you, miss….”

“Void. I’m one of the heroes on the case. I don’t usually man the front desk, but we still haven’t found a replacement after our last receptionist got transferred to Kyoto.”

“It’s a pleasure, Void-san! How many others are on the investigation team?”

“Void-san! I gave the important papers to Teival-san just like you asked,'' a familiar voice came from around the corner before the woman could answer. All Might turned that way to get a look at Young Tenko.

The boy froze in his tracks and looked to him in shock, “Al-al-all Mi--”

“Kid, meet All Might. He’s here to help us on a case. But it’s a big secret. No one besides me, Mana-oba, Nedzu-san, and Night-sama are supposed to know. So can you keep this quiet?”

Young Tenko nodded, “Yeah. Promise.”

“Good. And All Might’s not the only one helping. Night-sama said you met Torino-san yesterday?”

“Torino-san!” the boy ran up to his mentor, eyes shining with excitement, “You’re here! And is that your hero costume?”

“Yeah, squirt. I’ve had it for as long as I’ve been a hero.”

“So coooool!”

“That’s it! Getting siblings was a mistake! I want a refund!” came another familiar voice from a nearby stairwell. The stair door opened and out stepped Madam Nighteye. Her hair was tied up in the same bun she wore when he met her, but instead of her stuffy business suit, she was dressed in a bodysuit similar to Void. The suit was completely black and had a bit of a metallic sheen to it. There were no other colors on the suit, save for the silver buckles and steel toes and soles of her knee-high boots, the silver brass knuckles on her black gloves, and the silver goggles pushed up to her hairline.

All Might thought the hero costume looked good on the heroine. The material outlined the woman’s figure, allowing him to fully see what her business garb had kept covered up. He also caught the armor sewn and hidden in the ensemble, no doubt there to keep the woman safe when taking harder hits. His only honest critique was the lack of color. But then again, he wasn’t an underground hero. He had no idea what was and wasn’t appropriate for blending into the night. The mostly black wardrobe might be helpful to the heroine.

Yet, the appearance of Madam Nighteye seemed to shock Young Tenko and Void almost as much as his initial presence had.

“Night-sama,” said Tenko, “What happened to your super suit?”

“My sister happened. Older siblings play dirty, and I’ve decided to start a kickstarter to put mine down. The benefits of doing so are that my suits will get ruined way less.”

“I was wondering why you were wearing Mana’s designs. She’s been refining that thing for months now. And besides, you needed a change.”

Nighteye winced behind her glasses, “For the last time, my suit’s not that bad. It doesn’t draw attention, and it’s a life-saver if I ever need to infiltrate someplace or impersonate someone on the fly.”

“Yeah, and that’s where the useful traits end. Mirai, you’re my best friend, but your tastes in hero costumes suck.”

Nighteye whined, “Shut it. I will not have my fashion sense questioned by someone who wears sweatpants and sweatpants exclusively when not on duty.”

“I’m not questioning your fashion sense, because you and I both know neither of us has a leg to stand on there. I’m questioning your ability to judge when hero gear is useful, or when it just gets in the way. And besides, look on the bright side. You and I match now.”

“Ahem,” All Might coughed into his fist, “It’s nice to meet you, miss….”

Madam Nighteye turned to him, giving him a quick once-over, “Madam Nighteye, All Might. Thank you so much for agreeing to come onto the case.”

“And thank you for bringing it to my secretary’s attention.”

“Of course. I’d imagine that you’d want to know about this. It’s good that you’re early. Morishige-san would like to talk to you quickly about something. I don’t really know what. Would you and Gran Torino mind following me to his office?”

All Might saw Gran Torino frown to himself as Nighteye turned her back and beckoned them to follow down a corridor. When the two were out of the receptionist area, but still a fair bit away from Nighteye, he asked him, “What’s that look for?”

“Nothing. Just that name, Morishige. It sounds familiar for some reason,” his teacher waved him off.

All Might accepted that answer and caught up to Nighteye, who was holding the door open on an elevator. He entered and shuffled over to the corner of the contraption so Torino could have a fair bit of room. Nighteye let the door closed and pressed the button to the top floor of the building. There was a single awkward second before the machine whirled to life and started to lift the trio up.

When the elevator slowed to a stop and the doors opened with a ‘ping,’ Nighteye continued past the small waiting room and the personal secretary that was sorting papers and talking into a desk phone. They nodded once to them, waving them through with the mouthed phrase of ‘the boss is in his office.’

Nighteye nodded and walked them into a large office room, where the desk chair had its back turned to them and whoever was in it was facing out the window. All Might heard a soft click behind him. He and the other two heroes turned to see an older hero in a sky blue hero suit at the newly locked door.

“Thunderclap-sensei, what are you doing?” asked Nighteye, whose brow was furrowed with a bit of long-accepted-exasperation.

“Just let a few old geezers have their fun, kid.”

With that, the chair at the office desk swiveled around to face them. In it sat a man roughly the same age as the other. A slow smile crossed his face as he looked past Madam Nighteye and him, and right at Gran Torino.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t the old, busted car engine. You miss us, short stack?”

“I’m out,” said Gran Torino quickly, making his way towards the windows, “Do one of these fuckers open? It’s only what, twenty stories? I can survive that fall.”

“Sir, I’m a bit confused. Are these men villains, or something?” Torino hadn’t made a move to fight them, but he didn’t put the possibility out of his mind.

“They’re fucking annoying is what they are,” said Torino, “Seriously. If these don’t open, they better break with a well-timed kick. I am not staying in here with Dark and Mysterious Number One and Two.”

“You should take it easy, short stack. Someone of your size should be so stressed. It isn’t healthy.”

“Okay, is someone ready to use their words and explain like an adult?”

“I too would like to know what’s going on here.”

Thunderclap came up to them and pointedly ignored Torino and the man at the desk’s argument, “Don’t pay them any mind. They’ve been at each other's throats for as long as they’ve known each other. Gets a bit tiring after a while, if I’m being honest.”

“That doesn’t explain how you all know each other, sensei.”

“Oh yeah. Well, kid. Meet Evergreen, Gran Torino, and myself. The last three living students of En, the sixth holder of One for All.”

Chapter Text

It happened, said Thunderclap, ignoring Gran Torino and Evergreen’s continuous bickering, a lifetime ago.

It was the muddling times between the Golden and Silver Ages of Heroics. Heroes had become an accepted and established part of life, but not many were open about it. The hero system was still largely built around the comic book setup: everybody had a secret identity, the police were the ones who patrolled the streets, and heroes were only ever called in for the world-ending criminals instead of the everyday purse-snatchers, muggers, and yakuza. Many of the different hero types: rescue, relief-aid, medical, informant, black ops, etc, hadn’t even been thought of, let alone introduced to society. It was all big, flashy fighters that rolled up, punched the bad guy, and then rolled out.

So when a vigilante shows up in some small, meaningless city in the Yamanashi prefecture, people start to take notice.

There are sightings, of course. All at night and all under the cover of a foggy white smoke that seems to follow the vigilante wherever they go. No one ever catches their face or gets a good look at them in general, but the people know they are there and know that they have a protector looking out for them.

There’s no gang presence in this small, meaningless city, but the people breathe a little easier as their nearly nonexistent crime rate drops even further thanks to the vigilante’s presence. Beyond the occasional druggie being passed over to the police at night, and the cuffed criminal every once in a blue moon, the vigilante doesn’t do a whole lot of work.

That is, until the first person goes missing.

*****

It happened, said Thunderclap, like any other case. 

The police investigated. After a week with no leads, theories were thrown around: suicide, kidnapping, elaborate joke. The subject was running from something. What were they running from? Who knew: a debt owed, an abusive partner, a responsibility they didn’t want to have. 

After a week and a half, the vigilante drops off the missing person on the precept’s door. They’re fine but in shock. 

Fine, in shock, and completely quirkless.

The investigators ask questions. Did they remember who took them? (no) Did they have any family they could contact? (no) Did they have a quirk? (yes-- no. no, they took it) Who took what? (he took my quirk) Didn’t you just say you didn’t remember who took you? (yes. i can’t remember who took me, but. but there’s this feeling. it was a man, i know it was a man) Is this some kind of joke to you? (no) Are you high on something right now, something that might be blocking your access to your quirk? (no, no i’m not).

More time passes and more people are taken. The vigilante brings them back every time, always fine, always in shock, always newly quirkless.

Quirks were still a novelty back then. Something you had a fifty-fifty chance of getting. Cool, wacky powers that most people ignored or didn’t really use in their everyday life. The victims had a bit of a struggle adjusting, but they didn’t suffer for not having their powers. After all, with the newly passed quirk restriction laws, it didn’t matter if they ever had them in the first place or not. The police figure that some wacky scientist was testing out how to remove quirks from the general public. Concerning, but not a pressing matter. About a quarter or so of the world have been happy to see the plague upon humanity wiped from existence.

And then one day, the vigilante didn’t bring back a quirkless amnesiac.

They brought back a corpse.

*****

It happened, said Gran Torino, just like you’d expect it to.

Nana’s old man was a police officer on the case. Nana, who wanted to follow in his footsteps one day, had a habit of hanging around the police station and doing what she could to help others. She’d copy papers, make coffee runs, and eavesdropped whenever she could on the interesting things she’d hear.

And the local vigilante always caught her interest.

She had been enamored by them. This faceless hero who wanted to save people without so much as a drop of recognition. She wanted to meet them, wanted to help them, wanted to learn everything they knew.

So when she sneaks a look at the police files and connects a few dots that nobody even thought to plot on the same graph, she tries to spread the word. Tries to tell her dad what she found out.

But he just pats her on the head and tells her to leave the investigating to the police. Tells her that she should just focus on her schoolwork and try to stay out of trouble. Tells her that she’s too old to play detective anyway.

Nana, as Nana was wont to do, listened to her gut instead of the advice of others. So she slipped the investigation files into her usual stack of papers that she’d make copies of in the morning, smuggled the copied files into her backpack, replaced the originals, wore her good running shoes, and tracked down the vigilante later that night, despite the rainstorm that had been going strong for the past few days.

And she dragged along her grouchy best friend, just like she always did.

*****

It happened, said Evergreen, on a dark and stormy night.

He had missed the bus home and had been forced to walk after he finished up his closing shift at the family grocery store. The only protection he had against the rain was an enormous knotweed leaf that he grew out of the ground and used as an umbrella. The only warning he had was the whispers of the clinging ivy telling him to watch out before he was grabbed.

He was lucky. He reacted quickly and commanded the ivy on the side of the building to grow out towards him and tie around his arm. This kept him from falling prey to the memory-erasing quirk his assailant had used on all of the other victims. Apparently, it didn’t work if the person it was used on was maintaining contact with another living being.

In a flash of movement and the barest smell of smoke, somebody punched his attacker back a good ten feet. The living smoke barreled forward, but there was a loud pop, and the attacker was gone. The smoke cursed colorfully, something Evergreen wasn’t aware smoke could do, and then turned to him, asking him if he needed an escort home. 

Evergreen was walked home by a living figure of smoke and didn’t leave his family’s garden for two days. During those two days, he listened to the plants, telling them to grow out and search the city for signs of the kidnapper and the vigilante.

The night a lovely orchid reported the location of the two, Evergreen grabbed a jacket, filled its pockets with seeds, and left to return a favor to the person who saved his life.

*****

It happened, said Thunderclap, the night after his pop’s funeral.

He had heard about the other missing people and had taken solace in their tales. His pop would be fine. Yes, he’d probably end up without his quirk, but he barely used it anyway. Weather manipulation quirks were exhausting to use, and it left his pop out of sorts for weeks if he did more than clear up the clouds on a day he’d rather have it sunny.

But his pop’s didn’t come back, fine, in shock, and quirkless. He came back dead.

Thunderclap had been able to keep a handle on his quirk the day of the funeral. Pop always said he wanted the sun to shine bright the day he got put in the ground. Said he’d like to leave a reminder to everybody that there were still good things left, even if he wouldn’t be around to see them. Joked that when he goes out, he’s taking all of the crummy weather with him. Thunderclap was able to give him that one final request; the sun shone unbearably bright the day Pop was buried. 

He let it all out the day after.

Thunderclap broke down and cried like a baby. It started raining then, raindrops falling with tears, lightened as he wore himself out, returned with a vengeance when another wave of mourning hit.

The entire time, he kept swearing out the vigilante in his head. They had saved all of the other ones, why couldn’t they have saved his pop? Did they just get sloppy that night and his pop paid the price for it? What had pop ever done to deserve it?

Lightning flashed across the sky as Thunderclap got more and more worked up. He grabbed a rain jacket and walked out into the storm. After three days of crying and letting the downpour fall, he was finally going to hunt down that vigilante and get some answers.

*****

Nana would say later that it happened because it was fate. Because some cosmic force in the universe saw four teenagers who wanted to help and led them straight to the person who would show them how to reach that goal.

Evergreen said that it happened by coincidence. Some coin landed on the right side, and four kids met each other in the heart of the city, all searching for the same vigilante. The fact that they decided to stick together and save themselves the extra time in the rain was just a rational decision brought about by pure chance.

Thunderclap said it happened because his pop was looking out for him still. Gave him the drive to get off his ass and do something, and the time he needed to cool his head. Talking with a policeman’s daughter, getting his arguments picked apart by a botanist in training, and exchanging punches and kicks with a junior kickboxing champion probably helped too.

Gran Torino said it happened because of simple cause and effect. Nana found out new information and wanted to be a hero, so she dragged him along to do just that. Evergreen owed someone a favor, so he was going to repay it in any way he could. Thunderclap missed his father, so he wanted to take it out on the person responsible. The four of them meet and find out they’re looking for the same person, so they decide to stick together and find them. They find the vigilante bleeding out in a dumpster, so they take them back to Gran Torino’s place and patch them up. The vigilante is out of it and thankful enough to answer some questions, so they talked to the four kids about the mastermind using the small, unimportant city as a cover.

The one time someone asked En what they thought of the situation, they just shrugged and rubbed at their chest, “One for All always has the weirdest timing. Right when the users start to give up hope about finding the next one, right when they’re sure they’ll have to make do with whoever they can force the quirk onto, right when they hit a point where they’re sure they’ll die soon in this damn fight, One for All just drops their successor in their lap. Like the quirk just drew in the perfect student like a moth to a flame and said, ‘Here, catch. This one’s yours.’”

*****

The vigilante apparently isn’t a vigilante at all. 

Smoke Show, or En as they insist upon being called, is the first hero in the IUCA agency that just got established in Yamanashi. Their job has been to mainly get the agency’s foot in the door with the local police force, and make sure that their and any of their colleagues’ future presence is taken well by the civilians. It’s supposed to be an easy job. A much-need break after a devastating injury that nearly left them down a limb and a hero career.

Naturally, the granddaddy of all supervillains decided to set up shop in the same city.

En’s still in recovery after their last fight, and that’s why so many people have noticeably been taken. They requested immediate backup, but the local police chief vetoed that hard, citing a few flimsy reasons about losing the element of surprise and forcing All for One to move up his timeline. En doesn’t know if the chief is corrupt or incompetent, but there’s not a thing they can do about it. They’re under the NPA’s purview until the IUCA agency gets greenlit: the best they can do is sit, wait, and go out every night to keep All for One at bay.

Nana, smart as a whip and who has long since recognized that you have to sometimes break the rules to win the game, off-handedly asks about what the chief said about En taking on sidekicks.

En protests and sends them home. Nana shows up the next day with the three boys and copies of every missing person file in hand. She keeps coming back with new information or new chances to demonstrate their skills: her investigative work, Torino’s right hook, Evergreen’s information gathering, Thunderclap’s ability to befriend anyone and everyone. 

It’s not until Nana comes to En with diagrams about how All for One is clearly collecting quirks to combat Smokescreen, you idiot, let us help you, does En finally concede and fill out the paperwork for four sidekicks.

*****

En trains them, but it’s very clear that all four of them have very different ideas of what it means to be a hero.

Nana never wavers in her belief that there’s more to heroism than catching the bad guy and making sure people are safe. She always thought, from the bottom of her heart, that they had to not only save the people but their souls too. She wants to bring hope and comfort to the people she helps, and that means being more visible than En ever wanted to be.

Evergreen is all about playing smarter, not harder. He’s got his plants and he’s got his mind; he’s going to use them. He reasons that they need to stay out of the public eye. Their opponent sees them as nothing more than pieces on the board, and if they’re going to outplay him, they need to outsmart him first. Where Nana wants to dive in and save absolutely everyone, regardless of the attention she receives, Evergreen is more content to let the police handle the day-to-day stuff while he looks at the bigger picture.

Gran Torino takes to it the way most of the heroes of the day did: show up and punch the bad guy. He never complains about going into the forensics side of things, but he’s short on patience (“Or just short in general,” cuts in Evergreen with a smirk) and would rather be out patrolling than behind a desk trying to connect Criminal A to Crime Scene B.

Thunderclap, by and large, looks at heroism as a team event. He’s got his skills and can cover certain bases, while En, Nana, Torino, and Evergreen have theirs. He thinks there can’t be any one definition of heroism because there’s more than one hero in the world. If they really want to make any change, then they have to band together. No one opposes Thunderclap’s ideas, but they’re hard to put into practice when everybody else is moving in different directions.

All the while, En teaches them everything they know. By the time they step out onto the streets ready to patrol, they’re skilled enough together to take on anyone they come across.

Anyone, that is, except him.

*****

Nana, as Nana was wont to be, was right. All for One was collecting quirks to combat Smokescreen.

Thunderclap recognizes his pop’s weather control quirk, even though it’s stronger than it used to be, juiced up on who knows how many enhancement quirks, and used in tandem with wind and air control quirks. He does his best to quell the gathering typhoon winds threatening to blow them away, but he only has so much control over them: his specialty has been and always will be storms.

The second En realizes how dangerous this fight is going to be, they shove Torino, Evergreen, and Thunderclap into Nana’s arms and tell her to fly off. Nana can’t carry such a big weight and get out of there with time enough to spare. En doesn’t think twice about ordering her to hover, plucking a hair from their head, giving the hair to the kid with the closest free hand, and picking the four teens up with the strength of One for All.

“Remember that story I told you four when I was concussed? Well, this chapter is about to come to a close. Decide amongst yourselves who eats that hair, I know either one of you would make an amazing seventh. But whatever you do, stay alive, stay together, and don’t look back.”

And with that, En picks them up and hurls them across the sky like a javelin. Nana wobbles in the air a bit, but she keeps her hold and lands on the top of some office building ten blocks away.

It’s near impossible to see the fight from such a distance and in such weather, but the body they find the next day tells them everything they ever wish to know.

*****

En’s funeral is a solemn affair.

The only attendants are a few close friends, coworkers, and them. No one pays much attention to the four sidekicks that look out of place amongst the adults standing in the cemetery. Or, at least, they see them and decide that they’re all numb enough that hounding them for answers would be both pointless and cruel.

After speeches are made and their mentor is put to rest, Evergreen drags them off to a quiet corner of his greenhouse and pulls out the small plastic bag with a single hair in it.

Nana leaves that day with a generations-old power running through her veins. 

It’s the last time Evergreen and Thunderclap ever see her alive.

*****

They don’t mean to drift apart.

Thunderclap and Evergreen sign on with the IUCA. They have to go through the organization’s strict training methods, one of which includes three months of no contact with the outside world to prepare for deep cover work. The training had been scheduled to begin the day after En’s funeral, and by the time they returned to the land of the living and socially known, Nana and Torino had set up shop in Tokyo.

“We got our hero licenses and the building was up for sale. We had to take it,” explains Nana over the phone, “Come and swing by whenever you get the chance.”

They do just that and see Torino having his way in the weight room. He tells them that they just missed Nana’s departure. She had been called to Okinawa for an emergency and won’t be back for a month at the earliest. When Nana tries to surprise them at the IUCA agency in Yamanashi, she finds that they’ve both been transferred to other agencies.

It keeps happening over and over again. They miss each other by hours, minutes. Emergencies at work force them to reschedule plans; bullet trains get attacked by villains and they’re forced to work through the weekend; new coworkers desperately need help and they’re the only ones available. They joke about it over phone calls and texts, but the more it happens, the less any of them feel like trying. Weekly calls become monthly become special occasions become never. The seats reserved at Nana’s wedding are empty, as are the ones at Thunderclap’s. Evergreen doesn’t tell the pair when he becomes the head of the IUCA, and Gran Torino doesn’t call to brag about his godson.

They’re thirty-nine when Thunderclap and Evergreen share boxes of takeout and watch the news. If it wasn’t for Thunderclap’s choked gasp of pain, Evergreen wouldn’t have even looked up at the screen to see the memorial that was running for Starlight, a hero who had died in the line of duty earlier that week.

*****

They bust down the door of Nana and Torino’s agency to find Torino passed out on a couch across from a cork board detailing All for One’s latest moves. Thunderclap gently wakes him and then yells until his face is blue about finding out about Nana’s death from the fucking news. Evergreen leaves him to it and examines the board.

“Damn, midget. Do you really know so little of the art of information gathering?” Evergreen finally asks, rearranging a few sticky notes and retying certain strings so they connect, “I could do better work when we were first starting off under En.”

Torino flips him off and grumbles about never being any good with hunting people down, “You missed the funeral.”

“We didn’t know there was a funeral to miss.”

Silence hung in the air, but Evergreen continued to work on the board with care, “Did she pass on the quirk, or is the world down a savior?”

“She found a successor. Sent the kid to America. He’s not ready to face him, but if I let him stay, I knew he’d try to avenge Nana.”

“How long until he returns?”

“I banned him from the country until he could show me a college diploma.”

“Any chance of him returning earlier than the usual four years you’d need to get one?”

“Not in the slightest.”

“Good. We’ve got work to do,” said Evergreen, pulling out a bag of dandelion seeds and growing them to their full fluffy white glory, “Leave these at these addresses,” he gestured to a row of five sticky notes all with a different suspected safehouse on them.

“Your little flower tricks aren’t going to work, Thumbs,” said Torino.

Evergreen shot back his head and laughed, “Shortstack, you must be really out of the loop if you think all I have are a few tricks. Now hop to it. I’ve got an information grid to reorganize, a spy network to establish, a supervillain to catch, and only four years to do it. We’ll talk later. Go!”

*****

The trail goes cold after two years. 

There’s no movement in any of the offshore bank accounts or shell companies they know are connected to All for One and only minor noise from the ones they suspect him to have a hand in. They come close, hunting down, fighting, and interrogating minions and pet scientists on the man’s payroll. There was even a close call with Gigantomachia, but still, the man of the hour hasn’t been seen.

None of them believe for a second that All for One died the night Nana did. Evergreen and Thunderclap weren’t there for the fight, and Torino refuses to write the bastard off as dead unless he can oversee the cremation of his corpse.

They keep searching for more leads, but by the time Torino says that the eighth is coming back to Japan, they’ve all recognized that they need to move on to other objectives and (temporarily) let sleeping dogs lie.

“I’m still having my plants keep an eye out,” said Evergreen on the ride back to the IUCA Tokyo agency.

“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” said Thunderclap, watching the live news coverage of a hero’s debut, “Hey, get a look at this. He’s already saved over a hundred people, and he’s still going. Betcha he’s the successor Gran was talking about.”

Evergreen wrinkled his nose and scoffed, “Him? He’s got a neon sign on his back now. Don’t get me wrong, that is damn good work, especially for a debut. But Nana would have known to pick someone subtler.”

“Eh,” Thunderclap shrugged, “He’s been reassuring the victims and the bystanders since he arrived on the scene. Nana would have loved that. I say it’s him.”

“Thunder, I’ll bet my hero career on the real One for All user masking his return to Japan with this guy’s debut. Whoever they are, they surely aren’t All Might.”

*****

It starts once more with the IUCA’s first-ever hero intern and old files that Thunderclap, Evergreen, Torino, and countless others have spent hours pouring over, and cast away as unimportant.

“She’s ours now,” says Evergreen fiercely, looking over the threads Sasaki Mirai-chan had found, connected, and woven into the missing piece they had been searching for for years, “I don’t know how the hell we missed this, but I’ve already verified her hunch with the Smithsonian’s Pre-Quirk Hero Culture exhibit. Project Insight is exactly the type of scheme he would try to recreate. Now, all we need to do is go back through and figure out the who and why of the plan. And I’ll be damned if I don’t have this girl spearheading the investigation alongside me.”

“She’s sixteen,” said Thunderclap.

“We spent years looking for something that was right in front of our face. If she caught this, what else will she find if given all of the right information? I am reopening the case and putting her on it.”

“At least keep her out of the field.”

“Well duh. I’m not an idiot. Information team only until she signs on with a full license. Shit, how the fuck are we going to get her to sign on with a full license? She’s got the talent to go spotlight.”

“She said on her application that she will become All Might’s sidekick and then break off to form an independent underground agency. If we play our cards right, we might be able to convince her to skip the stint as a sidekick and stick with the IUCA instead of her own agency.”

Evergreen paused, “That’s a weirdly specific and ambitious career plan.”

Thunderclap just shrugged, “She’s got a future vision quirk.”

“Ah.” 

That explained it. People who knew the future had a habit of sticking to what their quirk told them. And if Sasaki-chan said she would become All Might’s sidekick, then he believed her. She certainly had the dedication for it.

*****

It starts again with Nighteye-chan singing lullabies to Shimura-kun long into the night before stepping out of one of the agency’s multiple bedrooms and bursting into tears.

“Fu- hic -fuck,” she said, hiccuping around the word, “Fucking damn it. We were so close and then-- hic --and we just fucking. He killed them. The bastard killed an entire family using a five-year-old as a murder weapon.”

“C’me here, kid,” said Thunderclap, tucking Nighteye under his arm and pulling her to his chest, “It ain’t your fault. Ain’t your fault that you didn’t see the connection between them and the Shimuras.”

“I should have. Five people are dead because I couldn’t see the bigger picture.”

“Well, at least you have an excuse,” said Evergreen, “You didn’t know that he would have a reason to go after the Shimura family. I did, and I still didn’t see this move coming.”

Nighteye sniffed loudly and wiped at her eyes, “Come up to my office,” Evergreen continued, “It’s high time we told you everything about All for One.”

“Sir, I already have access to the All for One case. I don’t think there’s much of anything you can tell me that I don’t already know.”

“Trust us, Nighteye. You’ll need to know this if you’re going to help Shimura-kun. It all started centuries ago, with two brothers….”

*****

It starts again with a simple text message to the AfO investigation chat.

Mama Nighteye: I know that, but seeing as Thunderclap-sensei did win the bet, I think it’s important that we include him onto the team.

Evergreen stares at it for a bit, before it dawns on him exactly what bet Madam Nighteye is referring to. Of all the stupidly strong successors Nana could have chosen, she just had to go with the one that didn’t know the word ‘discrete’ if it stabbed him in an alley and stole his wallet.

He texts back a statement of surprise before agreeing to bring All Might in with the case. Privately, he signs off on putting him under Nighteye’s supervision. If she’s willing to put her neck out for the smiling oaf, she can watch his every move. It was only fair for proving Thunderclap right about something.

*****

All Might and Madam Nighteye stared at their mentors for a bit, neither of them willing to burst the bubble of comfortable silence that covered the room like a warm blanket of plausible deniability. If they just didn’t speak, didn’t acknowledge everything they were just told, then maybe they can ignore the implications of it all. 

Ignore the fact that Shimura Nana was one fateful decision away from passing over One for All to one of the men in this room.

Ignore how so many things could have been different if four old friends had tried harder to stay a part of the others’ lives. 

Ignore the worries Nighteye had about All Might picking up on how she knew he was the holder of One for All before he had ever said anything to that effect. 

Ignore All Might considering Madam Nighteye and coming to the realization that if Evergreen or Thunderclap had been the seventh, then she would have most definitely been the eighth. And if her investigative work was anything to go by, she would have hunted down All for One by now and fought him with a team of underground heroes at her back.

The silence finally broke under the weight of the omitted statements and questions when All Might turned to the older men and asked, “What now?”

“Now?” said Evergreen, speaking with the confidence and experience that came with surviving the heroics field for decades, “Now we do what we’ve set out to do for years. We bring All for One’s criminal empire crashing down.”

Chapter Text

A buzz from the desk phone cuts through the office. There’s a click, and then the sound of a voice from the other end, “Sir, the rest of the Youkai Task Force is waiting for you and the others.”

“We’ll be right down,” said Evergreen, turning the phone off and rising from the desk, “Nighteye, go ahead and check on Shimura. This’ll probably take a while. Gentlemen, if you would follow me.”

They all rose to follow, with the trio of old friends walking ahead and bickering and All Might and Nighteye a few paces behind.

“So,” said All Might awkwardly, wanting to fill the silence and distract himself from what he had just learned, “The Youkai Task Force?”

“That’s the code name somebody came up with years ago, long before my time as a hero. I’m half-convinced that those not in the know believe us to be a group of ghost-hunters.”

“Seriously?”

“It’s as good a cover as any, and it’s only half wrong. We’re after a more mortal phantom, but a phantom nonetheless,” Nighteye shuffled through papers and pulled out two that were stapled together, “Looks like the others went ahead. Just let me stop by and see my kid and then we can head down.”

“Is Young Tenko settling in well with you?” he asked.

“It’s an uphill battle, but it gets easier every day. Once his living situation is resolved, I’m going to work on finding him a therapist. He’s seeing one of the agency ones now, but Fujino-sensei is much more specialized in treating adult patients. A subject of Tenko-kun’s age is wildly out of his depth, and he’s made it clear to me that while he can help Tenko begin to come to terms with his family’s deaths, he is not who Tenko-kun needs moving forward.”

“That sounds most professional of Fujino-san. Perhaps I could schedule a session on occasion.”

Nighteye froze right in front of the elevator, finger still pressing the button. “You don’t see a therapist?”

All Might rubbed at his neck in embarrassment, “Not since my return to Japan, no. Don’t get me wrong, I tried to find one that would fit, but the first two I didn’t connect with, the third sold the session transcripts online, and the fourth got caught in an attack after a villain followed me there. After that, I just stopped going.”

Nighteye stared at him. All Might started to squirm, feeling as though the woman was judging him until she started swearing so vulgarly in English All Might felt as if he had been transported back to California, and it was Emma Shield trying to stop something from exploding, not a Japanese hero pacing the halls in front of him.

“Fucking unprofessional shitty-ass fuck. Better have lost their license. Patient confidentiality, bitch, ever heard of it? Bet he only needed more therapy after that breach in privacy. No fucking wonder he treats his health so recklessly: he never had the required therapy to beat it out of his thick skull. And a villain attack? Seriously? That would have put him off therapy for sure. Stupid, noble, self-sacrificing buffoon.”

“You do realize I’m right here,” All Might said in English, “The elevator’s arrived, by the way.”

Nighteye flushed in embarrassment as a look of mortification crossed her face, “Sorry. Habit. Not a lot of fluent English speakers in my life, so it’s pretty safe to just let my feelings loose when they get to be too much.”

“You must be very passionate about regulations. First the attention to detail around paperwork, and now your insistence on mandated therapy.”

“I am. The regulations are there for a reason.”

“You mustn't think too highly of vigilantes, and those who break the law for the greater good, then.”

“Hm? Oh, no. I’m all for breaking the rules when needed.”

All Might looked at her in confusion, “But didn’t you just say you’re a stickler for regulations?”

“Contrary to popular definition, I see regulations and rules as two very separate things,” Nighteye explained, pressing a button to some floor and letting the doors close, “Regulations are courses of action that have been tried and tested, and nearly always result in the best possible outcome. Mandated regular therapy is a regulation. Filing first-person testimony to use in court and put criminals behind bars is a regulation. Refusing to administer a hero license to a person who never attended a hero school is a rule, and a rule I highly disagree with.”

“That’s not a rule, though. It’s illegal to bar a person from the hero licensing test.”

“It may not be a law, but it is most certainly a rule. How many heroes have you worked with haven’t gone to UA or Shiketsu? Or gotten a degree from America? People trust big names like that because they guarantee that the person is the best of the best. But what about the people who couldn’t afford to attend those institutes? Or who were beaten out of the very competitive schools? Or who decided that they wanted to become a hero after the age of fifteen? Or were late to their entrance exams and were barred from taking the tests? Some of the best heroes I know have failed going spotlight because of so many reasons: lack of connections, lack of prior experience, trouble finding sponsors, trouble standing out amongst the shining stars of UA. It may not be law, but it is most definitely a rule, though perhaps an unwritten one: if you don’t attend a hero school, you won’t have a chance of passing the Hero Commission’s test.”

“I’ve never thought of it in that way,” All Might admitted.

“Not many do because it’s not something people talk about. The media is so quick to say that eternal sidekicks and D-list heroes only stay that way because they don’t have the drive or the power to climb higher. But that’s not how it works. It’s a balancing act of a million little things that most of us don’t even think about or know affect rankings. I guess I can’t complain too much, though. The underground has no trouble finding places for the gems the Commission always overlooks. This is the stop,” Nighteye said as the elevator doors opened. 

They walked forward and Toshinori immediately saw that the large, open room was full of various comfortable-looking seats. A few heroes, some in costume and some in street clothes, were sprawled around the room like cats. Nighteye walked around an empty beanbag, past a few desks with large, plush chairs, and over to a small armchair that was occupied by a familiar figure.

“Night-sama!” squealed Young Tenko happily, “I’m done with Void-san’s gofer stuff. What’s next?”

“You, Tenko-kun, have a mission.”

“A mission?”

“A very important mission. Your job, if you choose to accept it, is to gather intel on all the heroes here. The parameters are--”

“What’s a parameter?”

“It’s a rule you have to follow or else you fail the mission. Rules are this: you have to find out as much as you can on as many heroes as you can. You may not leave this room unless you need to use the potty. If that happens, you have to ask one of the heroes to give you a hero escort there. Write down and draw anything you think is important. You can talk to the others but only talk to the heroes that aren’t writing anything down or talking to somebody else. But the biggest rule of all is this: do not, under any circumstances, wake somebody up.”

“Got it, Night-sama,” said Young Tenko, nodding very seriously.

“I’ll be back up here no later than five o’clock. This meeting might be long, but I will walk out so I can clock out and we can eat dinner together like usual.”

“Kay,” said the boy, taking the papers. His hand reached out again, hesitancy stopping him. In the end, he just waved at Nighteye and him and gave a soft goodbye.

“Back to the elevator, All Might,” Madam Nighteye said, “We’ve been keeping them waiting long enough.”

*****

The second the elevator doors open, I dodge a foam bullet that sticks to the back wall.

“You’re late,” said Athena, NERF gun still pointed at me.

“One, I have a kid that I had to check in on. Two, I waltz in with the number one hero, and all you have to say is that we’re a little late?”

“I don’t give a damn about All Might. No offense.”

“None taken,” the man says, walking into the room, “It’s refreshing to be greeted with such nonchalance.”

“See, he’s cool,” she says, throwing the gun to the side, “Welcome to the madhouse, All Might. Nighteye, you’re on thin ice today.”

“And just when I was in the green after punching Sonada in the face the other day,” I sigh dramatically and keep walking, “Everyone else in the conference room?”

“Yes. Probably gunless, too, which is unfortunate. I need to assert my dominance as the best shot in the agency.”

“Save it for the monthly competition,” I said. I threw open the conference doors and took stock of the room, “Afternoon, everybody.”

I got various replies in return, but everyone sat up a little straighter when All Might walked in the door. I saw Reflection and Looking Glass exchange money under the table but paid the hero duo no mind as I sat at my usual seat and turned to Evergreen at the front of the room. All Might, for his part, stood there awkwardly before shuffling over and taking the open seat next to me.

“Alright, let’s get started,” Evergreen said, “First off, introductions. Everybody, meet All Might and Gran Torino, the two newest heroes on the All for One case. Torino, All Might, you already know me, Thunderclap, Nighteye, and Void. The hero with the green skin and leaves for hair is Nightlight, the redhead is Meditation, the one with the solid gold hand is Golden Sage, Imada in the corner is our tech specialist, the Thunderclap cosplayer is Stormborn, the person with the glass skin is Looking Glass, the person sitting next to them is Reflection, and the being sitting next to Nighteye is Nedzu.”

All Might waved at them and greeted them with a ‘happy to be working with you,’ but any reply was soon swept away as Evergreen got down to business.

“Overview time, people. New intel and general lay of the land: go.”

All Might straightens in his chair at Evergreen’s steely proclamation, “What do we have?”

“We’ve relegated back to gathering intel,” Looking Glass said bitterly, reaching into a drawer and pulling out a file, “We missed our chance with the Shimura family murders, and now we’re playing catch-up trying to rectify our mistake.”

“The first thing we need to learn is how far does Project Insight goes,” said Nightlight, grabbing files of her own, “Currently, there are three possibilities. One, Project Insight referred exclusively to the plan to abduct Shimura Tenko, and now that it’s failed, All for One is going to act hastily to rectify that mistake. Two, Project Insight was a larger conspiracy, and there are now an unknown number of victims who have been murdered and replaced. Three, Project Insight was bait. A distraction from a larger plot that we are currently unaware of, and will be fulfilled while we’re left chasing after a false trail.”

“Knowing the bastard, it’s probably all of the above,” said Torino angrily.

“You’re probably right,” Thunderclap agreed, “I’d imagine a supervillain of his caliber would know how to multitask by now. And while the Shimura kid is important to his work in some capacity, I’d like to know why. Why him? What’s so important about Shimura Tenko that All for One would go to such lengths? If he wanted just the kid, he probably could have done a quick kidnapping from school, and that would have been the end of it. Why single him out, give him a quirk, make him think he’s responsible for killing his family, and then just abandon him for hours on end.”

“I have a theory,” said Void, “More of a hunch, really, but I can’t imagine someone like the man we’re dealing with to not have a method to his madness.”

Thunderclap gave her a ‘go on,’ gesture, while All Might turned to her. She pulled out a stack of papers and passed it to them. It was the same interview I had shown All Might the night before. “This is an interview of one of the villains that had replaced one of the victims. What I’d like to point out is the implications of All for One needing Tenko-kun.”

“I’d imagine the implications are obvious: for whatever reason, he wanted Young Tenko as a loyal servant and pawn.”

“That’s a possibility, yes. But look at the wording,” said Void patiently, “Pay close attention to what Ogata calls Tenko-kun.”

We all scan the document before Reflection’s breath catches, “Successor. He calls Shimura his successor.”

Void nodded, “Successor. Such a peculiar word. Not soldier, not servant, not weapon or game piece or even son. But a successor. Someone to pick up where he left off.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense if All for One is alive….” All Might’s words caught up with everyone’s thoughts.

If All for One is alive.

If.

Such a simple word; such world-changing connotations.

“You think he’s dying.” All Might looked at her in amazement, and he noticed that he wasn’t the only one. Many of the other heroes were looking at her as if she had grown a second head. “You think he needs to find a person to take over his work, and that he had chosen Young Tenko for that job.”

Void nodded at him, “I think there are several reasons for All for One to choose Tenko-kun as a successor. I would never claim to be extremely knowledgeable about how All for One works as a quirk, but I’d imagine a quirkless child like Tenko would have adjusted to the gradual reception of quirks better than All for One’s previous experiments, such as Gigantomachia. I think that a child is easier to mold than an adult and that if he had saved Tenko-kun like we believe he intended to, then Tenko-kun would have been undyingly loyal to him. But those reasons ultimately mean nothing if All for One didn’t need a successor in the first place.”

“Is there a reason you haven’t shared this extremely important theory before?” Evergreen grit out between his teeth.

She shrugged, “It didn’t truly come to me until recently. I thought of the possible reasons for All for One to go to such lengths for a single child, and then I thought about the implications.”

“He’s been reigning supreme as the most dangerous villain for two centuries. What’s happened to make you think his health is failing him now?” asked Golden Sage.

“Who knows. Maybe he’s finally collected one too many quirks and his body is collapsing in on itself because it’s not meant to hold that much power. Maybe his health is failing because even with the help of stolen longevity quirks, he just isn’t meant to live past one-fifty. Maybe he wants to retire to some private island and sip martinis all day. Maybe he met some unlucky woman and he wants to run off and have a dozen babies. The point is, I don’t know why, but I think I’m on the right track.”

“Nighteye, Nedzu, you two have been unusually quiet. Anything you want to share with the class?”

I frowned a bit, “As much as I want to believe that Project Insight was purely for the capture of Tenko-kun, I don’t think that’s the case. The first mention of it was seven years ago; two years before the birth of Shimura Tenko and one year before the birth of Shimura Hana.”

“I agree with Mirai,” said Nedzu, “Even if Project Insight was purely for the benefit of gaining Shimura Tenko, who knows if more people were replaced? I don’t feel confident in writing off the possibility without further investigation.”

“Back to the drawing board, then,” said Stormborn, “Any more missing person cases similar to the ones Void had handled?”

“No, but I have been looking farther into the private lives of the Shimuras,” Golden Sage pulled a notepad out of his suit, threw it on the table, and flipped it open with his good hand, “Shimura Kotaro was known to frequent Club Karma. It could be possible that he met someone there on the regular.”

“Yakuza front, strip club, or normal shady nightclub?” I fired off, ignoring All Might’s choking at my words.

“Just a general den of iniquity, as far as I can gather.”

“If we’re pulling an infiltration job, I call not it,” said Athena, “I would make a terrible stripper.”

“We’re not pulling an infiltration job. At least not yet,” said Evergreen, “Sage, keep looking into Club Karma. The rest of you, let’s hit the cold cases for the past seven years. We might find something new there.” 

With the usual groans expressed by anyone who was about to start a pile of work they previously didn’t know existed, we got to work and started sorting files.

*****

A few floors above the conference of heroes, a sixteen-year-old in a raggedy suit hesitantly walked through the doors of the IUCA. He looked around nervously, before shuffling over to an empty chair in the waiting area. He sat down and grabbed a magazine laying on a side table and flipped through the pages, not taking them in as his nerves got the best of him. His hands began to shake, and he tapped his foot in anticipation as the clock on the wall started to tick away. After twenty-five minutes had passed, a tired person finally rounded the corner.

“Oh, yeah, you’re the new hire that’s going to man the front desk, aren’t you?”

“Ugh, I’m here for an interview, actually? I haven’t gotten the job yet, so….”

The person waved their hand in dismissal, “Yeah, no. The interview was just a background check. You got the mandatory middle school diploma, and your last job more than prepared you for what you’ll be doing here. I just have to teach you how to stare down annoying idiots until they go away, show you the setup, and then you’ll be good to go.”

“And I fully passed that background test? Like, I’m good to work?” the teen asked hesitantly.

“If you’re talking about your so-called ‘criminal record,’ don’t worry. We looked into your ‘crime’ and honestly man, it was bullshit. You were obeying the traffic laws the entire time; it wasn't your fault the man jumped in front of you. The fact that they just slapped you with the permanent title of villain was fucked up. But don’t worry about it. We’ve got ex-vigilantes and ex-villains on the payroll here. You’ll fit right in.”

The boy slumped in relief, “That, that’s great. Thank you so much.”

“It’s all good. Your request for room and board went through, so you can move in whenever. Permanent residences are floors ten through seven, cafeteria’s on floor five. Your wages will be docked a bit to cover the extra expense, but it’s still above minimum wage. You good to get started?”

Half an hour later, the teenager was sitting behind the front desk much more happy and relaxed. He dragged things around the screen and reorganized the heroes’ schedules into a system he could understand. The phone rang, and without looking away from the screen, he grabbed it and answered.

“You are speaking with Bubaigawara Jin of the International Underground Crimefighting Association. How may I direct your call?”

Chapter Text

Nedzu allowed himself to indulge in a small, soft smile as he checked in on the security cameras throughout the agency. Shimura-kun was still safe in the Peculiarity Lounge and was currently chatting with an extremely tired hero who looked a few moments away from dozing off. There weren’t any disturbances in any of the entrances, no emergency calls to the agency hotline, and with Imada-chan currently in the conference room with them, no explosions in the labs.

And with all of the obligatory check-ins done, Nedzu was free to bite back a cackle and enjoy watching Bubaigawara-san temper his nerves as he answered calls, made appointments, checked visitor IDs, and slowly built up his confidence as he found his rhythm at his new job.

It had been child’s play to ensure that he had control of the IUCA Tokyo Agency’s advertisements. No one besides Mirai had ever passed up a chance to free themselves from an unexpected responsibility, and the agency’s dreadfully understaffed PR branch had enough trouble smoothing things over with meddling spotlight heroes and their ilk. His generous offer of creating, placing, and editing the few recruitment ads the agency had to make every once in a blue moon had been met with a tired, ‘sure, just let us look them over before you send them out.’

He had strategically worded the ads to emphasize to those with less job experience, and how the agency would help them as needed. Call him a bit soft, but he found that pushing the idea of employees being ‘family’ was his best chance at attracting his particular targets.

When your founders are a trio of vigilantes at best, and the brother of a supervillain, an ex-assassin, and a cage-fighter with gambling issues at worst, it’s no surprise that they would insist upon what modern society would call an “open-door policy.” Shigaraki Yoichi, Himura Niko, and Nakai Sanruku knew first-hand that it was circumstance, poor life choices, addictions, and lack of opportunity that made more villains than any natural inclination towards evilness. So when they had founded their first hero agency two centuries ago, they had made the empathetic decision to reach out a hand to those who needed it.

To this day, the IUCA hired more ex-villains than any other institute in Japan. Heroes working undercover often brokered deals on behalf of the criminals that they felt deserved it, and on the rare occasion that a criminal came to them to report a crime, they were always offered protection, housing, and whatever else they needed in return.

Nedzu had intentionally targeted the villain population and the general underbelly of Japan when he posted the ads for the new receptionist. No one in PR had batted an eye, and two had even steered him towards blogs they knew had more criminal foot traffic than usual. He had rationalized that there was about an 89.6% chance that the new hire would have a criminal record, and about a 78% chance of the new hire feeling grateful towards the IUCA for the job, thus becoming more loyal to the institute as a whole, which was his goal. 

Nedzu did not trust humans, Mirai being the sole exception. Though there were a few he was fond of, such as Imada, Mirai’s two foster brothers, and his colleagues at both UA and the IUCA, he wouldn’t say he trusted them. He found the species as a whole too self-centered to rely on them consistently, and therefore he knew if he wanted to surround himself and Mirai with people who would not betray them, then he had to ensure that there was a reason for that loyalty. 

There’s a lot a person would do to guarantee their lot in life. As a being who had experienced some of the worst the world had to offer, he knew that a roof over a person’s head, consistent meals, and a steady flow of money could buy even the most prideful of souls. Especially if they were lacking any of those things before, and even more so if they could get it all without having to put themselves in a dangerous position.

Looking to the criminals, the ones who barely had much of a choice, the ones that were disgusted by their actions, the ones that would jump at a chance to turn over a new leaf, had been the most logical choice. Nedzu would have almost guaranteed that the receptionist position would have been filled by an ex-villain, a person with a quirk labeled “villainous,” or a person who would have soon entered a life of crime without the IUCA. He had factored a solid 50% chance of the new hire wishing to report criminal activity once it was assured that they wouldn’t lose their position over it and an extremely slim 3.4109% chance that the new hire would have ties to All for One.

But never in his wildest, most outrageous musings had he ever imagined the advertisements would have reached one of the three people he hadn’t been able to monitor properly.

And the most useful of the three to boot.

Mr. Compress and Magne were skilled, but Twice. Oh, Twice. How he had plans for him. Even if he couldn’t grow Double into its awakened state, there was still oh so much potential. And to have Twice approach them while he was still sane and intact? Who had no criminal record to speak of save for the initial motorcycle crash that had blackened his record, cost him his job, and forced him into homelessness, a psychotic break, and a life of crime? It was almost too good to be true.

“I wish I could say that I pulled every string and aligned this perfectly, but even I’m not such a master manipulator. At least not yet,” thought Nedzu, “What’s the old saying? Man plans and God laughs? I guess that applies to badgers as well.”

“Trade,” said Mirai, sliding her files over to Nedzu. He quickly switched the camera away from the front desk and back to Shimura-kun. Mirai had enough on her mind, she didn’t need to fall into another mental spiral over another instance of ‘canon divergence.’

“Gladly. I’ve been done with mine for a while.” Nedzu pushed his pile of long-completed files over to his clanmate and started reading through the files she had already cleared. After so many years of working on the All for One case together, it had become customary to read over the other’s work to check for anything they could have missed, “How’s parenthood suiting you?”

“I’m afraid any private conversations will have to wait,” Mirai said quietly, “All Might can speak English.”

“And do you think he’s going to pay attention to us?” Nedzu nodded at the man sitting on the other side of the heroine. He was so absorbed in his files, Nedzu was surprised he hadn’t fallen into the texts themselves.

“Still, you can keep your curiosity at bay until we’re at home.”

“Very well. Another subject then. Are you planning to offer any internships this year? The UA sports festival is only two months off, and I know Ketsubutsu always asks that their successful alumni take on interns whenever possible.”

“I’ve already gotten the emails from Ketsubutsu,” said Mirai, “No one’s catching my eye much, though that could technically be a good thing. I do wish the school and faculty would cool it a bit with the mentorship drive. I’ve got enough on my plate as it is; I don’t need an intern.”

“You’re a member of the school’s first-ever hero class. One who was signed on as a full hero immediately upon graduation, no less. You’re the current pinnacle of what Ketsubutsu can do, why wouldn’t they push you to mentor others?”

“Void’s in the same boat as me, and she’s not been asked for nearly as much.”

“That’s because you answer the school’s emails with polite, sorry-sounding rebuffs and offers to make guest lectures on underground hero work. Void answers the school’s emails with requests for them to kindly never speak to her again.”

Mirai rolled her eyes and returned them to Nedzu’s files, “You mean the guest lectures you got me started on?”

“You say that as if they’re ineffective. Ever since you’ve taken to speaking to the Ketsubutsu students, the IUCA has seen an increase in both interns and signed heroes each year. At this rate, your alma mater could very well become the hero school best known for its underground heroes.”

“I’m sure the correlation has less to do with me and more to do with the general knowledge that the IUCA exists,” Mirai countered, “Recruitment beforehand was nearly nonexistent, and new heroes mostly consisted of police officers, ex-vigilantes that wanted to go legit, a handful of rehabilitated villains, and a few legacy heroes like Stormborn and Void. Spreading the word about our organization and an entire previously unknown branch of heroics is obviously going to bring in waves of interested students who want to see what the fuss is about.”

“And that interest would only grow if you take on an intern,” Nedzu added an annotation to one of Mirai’s observations, “How about a little wager to prove it? UA has not benefited from your lectures the same way Ketsubutsu has. I couldn’t imagine forcing you to clear your schedule now that you’ve taken on caring for Shimura-kun, therefore I won’t ask you to visit campus and speak to the classes. But if a potential intern from UA catches my eye, do I have your permission to put them under your tutelage for the internship weeks?”

“Considering your standards, sure,” said Mirai with a snort, “But I highly doubt that you’ll find such a person.”

“Whatever makes you say that?”

Mirai gave him a look, “Does my string of ex’s ring a bell?”

“Now that’s hardly fair. None of the ones that were chased off met the minimum standards I and your siblings set. If they can’t handle the heat, they should stay out of the kitchen. And besides, I let you keep Void, didn’t I?”

“Yes, Nedzu, thank you for letting me remain friends with the girl whom I dated for a solid three months before we mutually decided to end things.”

“You’re very welcome. She was the best of them, you know. She’s still got the stamp of approval if you ever want to rekindle that spark.”

“As much as your blessing warms my heart, we ended things for a reason. I think we're better off as friends.”

“But, on the off chance that I do find a person that meets my mythically high standards when it comes to you, should I send them your way or not?” Nedzu pressed on.

“I’m a little hesitant to accept with the All for One case moving as it is.”

“You’ll only be losing two weeks’ worth of time, and our colleagues can handle themselves for that long.”

Mirai stopped examining a missing person file and looked at him again, having just realized something “You want me to take an intern so I’ll take it easy for a bit, don’t you?”

“Now Mirai, why ever would I want you to spend two weeks on light patrols, off of difficult and dangerous cases, and with extra pay? It couldn’t possibly be because of your habit of running yourself ragged with overtime and extra work. Or the fact that you’ve recently taken on the very tough responsibility of raising a small child.”

“Okay, fair,” she relented, “If you can find an intern that will actually learn something from me and not just some poor schmuck that you’ve blackmailed into it, I’ll take them on. But if I don’t think they’re a good fit for me or for the underground, I won’t take them back for a work-study or for another year. Got it?”

“Crystal clear.” Nedzu finally let the small smile of his grow. He loved getting the last word in, especially against one of the few people that actually stood a chance against him in an argument.

Pen in one paw and typing on his computer with the other, Nedzu completed another part of his overarching plan to ensure Mirai died of old age (he’d prefer it if she never died, period, but he's still yet to crack the key to immortality).

With a clack of a keyboard and a click of a mouse, Nedzu sent an email to class 3-I.

*****

From: [email protected]

To: Class 3-I (click here to view all recipients in general tag)

Subject: Hero Recruitment Project

Greetings, students!

    As all of you are aware, we have recently been working on a project revolving around establishing a hero agency. All of you have performed exceptionally so far, and I feel you are ready to take the next step: the hero themselves.

    We have covered the types of heroes in-depth throughout the previous year, and the different marketing techniques that can be used to best advertise them. Now, you are going to put those techniques to practice. You will find one future hero to introduce yourself to, convince them to hire you as their manager, and then help them establish themselves in the field of heroics that they wish to pursue. This includes making connections and creating job and learning opportunities for your client. There is, however, one catch.

    Your client cannot be in any of the current hero classes.

    All other courses and all years of UA are open for this project. This project will be ongoing throughout the year, and will ultimately determine whether or not you graduate from this school. In order to pass, you must complete a minimum of one of the following objectives:

• Your client interns under one or more pro heroes during this academic school year’s internship weeks.
• Your client participates in one or more work studies during this academic school year.
• Your client earns a provisional hero license.
• Your client wins their grade level’s sports festival.
• Your client enters an apprenticeship with a pro hero.
• Your client transfers out of UA to enter another school’s hero program.

    The rubric for this project can be found here, and any further parameters for this project can be found here. Doubling up or working in groups is not allowed, although conferring with others is. If you feel you need to use any of the more intense rules of marketing, outlined here, you have my full permission to do so, so long as you are not caught.

    I look forward to seeing your clients’ growth over the coming school year and am eager to see what awaits them.

Plus Ultra!

Nedzu

*****

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Re: Hero Recruitment Project

Hello, Nedzu-sensei!

    I just have a few questions about your most recent email. Firstly, when you say more intense rules of marketing, do you mean ALL of them? Because while blackmail, coercion, extortion, and general threats would be welcome tools, it is a bit unclear whether or not sabotage is a viable option. Secondly, if we already have a potential client in mind, do we inform you first, or do we contact the client to gain their permission? If you need to know first, then my first pick is this first year from General Studies class 1-C. Finally, are internship rules based on the general internship guidelines expressed by the school, or do you expect hero interns to possess the waiver form and/or provisional license that hero work studies need? 

Thank you,

Kawamoto Masuyo

*****

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Re: Re: Hero Recruitment Project

Greetings, Kawamoto-chan!

    I am very grateful for your quick response and am glad to clear up any confusion. In order: no, sabotage is not allowed for this particular project, though I enjoy your thoroughness and creativity. I shall email the rest of the class to inform them of that decision. Next, while I cannot officially mark down your chosen client as officially picked, I can note that you have called “dibs” on him. So long as you approach him first and he agrees, I will deter any of your classmates from approaching him. And finally, yes we are following general internship guidelines, therefore no waiver forms or licenses are necessary. 

    I would also like to encourage you to look into underground work for your client. He has a non-combatant, though extremely versatile quirk, and would most likely work best out of the spotlight. More information can be found at this website and I am linking this personal file of my dear friend Mirai speaking of her experience as an underground hero. It would most likely be best to forward those links to your client to gauge his interest in the field.

    I wish you the best of luck with Aizawa-kun and the future project.

Plus Ultra!

Nedzu

*****

“That’s the last of the missing person files,” said Nightlight, pushing her files forward towards the center of the table. Evergreen reached for them, quirk accidentally flaring up in his tiredness, and the leaves that grew from Nightlight’s head poofed out a bit. They exchanged an awkward look before he pulled the files towards himself and stood to walk towards an empty corkboard.

“Any anomalies that stood out?” he asked the room at large, ready to write and pin notes to the board.

“There were some dropped cases in Chiba from seven years ago that match All for One’s MO,” said Golden Sage, “It’ll be tricky to catch anything, though. The imposters will have had seven years to perfect their facades.”

“Found three cases of the same in Saitama,” offered Reflection.

“One person disappeared off the map in Fukuoka, and no one’s seen hide nor hair of her since,” Torino said.

“I had something similar in Osaka,” said Looking Glass. His clear glass skin clinked against the table as he tapped it thoughtfully, “When do we hypothesize that AfO stole Metamorphosis?”

“Within the last three years,” said Madam Nighteye, “That was when Hironaka was broken out of jail.”

“Right. So what quirks did All for One use to cover these switches? And why were they abandoned in favor of Metamorphosis a few years later?”

“Time limit, maybe?” Madam Nighteye brought her hand to her chin and started to think deeply, “Very few quirks can permanently change a state of matter without wearing off or beginning to corrupt whatever it's been used on.”

“Or by making the subjects or the user sick,” Meditation added her two cents, “I’ve seen it often enough when people overuse their quirk. And even if All for One was able to heal himself or abandon whatever quirk he used before it negatively affected him, there’s no guarantee that his accomplices are okay.”

“Divide into teams of two and investigate the people that stand out. Golden Sage, you and Stormborn stake out Club Karma and see what’s happening there. Reflection, Looking Glass, you two take Chiba. Void, Athena, take Saitama. Madam Nighteye, Nightlight, hit up Fukuoka and see if you can find anything on the singular missing person case. Thunderclap and Torino will take Osaka and do the same.”

“What about me, sir?” All Might asked.

“To be frank, All Might, I don’t know what to do with you,” said Evergreen, “I know your history with All for One, and know that you’ll be vital to any bigger confrontations we have with him. But you’re too much of a public figure to send into investigative work. The best I can offer is that you should keep up with your usual heroing hours for now so as not to raise suspicion, and check-in with Nighteye on the regular so she can get you up to speed.”

“Very well,” said the blonde man, turning to the heroine at his side, “I’ll be sure to do so. Should I exchange phone numbers? Would that be best?”

“Yes, I believe so. We should also probably get you and Torino into the group channel.”

“Oh, dibs on changing names!” said Stormborn.

“I’ll hook you up now,” said Imada, pulling out her laptop, “Just let me search for devices not on the IUCA mainframe, and…. Done!”

There was a buzzing from All Might’s cell phone. He pulled it up and saw that a new app had just finished downloading onto his phone. He hesitantly clicked it and then went into the first tab marked Youkai Task Force.

Tesla but make it Japanese has added [2] new users to the chat.

i of the storm has changed [2] names.

Tesla but make it Japanese has locked [2] names.

i of the storm: welcome to the chaos ;)

Grand Turkey: Why is this my name?

Y’all Might: Thanks, I hate it here.

Y’all Might: Do you know how many times I’ve heard this same joke over the years?

i of the storm: if you didn’t want that joke to be made, then you shouldnt act, look, and talk like a westaboo all the time

24 Karat Gold: oh shit

Glitter: OH SHIT

I Stare Back: and here we see stormborn, the woman who killed the number one hero with one blow.

Mama Nighteye: I deeply apologize for their behavior. Welcome to the Youkai Task Force.

*****

“Nighteye, can I talk to you?” I turned around right as I was leaving the boardroom to see Nightlight walking towards me.

“Sure, but please make it quick. I promised Tenko-kun that I’d be off by five.”

“Just wanted to speak with you about Fukuoka tomorrow,” she said, “Would you be able to catch the early morning train? I’d rather be there as soon as the police officers switch out for the day shift. We would have more time to work then.”

“Sounds good. Meet at the station around five? That’ll get us there by ten.”

“I’ll see you then,” she agreed, “I look forward to working with you on this. I’ve heard good things.”

“And I as well. Isn’t it strange that we haven’t worked together before? I know you got transferred to work on the All for One case, but we haven’t worked one-on-one at all.”

“Might be intentional on Morishige-san’s part. Imagine the trouble the poor fools working in archive would have. Madam Nighteye and Nightlight working together? The amount of mislabeled files alone.” She shuddered dramatically, and stepped to the side, allowing most of the others to file past us and into the elevator. “But I guess the sheer power the two of us hold cannot be denied. Team Night Squared will be unbeatable.”

“Team Night Squared for the win,” I snickered, “I do have to ask though, why Nightlight? Your quirk’s obviously planted based.”

“It’s a nickname from when I was a kid. Here, turn off the lights quick.” I complied and switched the hall light off. In an instant, everything was dark, save for the warm green glow of Nightlight’s skin.

“You’re bioluminescent?” I asked, amazed at the sight.

“Byproduct of all the energy I absorb,” she said, “Problem is, I have very limited reserves, so I have to spend all of that extra energy somewhere. Therefore, glow in the dark body tissue.”

“That is beyond cool.” I switched the lights back on, and Nightlight started to slowly dim back to normal. “It amazes me how much quirks can vary. Mine sometimes feels dull in comparison, but then I’ll say or do something that makes perfect sense to me but be nonsense to everybody else, and I’ll have a moment where I realize, ‘Oh, right. Not everybody has seen this exact scenario play out five different ways through five different points of view.’ I think it’s just so weird how everyone has this baseline for what life is like for them, and literally, no one is exactly like the other.”

“Tell me about it. Sometimes I’ll see people scarfing down unimaginable amounts of food, and I’ll mentally judge them for wasting that much money when they could just take an hour to sunbathe before I remember that not everyone can photosynthesize.”

“If only. We’d have saved so much money on groceries growing up if that were the case.”

Nightlight hummed in agreement before entering the now empty elevator, “So, five in the morning tomorrow?”

“Yes, five. Have you run any cases in Fukuoka before? Besides the All for One case, I rarely ever end up with jobs that take me outside of Tokyo and the surrounding region.”

Nightlight shook her head, “Not in Fukuoka, no. My best advice is to stay polite and be patient with the other officers and any heroes you meet. With a case that’s been cold for as long as ours has, it’s highly unlikely that we’ll solve it in a single day. Tomorrow is most likely going to just be us finding our footing and figuring out if there’s anything worth our time.”

“Then I’ll concede to your higher level of experience. Now if you excuse me, Tenko-kun will be expecting me by now.” I left the elevator and headed towards the lounge where I had left the boy.

“Have fun,” she called out to me, “Let me and my fiance know if you need babysitters.”

With a last wave over my shoulder, I left down the hall and entered the rest area to find Tenko drawing excitedly. Tenko saw me right away and ran up to me with a lot of papers filled out with crayon drawings and scribbles.

“Night-sama! How was the meeting?” Tenko asked, waving his papers around.

“It was good. Gran Torino and All Might got to talk to everybody.”

“Did they make any friends?”

“Yes,” I answered easily, “All Might had everyone happy with that big smile of his, and Gran Torino was super important. Did you know that Evergreen-san, Thunderclap-sensei, and Gran Torino-san were all friends with your grandma?”

Tenko gasped, “Really?”

“Yeah, I didn’t know until today. But they told All Might and I a story about when they were younger.”

“Can you tell it to me?”

“Of course,” I ruffled his hair and started mentally editing out the more gruesome details of the tale. Tenko was five; he didn’t need to hear about Nana, Torino, Thunderclap, and Evergreen hunting down a supervillain/serial killer, only to be found by the Sixth, “But first, why don’t you tell me about how your secret mission went? Did you find out anything interesting?”

He nodded and held up a drawing of what vaguely looked like a hero I would occasionally catch glimpses of around the agency, “This hero’s from Taiwan, but they came to Japan because China and Taiwan were fighting and their family was going to get hurt. But it’s okay now. Taiwan and China have a truce, so China can’t be mean to Taiwan anymore.”

“Really?” I asked, nodding along with Tenko, “Why was China being mean to Taiwan? Didn’t they know they’d hurt Taiwan’s feelings?”

“It’s a really old conf- cofl- fight. It’s a really old fight, and I don’t know what started it. I don’t think anybody does.”

“It must be old then, if no one knows what started it.”

“Older than quirks! That’s what the hero told me. It must have started a really, really long time ago. Like, back when there were dinosaurs still! Wait,” he gasped again, and I could clearly see that he had had an epiphany of some kind, “What if that’s what they were fighting about? Taiwan must have wanted to keep the dinosaurs, but China must have said no, and so they fought over it.”

“Sorry to burst your bubble, Tenko-kun, but the dinosaurs died out way before people showed up,” I picked up a few papers off of the ground and started to corral him towards the exit, “Why don’t you tell me about this hero? Are they from Taiwan, too?”

“No, Night-sama. They used to work for a mean family. But then some other hero helped them get away from the family, and now they’re a hero, too!”

“Really? You’ll have to tell me more at dinner before going to bed early.”

“Awwww…. but why?” Tenko stuck out his bottom lip while I huffed out a smile.

“Because tomorrow you get to meet Michio-oji-san. He’s a baker, so he has to wake up super-duper early every morning to bake the stuff he sells. He’s going to look out for you while I and another hero do some investigating tomorrow. It might get dangerous, and I will probably get home late, but I can’t leave you by yourself.”

Tenko stopped walking, dropped his drawings, and threw himself at my leg, “Don’t leave, Night-sama! I don’t want you to get hurt!”

“I’m not going to get hurt, Tenko. I’ll only be gathering information, I promise.” I did not mention that said information could be related to the most dangerous supervillain of all time, because this child was five and did not need to know that I was hunting down the man that had already killed his family. “Just please be good for Michio-oji tomorrow, okay? I’ll be gone for a day, and then I’ll be back, and then we’ll go to that arcade you want to try and celebrate.”

“Promise?”

“Promise,” I said, hugging the boy that was still clinging to my leg like a lifeline, before loosening his grip and placing him on my hip, “Now, what do you want for dinner? I was thinking barbeque.”

“Barbeque sounds nice.”

“Barbeque it is,” I said, mentally planning out my night and the investigation tomorrow. With any luck, it would just be a routine search, and I’d be able to come back tomorrow night with nothing but sore feet and a need for a nap.

Little did I know exactly how hectic the next day would become.

Chapter Text

Mama Nighteye: Someone please give me some words of encouragement so I don’t commit three separate murders right now.

Photosynthesis: Do it. I’ll bail you out.

God™: While I’m sure you have extremely good motives to commit said murders, if you do so, it will be significantly harder to adopt Shimura-kun.

Tesla but make it Japanese: you’ll have no access to comfort food or karaoke or your pre-quirk movie collection in jail.

Tesla but make it Japanese: just asked the bros for more ideas. Orochi says that the two of you can’t fulfill your twelve-step plan to reform the government and Michio says he won’t be able to perfect that cookie recipe that you two have been trying to recreate for forever.

Mama Nighteye: Thank you. That helps put some things into perspective. I no longer feel the need to murder.

The Boss™: As your employer and head of an international hero organization, I feel that I should point out that you should get a reprimand for this.

The Boss™: But as the man who has worked alongside you and watched you grow from a clueless teenager to a competent underground heroine, I know for a fact that whoever’s pushed you to this limit more than deserves it.

The Boss™: So let’s cut the difference. Rant about why you feel the need to murder people, and we’ll see whether that reaction is reasonable or not. Everyone besides myself, you, Nightlight, Imada, and Nedzu are in the field, so the floor’s yours.

Mama Nighteye: Thank you. This should help a lot.

Mama Nighteye: To begin, today I had to wake up at 0400 to rush Shimura-kun to my brother’s bakery, so already the day is not starting off on the best note.

*****

I regret life so much right now.

Screw five A.M. train departures, screw my insomnia, and screw precious children that are rightfully cranky about being woken at four.

“Night-sama, can I go back to bed, please?”

“No, Tenko-kun,” I said, ignoring his tired whimpers, “Michio-oji’s super excited to meet you. Aren’t you excited?”

“Can’t I be excited later? The sun’s not even awake yet.”

“The sun’ll be awake soon. Just stay up for me, okay? At least until Michio-oji closes the bakery at one. Then you can go ahead and sleep the day away like he does.”

“Michio-oji’s super mean. Waking up before the sun. Why does he do that?”

“Because that’s a part of his job, and he loves his job.” Although I completely understood where Tenko was coming from. What kind of psycho wakes up every morning at three, bakes until five-thirty, and then greets every customer with a sunny smile? If I didn’t know any better, I would have sworn that Michio had a quirk to help him with his daily routine, “And look, we’re at his job now.”

I brought the two of us around the back of the Bread & Butter Bakery and opened the back door. As always, the warm smell of baking bread, melting chocolate, and simmering caramel enveloped me like a warm hug, and I had to stop myself from giving in and finding a quiet place to doze off with Tenko.

“Well if it isn’t my favorite hero,” said Michio, “And my new nephew? Today must be my lucky day.”

“Thank you so much for taking him,” I said, gently setting Tenko on his own two feet, “I know it’s short notice, but Mana said she was testing something volatile in the labs, and I can’t exactly leave him at the hospital with Orochi.”

Michio waved me off, “I know how it is with my older siblings. You three have big important jobs helping people, and I’m the only sane one with a normal life.”

“I believe you’re still helping plenty of people. Unless those weekly food donations are just so you can write off the taxes.”

“You’ve caught me, you’ve caught me,” he said with a laugh, holding up his hands in mock surrender. He smiled, but I saw the corners of his eyes flinch at the movement of his shoulders.

Hero training and older sister instincts kicked in in an instant, “Shi-- shoot. You’re having a bad pain day today.”

Michio’s eyes went wide, “Wait, hey, no. Nee-chan, I’m fine. I’m plenty capable of looking after Tenko and running the store today.”

“Have you taken your pain meds?”

“You know they make me loopy,” I saw the regret flash across his face the moment he said those words.

“Interesting,” I pressed, “Because your meds only make you loopy when you have to take two pills instead of the usual one. And you only take two pills when you’re having--”

“A really bad pain day, I know,” Michio finished my words with me and rolled his eyes, “If it makes you feel any better, I was planning on closing the bakery early today anyways. I want to spend time with my nephew, and he’s too young to help much in the kitchen.”

“The second Tenko’s eaten lunch and down for a nap, take your pain meds and sleep. Screw bonding experiences, you’re hurting.”

“Don’t you have a bullet train to catch?” he asked, pulling out a brown paper bag, “I’ll give you these pastries right now if you go and stop mother-henning me.”

“If you think you can bribe me with--”

“Two cinnamon rolls and half-a-dozen strawberry cheesecake cookies.”

“--then you’d be absolutely right because those sound amazing.”

“Great,” he gave me the bag and then looked down at the child we had been accidentally ignoring for most of our exchange, “Heya, kid! I’m your Uncle Michio.”

“Hey,” Tenko yawned and blinked up at him, “How old are you?”

“I’m nineteen.”

“Neat. I’m five.”

“Five. That’s a whole hand, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

“Awesome, can you hold up that hand and show me?”

Tenko tiredly obeyed and held up his hand, “Now can you use that hand and wave goodbye to your mom, who is leaving right this second or I swear I am taking those pastries back, so help me Nedzu.”

“Alright, alright, I’m going,” I shifted the pastry bag to my other hand and out of Michio’s reach, and ruffled Tenko-kun’s hair, “Be good.”

“I will, Night-sama.”

“See you later tonight, nee-chan.”

I bid the two boys ado and headed out towards the station. Despite my words to Tenko, the sun had not risen yet, and the dark streets of Tokyo were eerie in their emptiness. With a huff, I grabbed the goggles Mana had made me and slid them on. With a tap of a button on the side of the lens, I was seeing in night vision and felt much more confident in my step.

I was lucky that Bread & Butter was semi-close to the train station. Michio had scouted the storefront specifically so he could pick up regulars on their way to work and the steady stream of tourists that visited the city. It felt like barely any time had passed at all before I was walking into the train station and up to a bleary-eyed Nightlight waiting on the train.

“Why did I recommend we get here so early?” she asked, groaning a bit.

“Because it’s a five-hour ride to Fukuoka,” I answered, easily powering down the goggles and slipping them off, “And we both wanted to have an ample amount of time to investigate our missing person.”

“Forget appropriate time. I’m tired.”

“Sleep on the way there. I’ll wake you up.”

“Don’t you want to sleep?"

I shook my head, “No, I can never sleep on public transportation.”

It was true. Even in my old life, I could never fall asleep on planes or in cars. Something about the constant movement kept me up and alert, and whenever I would get close to dozing off, the car would hit a bump, or the plane would get turbulence. Combine that with Thunderclap-sensei’s underground hero training, which felt mostly borrowed from what I’d imagine Mad-Eye Moody’s Auror Bootcamp to be, constant vigilance and all, and I could confidently say I would never fall asleep on a bullet train, even if I wanted to.

And God did I want to.

(I’ll say it again: screw five A.M. train departures.)

“I’ve got the files to review and a novel to read. Feel free to nap.”

“If you’re sure,” Nightlight said. We stood in silence until the train pulled up to a stop. After we boarded and settled in the empty compartment, I opened my briefcase and pulled out the missing person file for what felt like the hundredth time.

“Uyehara Tomie, where in Fukuoka are you?”

*****

Tesla but make it Japanese: mirai, i love you with my whole heart.

Tesla but make it Japanese: but if you’re planning 3 murders because you had to wake up early….

Photosynthesis: No, trust me. Nigtheye’s reasons for murder are much more valid than a bad morning. It only goes downhill from here.

The Boss™: Were the officers in Fukuoka uncooperative? 

Mama Nighteye: The officers were nothing but professional.

Mama Nighteye: It was the other heroes in the region that gave us trouble.

Mama Nighteye: No, wait. Let me rephrase that. 

Mama Nighteye: It was a high-ranking spotlight hero who had traveled to Fukuoka for a case that gave us trouble.

Mama Nighteye: Nightlight and I arrived in Fukuoka this morning at around 1000. We contacted the local police and requested to see their files and cold cases. They readily agreed, and we found the intel we needed by 1100. Unfortunately, that was when another hero barged into the station and demanded everyone’s full attention.

*****

“There really isn't much to go off of, is there?” Nightlight asked, looking at the information the Fukuoka officers had been able to give us.

“It’s better than what we had before,” I winced at the bare file, “Though not by much.”

When Torino said that Uyehara had dropped off the map, he meant it. There were no leads, no witnesses, and because we were from outside of the prefecture, we had none of our normal resources available to us. The only things we had gained from the meager extra information were the past notes on the initial investigation, Uyehara’s last known address, and her quirk.

“Would All for One even be interested in her quirk? It’s rare for him to target mutant quirks if he doesn’t intend to pass it on to someone else.”

“It’s an outside mutation,” I tapped the picture of Uyehara and pointed at the two extra eyeballs that floated around her, “So there’s a chance he would have broken his no mutation rule for the sake of gaining this quirk. All Seeing Eyes would have allowed him to monitor any person, place, or item in the world. Even if he was stuck with the one-item-at-a-time limitation, this would have been a game-changer for him.”

Nightlight shivered, “The world’s most powerful villain with a quirk that can see anything at any time. I think I would swallow my pride and snag that power, too.”

“That’s why we must find Uyehara. Even if we’re just looking for a corpse at this point, that’ll still tell us whether or not All for One has it. Forewarned is forearmed, after all, and it’d be better if we can start taking precautions now to combat surveillance than make ourselves sorry for not doing so later.”

“Action plan?”

“Which do you want to tackle first? The interviewees from the investigation, or the last known address?”

“Interviewees,” Nightlight said, “They’ll give us more relevant information than an empty apartment that she hasn’t stepped foot in for seven years. It should also be fairly easy to finish. Says the last known people to see Uyehara were her boss, her coworkers, and her neighbors. If we hit up her place of work first, we can talk to the neighbors before swinging by the apartment.”

“Sounds good.”

We started reorganizing the files and placing them in my briefcase for later, when the sound of an officer’s voice echoed through the hall, “Sir, I must insist! Nobody’s allowed back there without prior permission!”

“Take it up with my sidekick,” came a familiar voice, “He should have all the necessary forms.”

A wave of heat accompanied by an acrid smell wafted into the room as Endeavor entered the Fukuoka police department archives. He glared at me, waiting for a reaction. I, however, was numb with shock.

“Am I being tested? All Might and Endeavor in one week?” I thought to myself, fighting to keep my internal screaming on the inside, “Who’s next, Hawks?”

“Well, aren’t you going to do your job?” Endeavor asked.

“Huh?” I said, realizing all at once that the mcfucking number two hero and number one eugenicist of the My Hero Academia world had asked me a question.

Endeavor huffed, “Typical. No police officer is worth their salt these days. I told you to bring me all the information you have on the hitman known as Takami.”

I blinked at him owlishly, “Uh, sir. I think there’s been a mistake. I’m not a police officer, I’m a hero.”

“Do you honestly expect me to believe that a hero fights crime in a second-rate three-piece suit and heels?”

“Yes. Because I do,” I pulled out my license, and showed it to him, “My colleague and I are usually based in Tokyo, but we’re here today to investigate a missing person case.”

“That’s clearly a fake heroing license. Everyone knows all licenses have red accents, not purple,” Endeavor pulled out his own license, showing off the scarlet colors, “I should arrest you for impersonating a hero, but I’ll let it slide and only report you to your superior if you get me the information I need in the next five minutes.”

“Ma, ma. Hold your horses, Endeavor-san,” said a man walking into the archive room. He had white-flaming hair similar to Endeavor’s beard, and a white mask covering the lower half of his face, “That’s a hero license, alright, though I’m not surprised you’d think it fake. Spotlight heroes obviously don’t know an underground license when it’s being dangled in front of their faces.”

Endeavor bristled, “And what brought you to that conclusion?”

“Because I’ve got one of my own,” the man pulled out an underground license, and I got the distinct impression that he was flashing a shit-eating grin under the mask, “So I’d drop the threats and let the woman get on with her day. Why don’t you and that sidekick of yours get to checking these files, yeah? I’ll escort the lovely lady out.”

“Make that ladies,” said Nightlight, walking up to the man, “We’ve wasted enough time here. Nighteye, you coming?”

“Of course. Lead the way,” I grabbed my case and followed the two out after shooting one last look at Endeavor. We shuffled past two officers and what looked to be Endeavor’s sidekick in the hall. Once the hall was empty and the door to the archive room was shut, the flame-haired hero let out a groan and started banging his head against the wall.

“Why-- did-- my-- dad-- pass-- on-- his-- quirk-- to-- me?” Each word was accented with a hit to the wall and an even more despairing tone than the last.

“Let me guess, you’re stuck on escort duty?” Nightlight asked.

“Yes,” the man whimpered, “Endeavor picked me because I’m the only hero at our agency branch with a fire quirk, and he’s a prick about that sort of thing.”

“Escort duty?” I asked in confusion.

“Escort-- how the heck have you never gotten stuck on escort duty before?” The man turned to me, voice revealing his shock, “It’s a right of passage for all the newbies to get stuck with it, and for anyone with late paperwork to take a shift as punishment.”

“I’ve never been late with paperwork. Ever.”

“And they didn’t stick you with it when you signed on with the IUCA?”

“....no,” besides adding some light patrols and getting more pay and full benefits, my life hadn’t changed at all when I’d gone from intern to hero.

“Ignore Nighteye, she’s got the entire Central Tokyo branch wrapped around her finger,” said Nightlight. She turned to me and explained, “Usually, whenever somebody signs on to the IUCA, their only jobs for the first three months are paperwork, light patrol, and escort duty. The paperwork gets you used to the administrative side of things, light patrol gets you used to the amount of crime you’ll be dealing with, and escort duty gets you used to the terrain and the people you’ll work with on the regular. It usually just consists of us walking police officers and spotlighters through any crime scenes or patrols they’re investigating, but sometimes you’ll get stuck with babysitting visiting heroes from other prefectures.”

“It sucks,” the man said, “And lucky me, Endeavor especially has a reputation of being hard to handle. It’s been less than an hour, and he’s already turned down four other escorts because they didn’t have a matching fire quirk, barged into the police archives without permission, and threatened to arrest a fellow hero. This was supposed to be my day off. Why did I agree to come in today?”

“Can you ditch him for us? I’m sure Nightlight and I could use a guide around the city.”

The man whimpered again, “I wish. But unfortunately for me, I can’t leave Mr. Flames and Mr. Flames’ lackey to themselves, and it’s assumed that other underground heroes have more than two brain cells and can read a map if they’re lost.”

“Well then, good luck with Endeavor.” Nightlight tugged me down the hall, “See you around….”

“Arson.”

“Pretty ironic name, isn’t it?” I asked over my shoulder.

“Better than Endeavor’s sidekick, I can tell you that! Seriously, who names themselves Smoulder of all things?”

Nightlight dragged me out of the station and to the streets of Fukuoka, “Okay, enough distractions. What’s the name of the restaurant Uyehara worked at?”

“Onigiri Sumo. Shouldn’t be more than a twenty-minute walk from here.”

“Good. Let’s get this show on the road. Team Night Squared is ready to find our woman.”

*****

Tesla but make it Japanese: i am so smug right now.

Mama Nighteye: Now’s not the time for us to debate over my hero suit, Mana-nee.

Tesla but make it Japanese: doesn’t stop me from being smug because i was right. you need a suit that doesn’t make people think you’re an actuary. or an officer in plain clothes, apparently.

Mama Nighteye: Back on track. It wouldn’t have been as bad if that was our one encounter with Endeavor, but we ended up running into him later.

*****

“Excuse me, but are you Sumo Izanagi?”

The bald man behind the counter looked me over, “Yeah? Why ya’ wanna know?”

“I’m here to ask you about Uyehara Tomie? She worked in this establishment about seven years ago.”

He shrugged, “What ‘bout it?”

“Can you think back to the last time you saw her? My friend and I are looking for her.”

“What for?” he narrowed his eyes, “It ain’t some yakuza shit, is it? Always thought she was shady.”

“No, no. Nothing like that,” Nightlight assured, “We’re just worried about her. Think she might have gotten into some trouble.”

“Trouble woulda been one word for it,” Sumo said, “It all started when she started seeing that boyfriend o’ hers.”

“Boyfriend?” I pulled out a notepad and a pen. That was new information. “What boyfriend?”

“Can’t remember ‘is name, but I remember what he looked like, well enough. ‘bout my height, blond hair, freaky-looking bird eyes, bird talons, had some muscles.”

“Did you mention any of this to the police?”

“Nah. He blew town about a week before she went missing. Figured he had nothing ta’ do with Uyehara leaving.”

“You think she left of her own free will?” 

“Yeah. Didn’t give her two weeks or anything, just waltzed in here, demanded the money from her last paycheck, and refused to leave ‘til I coughed it up.”

“Do you know anything else about her? Could give any reason for why she left?” Nightlight asked.

“Might have run off after tha’ boy-toy a hers. Uyehara was a bit of a drifter. Didn’t have much keeping her here. Not surprised she packed up everything ta’ follow him. She was obsessed with the guy.”

“Are there any other workers that might have known her?”

“Not anymore. Had ta’ hire a full new set a staff ‘bout two years ago. Somebody was stealin’ money, and when nobody confessed, I just fired the two waiters that were working here, expanded, and hired new staff.”

I mentally cursed at losing two of our limited number of sources, but outwardly kept my neutral expression, “Thank you for your cooperation.”

I and Nightlight exited the restaurant and started talking once we ducked into an empty alley, “That wasn’t very informative,” Nightlight grumbled.

“Does Uyehara leaving of her own free will change anything?” I asked, “Sumo described her as a drifter with no roots. If that’s the case, was that just how Uyehara was, or was that intentional?”

“She could have been running from All for One, but that doesn’t change our objective,” Nightlight said, “We still have to find her, and we’re still lacking on leads. I’m more interested in the mystery boyfriend. He wasn’t mentioned at all in the case files, but he stuck out in Sumo’s mind enough that he could give us a description seven years later.”

“Sumo said he thought he had nothing to do with Uyehara’s disappearance.”

“I get that, but if Uyehara’s boss knew about him, then so should all of the other sources. If he was such a big part of Uyehara’s life that somebody thought it reasonable for her to pack up and chase after him, then why didn’t anybody mention him?”

I paused. “You’re right. Why didn’t somebody else mention him? If Uyehara’s boss knew, then surely her coworkers must have as well. And unless the boyfriend avoided Uyehara’s apartment like the plague, then the neighbors should have caught him visiting at least once. And not to mention the security footage of the apartment building.”

Nightlight nodded. “That’s why this is so strange. One of the first questions an investigating officer asks is whether or not the victim has any close relations. A partner, even a one-night stand, would have been noted, tracked down, and interviewed. I’m seeing two possibilities here. One, either there was a contrived set of coincidences where every person interviewed by the initial investigators got up individually and decided not to mention the boyfriend to the police. Or two, the police of Fukuoka have been compromised.”

“Shit.”

This job just got a lot more dangerous.

*****

The Boss™: You better have a damn good reason for not reporting a potentially compromised police force and requesting backup immediately.

The Boss™: Continuing without backup was suicidal. 

The Boss™: Especially when you were investigating a clearly altered case. The second you understood the situation you were in, you should have politely made excuses to the Fukuoka officers and informed the IUCA or a trusted NPA officer from Tokyo.

Photosynthesis: Nighteye, work your magic. I can’t tame Morishige like you can.

Mama Nighteye: We followed protocol to the letter, sir.

Mama Nighteye: As we had no evidence that the Fukuoka IUCA was also compromised, we informed the nearest underground hero of our concerns and continued the investigation under his supervision alongside another neutral hero from outside the prefecture.

Mama Nighteye: Lucky for us, Arson had just walked into Onigiri Sumo.

Mama Nighteye: Unluckily, he was still escorting Endeavor and his sidekick.

*****

Before Nightlight and I could do little more than share a despairing look, the doors of Onigiri Sumo were slammed open.

“FIRE!” one customer screamed, running out of the building with even more people following behind.

“Well isn’t that just the cherry on top,” Nightlight muttered, running around the back of the building. I followed her and raced through the back door and the kitchen. The empty area had no open flames that I could see, and I was confused as to where the supposed fire was until Nightlight flung through the door connecting the kitchen to the dining area.

“Where’s Takami, you fiend,” Endeavor demanded, holding Sumo up by the neck, orange-red flames climbing up his arms. The man’s sidekick was just standing off to the side on his phone, while Arson was desperately kicking Endeavor in the back of the shins and using his quirk to put out the small fires that the hero was accidentally letting catch.

“Put the man down!” Nightlight, Arson, and I all said in unison.

Endeavor responded by tightening his grip on Sumo’s throat, “Answer me!”

In a flash, I pulled out one of my stamps and nailed him straight in the forehead. Working off what must have been an ingrained response, he dropped Sumo, covered his face with his arm, and sent a fireball my way with the hand that had previously been holding Sumo up by the neck. I dove to the floor, and the fire hit the wall behind me. 

“What the fuck was that?” Nightlight demanded, moving between Endeavor and the collapsed Sumo, who was rubbing at his throat and breathing harshly.

Arson directed his own white flames at the wall, mixed the two fires until his white dominated Endeavor’s orange, and then put them out with a wave of a hand and a clench of his fist, “I’m with her. What compelled you to waltz into my city and harm one of the citizens under my protection?”

“He was refusing to give me the information I needed,” Endeavor clenched his jaw and lowered his hands.

“And choking him out would have changed his mind?” I rose up and walked towards the man, deadpan glare on my face. 

Endeavor returned my glare with one of his own, “Do not question my methods. I only do what’s necessary to keep dangerous men like Takami off the streets.”

“Then don’t blame me when your ‘methods’ get your license revoked. That was blatant use of excessive force, and if I see it from you again, I’m reporting you to the Commission.”

He sneered, “You wouldn’t dare.”

“You want to chance it?”

“Alright, stop your pissing contest. We’ve got bigger fish to fry,” Nightlight said, “Sumo-san, do you wish to press charges against Endeavor?”

Sumo shook his head and continued to rub at his throat, “Ain’t got the cash for that. Besides, what jury would take ma’ side? Long as he stays the fuck away from me and my restaurant, I’m fine.”

“Do you wish to seek medical attention?”

“Fuck no. Now ask your fucking questions and get out.”

“Ma, ma, understood,” said Arson, raising his hands. He pulled out a photo and held it up, revealing a blonde man with brown eyes, “Do you recognize this man? We have recent witness reports citing him in the area, and we know he used to frequent this establishment years ago.”

“Why don’t you ask them,” Sumo said pointing at Nightlight and me, “They’re the ones tha’re after his girlfriend.”

Nightlight and I looked at each other, and then looked at the picture, “This is Uyehara’s boyfriend?”

“Tha’s him. Don’t know why he’s back, but he is. And if she’s anything like I remember, then she’s not too far behind. Now GET OUT!”

“Thank you for the information, we’ll be leaving now.” I hustled the five of us out of there and dragged them back into the alley from before.

“Looks like I’ll be showing you around after all, huh?” Arson asked humorlessly. 

“Now isn’t the time for this. We should be finding Takami and stopping him before he commits another murder,” Endeavor said.

“We don’t know if Uyehara’s even with Takami, and if she is, we don’t know if it’s of her own free will,” I pointed out, “But we should consolidate our resources. We have a suspected 31-839, and we need to know if any of us are safe going forward.”

Immediately, Endeavor stiffened, “If that’s the case, then I am officially dismissing Arson from his duty as my local agent.”

“WHAT?” I don’t know who exactly spoke, but I knew all of us were shocked.

“I refuse to allow potentially compromised agents to work alongside me, and I will be removing them from the investigation from here on out. Smoulder,” he turned to the sidekick that had stayed silent for this entire time, “Contact the agency and tell them to get more sidekicks here immediately. We will return to the hotel and resume our search in the morning.”

“On it,” Smoulder said.

“Wait, what about not wasting time?” Nightlight asked, “And wouldn’t it make more sense to work together than for both parties to lose vital time and intel?”

Endeavor turned around and started walking out of the alley, “This is a high profile case. One that could prove vital in deciding the upcoming mid-year ranking review. I refuse to sully my reputation by working alongside scum who can’t even keep their peers clean. So stay out of my way and let me do my job.”

We watched him stalk out of the alleyway, sidekick silently following. 

After a moment, I threw my briefcase down in anger, “That idiot. Holy shit, he’s got two brain cells, and they're both fighting for third place. Does he know anything about underground investigative work?”

“He knows that he no longer has jurisdiction in this prefecture, right? He was invited here by the IUCA. If he refuses to work with us, he legally can’t be here investigating unless the Commission approves him opening his own case against Takami, and that’ll take like, a week at the earliest.” Arson continued to stare at where Endeavor was standing scarcely a few seconds before.

“I’m sure he’ll find out that cheery piece of news when his sidekicks roll up tomorrow and they’re reprimanded like teenagers using their quirks on the street,” Nightlight rolled her shoulders and turned to Arson, “But let’s forget about that now, and get down to business. Is your branch compromised?”

Arson thought for a minute before sullenly shaking his head in dismissal, “No. The IUCA should be safe. I wish I could say the same thing about our police, but I can’t. It’d explain too many smaller instances that don’t add up. If they were separate, then yeah, coincidences and unlucky breaks happen. But all together….”

“One too many strikes against them,” I offered, “Well, at least we’ve got the heroes. It doesn’t help much with the shortened timeline, but it’s something.”

“Think we can make history as the fastest reopening and subsequent solving of a case?” Nightlight joked, “We need to find Uyehara today, or else Endeavor or Takami or somebody else will catch on and move her. Or she’ll run on her own, who knows?”

“It will be faster with a city native,” I picked up my case again and popped open the latch to find the address file, “Can get us here in less than an hour?”

Arson read the address, “Easy. Can you two run rooftops?”

“What kind of question is that?”

“Semi-rhetorical. Endeavor and Smoulder looked like they’d have an aneurysm when I asked them earlier.”

The three of us all rolled our eyes, “Spotlighters.”

“Well, no time like the present,” I slipped the file back in and latched the case shut, “I’ll check the apartment, Nightlight tries to find any record of old security footage, and you’ll interview the neighbors?”

“Sounds easy,” in a flash, Arson scaled the side of the building and made it up to the roof, “Now try to keep up.”

*****

Mama Nighteye: So for this and reasons I’ll reveal later, Endeavor would be murder victim #1.

God™: I’ll add this to the files.

Photosynthesis: Wait until you hear about victims #2 and #3.

*****

The studio apartment Uyehara had lived in was stripped completely bare, save for the mountains of trash around the open room and the small pile of unopened mail near the door.

Nothing in any of the stacks of used wrappers and empty bottles caught my eye, but the mail looked a bit more promising. I squatted down, picking up the sole paper at the top of the pile.

“Uyehara, stop forgetting to empty your mailbox. I can’t keep collecting it for you and sliding it under the door. Higuchi from 47B,” I read aloud. I placed the note to the side and started to sort through the pile. It was all bills and other notices. As expected, the ones at the bottom of the pile were older, but the ones at the top….

“Huh,” I muttered to myself, grabbing one of the envelopes that had been at the very top. I walked out of the apartment, sure to close the door behind me, and made my way down to the security room on the bottom floor.

“Any luck with the footage?” I asked.

“No,” Nightlight said, “There aren’t any recordings older than five years ago. They got a new system installed, and all of the old footage was lost. You?”

“I might have something, but it’s small, and nothing concrete.”

“What, did somebody recently enter the apartment?”

“No, but a neighbor’s been picking up Uyehara’s mail and slipping it under the door.”

“Higuchi mentioned that,” Arson joined us, and walked into the room, “But nobody’s seen her or Takami in years.”

“That may be so, but they haven’t completely covered their tracks,” I held up the envelope, “Uyehara’s bills are still being sent to this address. Electricity and water stopped showing up a while ago, but cable is still being sent.”

“When’s that dated at?” Nightlight asked, grabbing for the envelope.

“Two months ago. Wherever Uyehara is, she’s got a semi-permanent residence somewhere in the city. Otherwise, the cable would have stopped arriving here by now.”

“This narrows down the search, at least,” Arson held his chin and thought, “And I’d bet Takami is in touch in some capacity. But that doesn’t confirm anything new about him.”

“You said he was a hitman, right?” I asked.

“Yes, why?”

“Nightlight, would you mind if I used my quirk on you?”

“Sure,” she held out her hand, “What do you need to activate it?”

“Just don’t break eye contact, please,” I reached out and grabbed her hand, “This’ll at least tell us if we can find anything.”

Our eyes met, and my mind was thrown into the familiar, glossy visions of the future.

This is crazy! Nighteye don’t you dare get killed. I am not going to be the one left to explain how you died….Oh, shit it worked. Oh. OH NO. OH SHIT, that’s a fast car….Thank God it’s a sunny day. I wouldn’t be able to keep up otherwise….There’s the backup Arson talked about. Let’s see if we can head him off together….YES! Finally!  Got ya, you murdering psycho.

“Just as I thought,” I said with a small chuckle, “Arson, you said you trusted your colleagues, right?”

“Yes.”

“And there’s a speedster in your agency?”

“How did you--”

“And if I got a map and pointed, would you be able to identify and block off a number of roads?”

“Yes, but why?”

“Give me your files on Takami. I’ve got a call to make.”

*****

The Boss™: I’m grounding you to desk duty for a month, Nighteye.

Mama Nighteye: Understandable.

Photosynthesis: As crazy as the plan was, it was lucky that Nighteye was there to think it up and enact it. If she hadn’t, Takami would have likely gotten away.

*****

I entered the abandoned warehouse, briefcase in hand. I took a few steps in, the sound of my heels hitting the cement echoing throughout the barren area.

“You Kawabata?” a short man asked, not stepping out of the shadows.

“Y-yes,” I took a hesitant step back and gulped, “Are you Takami?”

The man gave a low, menacing chuckle, “I am. I see you’ve got the money.”

I tightened my grip on the case, “I do. Are you sure you can….can get rid of Yuji?”

Another laugh, almost a croak, escaped him, “Sweetheart. So long as the price is right, I’ll take care of as many of your ex’s as you want.”

“Are you sure? Yuji’s quirk is so strong, and he likes to throw his weight around. You’re so, so much smaller than him--”

“Don’t let my height fool you. I’ve offed plenty of people before. Trust me, he’s nothing compared to some of the politicians and CEOs I’ve taken on.”

“If you’re sure,” I checked my watch, noted that I had a minute, and returned my eyes to him, “How will you do it?”

Takami stepped into the light, brown eyes flashing like a bird of prey, “Either a gun or a knife. Pay extra, and I’ll make it hurt. Pay double, and I’ll make it look like an accident.”

“No, that’s fine. I don’t have anything more to give you.” 

“We could work something out if you’re desperate.”

“I’m not that type of girl, Takami-san.” I checked my watch again. Fifteen seconds.

“And I’m not one to go for twig-thin girls with no curves and no rack,” Takami took another step towards me, “But I wasn’t thinking sex. I was thinking of maybe taking that watch of yours. The one you keep checking so often.”

“Oh no, that won’t be happening.” Time.

“And why not?”

“Because I only kept checking my watch to see when the heroes would get here.”

“TAKAMI SHOU. COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP!”

Takami froze. “You bitch.”

I tightened my hold on my briefcase and swung. The corner hit the advancing hitman at the temple, and Takami went down into a roll. With a string of curses, he ran in the opposite direction out of the warehouse.

“You better hope I never see you again!” he shouted, hopping into his car, “Because if I do, you’re dead, you hear me? Dead!”

I chased after him, sticking to the side of the car and ensuring that he’d leave on the street we needed him on. Luck was on our side, though, and Takami sped off down the abandoned road. Nightlight stepped out of where she was hiding, nodded at me, and then was off after him, a green blur of neon light.

I skidded to a stop and waved at Arson to come out. He came up to me on his motorcycle and offered me an extra helmet, “You sure about this?”

“Don’t worry. I know exactly what’s going to happen.” I pulled the helmet on and swung my leg over his bike. “And I’ve checked. Even if something does change, it won’t be anything major enough to let Takami get away.”

“Better hope you’re right,” Arson said, “Let’s roll out. Your friend and Rapid might be fast, but fighting and running at top speeds is never easy.”

“Speaking from experience?”

“Let’s just say that the cartoons make weaponized motorcycles sound a lot cooler than in practice. I’ve crashed this thing more times than I can count.”

“And you’re both still standing. Impressive. Now quit yammering and drive.”

*****

Tesla but make it Japanese: ….

The Boss™: No.

Tesla but make it Japanese: okay, but consider the efficiency increase we’ll get on wide-area searches if we have specialized vehicles.

Tesla but make it Japanese: such as rocking souped-up motorcycles.

The Boss™: Nighteye, change the subject before your sister convinces the entire underground to bully me into giving them motorcycles.

Mama Nighteye: Takami was easily arrested and processed, and he was willing to give us information in exchange for a possible deal.

Mama Nighteye: That mostly meant getting him off death row, but it was worth it because he did lead us to Uyehara.

*****

“Takami Shou, you are under arrest for grand theft auto, larceny, breaking and entering, kidnapping, twenty-three counts of murder in the first degree, and resisting arrest. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law….”

Nightlight groaned pitifully from her position on the ground, “It’s two o’clock and I’m already exhausted. Uyehara better have some worthwhile intel on All for One, or else I’m going to write the Endeavor agency a string of extremely strongly-worded emails.”

“Don’t act like you won’t do that anyway,” I said, eyes on Takami. He was resisting arrest and struggling against the cuffs Rapid was putting on him. I kept him in sight in case he ran, but I was also waiting for my cue.

“Make it extra petty for me,” said Arson, “My hands are going to be full with cleaning house. So not looking forward to the investigation and the paperwork it’ll take to review every officer in the precinct.”

“I’m obligated to recommend the Tokyo officers to help, but I know you’ll want to keep this local until you no longer can.”

“I just hope we can recruit officers and keep the HPSC out of it. Whenever they try to assign their worker bees to the area, efficiency plummets.”

“You’ll all be sorry once I’m out of here scott-free,” said Takami, causing my ears to prick up.

“Showtime,” I muttered. I straightened to my full height and strutted over to the man, “I wouldn’t be so confident, Takami. Even if we can’t confirm all of your kills, we have concrete evidence linking you to eleven murders over the past seven years. More than enough for the death penalty.”

The man floundered, “Death penalty? The hell are you talking about?”

I flashed a cutting smile, “Well, it’s either that or life in Tartarus. I’d think you’d be jumping at the chance to avoid that particular fate. But yes. With the conviction rate being what it is, and the evidence against you, I’d imagine you’d be charged guilty with at least twenty of your twenty-three murders. More than enough for the death penalty if we really swing for it.”

“Of course,” I continued at his scared look, “You could always cut a deal….”

“What do you want?” he asked almost desperately, “I’ll do anything. I’m too young to die! I got my whole life ahead of me!”

“What do you know about Uyehara Tomie?” I flipped open a notepad and clicked a pen.

“Tomie’s back at the house. She’s been there for fuck knows how long.”

“Is she there of her own free will?”

“Yes. She’s always glued to that fucking TV, and she refused to let me split town without her.”

“And how would we get there?”

“Just follow this road out of town for a few klicks. She’ll try to run because she’s sick in the head and doesn’t know what’s what, but she made her own decision to be there, I swear.”

“Wonderful. Thank you so much for the help.”

“Great, great. Now are you letting me go or not?”

“Whoever said I was going to let you go?” I flashed my smile again, “I did say it was between the death penalty and Tartarus, didn’t I? Now, if I were you, I’d stop resisting arrest, ask for a lawyer, and continue to be as helpful as you possibly can. Then maybe, maybe, your assigned attorney will be able to convince a judge and jury that you deserve a chance at parole.”

Takami gave a bird-like screech as I turned my back on him and caught Nightlight and Arson’s gaze.

“What?” I asked at their expressions.

“What the hell was that?” Arson asked.

“Just some non-traditional interrogation and a little practice in playing dirty.”

“Is that normal for you?”

“Honestly,” I rolled my eyes at Nightlight’s question, “My best friend is Nedzu. Do you believe for a second that I haven’t picked up anything from him over the past decade? Now,” I flipped my notepad closed and looked down the road, “Let’s go have a talk with Uyehara Tomie.”

*****

Mama Nighteye: And then we traveled to the shack that Takami and Uyehara lived in.

The Boss™: Did Uyehara know anything about All for One?

Mama Nighteye: No. She went with Takami of her own free will, lived with him, kept house, and used her quirk to keep watch for heroes and police. She has absolutely no ties to him.

Tesla but make it Japanese: that sucks that you spent your day chasing nothing.

Photosynthesis: Oh, that’s not why she’s pissed.

Mama Nighteye: On a related note, I have picked up another stray.

Tesla but make it Japanese: awwwwwww! is it a doggie or a kitten? 

Photosynthesis: It’s a bird, actually.

Tesla but make it Japanese: send a pic!

Mama Nighteye: [baby-birb.jpeg]

Tesla but make it Japanese: ….

The Boss™: Nighteye, I don’t know how to break this to you.

The Boss™: But that’s a whole-ass child.

God™: I see! I shall update your personal file, along with subfile TK-HWK!

Mama Nighteye: Thank you, Nedzu. Now, on to why I want to murder two other people.

*****

“We’re here.” Arson halted the motorcycle, and sure enough, there was a hideout only a few meters away.

Well, hideout was generous. 

“Nuh-uh. There is no way I’m going in there,” said Nightlight, “That place looks like tetanus and a gang of rats had a baby. No way I’m getting closer. I can’t go into a shack. A filthy, rodent-filled shack.”

“We’re in, we’re out, and you can take an hour-long shower when we get back to Tokyo,” I said, getting off the motorcycle as fast as possible, “Come on, we’re burning daylight.”

I walked slowly towards the door, surveying it for any traps or the like. Careful not to step on the broken glass and rusty scraps of metal that littered the ground, I made my way to the front door. I rapped my knuckles against it and waited for an answer.

Instead of one, I heard the slamming of a door and the rapid footsteps coming from the other side. “Backdoor, now!”

Arson and Nightlight ran around to catch whoever was running, while I hesitantly continued inside. I took a few steps into the building, carefully walking across the floor. The inside was just as filthy as the outside, with papers, broken glass bottles, and other garbage covering the floor. 

I slid my goggles out of my case and on my head and turned on the night-vision setting. The dark illuminated in a greenish light, and I took in more of the space. There were no lights overhead, a single broken TV in one corner, and even more garbage around me. I wrinkled my nose at the filth and spotted a bit of movement from one of the larger trash heaps. For a split second, I was worried that it was an army of rats like Nightlight was worried about, before a tiny figure emerged from the nest of garbage. 

“Are you a hero?” asked the tiny winged figure in front of me.

“I jinxed myself earlier, didn’t I?” I thought with a bit of resignation.

I let myself indulge in a split second of panic, because shit that was a baby Hawks standing in front of me, and double shit, it just dawned on me that I helped arrest his dad. Also, triple shit, baby Hawks was in bad shape. He had bruises all up his arms, and fingerprints around his neck as if someone had tried to strangle him. He was smaller and thinner than Tenko-kun, which was bad because I knew for a fact that he was supposed to be older.

“Yeah kid, I’m a hero. I’m sorry, I had to take your father down because he was doing some very bad things, but I swear, I’m here to help.”

Baby Hawks blinked up at me owlishly before picking up an Endeavor doll off the floor and hugging it to his chest, “Okay,” he said, tone and expression blank.

“Do you know who just ran out the door?”

“Mom. She said we had to go, but I didn’t want to leave because she said heroes were coming here.”

“Do you want to go out and meet them?”

He squeezed the doll tighter and nodded a bit, hiding his face into the doll’s hair. With a sudden surge of energy, he grabbed my hand and led me out the back door and to where Nightlight, Arson, and Uyehara Tomie were.

Uyehara was cuffed and squirming against Arson’s grip. I tried to shield Hawks’ view and spoke up, “What’s going on?”

“She tried to attack, and refused to stop when we attempted to deescalate the situation Nightlight explained, “Arson’s called for an agency vehicle to pick us up.”

Uyehara kept squirming and looked my way. She caught sight of Hawks, and froze, “You,” she said, venom filling her voice. In an instant, she was lunging at the kid, fighting against Arson even more than before, “This is all your fault. If you hadn’t snuck out into the city, then your father wouldn’t have gotten caught, and I wouldn’t be in this situation.”

Hawks flinched back, and I stepped between them, further shielding him, “Uyehara-san, if you would please calm down--”

“Hh-puh.”

I brought a hand up to my cheek, “Did you just spit in my face?”

“That’ll show you! Don’t ever tell me what to do.”

I blinked at her in astonishment, “I was just trying to help?”

“Well, you can start by getting me out of these cuffs, and letting me discipline the boy.”

I looked at her, looked at Hawks’ bruises, looked at how he was trying to fold in on himself and hide behind his wings, and then looked back at her, “Yeah, no. That’s not going to happen.”

She screamed indignantly, but I ignored it, “Arson, is it possible to call two separate vehicles to come and pick us up?”

“Sure. I’ll have to take my bike, but if Nightlight goes with her, you can go with the kid.”

“Great. In that case, for the child’s safety, I’ll be removing him from the situation.” I turned towards Hawks and held out my hand, “Do you want to come with me?”

Hawks looked up from where he was trying to hide himself, blank expression still in place, “S-sure.”

“Okay. Let’s go to the front yard, where it’s a bit quieter. That sounds much more relaxing than back here.”

“‘Kay,” he hesitantly grabbed my hand again and together we walked around to the front of the shack. We sat down on a clear patch of overgrown grass and patiently waited for the cars that would pick us up.

“Do you want a snack?” I asked, opening my briefcase, “My brother gave me some cookies earlier, and I haven’t eaten them yet.”

Hawks nodded. I pulled out the brown paper bag from Bread & Butter, and passed him a cookie, “They’re strawberry cheesecake flavored.”

Hawks wrinkled his nose, “Why would somebody put cheese in cake?”

“It’s not called cheesecake because it’s made of cheese. It’s called that because it looks like cheese.”

“That’s weird,” he took a bite of cookie and immediately lit up.

“Like it?” I asked, taking a bit of my own.

“Mhm,” Hawks nodded. He took another big bite, “So, if heroes are real, then is Endeavor real?”

“Yes. Why wouldn’t he be?”

He shrugged, “I’ve never met a hero before today. I just thought they were something from Mom’s TV shows.”

“We’re as real as anything,” I put the paper bag back in the case, “I met him today.”

“What’s he like?”

“He was grumpy. And tall. But not as tall as me.”

“Really?”

“I’m about five centimeters taller.”

“You must be super tall.”

“I am,” I smiled a bit, “I love it. What’s your name, kid?”

“I’m Takami Keigo.”

“Well, Takami Keigo. You probably won’t be seeing this place for a long time. So if there’s anything you want to take with you, we need to go inside and get it before we leave.”

Hawks buried his face into his Endeavor doll, “Can I take this?”

“Yes, if you want to.”

“Then I don’t have anything else.”

“Really? No clothes or anything like that?”

“No. I don’t have anything else.”

Understanding what he was saying, I let the topic go, “Okay.”

There was silence for a while before Hawks spoke up again, “What’s your name?”

“I’m Sasaki Mirai. But when I’m a hero, I’m Madam Nightyeye.”

“And you’re a hero right now?”

“Yes.”

“Then thank you for saving me, Madam Nighteye.”

*****

Mama Nighteye: We headed back to the local IUCA agency to conduct the interrogations, and that’s when I learned that I was going to commit murders #2 and #3.

*****

“You okay, kid?” I asked Hawks as we got comfortable on the other side of the interrogation cell. We were protected by the one-way mirror, and could clearly see Uyehara Tomie on the other side of the glass.

“I’m fine,” he said, face like stone, “When can Mom and I leave?”

I sighed, “You aren’t going to be leaving with your mom. Even if she is completely innocent, she is in no shape to care for you. She has no reliable source of income, no sanitary living place, and no savings. You’ll most likely move in with a foster parent.”

Hawks whimpered a bit and hugged his Endeavor doll tight.

A hero entered the interrogation cell, and I lightly tapped Hawks’ shoulder, “We can leave. You don’t need to see this.”

Hawks just burrowed into his doll further and shook his head, “I want to stay. I want to see what my parents have to say.”

“I don’t think that’s for the best--”

“Please?” It was then that I noticed the tears that were starting to roll down his cheeks.

“Okay. Okay.”

“Uyehara Tomie, I’ll make this as quick and painless as possible,” said the hero, “You have a right to a public defender. Do you wish to have one here with you?”

Something passed over Uyehara’s eyes, before she shook her head, “No.”

“Very well. Did you or did you not aid and abet Takami Shou throughout the past seven years of you living together?”

“I did.”

“By agreeing to this claim, are you aware that you are entering a guilty plea? That you will be held somewhat accountable for Takami’s crimes and that you will get proportional sentences for each one?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Very well. What can you tell me about Takami Shou’s criminal activity?”

“Shou was a hitman. He’d look for jobs, take them, and then come back home with his pay.”

“Did that payment include stolen cars and other property?”

Uyehara shook her head, “No. That was all Shou’s sticky fingers. He always had such an eye for beauty. And a habit of taking what didn’t belong to him.”

“Were you aware of Takami’s activity before you ran off with him?”

“Yes. I found it so romantic back then. What a man, taking what he wanted, going wherever he pleased. I fancied myself in love.”

“And your son, Keigo,” I felt Hawks drop next to me, “Was he aware of his crimes?”

Her expression soured, “Keigo. Such a waste. I wish I never had him. He ruined everything. With him around, we couldn’t go from place to place like we used to. All that boy is is a leech. All he does is take and take and take. Never gives back and provides for us like we’ve provided for him.”

I clenched my fists in my lap and listened silently to Hawks’ sniffles as they led his mother away and brought in his father. “Let’s take a break. How does some food sound?”

One vending machine hunt, quick chow-down, and bathroom break later, we were back in the room watching as the heroes tried to remain calm at a frantic Takami.

“Uyehara already told us everything, so just make this easier and talk.”

“Fuck no, I ain’t talking until my lawyer gets here,” Takami shouted.

“Even without your girlfriend’s confession, we already have enough to convict you of child abuse. Uyehara’s hands are too small to match the fingerprints on Keigo’s throat.”

Takami slammed his cuffed hands on the stained steel table in anger, “That little bastard ratted me out! I fucking knew it! I should have killed that parasite when I had the chance!”

“That’s a rash declaration--”

“It’s the fucking truth! If it wasn’t for him, I’d still be at the top of my game and rolling in dough. If I’d just snapped his neck like I wanted to instead of listening to the whore’s pleading, I wouldn’t be here right now.”

“Alright, that’s enough,” I said, scooping up Hawks and carrying him out of the room. I went to the lobby that Nightlight was sitting in, filling out forms and going over papers on a borrowed desk. An officer that was talking with her spotted me and stopped us.

“I’m Detective Teruya, and I’m the liaison for this case. Don’t worry,” he said, “I’ve already been cleared by various truth quirks within the IUCA. I’m clean of any and all suspected corruption.”

“What do you need from us?”

“The kid needs to get his testimony taken.”

“Yeah, sure,” I said blandly. I grabbed a notepad and a pen off of the desk, “What’s your name?”

“Takami Keigo.”

“Were you aware of either of your parents’ crimes?”

“No.”

“Do you wish to add any extra statement relevant to the case?”

“I just want to sleep.”

“Me too. Anything else?”

“No.”

“Do you wish to testify in the trials of Takami Shou or Uyehara Tomie?”

“No.”

“Great,” I tore the paper out of the notepad and passed it to the officer, “We’re done here. There’s your testimony. We’re going home now.”

“You can’t just--”

“Fucking. Fine. You want the hard way? We’ll do this the hard way,” I grabbed my hero license out of my pocket and held it up, “Under the Heroic Liberties Act, Section V, Subsection IV, I, Madam Nighteye, am officially taking Takami Keigo under protective custody. As his guardian, I am enforcing my right to refuse further hounding from the police, and politely ask that you make do with the testimony currently given. If further testimony is needed, it will be given at a later date after Takami Keigo is verified by myself and a medical professional to be in such a state to do so. If you refuse this request, I will report you to your superior officer, and bring the entirety of the International Underground Crimefighting Association down on your head. Do I make myself clear?”

The officer floundered over his words for a bit before nodding, “Yes ma’am.”

“Wonderful, peachy, excellent. Now if you excuse me, we’ve got a train to catch.”

*****

Mama Nighteye: It is now eleven o’clock, I have a second son sleeping against my side, and I am both mentally and physically exhausted.

Y’all Might: I was not expecting to end my patrol only to have to read over 200 messages, but let me just ask

Y’all Might: Are you okay?

I Stare Back: ^

24 Karat Gold: ^^

Thunder and Lightning: ^^^

i of the storm: ^^^^

Healing Trance: ^^^^^

Goddess of Wisdom: ^^^^^^

Mama Nighteye: Honestly?

Mama Nighteye: Not really.

Tesla but make it Japanese: michio already put tenko to bed and laid out an extra futon. you should be good to just lay the kid down, and collapse in exhaustion once you get home.

Mama Nighteye: Thank you 💖

Tesla but make it Japanese has taken [1] screenshot.

Tesla but make it Japanese: she used emojis. so blessed. so pure. never the same.

I Stare Back: no fair >:(

God™: If you want to keep all of your limbs, Imada-san, do not gloat. :)

Tesla but make it Japanese: fear

God™: :)

Mama Nighteye: The train’s just pulling into the Tokyo station. Got to go. Good night and thank you all so much.

Chapter Text

Takami Keigo looks at the bookcase.

It’s a nice bookcase, as far as bookcases go. It spans the entire wall of the room he’s laid out in, and he can’t even begin to imagine how many books are on it. He tried counting, earlier, but he couldn’t go higher than a hundred. 

There aren’t just books in the bookcase. They’re other things, too. Snow globes, and figurines, and some strange stand that holds up five little balls floating in the air. He can see it all so clearly with his special eyes, the eyes that are half from Dad, half from Mom. 

Keigo thinks he could spend hours looking at this bookcase, wondering about the stuff on it and the hero that put it all there. At least, that’s his hope. He doesn’t want to be weird, because if what Mom’s TV shows said was true, then people like him aren’t normal. And staying up all night because the animal him inside his head is telling him to hunt-kill-devour- fly isn’t normal at all. And as long as Keigo can pretend to be normal, he can stay in this cool nest with a real-life hero who’s rich enough that she can waste money on stuff like books. 

He thinks of all the other stuff Madam Nighteye showed him when she brought him to her nest. How she so gently showed him the bathroom with water that came out of a sink instead of the buckets Mom put out whenever it rained. Water that could go from cold to hot to cold again and the soap by the sink that smelled like flowers. Then she went to her bedroom, a nest within the nest, and came back out with Endeavor pajamas that were a bit big on him, but he loved the second he laid eyes on them. She let him choose where he wanted to sleep, and then laid out a futon and heaped blankets and pillows into his arms when he said he didn’t want to take a spare bedroom or kick her out of hers.

She let him rearrange the futon to his liking until the blankets and pillows were tangled up and folded into the perfect sleeping nest. When she looked at the clock and groaned a bit at the time, she brought him back to the bathroom with the sink and the flower soap, gave him a toothbrush, and told him to brush his teeth with her. 

And then she asked if he needed anything, a glass of water, a snack, a bedtime story, a lullaby, anything, before telling him goodnight and going into her nest within the nest.

Keigo said goodnight back, flipped and flopped until he got comfortable, and then started looking at the bookcase. He didn’t want to bring attention to his weirdness and tell the hero that he never slept at night because of his instincts keeping him up.

At least they gave him an excuse to plan.

Madam Nighteye said she already had a chick, and because her nest is so big, Keigo thinks she might have more. The big nest has five nests within the nest, and she had offered him to choose between two empty ones and the one that was hers. The other two had stayed closed, and the hero said they belonged to other people that weren’t there right now.

So she had chicks of her own to look after. That made Keigo nervous. He didn’t want to be like that one bird that had been on one of Mom’s documentaries; the one that was abandoned into another nest and forced the other baby birds out. 

But this nest, with the large bookcase and the flower soap and the cold-hot-cold water, was so nice. It was big and warm and it felt like he had just stepped onto a big TV screen and became a character in a show. 

Because today….today couldn’t be real. It had to be something out of a show. Heroes weren’t real, but one came in and snatched him from the nest and said that Mom and Dad were going to jail anyway. People don’t just accidentally confess a secret only to have the right person overhear it, but Mom said she wished she never had him and Dad said he wished he’d actually killed him all while he was behind that fancy glass. People don’t just close their eyes and then open them to see that they’re in a brand new place, but he had fallen asleep on the bullet train for a minute and woke to a whole new city outside the window.

Today was a TV episode, and Keigo was just the guest star that shows up to cause drama and then is never seen again. Surely, when Madam Nighteye woke up tomorrow and saw him lying there in the book room of her nest, she would act all confused about why he’s still there.

He can almost hear the dialogue now. She’ll blink the sleep out of her eyes and then laugh and say, “Oh, sweetie, you were supposed to exit the screen hours ago. Go on and head out before the commercials end.”

Maybe Keigo should go before she can do that and save himself the embarrassment.

Just as he starts to sit up in his little nest of blankets, he hears the sound of a lock clicking and sees the front door of the room start to swing open. 

“Oh, hello, Takami-kun!” says a small white animal walking through the door, “I’m sorry if I woke you.”

“You didn’t,” Keigo said, ignoring the animal him inside his head going on about small-weak-tasty- prey.

“Ah, I see. You must suffer the same problem I do. That is rather interesting, as I expected you to be some type of hawk, and hawks are diurnal. But if your quirk is less one singular species such as ‘red-tailed hawk,’ and more a mixed bag of raptor traits and characteristics, then I’d imagine you must have gotten your sleeping schedule from some sort of owl.”

Keigo just shrugged his shoulders, eyes not leaving the mouse-weasel-dog-prey that stumbled into Nighteye’s nest. He felt his feathers puff up as he accusingly asked, “Who are you?”

“Now, now, Takami-kun. I appreciate your defensiveness, but there is no need for it. I live here! It would be rather awkward if I didn’t have a key.”

“Are you Nighteye’s mate?”

The animal laughed at his confusion, “No, of course not! I’m Mirai’s clanmate! Mirai doesn’t have a mate, and if she wants one, they better hope they’re worthy of her or they will hear from me.”

Something flashed across the animal’s eyes, and Keigo’s normal mind and animal mind came to the same conclusion all at once.

Oh.

Not a small-weak-tasty- prey but a strong-dangerous-crafty- predator.

“I’m Takami Keigo,” he offered, feathers smoothing down.

“I’m Nedzu! Would you like a cup of tea, Takami-kun? If you do indeed keep a sleep schedule similar to my own, then it’s very likely we’ll be seeing much of each other in the coming years, and I think I’d like to know a little bit more about you.”

“Sure,” Keigo said, “Can we have some of the cookies Madam Nighteye gave me earlier?”

“We currently don’t have cookies, but we do have scones and tea cakes, and I can assure you, they go much better with the tea than the cookies would. Now, Takami-kun, do you know how to play chess?”

*****

It takes me a full fifteen minutes and half a cup of coffee to realize that I’m not hallucinating Baby Hawks and Nedzu sitting in the living room and watching TV together.

Nedzu’s in his specialty armchair and Baby Hawks is kind of half-dozing on the futon that is still laid out on the floor. By the time my brain has processed what my eyes are seeing, yesterday’s events come flooding back.

Right. Fukuoka, Endeavor, arrests, and accidental child acquisition.

“Morning,” I said to the two, stalling for time, “How did you sleep?”

“Takami-kun is actually sleeping now,” said Nedzu, faux cheer in his voice, “Don’t feel bad about missing that detail; the clear membranes around his eyes and multiple pairs of eyelids are easy to miss if you don’t know they’re there.”

I looked a little closer, and sure enough, the child dozing away on the futon was dead asleep.

“Huh. I could have sworn that he had regular eyelids in the anime and manga,” I said, switching to English just in case Hawks was more awake than he let on or if he woke up later, “When did you get in?”

“Around two in the morning,” Nedzu responded in the same language, “The pair that was investigating Club Karma returned a little before then, and I had no reason to stay at the agency. Takami-kun was awake and kept me company until around three-fifteen. From what I gathered, he’s used to being up and active from the hours of nine in the morning to six in the afternoon, sleeps from six to ten, is up again from ten to three-thirty, and then sleeps until nine. It should regulate itself now that he’s in a more stable environment with a more attentive guardian, but I would get him checked out by your brother regardless.”

“Orochi-nii might not be able to check him. He is my child.”

“Foster child until the court work goes through. Perfectly legal. And speaking of court work, what has Matsuno said about your case with Shimura-kun?”

“Matsuno wants to meet with me and Yagi about it. Something about a complication with some bylaw. Looks like split custody might be a bust.”

“Don’t give up quite yet, Mirai. You won’t know until you and Yagi-san sit down with Matsuno and talk. And have you told Yagi-san about Takami?”

I groaned, “Officially? No. Yagi Toshinori does not know about the second kid. Technically? Yes, he knows the whole thing from when I info-dumped in the task force chat. I wish he would just come out and tell me his identity so I could stop this whole game of ‘Which Secret Identity Knows What?’. He’s got to be suffering at least half as much as I am trying to keep it straight.”

“To be fair to Yagi-san, he’s known you for four days.”

I blinked. And then mentally tallied the days I’ve known All Might. “Oh my God, it’s been four days.”

“Mirai?”

“I-- I think I’m having a stroke, Nedzu. Four days? I’ve lost a solid decade off my life, and it’s only been four days?”

“Unless you’ve been caught in a time loop quirk or an illusionary attack, then yes, it’s been four days.”

I whimpered into my cup of coffee and gulped the rest of it down, “What do I have to bribe you with to make the next two weeks as stress-free as possible?”

“A promise to stay completely safe and help to grade my class’s papers for the next month.”

“Done. I’m already on desk duty; I can’t imagine I’d get more than a papercut.”

“Wonderful. Though I do have to apologize in advance for when you next walk into the agency. The receptionist is a familiar face.”

“As long as it’s not All for One or Midoriya Inko, I think I can handle it now that I’ve got a head’s up.”

“I’ll hold you to that. Now, how are you going to explain Takami-kun to Shimura-kun?”

“The truth, or at least an age-appropriate version,” I set the coffee cup to the side and looked at Hawks, “Tenko doesn’t need to know all the details, but if I tell him that Hawks’ father was a bad man and his mom couldn’t take care of him, then he should understand why he’s moving in.”

Nedzu nodded along sagely, “That sounds appropriate for the boys. Your younger brother should soon drop Shimura-kun off, so I’d probably notify him to assure he isn’t blindsided by this new addition to the family.”

I groaned again and got up to go find my phone, “I hate how you’re always right, Nedzu.”

“No, you don’t.”

“Let me amend that. I hate how you’re always right about stuff I really don’t want to do. I’m never going to hear the end of this from my siblings.”

“It’s a quality many find irritating, but you still have to do it.”

“I know,” I found my phone and opened up the family group chat, “But I can still drag my feet a bit. Hope you enjoy the front-row seat to the teasing because that’s all anyone’s going to get from this chat for the next day.”

*****

Oracle of Tokyo: @all I bring news.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: do tell.

The Muffin Man: how are you the first to respond???? youre never the first one to text back.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: i just got off an emergency shift. let me live.

David Shield Enthusiast: oh i know where this is going >:)

Oracle of Tokyo: So you know what’s better than one adopted son?

Oracle of Tokyo: [baby-birb.jpeg]

Oracle of Tokyo: Two adopted sons.

The Muffin Man: jafdjkjkladjdafkljkdjkfa

The Muffin Man: ANOTHER ONE?

David Shield Enthusiast: don’t act like you aren’t ecstatic.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: as your older brother i am obligated to tease you about impulsive decisions and make a pointed joke about that one pre-quirk hero you like.

Oracle of Tokyo: Which one?

Hiss Hiss Bitch: the one with the orphans.

Our Rat and Savior: Do you mean Batman, Orochi?

Hiss Hiss Bitch: yes.

Oracle of Tokyo: Not even mad. 10/10 would be compared to Batman any day.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: but as a pediatrician and a certified quirk therapist, whoever you stole your second child from can burn in hell.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: jesus christ on a fucking pogo stick, he is critically malnourished.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: and take it from a man with a full-body animal mutation, we need CALORIES people.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: predators especially need extra protein which he has obviously not been getting.

David Shield Enthusiast: hey! he has wings! maybe he’s supposed to be small so he can fly. it might not be as bad as you think.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: see, that’d be fine if he was an adult.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: but if a mutation affects growth, it shouldn’t show until puberty when he has next to no growth spurt.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: the fact that he is this small NOW indicates either severe malnutrition, internal organ problems, or dwarfism. pick your poison.

Oracle of Tokyo: Malnutrition. His family was living in poverty. I’m talking a literal shack with no running water, no electricity, and no central heating unit. I almost cried when he came to Nedzu’s and my place and was so amazed by the sink because it could make hot and cold water at will.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: was it intentional deprivation of food on the parents’ part or just shitty luck in a shitty situation?

Oracle of Tokyo: They had cable hooked up to a specialty TV that didn’t need electricity, so yeah, pretty intentional.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: then i’ll say it again. they can burn in hell.

David Shield Enthusiast: @The Muffin Man you’ve been awfully quiet. you okay?

The Muffin Man: yeah, just telling Tenko about his new brother. he’s excited.

The Muffin Man: ‘you mean i have a nii-san now? I never had a nii-san before! *gasp* i should do something special for him!’

The Muffin Man: and now he’s trying to find a new multiplayer video game that he can play with his new bro.

The Muffin Man: but dont be offended if i don’t read the chat for a while. i know Oro needs to rant but i dont think i can handle the Repressed Childhood Memories™ today.

Oracle of Tokyo: Another bad pain day?

The Muffin Man: yes

The Muffin Man: i didn’t listen to you yesterday and now i have Regrets™ 

Oracle of Tokyo: Take your meds and SLEEP, you fool.

The Muffin Man: i’m dropping Tenko off in an hour and then doing just that.

David Shield Enthusiast: now that the serious stuff is semi out of the way

David Shield Enthusiast: it’s ribbing time!

Oracle of Tokyo: And suddenly I can’t read.

David Shield Enthusiast: you can’t avoid us forever!!!!

Oracle of Tokyo: I can sure try!

*****

Keigo wakes to the sound of clinking and some soft music coming from somewhere. Nedzu has the TV turned off and is reading something. He hasn’t noticed that Keigo’s awake again, and because Keigo doesn’t want to annoy him, he starts looking at the bookcase and examines its contents in the morning light.

He gets to thirty-three books before a voice cuts through the mostly silent, peaceful morning.

“Hello, Yagi-san. I have something to tell you,” he hears Madam Nighteye say from the other room that has the clinking and the music, “No, nothing wrong. It’s just something that’s come up.”

There’s a short pause before she continues, “This is somewhat confidential, but I have another kid staying with me right now. And if he wants me to, I’m open to adopting him. It’ll be a while until that can happen; we have to get through his parents’ trials and sentencings before I can transfer from emergency custody to full custody, and then it’s a matter of ensuring that he has no other relatives that want to take him in and then the actual adoption process itself--”

She cuts herself off and stops talking as another pause silences her, “Yeah, that’s an apt way of putting it. I just wanted to call and tell you about this now, because he’s going to be a part of my and Tenko-kun’s life going forward. And if you’re going to be one of Tenko’s parents, then I’m telling you right now, you have to also be comfortable around Keigo-kun, too. I’m not going to demand you do anything outrageous, but I can’t let you--”

Another pause.

“What?” Nighteye whispered.

“N-no! I’d never stop you from applying for joint custody, but you can’t just jump into this blind, Yagi-san! You haven’t even met him yet!”

There’s another pause, this one much longer and weighty than the others, “Yagi-san, I had no idea….but still, how about you try and make these decisions after you’ve met Keigo-kun face-to-face. Michio’s bringing Tenko to my place in half an hour. Why don’t you come then and you can have breakfast with us? No bacon, this time, but it’ll still be good, I promise. We can just talk, and you can see if Keigo is comfortable around you.”

“That sounds good. See you then,” said Nighteye, and she stopped talking. The sound of clinking and the soft music continued from the other room, but silence reigned strong throughout the nest.

“It’s rude to eavesdrop, Takami-kun,” said Nedzu.

Keigo winced. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be. Even if it is rude, I thought you needed to hear that.”

“Why does she….she met me yesterday, and whoever she was talking with hasn’t even known me that long. Why are they both jumping at the chance to adopt me?”

“It looks like you’re suffering from the same mental block that I, Mirai, and many others have had to hurdle over the years,” Nedzu set his book aside and looked at him, “Unfortunately, comforting others is not a skill I am extremely experienced in, so I shall inform Mirai and defer to her superior skill.”

“My superior skill in what, exactly?” Nighteye asked, walking into the room.

“Your superiority in reassuring people that they deserve love.”

The look on her face softened, and she kneeled down next to Keigo’s futon-nest, “I’m guessing you heard my phone call with Yagi-san?”

“Why’re you even doing this?” Keigo pushed past her question, worried that if he admitted it, he’d get in trouble for sticking his nose in her business, “Don’t heroes on TV just drop kids off at orphanages and not this.” He waved his arms towards the room and looked at her.

She chuckled, “The people on TV don’t always tell stories like they happen in the real world. A lot of heroes take responsibility for any kids they save and don’t have a great living situation. True, most leave it to their agencies to handle, but me deciding to take you home isn’t that unusual.”

“Then why aren’t I at your agency? Why did you decide to help me?”

“Ah. I see,” Nighteye sighed before continuing in a soft voice, “It’s less about why I helped and more why did I help you, isn’t it?”

“Takami-kun, the life you’ve led so far seems normal. And even worse, you think it’s what you deserve. This thinking is no fault of your own, but rather the fault of those that raised you and those that haven’t helped you previously.”

“I am going to tell you something. You might not believe it, not for a while yet, but it is important that you hear these words and come to understand them someday. What you’ve lived through is not normal. It is not normal for you to hide your natural reactions to things, it is not normal for you to think of basic necessities as luxurious, and it is not normal for you to go days without food.”

“But that’s just how life is,” Keigo protested.

“Just because something is standard for you does not make it normal, Takami-kun. And one day, far in the future, you are going to be working on your homework, I will be humming along to some music while I fill out paperwork, Tenko-kun will be playing some video game of his, and Nedzu’ll be grading papers, and you are going to have a moment when you understand that that is what a normal child’s life should be like. And at that moment, you will feel angry, and sad, and grateful, and a million other things, because you will finally comprehend that a part of your life was stolen from you, and you will never be able to get it back. But it will be okay. Because I and the others will be right there to help you remember that you are okay and that your new normal is much happier and healthier than your old one ever was.”

“Because you will have people who care for you, genuinely and completely. And that, above all else, is what makes life special,” Madam Nighteye finished.

Keigo reached out for his Endeavor doll, clutched it, and hugged it tight to his chest. “That’s not going to happen.”

“Trust me, it will. It might take a while, but you’ll heal and grow stronger than you were before. But enough of this gloomy back-and-forth,” Nighteye stood up and reached down her hand, “Who wants breakfast?”

Chapter Text

Tenko drags Michio-oji down the street and towards Night-sama and Nedzu-san’s house.

“Come on, come on, come on!”

“Watch the boxes, Tenko-kun,” Tenko slows a bit for Michio-oji to balance the two boxes from his bakery, but doesn’t stop his quick pace, “You’re really excited, aren’t you?”

“I’ve got a nii-san!” is all Tenko can say in response, “I’ve never had one before, and I’ve gotta’ meet him.”

“Ha! Can’t argue with that. I was super excited too when I got my siblings.”

“When’d you and Night-sama meet anyway?”

“We met when I was six and nee-chan was ten, but we didn’t become siblings until I was seven and nee-chan was eleven.” Michio-oji’s voice sounded sadder, and when Tenko looked back at him, he saw that his face was less happy and more bittersweet than it was before.

He stopped his dragging and hugged Michio-oji, “Sorry.”

“What’s this for?” he asked with a chuckle.

“I made you sad.”

“What? No, no, no, Tenko-kun. You didn’t make me sad. There’s just a lot of memories with nee-chan and Oro-nii and Mana-nee. And sometimes memories can hurt to think about. The memories are what made me sad, not you.”

Tenko’s mind flashed to Mon and Nee-san and Mom and Gran-Gran and Gramp-Gramp, “Yeah. They do hurt.”

“They do. But sometimes, they get easier to talk about and think about as time goes on. And that’s why I think it’s better to answer your questions than to tell you not to ask them. So, what questions do you have?”

“How did you and Night-sama meet?”

“Nee-chan, me, and your aunt and uncle were all in the same foster home.”

“What’s a foster home?”

“Foster homes are where kids go to live with stand-in parents when their real parents can’t take care of them. If my sister didn’t find you, decide to adopt you, and become your new mom, then you probably would have gone to one.”

“Are all foster parents like Night-sama?”

Michio-oji gave his hand a tight squeeze, “I like to think most of them are, but in my experience, no. Then again, I could just be super unlucky. But I do know that my siblings do everything they can to make sure any child they come across goes home to the best place for them, and not just any foster home that has room.”

“Are you and Night-sama like me? Are your parents….dead?”

“No.” Michio-oji shook his head. “I know mine aren’t, but I don’t know about Mirai-nee. Oro-nii and Mana-nee’s are, though, so if you ever miss your parents a ton, you might feel better if you talked to them. They’ll know more about that than I would.”

Tenko almost stumbled in surprise before regaining his footing and continued rushing to Night-sama’s house, “Then why were you and Night-sama in the foster home?”

“In the simplest terms, my parents didn’t want me,” Michio-oji’s sad look was back, but he didn’t stop talking, “They had a very picture-perfect idea of what their kids and their family would look like, and when I didn’t fit that, they disowned me.”

“Disowned?”

“It means they told the world that I wasn’t their family anymore, and after they went to the courts and the courts agreed, it was official.”

“That sounds terrible.”

“It was. Is. But as bad as it felt, I don’t have to worry about them anymore. They aren’t my family. My family is Mana-nee, Orochi-nii, Mirai-nee, Nedzu-san, and you. And so long as you guys want me, then who cares about some old geezers who wouldn’t know how great I am?”

Tenko shivered and was silent for a bit; stride less than half the speed it was before. Right when they saw Night-sama’s house come into sight, Tenko decided to ask one last question, “Michio-oji?”

“Yes?”

“Why did your not-parents disown you?”

“Oh,” Michio looked a little thrown by the question, but his face was more surprised than sad, “Because they’re a bunch of closed-minded meanies, and I’m different than everybody else.”

And with that, they walked up to the front door, and Michio-oji knocked, “Oi, nee-chan! Open up! I’ve got excessive amounts of Pro Pastries and another tiny underfed nephew to smother.”

The door opened, but it wasn’t Night-sama or Nedzu-san that opened it.

“Yagi-san!” Tenko ran forward and hugged the giant man, “What are you doing here?”

“Hello, Young Tenko! Sasaki-san invited me over to breakfast. I wanted to meet the other child she’s taken in, and then we’re going to go to the courthouse and meet with Matsuno-san about the adoption process. Who’s with you?”

“This is Michio-oji, he’s Night-sama’s younger brother,” Tenko turned around to introduce him, but Michio-oji was texting something on his phone, “What are you doing, ojisan?”

“Oh, nothing, Tenko.” He put his phone away and matched Yagi-san’s bright smile, “Let’s head inside. So tell me, Yagi-san, is there a Mrs. Yagi in your life?”

*****

The Muffin Man: so you know how neechan’s trying to co-adopt??

Hiss Hiss Bitch: yeah?

David Shield Enthusiast: pretty sure his name’s Yagi.

The Muffin Man: well i’m not saying i’d climb him like a tree….

The Muffin Man: [damn-son.jpeg]

The Muffin Man: but that’s kind of exactly what i’m saying.

David Shield Enthusiast: 👀

Hiss Hiss Bitch: 👀

The Muffin Man: anyways @Oracle of Tokyo

The Muffin Man: WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL US ABOUT THIS ABSOLUTE HUNK OF A MAN????

David Shield Enthusiast: @Oracle of Tokyo

Hiss Hiss Bitch: @Oracle of Tokyo

The Muffin Man: @Oracle of Tokyo

Our Rat and Savior: Mirai currently has her hands filled with preparing breakfast, monitoring two children, and acting as hostess for guests, therefore she cannot answer her phone.

The Muffin Man: but Nedzu, sir, i need answers ლ(ಠ益ಠლ)

Our Rat and Savior: While I’m sure you’re eager for more information, you must be aware that Mirai’s had a stressful few days and has asked me as a personal favor to make the next two weeks as stress-free as possible. And that means removing all potential sources of stress from Mirai’s life. So kindly keep any invasive questions to a minimum :)

The Muffin Man: Fear.

Our Rat and Savior: And with that being said.

Our Rat and Savior has kicked [1] user from the chat for [1] hour.

Our Rat and Savior: Yagi-san is off-limits, as he is a potential candidate for The List.

David Shield Enthusiast: o shit really?

The Muffin Man: awwwwww……….

Hiss Hiss Bitch: what’s the catch?

Our Rat and Savior: What do you mean, Orochi-san?

Hiss Hiss Bitch: people are either on the list, or they’re not. there’s no real in between, so why the hesitancy?

David Shield Enthusiast: wait he’s got a point.

Our Rat and Savior: Yagi-san has multiple factors that could impact his placement, but need more time to see how they develop.

Our Rat and Savior: Personality-wise, Yagi-san is nearly perfect. He’s kind, intelligent, humble, and holds near-identical morals to Mirai both on and off the field of heroics. He’s completely on board with raising Shimura-kun and Takami-kun has clearly communicated with Mirai thus far about everything that could potentially impact her or the children and has made Mirai laugh by telling her comedic anecdotes from work.

David Shield Enthusiast: i don’t want to get my hopes up, but I feel a but coming on.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: me 2

The Muffin Man: me 3

Our Rat and Savior: Unfortunately, he is not perfect. My biggest concerns are his inability to strike a healthy work-homelife balance, his habit of keeping secrets, and his mindset of having to be completely self-reliant.

Our Rat and Savior: He’s already agreed to go to therapy at Mirai’s request, and that should help, but we have to wait and see if these three habits fade over time. If he goes through with the adoptions and becomes a father, he will have to pull back on work hours out of necessity. And I have no doubt that he will come clean to Mirai about everything eventually, but his bullheaded insistence that he must carry the world on his shoulders is just going to hurt himself and Mirai in the long run.

Our Rat and Savior: For both his sake and others, it would be best if he learned to delegate now and take more personal time as needed. Otherwise, he will very likely pass the point of no return and critically harm himself.

The Muffin Man: oof.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: ^^

David Shield Enthusiast: not to out anybody, but does Yagi’s self-reliance stem from his,,,ugh,,, ya’know

David Shield Enthusiast: his status as a non-meta-human?

Our Rat and Savior: While Yagi’s quirkless status may have some negative impact on how he views himself and the world, it is not the only factor driving his self-derogatory and passively harmful mindset. It is, however, something to look into and I may have to recommend that his future therapist discuss internalized-quirkism.

The Muffin Man: ajafdkjakajjadfkjadkjndcjkadijafnc

The Muffin Man: AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

Hiss Hiss Bitch: you okay?

The Muffin Man: i’m fine, but HOLY SHIT!

The Muffin Man: i am texting Chieko as we speak. we need to make another tshirt and induct Yagi into The Club™

The Muffin Man: forget climbing him like a tree, i am forcibly adopting this man as my older brother

The Muffin Man: no, wait, even better.

The Muffin Man: @Our Rat and Savior Yagi officially has my vote to be put on The List.

The Muffin Man: that way, he can LEGALLY be my older brother instead ヽ(´▽`)/

Our Rat and Savior: Very well, Yagi-san’s candidacy for becoming a part of The Official List of Sasaki Mirai’s Potential Romantic Partners has been recognized. Any seconds?

David Shield Enthusiast: when you say he made her laugh….

Our Rat and Savior: Full-blown laughing fit with other chuckles when Mirai told me about the incident.

David Shield Enthusiast: okay, aye.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: aye.

Our Rat and Savior: Motion recognized. Yagi shall be added to the list if he passes the follow-up review in six months.

The Muffin Man: now i just have to make the tshirt. 

*****

Yagi Toshinori is not the most socially aware. 

He’s got a habit of speaking too loudly at inopportune moments, stumbles over his words more often than not, and has been told that his intensely sunny disposition can alienate others, especially those that read his optimism as an inability to take things seriously.

The point is, Yagi Toshinori is a man that doesn’t always know how to read the room, but even he knows when he’s being flirted with.

And Sasaki Michio was flirting with him. Or, at least, he was until he checked his phone, sent a flurry of texts, and rapidly changed topics from Toshinori’s nonexistent love life to asking his opinion on various pre-quirk superhero movies. And although Toshinori was more than receptive to this change in topic (he would never pass up a chance to fanboy about the classics), he still felt the change odd and a bit out of nowhere. 

“So are you more of an Iron Man guy or a Batman guy?” the young man asked him as Young Tenko was showing a video game case to Nedzu, “I can’t tell which way you lean.”

“I actually prefer Captain America,” Toshinori said, sizing up Michio and trying to find a secret motive behind the comic book questions, “And if I had to choose a DC hero, it would either be Superman or Wonder Woman. I prefer the paragon heroes to the broody loner types and the sarcastic cynics.”

“Yes, but in terms of quirkless heroes,” the emphasis on quirkless sounded pointed, but the smile spreading across the other man’s face dispersed any possible negative connotation, “Which would you pick?”

“Nightwing.” 

Michio guffawed a bit, mumbling something under his breath.

“What was that?”

“Hm?” Michio looked back to him and smirked, “You just reminded me of a saying our family has: when you’re forced to decide between two impossible choices--”

“Grit your teeth and make a third,” Nedzu chimed in, finishing the phrase, “We’ve all had to invoke it at one point or another. We really should just translate it to Latin and slap it on a family crest by now.”

“Like in King’s Throne? ” Tenko asks. At Michio’s nod, he lights up, “Can ours have a dragon?”

“A badger would be more appropriate,” Michio said, “Either that or a falcon for the new kid. Where is he, anyway?”

“Takami-kun is hiding out in the kitchen with Mirai. She’s half cooking, half calming him down.”

Yagi winced a bit at Nedzu’s words, remembering how the young boy had chittered in fear and then flew on top of the fridge when he had loudly barged into the kitchen earlier. “We should let Mirai-san handle him for now.”

Young Tenko held up the video game box and waved around the technicolored casing, “But I have to make sure that he likes the game I picked for us.”

“I’m sure you can wait a little longer to give it to him,” Toshinori tried to assure the boy, “What’s the game about, anyway?”

This was, evidently, the correct question to ask, as Young Tenko held their attention for the following twenty minutes as he waxed poetic about the hero game he had carefully selected to play with Young Keigo.

By the time the breathless and bright-eyed boy had finished with his spiel, Mirai-san called them into the dining room and declared that breakfast was ready. The four of them shuffled towards the table piled high with eggs, rice, fruit, and miso soup, and watched idly as Miraii-san’s two young wards laid eyes on each other for the first time.

Both boys were nervous, undoubtedly so. But there was a vast contrast between the two looks of anxiety. While Tenko was cautious wonder and eager anticipation, Keigo was shifting looks and closed-off uncertainty. It may have just been the extra animalistic characteristics or the heightened fight or flight response present in the boy, but Toshinori got the feeling that Young Keigo was one wrong move away from bolting out the window.

Young Tenko, either oblivious to the other’s feelings or ignoring them on purpose, just beamed and held up the video game, “Hidoyoulikeheroes?”

Young Keigo slowly blinked, “Yes?” 

“Yay!” Tenko waved the colorful game around, “Do you want to play Real Pro Fighter Power with me?”

“....can I be Endeavor?”

“Only if I can be All Might!”

“Deal,” and just like that, both boys relaxed and sat down to talk about heroes over breakfast.

Mirai-san sighed a little wistfully, “How do kids make friends so easily?”

“I haven’t the slightest idea.” Toshinori sat down, seeing that Nedzu had made himself comfortable in a specialty high stool at the table. “It’s just one of the many wonders of youth.”

“Here, here,” said Michio, “Mirai, I brought Pro Pastries for Keigo. I know he’ll have to wait until Oro clears him, but I also know you aren’t exactly stocked to feed another mutation quirk.”

“Thank you, Michi.” She piled fruit onto her plate and started eating, “But we need to hear back from a doctor first. And despite what Nedzu says, I cannot just insist that he be given to our brother.”

“It’s still legal,” Nedzu piped up from where he was plating eggs onto his and Young Keigo’s platters.

“But not necessarily ethical.”

Toshinori chuckled and looked to the boys, “How have you two been settling in? It must be quite an adjustment coming here.”

“It’s weird but nice,” Tenko said. Keigo nodded in agreement but stayed silent.

“What’s been your favorite part?”

Keigo, once again, stayed silent, but Tenko’s face lit up when he easily answered, “Night-sama’s songs!”

Hearing his answer, Mirai-san choked a bit, “Really? That’s your favorite? I thought you would have picked the video games for sure.”

“The video games are nice, but I had video games before. I didn’t have the songs.”

She chuckled a bit but relented, “Alright then.”

“What songs?”

Tenko turned to Young Keigo with a gasp of horror, “You haven’t heard Night-sama’s songs yet?”

“No.”

“You’re missing out,” said Michio, pointing his fork at his sister, “Nee-chan’s lullabies are hands-down the best. Nothing can lift a bad mood than nee-chan singing your song.”

“Can the grateful song be my song?”

Mirai-san looked a little overwhelmed, but agreed, “Sure, What a Wonderful World is all yours.”

“Nedzu, do you have a song?” Keigo asked, looking towards the mammal.

“I have two, Takami-kun,” said Nedzu, “They’re both very dear to me, and I have fond memories attached to them both.”

“....can I have a song?”

Mirai-san’s expression softened, “How about I sing you one tonight before you go to bed?”

Keigo nodded and started to eat his eggs once more.

“And if that’s that, let’s get back to eating,” Mirai-san said enthusiastically, reaching for the eggs, “So, Michi, how’s business been at the bakery?”

*****

The topic of songs must have stuck with me because when Michio busted into the kitchen while I was washing the dishes, he caught me humming under my breath.

“Where should I put the Pro Pastries?” he asked.

“Empty counter space by the toaster,” I pointed at the corner of the counter and went back to scrubbing. The two boxes were set down and Michi leaned back against the space and breathed.

“Still a bad pain day?” I asked.

“Worse than yesterday,” he started rubbing at his shoulders, “Do you have some ibuprofen I could borrow?”

“I wouldn’t take any if I were you. You’d have to wait to take your actual meds. But I’ve got some Behemoth Balm if you want it?”

My brother’s eyes went wide, “I wouldn’t. The boys could--”

“The boys are getting dressed with some help from Yagi-san. I’ll be quick, and they won’t walk in.” I shot down his protestings with a look and pulled out the first aid kit we kept under the sink, “One-time offer, take it or leave it.”

Michio breathed, shook out his shoulders, and exhaled, “Okay.” 

He turned around and quickly pulled off his shirt. My breath caught in my lungs, just like they always did when I saw the scars on his back. The red angry, jagged things crisscrossed Michio’s back from neck to hip, but the majority of them settled them on his shoulder blades. With a calm, steady hand, I dipped two fingers in the balm and brought them to his back.

I hated the scars. Loathed them. But in a way, I loved them, too. They were a reminder of something I had a tendency to forget: something that my canon counterpart only realized on his deathbed.

I have the power to change the future. And I would change it, as best as I could.

As my mind wandered, my humming turned to singing, and Michio’s song sprouted from my lips.

“I close my eyes and I can see,

A world that’s waiting up for me,

That I call my own.

Through the dark, through the door,

Through where no one’s been before,

But it feels like home.”

Michi stiffened under my hand before loosening his tense muscles even further and melting into the counter.

“They can say, they can say it all sounds crazy,

They can say, they can say I’ve lost my mind.

I don’t care, I don’t care, so call me crazy.

We can live in a world that we design.”

When I hit the chorus, Michio joined in and our voices started to blend in harmony.

“‘Cause every night I lie in bed,

The brightest colors fill my head,

A million dreams are keeping me awake.

I think of what the world could be,

A vision of the one I see,

A million dreams is all it’s gonna take.

Oh, a million dreams for the world we’re gonna make.”

I stopped my singing and lifted my hands away, “Done.”

“Thanks,” he pulled his shirt back on and hopped up to sit on the counter, “Do you know what shirt size Yagi is?”

“No, why?”

Michio grinned, “Chieko and I are making him a shirt for the club.”

It took a minute, but once it dawned on me what club Michio was talking about, I started protesting, “No, absolutely not!”

“Relax, I won’t scare your boy off.”

I was actually protesting because of All Might’s secret quirk, but yeah, let’s go with overbearing siblings and coworkers scaring off my future co-parent. “Michio--”

“You can’t stop me, nee-chan.”

“Michio, please--”

“I already told Chieko.”

“Michio!”

“We’re ready!” and speak of the poor man, there All Might was with Tenko and Keigo, “Come, Mirai-san, to the courthouse.”

“And make sure to swing by the agency later, Yagi-san. A friend and I got something for you.”

“That wasn’t necessary,” All Might smiled, but I just groaned.

“Know what? Fine, do whatever. But when you kill poor Yagi-san, no whining to me, okay?”

Michio pumped a fist into the air, while All Might just looked concerned, “What was that about killing--”

“Got everything?” I asked the boys. When they both nodded, I ushered them out the door, “Come on, Yagi-san, we can’t be late.”

He followed us out, but didn’t stop his questions, “Is your brother going to murder me in your agency later?”

“No. But he might kill me of embarrassment. Love him, would die for him, but God is he overeager at times.”

That didn’t answer any of All Might’s questions, and he kept inquiring about my brother’s dastardly plan to murder me via workplace humiliation all the way to the courthouse and our meeting with Matsuno.

Chapter Text

All Might, Keigo, Tenko, and I were ushered straight into a conference room the second we walked through the doors leading to Matsuno’s office. It was a familiar procedure for me, as I was always led into this room when I had my biweekly meetings with Matsuno and the paralegals about my criminal reports. But, it undoubtedly felt much more important and official to Tenko and Keigo, who had never been in a place or environment like this.

“Be polite,” I reminded them, “Matsuno-san and his employees are good people, and they’re going to help us convince everyone that you get to stay with us.”

“Yes, Night-sama,” Tenko said, while Keigo just nodded.

My eyes turned to the man squished in the chair next to me, “Do you need the same reminder, Yagi-san?”

He laughed. Not his big, booming laugh that he always let loose as All Might, but a softer, more genuine, belly-aching one. “No, no. I’ve had enough meetings with PR, merchandising, legal, and general administration to know how to behave.”

“Good. Because I can guarantee that Matsuno’s going to be cross with us.”

“Why’s that?”

“For the very first time, I am intentionally making his life difficult. And if Matsuno-san is anything, it’s a whiner when things get overly difficult.”

I pulled out my briefcase and prepped the files I would need. After checking the time, and setting a timer for eight minutes, I let the conversation die and played a quick game of I Spy with the boys. Sure enough, when the eight minutes were up and my watch buzzed, Matsuno casually opened the door to the conference room and stepped through.

Matsuno was a graying man in his late fifties with pine green skin and steel-gray eyes. His glasses were crooked on his face, and his tie was a bit looser than normal, overall giving him a small air of dishevelment. 

“Well, Nighteye, you’ve finally done it,” he tossed the files he was carrying onto the table and threw himself into the chair across from us, “You had a good run. Five full years is much longer than anybody else, but you’ve finally done it. You’ve personally forced me to work overtime.”

I let out a low whistle. “Oh no, it’s worse than I thought.”

In my head, Matsuno was the IUCA’s district attorney. In actuality, he was one of many district attorneys assigned to Tokyo, but to me and every other underground hero in the region, he was ours and ours exclusively. He was one of the only lawyers we’ve encountered with the grit, stubbornness, and patience to deal with us and our general predisposition of dogging paperwork, and was definitely one of the only lawyers with enough guts to drag my colleagues out of the agency by the ear and force them to take the stand.

In short, Matsuno was professional, good at his job, and struck fear and admiration into the IUCA’s hearts in equal measures. And if someone forced him to work overtime, then that meant they were either critically behind on their legal reports, or they had mismanaged a case so badly that Matsuno was going to dress them down until they cried.

Eager to ensure that I did not cry in front of the children, I hastily handed over my reports from the past few days, “Here’s my caseload from Fukuoka. Transfer papers are signed, mismanagement report is documented, all of my statements are in order, and temporary custody is already filed for.”

“I’m not talking about your trip to Fukuoka, although I would be happy to know why I received no less than a dozen charges from just as many heroes filed against Endeavor within the last twenty-four hours. I’m talking about you and your decision to up and adopt two children out of the blue.”

Matsuno opened the top file, “Shimura-kun, Takami-kun, do you want to have these two people as your parents?”

“Yes!”

“....yes.”

“Wonderful, that’s all you need to stay for. The rest of this is going to be boring legal jargon that will probably go over your heads. If you want to leave the room for a moment, I know Shimura-kun liked the old Atari gaming system set up in the break room.”

Tenko gasped, “Come on, nii-san. We have to play Pong.”

“Stay together, and don’t wander off,” I called after them as they raced out of the room. With a sigh, I slid Matsuno one more file, “Will this help soften the blow any?”

He glanced over it before pushing it to the side, “Thank you for getting the Kawashima file completed, but it’s not going to change what I have to say. Essentially, Yagi-san,” he acknowledged All Might for the very first time, “There is no way I can get you legal custody of the children. I’m sorry.”

“WHAT?” All Might and I shouted in unison.

“Why not?” I asked.

“Surely that can’t be the case,” he agreed, “I have a steady source of income, first aid training, and a valid foster license. Why in the world would I be denied?”

The lawyer sighed and pulled out the first paper from within the file, “Statute eighty-two, article twelve: in the process of adopting a child with a confirmed quirk, if a quirked adult and a quirkless adult are both filing for custody, the quirked adult will take precedence, as they will be more suited to meet the quirked child’s needs.”

Matsuno let his words sink in and set the paper back in the file, “Because you’re both filing for custody, the courts will legally be forced to side in Nighteye’s favor, as she has a quirk. The only way for Yagi to gain custody of Shimura-kun and Takami-kun is for Nighteye to drop her custody request. Either way, one of you will be forced to walk away without the kids.”

“And because I pulled the emergency custody card for both of them, we’ve got a year to sort this out before they’re removed from my care and placed in the foster system,” I pinched the bridge of my nose and started to rub at it, “Fuck. Talk about a Catch-22.”

“This is blatant quirkless discrimination,” All Might argued, “Why hasn’t this been brought to light before?”

“I’m sure when that law was passed one hundred and fifty years ago, it was with the best of intentions in mind. Quirks were still new, and the everyday person didn’t know how to deal with them. And not to mention that quirk hate crimes were at an all-time high, especially against children, who are generally more vulnerable,” Matsuno folded his hands and leveled a look at us, “But it’s poorly suited for our modern world. Regardless, we must examine how we plan to continue from here.”

“Nighteye should receive full custody,” All Might quickly answered.

“Hey now, don’t say that so hastily,” I countered, “I know what Tenko-kun means to you, and both boys deserve to have a father in their lives.”

“Thank you for thinking about me, but maybe this is a sign that I’m not cut out for fatherhood.” He rubbed at the back of his neck and shrugged, “It’s not like I’ll disappear from their lives. I’ll just be Uncle Toshinori, instead of their father.”

“They already have an uncle. Three of them, in fact. Matsuno-san,” I looked to him, “No one else has filed for custody. If we get a sympathetic judge, is it possible that split-custody could still be on the table?”

Matsuno let out a large breath and considered it, “Maybe. But this is a six-month process at best. If you get denied, you might have to be separated from the boys for a time before you can try again solo. Are you sure you want to do that?”

Toshinori and I locked eyes for a moment, before turning back to him, “Is it possible to give us a little time to talk it over?”

“I can give you a week. The longer you wait to make a decision, the smaller the chance you get the kids before time runs out.”

“A week is fine,” I gathered my things and rose from the table, “Is that all?”

“That’s all, Madam Nighteye. It was nice meeting you, Yagi-san. Here’s my number in case you have any questions.” Matsuno passed him a business card, bowed his head, and dismissed himself out of the room.

All Might looked at the business card before turning to me, “Well that was….enlightening?”

“It was ridiculous, is what it was,” I shrugged my jacket back on and double-checked the latches on my case, “Michio and Athena are going to have kittens when they hear.”

“So is Torino.” He stood and tucked the card into his shirt pocket. “Are situations like this common? Are there more laws that keep quirkless people from living their normal lives?”

“Yes,” I bitterly seethed thinking about some of the by-laws and unwritten societal rules I’ve come across over the years. “They are. And they’re a big reason that Orochi-nii, Nedzu, and I have a few dozen half-baked plans to take over the government.”

I led us down the corridor and to the break room where Matsuno had sent the boys, “Please don’t bring this up to the kids quite yet. I want to talk this over with Nedzu and finalize our plan of action so we can answer any questions they might have.”

“I agree. They’re still adjusting to everything. They don’t need the threat of it all being taken away.”

Relief washed over me at All Might’s agreement, and we stepped in on the kids playing on the Atari.

“Sorry for interrupting,” I said, “Are you two ready to go?”

“Please, can we finish our game?” Tenko asked, “We’re almost done.”

I hid a smile and pretended to think, “We-elll… we do have a bit of time before we promised to meet Michio-oji at the agency. I guess we could stay for a game or two.”

“You’re right, Sasaki-san. We do have a bit of time. But only if these two young men are willing to share a game with some old adults like us.”

Tenko cheered and Keigo cracked a small smile.

“If it’s a game you want, Yagi-san, it’s a game you’ll get.” I grabbed a controller and sat criss-cross-applesauce on the ground. “But I’ll warn you, I’m a master at pre-quirk games.”

“Really? That’s great,” he reached for the other controller and sat down next to me, “Because so am I. May the best player win?”

I smirked a bit as the screen loaded the new game, “Bring it on.”

*****

The video games had gotten Toshinori’s mind off the terrible news, but he still couldn’t completely shake the feeling of anger felt in the meeting with Matsuno-san.

It rattled him. Had he really become so detached from the plights of the quirkless, the plights he had dealt with for a solid third of his life? He had grown up quirkless. He knew how bad people like him were treated. 

And yet. 

And yet, he had barely even given them a second thought since returning to Japan.

As their party of four walked towards the IUCA headquarters, Toshinori’s mind wandered. What had changed? What had happened to that quirkless fourteen-year-old who was determined to become a hero no matter the odds? Had he died the moment Nana had given him a hair and a quirk? Or had it been a slow, agonizing death? One that continued as he squandered his influence as the number one hero without lifting a finger to lighten the burdens of the people he used to belong to.

Toshinori almost stumbled when they suddenly halted in front of the agency doors. Nighteye let out a sigh, and turned to him, “I do apologize for whatever my brother has planned. With any luck, I can cut his plan short and make him go home and take his effing med.” The last part was said bitterly in English, causing the boys to give her a confused look.

“Do not worry about me. Are you staying to work?”

“No, just picking a few things up and then heading home. I was thinking of introducing the boys to Ghibli movies.”

“That sounds delightful.” He opened the door and held it open for them. They all entered to see a young man no more than eighteen manning the front desk.

“Welcome to the International Underground Crimefighting Agency. Do you need any help?”

“No, we’re fine. Just here to pick up a few things.”

“Well, in that case, may I see your heroing license?”

“Sure thing,” Nighteye pulled out her violet license and handed it over.

The boy looked it over and then lit up, “Oh, you’re the one I’m supposed to ask if I have any questions!”

Nighteye laughed, “Not surprised. Any concerns right now?”

“No, just getting into the swing of things,” he rubbed at his neck and smiled sheepishly, “It’s not much different from my old job, but the faces and the people are new.”

“Those’ll come with time,” she waved off the boy’s worry and smiled, “Do feel free to ask me anything, though, mister…”

“ Bubaigawara Jin.”

“I-- I’m sorry. Did you just say Bubai-- Bubaiga--”

“Yagi-san!” came Sasaki Michio’s voice. He turned towards the sound and saw that the young man and a heroine from the Yukai Task Force were waving him over. He gave a quick goodbye to Nighteye, who was still stumbling over the receptionist’s name and made a quick beeline for the pair.

“Hello, Michio-san. How might I help you?”

“You could start by putting on this t-shirt.” He passed him a black shirt that seemed to be about his size. 

Baffled, Toshinori unfolded it, “You didn’t have to get me any….” he trailed off as he took in the black article of clothing.

It was a plain black shirt, save for the large white text written across it. There, stark against the black backdrop was the phrase, ‘Quirkless Badass #3’. He flipped it around to see that the back had a similar phrase, ‘I may be powerless, but I am NOT USELESS.’

“Congrats, man. You’re officially the third member of the club,” and with that, Michio shrugged off his jacket to reveal a matching, ‘Quirkless Badass #2’ stamped across his chest.

“Always nice to meet another quirkless person,” said the heroine, zipping down her hero suit to reveal her matching, ‘Quirkless Badass #1.’ “Name’s Kutsuki Chieko, but call me Athena when I’m on duty.”

Toshinori just stared at the shirt for a moment, before he looked up at the two people before him.

“Come on, put it on. I want to get a picture,” said Michio, pulling out his phone.

“I can’t--”

“Sure you can,” the hero, the quirkless hero, insisted, “We’ve got to induct you into the club.”

“I couldn’t possibly--”

Michio looked up at him, and something flashed in his eyes, “Oh. Oh, Chieko. Might not be the best idea.”

“What are you talking about, it’s just a--”

“I think he might have a reason for not wanting to change quick in the open.”

“He’s a guy, it’s not like he has to worry about flashing his bra.”

“I’m saying he and I might have matching gifts from our late parents. Or foster parents.”

“What are you…oh. Oh my God, I am so sorry. Fuck, Nighteye said in the group chat that Shimura Nana was your foster mother, of course, there’s going to be a reason your birth parents lost custody.” And suddenly, the young woman was bowing rapidly in apology. “Please ignore my unthinking words.”

“No, it’s not that at all,” Toshinori started waving his hands worriedly, utterly confused, “I’m just flustered. I’m not very good at socializing.”

“But still. I of all people should be aware of what we go through every day and be more sensitive about such topics.”

“It’s fine, really,” he assured her, “I’m just worried about wasting too much time. Nighteye mentioned a Ghibli marathon with the boys, and I don’t know when we’re going to leave.”

“Then that’s fine. We can get a picture later,” Michio said, smiling, “But I have so many questions for you! I hear you’re All Might’s secretary. What’s that like?”

“Busy, I guess. I’m in the office whenever All Might is, usually even later. But the pay’s good, and the boss is extremely accommodating. The second I told him about Young Tenko, he rearranged both our schedules so I had the entire week off. I think I still have about three days before I have to go back to work.”

“How’d you meet him, anyways?” Athena asked.

“We met in college--”

“YOU WENT TO COLLEGE?”

“--in America.”

“AMERICA?”

“Yes…” Toshinori trailed off questioningly. 

“I wish I could have gone to college.”

“Hey, at least you got to go to high school,” Michio bumped his shoulder with Athena, “I just had to make do with Nedzu homeschooling me and stealing my siblings’ textbooks.”

“You didn’t go to high school?” Toshinori asked in amazement.

Michio shook his head sadly, “Middle school’s compulsory, but high schools get to choose who they let in. And because Ketsubutsu was still a heroics-only school at the time, I couldn’t find a school within our price range that was willing to ‘take a chance' on a quirkless kid.”

“Thank goodness for Ketsubutsu, or I would be in the same boat,” Athena said, “But college in America, how did that happen?”

“America has a quirk-blind admissions process. Add on scholarships for quirkless students, and a very lucky break when it came to making friends, and here I am.”

“Then maybe Michi here can get that higher education to match his sibs.”

“Not unless I’m willing to let nee-chan drill me in English. And speaking of nee-chan.”

Madam Nighteye made her way over to them, still sending weird glances over to the receptionist. “Are you two ready to go?”

“Sure. Are you going to bully me into taking my meds?”

“Absolutely.” She turned to the other heroine and nodded, “See you around, Athena.”

“Take care, Nighteye.”

They filed out of the agency and made their way towards Nighteye’s house.

“Sasaki-san,” Young Keigo asked, “What’s a Ghibli?”

“It’s a type of movie that I think you’ll all love,” she said, smiling down at them, “I know I do. I think you’re going to love Kiki’s Delivery Service.”

Chapter Text

“Night-sama, can we get a Jiji?” Tenko asks as the two boys are getting ready for bed, “Or maybe a Totoro?”

“Totoros and Jijis are hard to come by,” I said, pretending to think on the idea, “I don’t think most pet stores would sell them.”

“We could catch one,” Keigo offered quietly.

“But Totoros and Jijis are smart,” I replied, “You couldn’t catch one.”

“Then how would we get one?”

I smiled at the two boys, “It’s rather simple, really. You’d have to spend your days searching for one until you find a Jiji or Totoro somewhere in the wide world. And then, you softly walk up to them, tap them on the shoulder,  and say, as polite as can be, ‘How do you do? We’re Tenko and Keigo. Would you like to go home with us?’ And then they say either yes or no.”

“Night-sama,” Tenko groaned, “Totoros can’t talk! They wouldn’t be able to answer us!”

“Oh, silly me. I guess you would have to explain to them that you nod for yes and shake your head for no.”

“Right,” Tenko nodded, very seriously.

I chuckled and ruffled their hair, “Keigo, do you want to sleep in Tenko’s room or one of the other bedrooms? Sorry, but Yagi-san, Nedzu, and I will be using the living room to talk, so you can’t sleep there tonight.”

“Can he stay in my room?” Tenko asked.

“Ask Keigo, not me.”

He turned to the other boy, “Please, please, please? It’ll be so much fun! We could share the bed and, and talk to each other.”

Keigo shuffled a bit, “I wake up at night. I don’t sleep the whole time.”

“That’s okay. You can just sleep on the edge of the bed, and I’ll sleep by the wall. That way, you can wake up and move around if you want to.”

He thought about it for a moment, and then nodded, “Okay.”

“Alright then. Let’s get you two settled,” I said, escorting them out of the bathroom once they put their toothbrushes in the toothbrush holders. “Checklist. Pajamas on?”

“Check,” Tenko showed off his Crust PJs while Keigo tugged at the second Endeavor set.

“Teeth brushed?”

“Check.”

“Said goodnight to Nedzu and Yagi-san?”

“Check.”

“Neither of you need to go to the bathroom?”

“No,” Keigo shook his head as Tenko answered.

“Okay. It sounds like you two boys are one hundred percent ready for bed. Let’s tuck you in.”

They clambered onto Tenko’s bed and got situated on their respective sides. Keigo sprawled out on his stomach, as Tenko curled up into a tight little ball. I pulled the sheets and blankets up to their chins and tucked them around them snuggly.

“There. Snug as a pair of bugs in a rug,” I leaned down and pecked both their foreheads and went to flick off their lights. Tenko’s night light flickered on, and I made my way back to the boys’ bedside, “But before we all say goodnight, I owe Keigo-kun a song.”

Tenko gasped excitedly but didn’t move from under the cozy blankets. Keigo just blinked at me owlishly.

“I’ve been thinking about this all day, and I finally decided on one,” I said softly, “I hope you enjoy it.”

And with that, I took a breath and started to sing.

“Fly me to the moon,

And let me play among the stars.

Let me see what spring is like on,

Jupiter and Mars.

In other words, hold my hand,

In other words, baby, kiss me.”

Tenko wrinkled his nose at the ‘kiss me’ part, no doubt thinking the concept gross. Keigo just stared on in wonder.

“Fill my heart with song and let me sing forevermore.

You are all I long for,

All I worship and adore.

In other words, please be true,

In other words, I love you.”

I hummed a small part of the instrumental break before coming back strong in the final verse.

“Fill my heart with song,

Let me sing forevermore.

You are all I long for, all I worship and adore.

In other words, please be true.

In other words,

In other words,

I love you.”

Tenko cheered a tiny bit, before yawning and saying, “Goodnight, Night-sama.”

“Goodnight, Tenko-kun. Goodnight, Keigo-kun.”

“Goodnight….Night-sama,” Keigo said softly. And then, even softer, “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome, Keigo,” I whispered back, “Come and get Nedzu-san or me if you need us. We’re usually up at night, but try and sleep just a little, okay?”

“Okay,” he said.

“Goodnight,” I said, one final time before shutting the bedroom door tight.

I squared my shoulders and walked down to the living room like a soldier approaching a war room. The Ghibli break with the kids had been nice, but it’s game time now. 

All Might and I needed to talk.

*****

“Hot chocolate, tea, or sake?”

“Hm?” Toshinori looked up from the random book he had pulled off of Nighteye’s shelves-- some pre-quirk classic called The Song of Achilles --and turned towards the heroine.

“Serious conversations always go over better with drinks, so take your pick. I’m more partial to hot chocolate, but if you don’t like any of those three, I’ve also got some soda, wine, brandy, and I think an old six-pack of beer that Mana got me as a joke.”

“Hot chocolate,” said Toshinori, “I don’t drink, and I’ve been told that I don’t have the proper pallet to appreciate the high-quality teas you and Nedzu probably have stocked up.”

“Hot chocolate it is,” said Nighteye, a tired smile etching itself across her face, “I’ll go whip some up. And do be careful with the books. A lot of those took me forever to find.”

“They’ll be safe with me,” he said as she walked into the kitchen and began making their drinks. Toshinori just returned to the book in his hands and read quietly. He was being drawn into the story when Nedzu emerged from his bedroom with a yellow notepad.

“Ah, Yagi-san, I see you’re sticking around a bit.”

“Sasaki-san and I wanted to talk to you, actually.” Toshinori gently placed the novel back on its shelf and turned towards the mouse-bear-dog thing that Nighteye called her best friend. “We received some interesting news at the courthouse, and Nighteye-san thought it best if we talked over our options with you.”

“I do have the most legal experience amongst all of Mirai’s acquaintances. Except you, perhaps, if you take a major role in the legal side of things at Might Tower.”

“No, I work with legal as necessary, but largely leave it to the more knowledgeable and experienced minds of that branch.”

Nedzu hummed in thought and scampered up into an armchair, yellow notes still clutched tightly in his…hand? Paw? Paw-pad? Claws? Toshinori needed a crash course on how to respectfully address Nighteye’s friend, or he was going to be kicked to the curb hard and fast.

“Then I guess I am still her closest companion with the most knowledge in these types of affairs. Oh, do sit down and make yourself comfortable, Yagi-san. This is going to take a while.”

Like clockwork, Sasaki-san came in through the kitchen door with a tray of drinks. She set one mug in his hands, passed Nedzu the only teacup on the tray, and then set the tray down on the coffee table in the middle. She plopped two marshmallows in her mug and sat down on the couch. Toshinori followed suit, grabbed a marshmallow for his drink, and then sat on the other end of the sofa.

Sasaki-san took a sip, and met her friend’s eyes, “Nedzu.”

“Mirai,” he met her gaze head-on and took a sip of his own drink.

“Did you know about statute eighty-two beforehand?”

“I did not, although I did imagine that there would be some meaningless, discriminatory law whose only purpose would be to make others’ lives difficult. There always is, in cases like these.”

She nodded, “Okay. I guess my next question is this, then: how long would it take to repeal it?”

Nedzu sighed, “Too long for the time frame we have. Your emergency hero custody expires in a year’s time, and the repeal process can take years. How long did it take me to get recognized as a sentient being rather than an animal with an extremely advanced quirk?”

“Four years,” Nighteye said, drooping in acceptance, “Plus two years of planning and prep. Damn it.”

“The sentiment is shared. Yagi-san, Mirai, how set are you two on both having custody of Shimura-kun and Takami-kun?”

“If you need me to drop my custody claim to secure the boys’ placement--”

“You have every right to be a part of their lives, Yagi-san.”

“But if it would be easier on you and the boys for me to drop my claims--”

“I’ve never picked the easy choice in my life, and I’m sure not going to start now--”

“I am perfectly fine with being the uncle or godfather figure that babysits the boys when you need a night without them--”

“They’ve got uncles and aunts and godparents to spare, but they don’t have a father. And after what they’ve both been through, they deserve a healthy example of what a father is supposed to be like--”

“But would I even fit that mold? I don’t know a thing about parenting--”

“Neither do I! But I’m doing it, I’m learning it, every single day--”

“You make it seem so natural--”

“It’s not. This life hasn’t given me a single proper parental figure, but it’s easy to ignore them and draw from other role models. And as long as you continuously communicate with the boys about what they want and what they need, and ensure that you always have their best interests at heart, it’s pretty hard to mess up.”

“So,” said Nedzu, breaking up their back-and-forth argument, “It sounds like Mirai, at least, wants joint custody.”

“Yes.”

“And Yagi-san would like joint custody, but is willing to cede his claim to the boys if it comes to that.”

“Yes.”

“Then we have some options moving forward,” Nedzu said, opening his yellow notepad and beginning to read off it, “One, we continue with the proceedings as planned, and hope that the judge is more willing to assign custody according to the wishes of the family rather than the letter of the law. As with any child custody case, the health and happiness of the children is paramount, and so long as both of you have stable incomes and safe homes, it should be possible that the judge on the case would side with us.”

“And what’s an outcome that could actually happen,” Nighteye asked, rolling her eyes at Nedzu, “No plan survives contact with the enemy, and I highly doubt the easy, simple, clean solution will be the one that works.”

“Realistically, if we proceed as is with the court case, full custody of both children will go to you, Mirai. Under statute eighty-two, other similar laws, and the general bias of mothers being more capable with children, a judge would side in your favor and exclude Yagi-san. This outcome is workable but unideal. If this happens, the best solution would be to schedule regular visits with Yagi-san and invite him to family functions and outings.”

“I would be okay with that,” Toshinori added.

“I wouldn’t.”

“Then moving onto number two,” said Nedzu, flipping the page of the notepad, “One of you fully cedes your custody claims and the other is awarded full custody. As Mirai already dislikes that arrangement, we’ll move onto number three: splitting the boys between you.”

“I already don’t like where this is going,” said Nighteye, taking a sip of her hot chocolate.

“Essentially, we would turn the dual custody trial into two separate cases. Yagi-san would take Shimura-kun, and Mirai would take Takami-kun. Each of you would receive full custody of your respective children, and you could arrange regular meetings between the two.”

“I was right, I don’t like this.”

“I believe Sasaki-san and I would both prefer that the boys grow up in the same household.”

“Then onto the fourth and final option,” Nedzu said, flipping to the last page of the notepad, “You two marry each other and apply for custody as a couple.”

Toshinori was very happy that he had previously set his mug down because his quirk flared so quickly in surprise that he would have surely shattered it and drenched himself in hot chocolate. As it is, he simply tensed in surprise before catching the eyes of Nighteye.

“Nedzu, darling, smartest person I know. Would you like to explain that one in a bit more detail?” Sasaki-san asked, setting her own mug down and leveling a confused look in Nedzu’s direction.

“Gladly.” The mouse-bear-dog thing set down its notepad and folded its paws? Hands? Toshinori needed a slide presentation or something. “Married couples statistically have a higher chance of successfully adopting than single parents, which grants you two a better chance of receiving custody quicker. And while adoption laws favor quirked citizens, divorce cases, by nature, are a bit messier.”

“So you want us to marry for a week, file for adoption, and then divorce once we get the kids?” Nighteye asked.

“You see, that’s where things get a bit more tricky,” Nedzu said, “While that would be the best option if you were to do that, it would be very easy for another party to come along and accuse you two of fraud. If All for One or one of his lackeys were to find Shimura-kun and do just that, then your marriage and your adoptions would be invalidated, and you could lose your hero license.”

“How would we avoid that?” Toshinori asked, body going tense with fear, quirk flaring up with his emotions.

“If we were to go the marriage route, firstly, we would have to get your closest friends and family in on the deception. Secondly, we would have to sell the deception. Hard. Love at first sight, whirlwind romance, shotgun wedding, moving in together, followed by the quick adoption of two young boys. And then, you would most likely have to remain married for a number of years.”

“Years?!”

“Well, love at first sight doesn’t wear off in a day. Ten years of marriage would be ideal, but five would be workable if you absolutely insist on a shorter period of wedded bliss. It would also be harder for fraud charges to stick if you can show off pictures of your wedding, your honeymoon, and a few anniversaries.”

Toshinori and Sasaki-san met eyes, and a moment of understanding passed between them.

“Would you be okay with this?” Toshinori asked with his gaze, “Are you willing to go this far for Young Tenko and Young Keigo?”

“Gladly,” Sasaki’s answered. There was a fire there, in her sharp golden eyes. One he doubted could be quenched by anything in its path.

She picked up her mug, took a sip of hot chocolate, and said, “I’ve always wanted a Western-style wedding. White dress, bridesmaids, Mana or Orochi or Michio or Nedzu walking me down the aisle. Whole shebang. You?”

“I’ve never given much thought to my wedding. I promised my friend David that he would be my best man, but that’s about it.”

“Then three months, say, a summer wedding?”

“What about a month or so, while it’s still sakura season?”

“Early May, then? Would that be enough time to fill everyone in on the plan?”

“I’d think so. Enough time for me to move in, too.”

“How big of a venue? I’ve got my siblings, Void, Athena, Stormborn, Thunderclap, Evergreen, and the rest of the Youkai Task Force. And the boys. Can’t forget the boys.”

“Beyond David and Torino, I don’t have a lot of important people. Maybe a few friends from work?”

“It’s settled, then?” Nedzu asked, “You two are getting married?”

“Well, let’s make it official,” Sasaki put her mug back on the table, swung off the couch, and crouched down on one knee. She took his hand and looked up at him, “Yagi Toshinori. I haven’t known you long, but I know I have yet to meet a person I would rather raise kids with. Will you do me the honor of becoming my husband?”

“Yes,” he said, voice a little breathless, “I would be honored.”

“Then let’s hash out the rest,” said Nedzu, flipping his notepad to a new page, “We’ve got a lot of ground to cover if we want to make this romance realistic. Let’s start with how you two met and where.”

And with that, the three of them wrote a love story for the ages, piece by piece.

*****

Oracle of Tokyo: @all So, hypothetically.

David Shield Enthusiast: oh no.

Oracle of Tokyo: What?

David Shield Enthusiast: whenever someone in this chat says hypothetically, it means that there are either explosions, broken laws, or future murder victims.

Oracle of Tokyo: I assure you that my ‘hypothetically’ only involves one of those things.

The Muffin Man: i was summoned by neechan being chaotic

Hiss Hiss Bitch: i have 20 min left on my break. be fast.

Oracle of Tokyo: So, hypothetically, on a scale of one to ten, how willing are you guys to help me commit fraud for the sake of adopting Tenko-kun and Keigo-kun?

The Muffin Man: 💯

David Shield Enthusiast: 12

Hiss Hiss Bitch: idk, like 15/10?

Our Rat and Savior: Wonderful! Then please clear your schedule for the fifth of May!

Hiss Hiss Bitch: why?

Our Rat and Savior: [wedding-invite.jpeg]

David Shield Enthusiast: YOURE GETTING MARRIED????

The Muffin Man: fuck yeah, i’m getting another older sibling.

Hiss Hiss Bitch: @Our Rat and Savior you down to help us do the shovel talk?

Our Rat and Savior: Of course!

Oracle of Tokyo: Nedzu, you don’t have a leg to stand on. YOU were the one who suggested we tie the knot.

Oracle of Tokyo: Long story short, Yagi-san and I can’t apply for joint custody because outdated quirkist laws say so. Because we’re on a time limit for the adoption window and can’t overturn the laws in time, we’re getting married, adopting the kids, and then divorcing a few years down the line. But we have to make the marriage sound believable, so we need you and everybody else we know to back us up when we say we’re deeply, painfully in love. 

Hiss Hiss Bitch: can we still give yagi a shovel talk?

Oracle of Tokyo: You know what? Sure. 

Hiss Hiss Bitch: then i’m in

The Muffin Man: yeah

David Shield Enthusiast: sounds like a plan.

Oracle of Tokyo: Thanks. And before you start teasing me about marrying a man I just met.

Oracle of Tokyo: @David Shield Enthusiast Check out who the best man is going to be.

The Muffin Man: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Hiss Hiss Bitch: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

David Shield Enthusiast: …. @Oracle of Tokyo

David Shield Enthusiast: run

Oracle of Tokyo: ᕕ(ﾟДﾟ)ᕗ 

*****

In the soul realm of One for All, six vestiges of past heroes watched as the seventh had a few dozen mental breakdowns. 

In the seventh’s defense, she had been having an emotion-fueled week that consisted of learning that her son, daughter-in-law, granddaughter, and other in-laws were murdered by the same monster that had killed her and her husband, learning that her grandson had survived, learning that all three of her best friends were living and working together to stop her mortal enemy, learning that her grandson could not be placed in the custody of her apprentice and pseudo-son because of legal technicalities, and learning that her pseudo-son was getting married.

It was a lot.

“Toshinori, you idiot!” Shimura Nana yelled at the stagnant, shadowy outline of the eighth holder of One for All. As usual, the outline did not respond. “Don’t marry her! Marrying Kouki is what led All for One right to him. If you care about this heroine at all, you’d leave her be and think of another solution.”

“Should we stop her?” Sanruku asked.

“Let her get it out of her system,” Yoichi said, patting his boyfriend on the shoulder, “I had the same yelling match with Niko’s shadow when he decided to pass One for All to you.”

“It’s not like there was anyone else I could trust,” Niko, their other boyfriend, defended, “Your brother wasn’t going to be stopped, and I’ve got a few puncture wounds to the gut that validate how important it is to have a contingency plan.”

“And at least it’s better than passing it onto your kid,” Hikage pointed out.

Sanruku winced, “I’m sorry.”

Hikage gave his dad a quick squeeze, “Already forgave you ten times over. But it is nice to have something to hold over your head.”

Daigoro and En just sat and watched Nana go at Toshinori’s figure. “Okay, it’s been twenty minutes. We should stop her.”

“Nana-chan,” En called out, “Lay off the poor man already."

“Not until the blockhead comes to his senses,” she punched the shadow outline’s chest, but her fist went straight through, “Damnit, why can’t he learn from my mistakes!”

“Well, sending Kotaro away didn’t save him, and keeping your husband close didn’t save him. So what do you want Toshinori to do?”

“I want him to never have to lose anybody like I did!”

The other vestiges sighed as En took a step towards his enraged protegee, “Nana, that’s not realistic. Everybody dies eventually, fact of life. And as it is, I think I prefer a Toshinori with kids, and friends, and a wife, over a Toshinori with nothing but work and saving people.”

“I know,” Nana hung her head in defeat, “But if All for One kills Nighteye just to send a message, Toshinori won’t need to worry about him. I’ll materialize in the living world and kick his ass ten ways to Sunday, I swear-to-God.”

“And we’ll help,” En agreed fiercely, “She’s practically my granddaughter twice over. If the bastard kills her, he won’t live to see Evergreen or Thunderclap’s retribution.”

Yoichi sighed but smirked a little bit. His nii-san better watch himself. If he tries to use the eighth’s family like he used the first’s, the second’s, the third’s, the fourth’s, and the seventh’s….well, he wished him luck in his desperate escape.

*****

For some reason, All for One felt shivers run up and down his spine.

Perhaps it was a sign that he was focusing on the hunt for the mysterious ‘Night-sama’ for a bit too long. Despite the non-stop searching of hero databases and fostering reports lifted from the Hero Public Safety Commission, he had been unable to narrow down possible culprits to a reasonable number. True, he had gone from ninety-seven possible heroes to thirty-four, but he had other responsibilities beyond this search.

For one, a few of his plants in Fukuoka had been discovered when a visiting hero had informed the police about an internal breach. In their attempts to clean house without allowing any officers to walk, some of his agents had been found out. 

It was no real skin off his nose, honestly, but he did have to reexamine his larger plan to see how it would affect him. And at least the two officers in his pocket and the various criminals they were covering were connected to an underling rather than directly to him. It would be all too easy to wash his hands of the lot and continue undeterred.

But still. 

According to the Commission, the only visiting hero at the time was Endeavor. Someone with enough weight in the country that it would be very uncomfortable if he started throwing it around. And while the hero had close ties to the Commission, he was careful to maintain no debts to the organization or him personally. 

The saving grace of the situation was his extremely public and extremely personal rivalry with All Might. If Endeavor looked and happened upon a thread to him and his work, All for One could rest easy knowing he’d never take it to All Might.

But still.

Endeavor was vicious and efficient as a hero. Nowhere near the most popular, but by far one of the most ruthless. All for One could not afford the trouble of the number two hero attempting to unravel the wrong thread. But he was too high up the ladder for him to simply deal with. The sudden death of Endeavor would bring him much more attention than any tangled investigation ever would.

But what if Endeavor was no longer the number two hero?

All for One paused. 

That thought had merit. 

He couldn’t directly drag Endeavor down personally. No, no, no, that would be too obvious. But if he simply informed the Hero Commission to stop burying lawsuits against the man….

Yes, that would do nicely. 

Let the Flame Hero drown under the sea of his own consequences, and plummet a few spots in the rankings. He’d be too focused on clawing his way back up to the top to commit to a covert-ops investigation needed to root out a well-established supervillain such as himself.

Satisfied with his elegant solution, All for One began typing up an email, entirely missing the notification about a pair of police officers by the names of Sasaki Mirai and Shiro Fuji that had visited Fukuoka and reported the police corruption. By the time he had sent out the email to the Hero Commission and returned to his inbox, the notification had been buried by dozens of messages reporting about the thirty-odd remaining heroes suspected of being ‘Night-sama.’

Chapter Text

Keigo looks at the glowing red and blue clock on the table next to Tenko’s bed. He's missed the nightly rerun of Hollow Station and the first half of the new Kruser Krew episode. He didn't know talking to Tenko would tire him out so much. 

He straightened out his wings to make sure Tenko wasn't lying on them, and then slowly got out from under the blankets. With his two feet on the ground and another look at the clock, Keigo made his way towards the book room to see if Nedzu was up like last night. 

“How big do you want the wedding party to be?” He heard Nighteye-san ask as he crept towards the closed door, “Since Nedzu wants to officiate, my bride's people could be my three siblings with Void as my maid of honor, and you could have three friends plus David as your best man.”

Keigo froze behind the door. Bride? Best man?

Were Nighteye-san and Yagi-san getting married?

“I’m not sure that’s going to work.”

“Why not?”

“I-- Oh, gosh, this is embarrassing. I’m too much of a workaholic, so my social circle is painfully small.”

“Well, then why don’t you ask Michio and Orochi to stand in as groomsmen? I can stick with Void as my maid of honor, Mana as a bridesmaid, and ask Athena or Stormborn to fill in as my third. That way it’s an even three and three.”

“That would work. And navy blue and light pink as our colors?”

“Yes, I think it’d go best with the cherry blossoms.”

They were!

Keigo rushed back into Tenko’s room and dove onto his nest-bed, “Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up!”

“Wha?” Tenko whispered.

“Nighteye and Yagi are getting married!” Keigo whispered back, “It’s just like the season finale of Super Trooper. They’re going to have a big party, and Nighteye’ll have such a pretty dress, and they’ll kiss like gross parents, and then they’ll live happily ever after with us!”

“Really!” Tenko shot up and smiled.

“Really really!” How could Keigo not have seen it before? It all made sense now! John and Anne on Super Trooper finally got married at the end of season five but adopted Ruth and Connie a few episodes before that. Yagi was John, Nighteye was Anne, and he and Tenko were Ruth and Connie. He wasn’t an extra that overstayed his welcome, he was just set up for the next season!

“How can you tell?”

“Come with me and listen! But shh! You have to be quiet.”

The two of them tiptoed towards the door of Tenko’s nest within a nest and pressed their ears up against it.

“Are you thinking of an outdoor venue or an indoor one?”

“Photos outside, but indoor reception, maybe? I don’t think it’s going to rain, but that could change. Even I can’t always predict the weather.”

“Do you have any opinions on rings?”

Keigo fell on top of Tenko in shock, “Wedding rings?”

“Wedding rings!” Tenko yelled back in excitement.

The door swung open, and Nighteye’s shadow fell over them. “Well, it looks like our ring bearer and our flower boy aren’t in bed like they’re supposed to be.”

“Night-sama, can we help plan your wedding like in Wedding Planner: Malibu Edition?” Tenko asked.

“No, it needs to be like Chocolate Kisses,” Keigo said, “Like Josie said, ‘If a wedding doesn’t have a chocolate fountain, then it’s already a disaster.’ Please say you’re having a chocolate fountain. I don’t want your wedding to be a disaster.”

“We’ll hash out the catering details later. But how about you help Ya-- Toshinori and I pick a venue? We’re having trouble deciding on the prettiest place.”

Keigo and Tenko raced into the book room to see Yagi-san and Nedzu-san sitting around computers and looking at pictures. And Keigo couldn’t help but smile a bit as the five of them flipped through place after place trying to find the set that would be TV perfect.

*****

Sorahiko grumbled a bit when he heard his old rotary phone go off in the other room. He finished the last rep, set the bench press bar onto its proper stand, and meandered his way out of the gym and over to the front room.

“Torino speaking,” he barked into the receiver, checking the time and seeing that he had a solid hour before he had to go and patrol.

“Torino-san!” came a bright, enthusiastic voice from the other end.

Sorahiko smiled, “Heya, squirt. How’s it going?”

“Good. Night-sama and Yagi-san took Keigo and me to a fancy courtroom yesterday. And then we played a suuuuuper old video game in the back room. Night-sama kicked Yagi’s butt!”

“That’s great! Is Keigo a friend of yours?”

“Noooooo,” the little boy giggled, “He’s my nii-san.”

“Oh,” Sorahiko blinked, “Is he Nighteye’s son?”

“He’s going to be. Night-sama found him two days ago when she kicked his dad’s butt for being a mean villain, and she and Yagi are adopting him. Just like me!”

“Huh.” Torino would have preferred to find that out from Toshinori, but it was Nighteye’s case, and probably hadn’t broken to the papers yet. They most likely had to keep it under wraps, “Well, tell him congratulations from me. See if he wouldn’t like to stop by the agency and meet me sometime.”

“Sure. Night-sama says that it's good to meet people and make a rew-- roo-- root--”

“Routine?”

“Routine about seeing them. That way you get to spend your important time with people who are important to you.”

“That sounds very smart. Where is Night-sama anyways? Or Toshinori for that manner?”

“Night-sama’s in the shower, and Yagi-san is asleep on the couch with Keigo-kun. Nedzu-san’s here if you want to talk to him.”

“No, that’s fine. I was just wondering.”

“Anyway, Torino-san. You’re an adult, right? Night-sama said you are, but you’re so short that it’s really hard to tell.”

Sorahiko pushed down his anger and reminded himself that he cannot curse out his best friend’s five-year-old grandson. “Yeah, squirt. I’m an adult. Why do you ask?”

“Can you help me buy a wedding present for Night-sama and Yagi-san? I want to get them a LEGO set, but the ones online say they’re for kids. What do adults buy adults when they get married?”

There was some noise on the other end of the line, and Torino pulled the receiver away from his ear. “I’m sorry, kid, but can you repeat that? I think you were cut off a bit.”

“Oh, no. Keigo just woke up and I asked him what adults get each other when they get married. He said it should be something adults use, and now he’s pulling up boring adult things like-- coat racks? Why would we get Night-sama and Yagi-san a coat rack? They wear suits.”

Torino pinched his nose and sighed, “Tenko, why are you two looking for presents anyway?”

“Because Keigo says that people give presents at weddings, and we have to give Night-sama and Yagi-san the best wedding present ever.”

“But why wedding presents?”

“Because Night-sama and Yagi-san are getting married. Duh.”

Torino blinked. “Night-sama and Yagi-san are getting married?”

“Yeah?”

“Night-sama. And Yagi-san. Are getting married?”

“Uh-huh.” 

“NIGHT-SAMA AND YAGI-SAN ARE GETTING MARRIED?”

“I already told you. You must be old, Torino-san, if you’re having hearing issues and memory issues like this.”

“You little-- you know what? Have a nice day, Tenko-kun. Are you, Keigo-kun, and Yagi-san going to the underground agency today?”

“Yeah, that’s what Night-sama said.”

“Great. Then I’ll see you there, and we can all decide on wedding presents together. But don’t tell Yagi-san. I want to surprise him.”

“....can we tell Night-sama and Nedzu-san?”

“Go ahead. Just don’t tell Yagi. It’s a very, very special surprise.”

“Okay. Love you, Torino-san. Byyyyyyyeeeeeeeee.” There was a click as Tenko hung up on the other line.

With even more grumbling than earlier, Sorahiko mentally rearranged his schedule and dialed up an old number on the rotary phone. He swore, if Nighteye told Evergreen and Thunderclap before Toshinori told him, he was going to serve the kid the biggest can of butt-whooping since he first got One for All.

*****

Evergreen shoved files around on his desk and picked up his office phone on the second ring. It was probably Squeaksize from New York calling to verify the time of their meeting that upcoming Thursday.

“Squeak, the call’s still on for the same time as always. I’m not going to change it on you suddenly.”

“I don’t know who Squeak is, but this ain’t them.”

Evergreen sat up a little straighter and smiled, “Well if it isn’t the midget himself. You need help grabbing something off a high shelf?”

He laughed at his old friend’s ‘fuck off’ but then grew serious, “Have you found something pertaining to All for One?”

“Not as of now, no. Ranto should have our report about Osaka on your desk today. I’m calling because Tenko just told me some interesting news over the phone.”

“Like what?”

“Well for one, Toshinori and Nighteye are adopting another kid.”

“That’s not real news, Torino. Sasaki told us all about it in the group chat.”

“...she did?”

“It was work, and we’re her colleagues, of course, she did.”

“I can’t believe she would ramble on about sensitive information like that.”

“And I can’t believe that it’s been over a decade and you still don’t know how to use a smartphone.”

“Well, maybe this next secret won’t be much of a surprise then if one of our students already shared it in that chat of yours. They’re getting married.”

Morishige pushed around files again, “Who is?”

“Toshinori and Nighteye. Tenko just told me this morning.”

“What?” Evergreen fumbled with his phone and swore to himself. “The hell they are! This’ll ruin everything!”

“What’ll ruin what?”

“My retirement plan! I have been preparing Mirai to take over the agency since she signed on. I cannot lose my successor to the ‘good wife, wise mother’ rhetoric that’s been plaguing the country since before quirks became a thing.”

“You might not have a choice. I haven’t talked to the kids yet, but Tenko seemed pretty insistent that it was happening. You know why Toshinori can’t take a back seat and become a stay-at-home husband, and with their experiences, I’m sure the two of them are smart enough to recognize that two full-time heroes won’t provide the stability kids like Tenko and their other charge need.”

“Maybe this isn’t as bad as we think. Imada should be down in the labs right now. She’ll know the truth of it. Hopefully, this is just two kids trying to play matchmaker on their parents’ behalf.”

“For Toshinori’s sake, I hope you’re right. Because if you’re wrong, and they’re actually getting married, Nana’s going to kill me for murdering her son for letting me find out through her grandson.”

“Hey, if it’s true, then that’s one way to solve this.” Evergreen signed off on one last paper and stood. “I’ll see you in a bit. Don’t throw your back out trying to reach the clothes hanging in your closet.”

He hung up to the sound of Torino’s curses and chuckled a bit before leaving his office and descending down to the labs to try and get some straight answers about his apprentice.

*****

Thunderclap has been watching his daughter and her friends go on like this for nearly twenty minutes, and he still couldn’t tell anyone what in the world they’re talking about. Imada, Athena, Void, and his Nariko go back and forth on various random topics, flipping between them and circling back around to the same points that he swears that it would take a conspiracy board and a whole lot of red string to connect their points together. Eventually, he had just decided to watch the show and eat his muffin in peace.

“You said the colors were navy and pink?” Nariko asked Void. Imada was busy sewing up Nariko’s weather gloves, while Athena had pulled a notepad from somewhere and was jotting down notes.

“That’s what Mana told me earlier, yes. The men will probably have navy, so we’ll be expected to have pink attire of some kind. I’m going in a pink suit.”

“If she asks Stormborn to be her third, I could handle taking pictures. But that’s only if they decide not to hire a professional photographer,” Athena said, nodding at her paper, “When should we go dress shopping? Between patrols, desk work, the big case, and Mirai’s personal obligations, it’ll be tight. Could we sacrifice girls’ night and go then?”

“Only if we all decide to make a day of it and have other stuff throughout. Mirai’s already going to be stressed with everything else going on. The last thing she’ll need is us taking away her fun night out and forcing her to make one of the most important decisions of the whole affair.” Imada threw the gloves at Nariko. “Try those on and see. Void, how’re you feeling about all of this?”

“Exceedingly happy,” she said.

The other three gave her some varying looks.

“What? I am!” Void laughed, “Mirai and I shot our shot, and we weren’t right for each other. I’m glad she’s picked herself a partner that can give her what she needs, even if they only stay platonic.”

“For now,” Nariko smiled and flexed her fingers, stretching out the gloves, “Thank you, Mana, for blessing me with the pic of the hot secretary, because oh boy, is he fine. If Mirai doesn’t tap that, I’ll have to pull her aside and see if I have her blessing to try.”

“Don’t talk that way about my future brother-in-law,” Imada said, wagging a finger at his daughter, “If Mirai doesn’t knock you on your ass for that, Nedzu will.”

“Well, you can’t deny that there’s a certain appeal about a man willing to get down on one knee for the sake of some cute kids.”

“Can’t relate,” Athena deadpanned.

“Neither can I,” said Void.

Nariko waved her hand, “You two don’t count. You don’t swing that way, Void, and Athena doesn’t even go up to bat.”

“From the way I hear it, Mirai’s the one that got down on one knee. But I do have to admit that I enjoyed that particular piece of eye candy when Michio sent it to the family chat earlier.”

“So it’s true, then,” said a voice, and all of them whipped around to see Evergreen standing in the labs’ doorway, “Mirai is getting married.”

Thunderclap choked on his bite of muffin. “Mirai’s WHAT?”

“Dad, honestly. What do you think we’ve been talking about for the past half-hour? Miniature golf?” Nariko asked, “Wait, Athena, jot that down. That would make a killer bachelorette party.”

“I don’t know, but not my dau-- my student getting married! She’s twenty-three!”

“Yeah, she’s a grown woman with a full-time job, a house, and two kids. She can damn well get married if she wants to.” Nariko paused. “Wow. I suddenly feel depressed for not having my life as together as she does.”

“My sister’s the outlier, not the rule. And she’s Nedzu’s favorite.” Imada waved away her fears and sat up, “But that’s not the question you should be asking yourselves. The real question is since the happy couple’s decided on a Western-style wedding, who gets to stand in for the father and walk Mirai down the aisle? Nedzu’s officiating, I’m a bridesmaid, and Orochi and Michio are groomsmen, so the job’s up for grabs.”

“Pfft, I will,” said Evergreen and Thunderclap. The old friends looked at each other and then started tearing into each other on who would get the honor of standing in for Nighteye’s dad.

“Let’s get out of here before they ask about the small series of explosions from last week,” said Imada, “Quickly, while they’re still distracted.”

The three heroines and one support engineer silently tiptoed away from their superiors’ fight, and booked it towards the Peculiarity Lounge, continuing their job as unofficial wedding planners all the while.

*****

I toweled out my hair one last time and double-checked my robe in the bathroom mirror before returning to the living room.

Breakfast was going to consist of the Pro Pastries Michio brought over yesterday morning (thank you, otouto) and the milk and juice in the fridge. With my Fukuoka report filed, and all other cases currently closed, I was free to take the next few days off and get Keigo and Tenko situated at home, as protocol dictated. 

I had no idea how much longer All Might, Yagi, Toshinori could go without working, but I knew it wasn’t much. People were already asking questions about why the Symbol of Peace had taken a few days to himself, and although his late-night patrol the other day had helped, he would need to return to work full-time if we didn’t want to arouse suspicion. 

I needed to talk to him about that. We had to set some clear-cut rules about both of our work lives, especially with the kids in need of our attention.

And the wedding planning.

And him moving in.

And the actual wedding.

And the custody trials.

And hunting down All for One.

(Sweet Jesus, we had a lot on our plate.)

“Nedzu, those stress-free next two weeks are still happening, right?” I asked, walking over to where he and the boys were looking up panini presses (what?). 

“That they are! Do you have any significant plans I should be aware of to ensure they are efficient and enjoyable?”

“No, I’m fine. I just needed that so I could bite the bullet and tell everyone that I’m getting married.”

“Don’t worry yourself, that’s already handled,” said Nedzu, “By my calculations, everyone you are particularly close to and wish to invite to the wedding has already been made aware of the fact that it is taking place. All I’m waiting for is confirmation, which should be arriving in three, two…” he pointed at my cell, which immediately started ringing.

I picked it up, saw that I was getting a group call from the girls’ group chat, and answered it.

“Congratulations!” I heard from the other end, “When’s the wedding?”

There were cheers and whoops from the line as I smiled and mouthed a ‘thank you’ to Nedzu. “May fifth. Pack your bags, girls, because we’re going to Kyoto.”

Chapter Text

The second Gran Torino greets him with a flying kick to the face, Toshinori finally remembers what it was he forgot that morning.

In his defense, it was a busy morning. Toshinori is no stranger to busy days, but his kind of busy-- workouts, grab-and-go protein shakes for meals, patrols, press releases, reports, board meetings, merchandise testing, testifying in court --is a lot different than Nighteye, Sasaki, Mirai’s busy-- morning coffee strong enough to wake the dead, dancing around the kitchen as breakfast is being thrown together, filling out forms and reading the overly convoluted ones aloud at the kitchen table, fielding no less than four phone calls about what needs to be done that day --and what he expects their new busy to be together as a unit-- making sure the kids are up and awake, regulating screen time as best they can because their kids’ vices of choice are TV and video games and that’s not extremely healthy, fielding questions about heroes, wedding planning, tag-teaming to get the boys ready and out the door.

Toshinori wasn’t surprised in the slightest that he felt like he had forgotten something in the middle of it all, but by the time he, Nedzu-san, the boys, and Mirai walked through the doors of the IUCA, he had assumed that it was just his nerves getting to him and that he had nothing to worry of.

He should have never trusted that false sense of security.

“Did you really think you could get away with an engagement without telling me?” Torino asked Toshinori’s prone form. All he could do was groan slightly in pain as his mentor continued, “I know you have less than half a brain on a good day, but you didn’t think to tell me about something like this?”

“Gentleman, I must ask that you move any fighting to the training rooms on floors two, three, or seven. If you’re comfortable, that is. I guess you could, ah, could just keep beating each other up in the lobby, but I think that’s bad for business,” Bubaigawara-san said nervously. Toshinori blinked to try and stop seeing stars and saw Mirai give the lad a subtle thumbs-up.

“Torino-san, why are you killing Yagi?” Young Tenko asked, “I thought you had a surprise for him.”

“I do. And it’s waiting for him down in one of the sparring rooms when he’s man enough to take it.” His teacher then noticed the small form of Keigo. “Why don’t you introduce me to your friend, squirt, and I can go help you with the thing you were asking about earlier.”

“Go ahead and head up to the Peculiarity Lounge with Torino-san. I just need to file a few things and talk to a few people, and then we can all go somewhere for lunch,” Mirai told the boys. They nodded and rushed off with the older hero, while she stayed back and picked him up off the floor. “That was a pretty bad hit. Do you need to go to medical?”

“No, I’ll be fine,” Toshinori said, “How long are you going to take?”

“An hour, hour and a half? I promise I won’t be long.”

“Then I’ll wait for you all to be done. Something tells me that Young Tenko and Keigo might be planning something for the two of us.”

Mirai smiled, “That’s sweet of them, but I hope it’s nothing too much. The house’ll be more than full with you moving in and who knows how many gag gifts from the Task Force. Sure you’ll be alright on your own?”

Toshinori waved her off. “I’ll be fine. Now go and make the world a better place.”

She gave him a small smile over her shoulder and made her way towards the elevator. Toshinori picked up a magazine and got himself situated in the front area under Bubagaiwara’s watchful eye. He was able to get through a semi-interesting article about restaurant reviews and finish half of an article about some movie star and some producer getting a divorce when the magazine was ripped out of his hands and the sound of a throat being cleared caught his attention.

“So. If it isn’t the groom to be,” said Void, flashing a devilish grin down at him, “You and I need to talk.”

“I would agree with you, ma’am, but I don’t happen to know your name. I’m Yagi Toshinori.”

“Name’s Void,” she said, holding out her hand to shake, “And you, good sir, are about to get a vital crash course in how to woo Sasaki Mirai.”

Toshinori paused. “I’m sorry, what?”

Void just smiled at him. “Essentially, Yagi-san, if you're the current, then I’m the previous. And even if Mirai’s too stubborn to admit it, she wears her heart on her sleeve and falls in love easily. And with your whole, well, youness, she’s either going to fall hard and fast, or it’ll slowly creep up on her until she’s head over heels and has no idea she was even falling in the first place.”

“I assure you, ma’am, I’m not going to take advantage of your friend. Mirai and I are just doing this to help Tenko and Keigo. We’re acquaintances, nothing more. Hopefully future friends, but neither of us is expecting romance out of this.”

The heroine just smiled wider. “That’s wonderful. Take it from me, being friends with Mirai is great. But even if you just stay friends, she’s still going to love you eventually. She loves all of us, like that. I’m just here to teach you how to not break her heart in two, no matter the way it goes. Walk with me.

Void turned on her heel and wove her way through the halls, forcing Toshinori to quicken his pace to catch up, “I met Mirai in our Ketsubetsu entrance exam. We were placed in this group of three with Athena, and our objective was to make it through a maze. There were a bunch of obstacles: some were puzzles, some were riddles, some were just regular old obstacles. And do you know what I thought when those two were able to complete their thirds of a puzzle in seconds while it took me minutes?”

“That you were very lucky to have them on your team?”

“Ha! I wish. No, the first thing I remember thinking was ‘How the hell are two nobodies beating me out in a hero exercise?’”

Void turned into a stairwell, and Toshinori followed her in, curious for answers.

“Yeah, little high school me was a piece of work. I’m a legacy hero. My great-great-grandparents were some of the first people in Japan to ever get a hero license, and every single relative since has been in the industry. And then I was born with Nullification instead of some variation of the flashy family signature power. It stung. A lot. My family loves me, and they’ve always encouraged me to follow my dreams. They helped me train my body up, and then they taught me investigation, deduction, analysis, and weapons handling until I could take any of the sidekicks in a one-on-one fight. They even accepted my decision to go to Ketsubetsu over UA or Shiketsu because I wanted a clean slate for myself where the teachers wouldn’t be comparing me to others in my family. And then I’m paired up with Athena, who thought she had an intelligence quirk until she was nine, and Mirai, who saved her first lives when she was eleven.”

“What happened?”

“Mirai happened. She came up to me after the entrance exam and asked if I could teach her how to fight. She said that as smart as she is, she’d make a pretty sorry hero if she couldn’t even throw a proper punch. Lessons continued until the school acceptance letters came out, and then after when we both learned we would be in the same class. By the time school started and I saw Athena again for the first time, I didn’t feel any of the animosity I did before, and I realized that teaching Mirai and watching her fumble in spars made me understand that every hero has their strengths, being weaker in one area doesn’t mean you’re a bad hero, and just because you are weaker in something doesn’t mean you can’t improve.”

Toshinori and the heroine had been climbing stairs throughout all of this, and it doesn’t seem like Void is going to lead them onto a floor anytime soon.

“Just, my point is, the first rule of loving Mirai is that it's inevitable. You can try and fight it all you want, but she’s going to worm her way into your heart one way or another. Rule number two is to never, ever hurt her, okay? This isn’t even me trying to give you a shovel talk, this is just one ex-partner to one future partner; don’t. If the bosses don’t kill you, the siblings will, and if the siblings don’t, then Nedzu will. And I wouldn’t sic a pissed-off, overprotective Nedzu on All for One, let alone a schmuck like you.”

“Come now, he can’t be that bad, can he?”

Void just gave him a half-pitying, half-incredulous look. “I’m about ninety percent sure he could overthrow the global economy and own half of the world in less than a week. And that’s just for fun. If his single goal in life was to suddenly ruin you, you’d be best off booking a ticket to Neptune and praying he decides it's too out of the way to follow.”

They passed another story marker, and Toshinori fixated a bit on the giant seven. How high up were they going to go?

“Rule three: communicate. I get it, talking is all awkward and scary-wary and whatever, but it’s important with Mirai, okay? That’s what sunk our relationship, and even if you two don’t ever bump uglies, you still need to talk shit out.”

“May I ask what happened with you and her?”

Void sighed, “We were young and stupid: me especially. I’d been pining since the end of second year, and Mirai made it clear to everyone that she wasn’t going to even think about romance until she had her diploma and hero license in hand. So I just followed around my best friend like a puppy, and then asked her out the day after we graduated, because we made it, you know? She didn’t need to focus on schoolwork anymore, and I could finally get an answer. She turned me down the first time, and then I asked a year later. If she said no then, then I would never have asked again. But she didn’t say no. And we started seeing each other.

“It was fun. We had a bit of an awkward transition between friendship and romance, but it was good once we found our footing. And then it all fell apart because neither of us could hash out what the other needed. Mirai’s a classic romantic. She wants a Darcy to her Elizabeth. She wants slow devotion. She wants movie marathons, and slow dancing in the kitchen, and matching outfits at costume parties, and cuddles on the couch. I’m different. I’m all burning with passion. I want a Juliet to my Romeo. I want to be deliriously, overwhelmingly in love at first sight. I want candlelit restaurants, and nights out on the town, and matching tattoos, and the best sex of your life. But because we couldn’t sit down and tell each other all of that, we mostly just made ourselves miserable trying to make the other happy.”

Void stopped at the top of the last flight of stairs and stared intently at the door, “I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced the mess that is dating a friend and then breaking up with them, but it can either go one of two ways. You either break up and are never able to look each other in the eye again, or you break up and immediately become better friends for it. We put off the inevitable for three months because we were both too afraid of the former outcome, that we almost lost each other regardless.”

She breathed out and opened the door. Toshinori caught a glimpse of the clear blue sky and heard the soft whistle of the wind. He followed Void out onto the roof of the building and flinched minutely when the large metal door slammed behind him.

“Rule number four is personal. I don’t even know if Nedzu knows about this, so that’s why we’re up here where there’s no cameras. But Mirai’s got a lot of habits. They’re small, and I swear you don’t notice them until they stare you in the face, but you have to respect her limits for some things. She throws out her shoes the second she thinks the heel is the taddest bit loose. If she’s carrying something, she’ll refuse to pick it up if it’ll block her vision. She never buys anything with the Paragon Tech logo on it. She never takes the stairs if there’s an elevator available. Rule number four is find out Mirai’s limits with things, and never, ever cross them. You can ask for reasons why, and she’ll give you an explanation if she trusts you enough, but you have to just accept that there are some small, everyday things that Mirai is not going to do.”

Toshinori walked over to where Void was standing against the guardrail and looking out towards the city skyscape. Toshinori didn’t know what to say. What do you say to someone when they bore their soul to a stranger like that? Eventually, he simply said, “Thank you for telling me all of this.”

“Don’t thank me. Just remember it and save my best friend the grief.” Void smiled softly. “You’re one lucky man, Yagi. Don’t blow it.”

“I’ll do my best.” His phone buzzed, and he pulled it out to check the little notification going off. “Mind if I make a call?”

“Who to?” The heroine turned to him in curiosity.

“An old friend. The time zones finally match up, and if I want him there for the wedding, I need to call now,” Toshinori said, clicking into his contacts and dialing up a number. He turned to the side and spoke into the phone in English, “David! Are you free right now?”

He heard his response on the other end and smiled, “Great! What’s your schedule for the first week of May look like, and how quickly can you clear it?... Why? Because I’m getting married on the fifth!”

There was a loud scream of ‘What?’ on the other end, and Toshinori laughed. As David demanded answers, Toshinori started to fill him in, and let his mind wander to the kids and the woman somewhere below his feet. 

Maybe, just maybe, they could make this work.

*****

Shouta doesn’t know why a scary third year had approached him of all people about helping them with their assignment, but he almost couldn’t care less when Kawamoto-kun finally revealed to him what the assignment actually was.

“You listen to me Aizawa, and you listen good,” she had told him the day they first met. She had taken him out to a cat cafe (he was a little too scared to ask how she knew he loved cats and coffee) and laid out her mission, “If I want to graduate top of my class, I need to not only ace this project but blow my competition out of the water. We have a year. Most of my classmates are doing one item on this list. A handful are doing two. Haruno, the bitch, has already broadcasted to the class that she’s doing four. You and I, we’re crossing off every bullet if it’s the last thing we do. You are going to give your blood, your sweat, your tears, your heart, your soul, and your time into this, and in return, I’ll make you the best damn hero to ever grace these halls. All you need to do is sign the dotted line.”

Shouta looked her dead in the eye as he signed, and then she snapped up the contract and told him to meet her in Lab Mu before class the next day. He hadn’t expected to be picked apart by the 3-F students and shoved into simulations upon simulations, but he was glad enough when the experience was done and over with and Kawamoto turned around and gave him a training schedule.

“Follow the meal and workout plan that Musashi outlined. Satoshi will be the one training you how to fight, and Kujiro, Kasami, and Takeshi will be busy making you the perfect weapon and registering it for you to use in the Sports Festival,” Kawamoto said, “Last chance to back out. From here on in, you better be completely committed to the plan. If you want to be a hero, you have got to be ready for this.”

Aizawa just looked her dead in the eyes and told her it was too late for either of them to back out now, and that she better not leave him high and dry when she finds out he doesn’t have such a powerful quirk.

Kawamoto just laughed and shooed him home, reminding him to get to school early to train with Satoshi.

Shouta had gone on a run to blow off some steam and think. He doesn’t know whether or not he’ll be able to win the school festival, but Kawamoto with her river eel quirk and her razor-sharp teeth filled him with a certain hope he hadn’t felt since he got into UA. The 3-F wrench monkeys were the first people to tell him he had what it took since grandpa. And Shouta knew that if all else failed, if he failed, he at the very least had one more shot at making it.

He eventually found himself back at the apartment mumbling aimlessly to himself as he poured over the papers from Kawamoto and Musashi. “One more shot,” he said, mind flashing to his grandfather, “One more chance. Don’t you dare blow this, Aizawa Shouta. Don’t you dare.”

Shouta eventually set an alarm and pulled up the email Kawamoto forwarded him. Inside were videos upon videos of a heroine giving lectures about her heroics branch. It was these that caught and kept Shouta’s attention as he drifted off late into the night, a seed of determination growing in his soul as he thought of his last chance at achieving his dream.

Don’t blow it.

Chapter Text

“And that concludes our lesson for today,” said Nedzu to his homeroom class, “Remember to inform me of your picks for the Hero Recruitment Project by the end of the week. If you fail to do so, I will randomly select them for you.”

Nedzu smiled as he saw the looks of fear flash across a good half of the class. Kawamoto and Haruno both looked self-congratulatory about already having their future heroes picked and started on, while the other half simply nodded to him and made chatter about handing their forms in soon. Nedzu just smiled wider and wished them a happy rest of the day as he made his way to his office and pulled out his lunch and a file labeled ‘Wedding Planning.’

Mirai and All Might’s date was set and the venue booked in the lovely Kyoto. It was a bit difficult to acquire on such short notice, but an elegant, out-of-the-way villa had suddenly opened up just at the right time. They had snapped it up immediately and began looking into decorators and caterers in the area.

Nedzu looked away from the various flower arrangements to take in the insistent buzzing of his cell phone.

Mirai: Yagi, the boys, and I are going out for lunch. Would you like to join us?

Nedzu smiled softly and replied.

Nedzu: No, thank you. I have work to complete here at school. But perhaps Imada-chan and some of the others would like to join.

Mirai: I thought you left your case files here at the agency this morning?

Nedzu: It’s a personal project. No case files necessary.

Mirai: Well, if you’re sure. Have fun, and see you after school <3

Nedzu: See you then :)

Nedzu returned to the wedding plans and began weeding out the options he knew Mirai would detest. A few were easy, but there was a narrow pool regardless. Caterers were in short supply during Golden Week, and a few were closed altogether. He would hate to force Michio-kun into catering the event, but Nedzu marked it as a last resort just in case.

Tricky catering aside, Nedzu appreciated the wedding taking place when it did. Golden Week meant that school was closed and the agency would be running with a skeleton crew. Nobody on the guestlist needed to worry about getting time off, and the festivities lasting throughout the days leading up to the wedding meant that there would be a natural jovialness in the air.

But for now, Nedzu placed all of the organizational stuff away (Mirai and All Might did have the final say in everything, and he would hate to overstep his bounds in picking something on their behalf) and instead turned to a new document that was eating away at his laptop’s memory.

His wedding speech.

If Nedzu had one weakness that he would acknowledge, it was his general lack of emotional intelligence. He tried. He tried very, very hard. Especially for Mirai. But he was out of his depth when it came to stuff like this. 

Becoming registered as a minister was the easy part. And he could more or less follow various outlines for the officiating. But he had no idea about what to say during his toast to the bride and groom.

Which was why he was perusing through various websites looking through ideas about what to say at your best friend's wedding. And was also exactly why he was caught on the near-universal first step of the process.

Introduce yourself!

• Remember that your best friend’s side only makes up half of the wedding part at best. A good 50% of the guests may not know you and your relationship with the happy couple. So take some time to introduce yourself and your relationship to the bride/groom/newlywed. Open with a fun anecdote to break the ice, and talk about an important memory you and your friend share. Or if it applies, maybe discuss when and how you met their new partner, or maybe even the friend themself! Just remember not to make it all about you, and to keep the memory as unembarrassing as possible. You don’t want to ruin their special day!

Nedzu stared long and hard at that third to last sentence and let his mind wander. There were a million things he could talk about in regards to Mirai and Yagi’s first meeting, and even more he could spin about his and Mirai’s friendship. But for some inexplicable reason, he couldn’t get their first meeting and the subsequent days that followed out of his head.

As Nedzu switched websites and looked for more possible speech topics, he let his mind wander the slightest bit back to the day he had met Mirai. The day he met the girl who had changed his life.

*****

Subject N3-DZU is perhaps happiest when the human children mill about the laboratories on their little ‘field trips.’

Field trips, similar to the occasional regulatory checks run by the state, are the only times he ever gets a break from the harsher training regimes. It wouldn’t be good for business to see their supposed ‘pinnacle of genetic research’ scared and bleeding and missing tufts of matted fur. The lab techs are sure to fill his food and water dispensers to the fullest capacity and allow him into one of the larger cages to give the illusion of comfort.

‘Of course,’ the scientists say to the questioning students, ‘This is just a holding place for visitors to see the adorable creature. It naturally has a larger enclosure for day-to-day life. We best be moving along, so as to not disturb it more. It does have a nocturnal schedule, and isn’t the friendliest during the day like this.’

The Subject was used to little excuses like that. Despite being the smartest experiment Exemplar Laboratories ever produced, they downplayed him whenever possible in favor of the more flashy projects. Subjects V1-PER, V4-PER, and V5-PER were especially popular with their color-changing skin, and the beautifully enhanced flowers sliced with quirked DNA wowed even the more stubborn audiences.

But beyond the added comfort and the additional nutrients, Subject N3-DZU liked the ‘field trips’ because they were some of the only times he could gather supplies. 

Said supplies were why he was playing up the timid act and slowly courting a girl towards his cage. Over the years, he had learned that young female humans were more disposed towards interacting positively towards him. They did not attempt to scare him with their loud voices like some young male humans, nor did they attempt to push his boundaries more than necessary. Lone young humans especially were predisposed to being kinder, as they were more likely to relate to the Subject for being alone. 

And above all else, young female humans were never a party related to Exemplar Laboratories. There were times that the scientists would hire young male humans to record how the Subject acted outside of the scientists’ influences. It was because of those young humans that the Subject had to reveal that he could steadily stand on his hind legs and that he was a bit smarter than the scientists predicted. The Subject had been harshly punished for hiding that information and had been wary of young male humans ever since.

But the young female human, with her green hair and her sturdy wire bracelet that would be suitable for a lockpick, was promising.

“Hey little guy,” she whispered, slowly making her way towards the edge of the cage, “You must be lonely over here by yourself. And bored. If you’re really as smart as they say, it must be painful to not have any toys or anything.”

Subject N3-DZU slowly took a few steps forward, quietly thinking that he had enough entertainment planning out a theft and an escape attempt.

“I hope they’re treating you right. It must be nice living in a place like this. You never have to worry about growing up, or about making hard decisions. It’d be nice, wouldn’t it?”

The Subject did not respond beyond taking a few more steps. It was now against the edge of the cage’s bars, and the young female human just needed to reach out her hand and pet him, and he would have the tool he needed. 

“And you are cute. I just hope that you’re being treated well. Otherwise, I know a few people in the future who would tear down this lab brick by brick,” she chuckled a bit and reached out her hand. Subject N3-DZU brought his paw forward to latch onto the bracelet just as the young female human brought her fingers to his temple and quietly stroked. There was a transient moment where the two just looked quietly at each other, golden eyes meeting beady black ones, and then there was a quiet gasp as the young female human’s eyes turned black.

The Subject rapidly retreated to the back corner away from the human, fear hammering through its heart. The young human female only brought her two hands to her face, and slapped them over her mouth, muffling any sound she could make. The Subject watched as the human’s eyes developed a violet spinning mechanism where the pupils once were, as she gasped and whimpered silently into her hands.

And just as suddenly as it began, the phenomenon stopped, and her eyes returned to her flashing gold.

“What? No, that can’t be it. It can’t be.” The young human rubbed at the tears falling down her cheeks. “He’s a canon character. Why would the universe kill him off before he can become the principal? Unless…is this a canon moment? Did canon me help Nedzu before?”

The young female human looked stricken, and then confused, and then serious. The Subject did not know what emotions were radiating off of the young female human, but it did not like it. They promised trouble, and trouble was the last thing the Subject wanted.

“I’ll be right back. Just wait a minute, and we’ll figure this out.” The young female human turned her back on the Subject and scanned the room looking for something. Once she found whatever it was, she darted off into the crowd. 

Subject N3-DZU sat cowering in the corner, trying to rationalize what just happened. The young female human must have used her quirk, but if that was true, why did the Subject feel no pain? Quirks caused pain, like Scientist #4’s electrocution or Scientist #7’s scalpels. But the young female human had only touched the Subject and looked into his eyes. And there was no pain. None at all.

The Subject was pulled out of its thoughts by the commotion outside the cage. There was a large crash, and then much yelling as the terrarium of V1-PER, V4-PER, and V5-PER was overturned, and the subjects freed.

“Yamaoka!” one of the larger visiting humans yelled.

“What?” said a young male human with features similar to that of the newly freed subjects, “They were sad. They didn’t like being locked up like that.”

“I’m sorry, but do you mean to tell me that you can communicate with the snakes?” asked one of the scientists.

“Yep.”

“Then why don’t you come with me, and we can go over what Exemplar Laboratories can do to make them happier. Ienaga, Domoto. You two find the snakes.” A high-pitched scream came from somewhere in the lab. “Maybe start there?”

As the scientists were busy with the pandemonium and the young male human was escorted away, the young female human returned. She dropped two backpacks at the foot of the cage. The newer one looked fuller and heavy, while the other looked older and raggedy.

“Thank God Yamaoka went along with the plan. Okay, there are no cameras, and everyone looks busy. Now’s the time to go.” The young female human pulled a pin of some kind out of her hair and stuck it into the lock on the cage. 

There were a few moments of quiet breathing accompanied by the shouts of others as the young female human worked at the lock until it opened with a resounding click. The young female human carefully lowered the lock to the floor, and swung the gate open, wary of any squeaking. She needn’t have worried, though, as everyone else was preoccupied with the snakes slithering loose in the lab.

“Can you get that collar off yourself, or do you need help?” asked the human. The Subject just continued to cower in the corner, sure that this was a trap.

The young female human reached her arm through the cage, trying to touch the Subject, but the Subject just backed up farther, snarling at the offending hand.

“Oh, what have they done to you?” the human whispered to herself, “Okay. No hands, no touching. But Nedzu, we have to go.”

The Subject paused. Did she just address him with a name?

“My quirk doesn’t work on non-sentient beings. That’s how I know you can understand me, so please trust me when I say that you have so much more ahead of you than this. You’re destined for greatness. The principal of the most important high school in the world, a hero, your own person. But if we don’t leave now, none of that’s going to happen.”

The Subject twitched its ears and felt its stiff muscles loosen a bit. What did she mean by all of this?

“I just saw your future. That’s what my quirk is. And I saw you getting sliced apart and dissected. The last memory you’ll have is looking up at a blinding fluorescent light in a pristine white lab room as six scientists hold you down and cut out your brain. But Nedzu, that may be your future, but it isn’t your destiny. You’re the smartest being in the world; you’re meant for better things than this. Let me help you get out of this place. And even if you want nothing to do with me for the rest of your days, if you want to run free the second you can and never look back, if you want to hole up somewhere and plan the end of all those who have hurt you, then that’s perfectly alright. But please, I’m begging you, place your trust in me for a day. You can have all you’ve dreamed of and more, but please, just accept my help this once, and live.”

The Subject did not know what to do. Every past experience, every rational thought, every bone-deep instinct was telling him that this was a trap of the foulest kind. The expected bitter betrayal drowned out by the sweet poison of hope. The young female human looked sincere, and she didn’t smell like she was lying, but the Subject still wanted some insurance.

“Bracelet,” the Subject said, voice hoarse and raspy, “Give. Bracelet.”

The young female human slipped off her bracelet in a heartbeat and gently placed it at the very inside of the cage door. Seeing that the Subject wasn’t moving, she slid the jewelry towards the back corner. The Subject grabbed it, and immediately used his teeth to reshape the wire into a suitable tool, and jammed it between the collar and his skin. The Subject ignored the small shocks the collar gave and twisted and pried the dreaded thing off. The Subject tentatively felt the raw, bare ring of skin around its neck, and breathed freely for the first time in years.

The Subject grabbed the wire in its teeth and scampered towards the open door and the young female human. The human turned the raggedy bag towards the cage door and opened it gently, “This may be uncomfortable, but it should be big enough. When you get situated, close the flap, and stay still. I don’t want us to be caught.”

Subject N3-DZU contemplated the young female human and the bag before burrowing into the empty space and pulling the flap closed behind. The Subject did not zip the thing closed, nor did the human. She simply whispered, “Okay, I’m going to pick you up. I’ll try not to jostle you too much. Kick my back if I do.”

The Subject simply curled up into a ball and stilled, willing itself not to move. There was a slight shift as the human picked up the bag and pulled it into her shoulders. The Subject could still hear the chaos running throughout the labs as the human shifted down to pick something else up and walk.

“Miyagi-sensei,” the girl said, “When will Yamaoka-kun be let out? He left me his bag to take home.”

“Oh, Sasaki-kun,” came the sound of another voice, “Why don’t you head out to the bus? I think we’ve had more than enough excitement for today. It’s high time for our class to return to school.”

“Hai, sensei. I’ll be going, then.”

The slow shifting and rocking of footsteps began once more, as the Subject heard the girl exit the lab room. There was bustling and footsteps as the Subject was carried down what he assumed to be a hallway and then louder groups of voices as another door was heard opening.

“This is just the cafeteria,” the girl said, “There are a ton of workers in here. Don’t move.”

The Subject held its breath as the girl began walking once more. The sound of footsteps and the rocking of movement suddenly stilled as the Subject smelled another human close in on the girl.

“Ah, you must be part of the visiting class. Did you get lost, miss?”

“No sir,” the girl said, “Miyagi-sensei told me to go back to the bus.”

“Really. Where’s everyone else?”

The Subject was jostled up and down as the girl waited a beat and spoke, “They’re coming.”

“Why don’t you wait here with me? I’d hate for you to lose your way and wind up somewhere you’re not supposed to.”

“I’ll be fine on my own, sir.”

“Well, at least let me take your bag. It looks awfully heavy.”

“I’m fine,” the girl said almost too quickly, “I’m just waiting for my--”

“Sasaki!” came the voice of the boy from before, “There you are. See, I told you she had my bag.”

“Open it up,” came the gruff voice of who the Subject recognized as one of the guards that would patrol the labs at night and catch him if he attempted to escape.

“Ara, ara. What’s got your pants in a twist?” the boy said over the loud zzzip, “Just my and Sasaki’s school stuff.”

“And why isn’t Sasaki carrying her own ‘stuff’ in her own bag?”

“Are you even looking at it? It’s holier than a communion of saints. And since when was the zipper busted?”

“Since Michio and one of his stray dogs used it in a game of tug-a-war.”

“You have got to learn how to put your foot down with him.”

“Your bag is clear,” said the guard, “Now I’ll be taking you two menaces back to the bus.”

“Fine by me,” the boy said, “Let’s go, Sasaki. Anyplace that makes snakes sad is not a place meant for me.”

Subject N3-DZU could barely hear or see anything over the hammering of his own heart as the girl and the boy were walked out of the Exemplar Laboratories building. The Subject’s nose twitched at the subtle scent of new air and a subtle floral aroma. After a few more minutes of the subtle swaying of the bag, the Subject felt a light bounce as he heard footsteps march up some stairs. There was one last mumbled order from the guard and the scree-click of a closing door before the girl all but flung the bag off her shoulders.

“Are you okay in there?” the girl asked.

“Who are you talking to?” asked the boy.

The Subject popped his head out of the bag and saw the reptilian human jump back a bit.

“Sasaki, what the--”

“Shut it,” the girl said, and her eyes went black and violet again. She stared straight up at the ceiling and was quiet for a moment until she let a few tears fall once more. “Thank God.”

“Sasaki?”

“Yamaoka, meet Nedzu, the smartest being that will ever walk the Earth. Nedzu, meet Yamaoka Orochi, my foster brother and the boy that caused a distraction while I helped you escape.”

“Pleasure,” the Subject rasped out.

“The rat can talk,” the boy mumbled, “Of course, the rat can talk. It’s always something with her.”

“Do you want to go free from here, or would you rather go into the city with us?” the girl asked, “I think Tokyo would give you more cover, but I won’t stop you if you want to leave now.”

“I think… I’d think I’d like to go with you.” The Subject looked up at the girl’s blinding smile. “Thank you so much…”

“Sasaki Mirai,” the girl said, “And please, don’t mention it.”

Subject N3-DZU just bared his teeth in an attempt to smile back, and made a decision that even if humans as a whole were too inconsistent to trust, this Mirai was at least a notable exception.

Chapter Text

“Shh! You’re going to wake them!”

“Then don’t say things like, ‘Even if we’re technically married, I’ll be okay with you having some fun. Just don’t bring anyone home without telling me.’ That’s a horrible thing to spring on a man, Mirai-san.”

“Well, it’s true. Married or not, if you find someone you want to get serious with, don’t hesitate. Go for it. So long as they’re kind, I won’t say a thing against them.”

“You’re giving me and my love life way too much credit. I’m not exactly a playboy, no matter what your brother seems to think.”

“Oh Jesus, I’m so sorry about--”

“It’s fine,” Toshinori cut off with a laugh, “But I think I’ve made my point. With how busy I am with work, romance has been the last thing on my mind.”

“Well, still,” I said, shifting Keigo to my hip and using my newly freed arm to dig around my pockets for my keys, “You never know when you might stumble across that special someone that makes the world stop turning.”

“I reckon if that person existed for me, I’d have met them by now.”

“Well maybe you have, and they’re just waiting for you to notice.” I clutched the keyring victoriously and slid the right one in the keyhole. “You staying for a while yet? The boys’ll want to say goodbye whenever they emerge from their slumbers.”

“I can stay until Nedzu-san arrives. That way you won’t be alone whenever that occurs.

“Alrighty. Let’s get these two,” I nodded at the boys, “Tucked in.”

Luckily for us, Keigo and Tenko weren’t wearing anything too uncomfortable to sleep in. All we had to do was slip their shoes off, and then make sure they were comfortable in the giant bed that they shared the night before.

“Hot chocolate again?” I asked once the bedroom door was closed and the boys safely out like a light.

“That would be wonderful, Mirai-san,” All Might said.

“Great. You know, you can always tell a person’s character based on how they like hot chocolate.”

“Really?”

“Of course,” I said, leading us to the kitchen, “If they like hot chocolate, then they can obviously be trusted. If not, then I would rather them be as far removed from me as possible.”

Toshinori laughed, “That’s a bit of a biased opinion. What if they’re allergic to milk?”

“Some cheap cocoa mixes only need water.”

“What if they’re allergic to chocolate, then?”

“Then I ask if they would like some extremely sweetened tea instead. If they turn that down, then I know they’re suspicious.”

“What if they can’t have sweet things for whatever reason? Like they have bad blood pressure. Are you biased against those who are conscious of their health?”

“Okay. You need to stop poking holes in my perfect system of determining someone’s character,” I said, lightly jabbing a finger at the man’s chest. But despite my protests, I found myself smiling at his mischievous grin.

“Then make that system a little more foolproof, Mirai-san,” Toshinori wrinkled his nose at my expression, and I finally ceded and burst into giggles. 

I put the milk in the saucer, and said, “I had a thought--”

“Very dangerous things to have.”

“--stop that!” I laughed again and continued, “No, but couples are supposed to know things about each other, right? But we don’t. So why don’t we sit down and play twenty questions or something? Get to know each other a bit beyond the whole fellow adoption parent who would die for the kids.”

“Your milk is bubbling over.”

“Oh shit,” my attention returned to the saucer and the salvaging of the cocoa, but I didn’t let up, “Well, how about it?”

“You know, there was this one thing I’ve always wanted to try. I don’t know if you’ve heard of it, but there’s this old pre-quirk superstition where if you and somebody else ask and answer thirty-six questions truthfully, you’re bound to fall in love.”

“I think I know what you’re talking about,” I said, “You want to try it?”

“We might as well,” he said, “And who knows, maybe it’ll go so well that we don’t have to fake it at the wedding.”

That set me off again, and I shoved Toshinori out of the kitchen before him and his jokes made me burn myself on the stove.

*****

“Found it!” cried Mirai, sitting up a bit straighter in her seat. Toshinori leaned over to look at the screen and saw the words ‘The 36 Questions That Lead to Love,’ printed boldly across her cell phone screen.

“What’s the first one?” he asked, still leaning in close to the heroine.

“Number one: given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?” Mirai bit her lip, “I know that we’re supposed to say some celebrity or something, but if I had to host the dinner, I would just have my family. That way, if they’re rude, I can just make them do the dishes. I couldn’t do that to the American ambassador or Crimson Riot or someone else like that. Also, they wouldn’t be snobs about the food.”

“I’d have the Shields. It’s been forever since I saw David and Melissa in person. Plus it helps that they also double as celebrities.”

“Nice. Number two: would you like to be famous? In what way?”

Toshinori winced, “No, I would not like to be famous. Trust me, it’s too much work.”

“Really?” Mirai asked, “I mean, I agree with you, but I’d thought you’d have a different answer.”

Toshinori shuddered as he thought of the press conferences and the recognitions on the street and the calculating of every word that left his mouth, “No. There are far too many cons when it comes to fame.”

“Can’t argue with that. Number three: before making a telephone call, do you ever rehearse what you’re going to say? Why?” Mirai snorted, “Absolutely yes. The calls to order food alone take twenty minutes to preplan. Why is talking on the phone so awkward?”

“Because our brains get spooked by a voice without a body? I don’t know, really, but I do know if Torino ever figured out smartphones and called me out of the blue, I would simply curl into a ball and die.”

“God, that's a mood. Okay, four: what would constitute a ‘perfect’ day for you?”

“All for One’s dead, I’m tanning on a California beach somewhere, there is an endless line of hamburgers and garlic bread in the distance, and I can trust that every hero besides All Might can handle the world’s crime tomorrow.”

“Don’t you think that’s a bit of a pipedream?”

“You said perfect, not realistic.”

“Fair enough,” she acknowledged, “As for me, I think my perfect day would be eating Michio’s blueberry muffins for breakfast, getting to hug every person I care about at least once, going to an escape room with Athena, Void, Stormborn, and Mana-nee, introducing the boys to something totally new, getting my ass handed to me in chess by Nedzu, annihilating Orochi in Scrabble, and then ending the day with a movie marathon of some sort.”

“That sounds like a lovely day,” Toshinori said with a soft smile.

“Thank you. Five: when did you last sing to yourself? To someone else? Oh, this one’s perfect for me! I last sang to myself this morning when I was making breakfast, and I last sang to someone else last night when I gave the boys a lullaby.”

Toshinori shifted in his seat and thought, “I think I last sang to myself when I was driving in my car and a song came on the radio. And… I honestly can’t remember the last time I sang for someone else. Does humming a jingle with other people around count?”

“If it must.” Mirai sighed dramatically and leaned back against the sofa. “Six: If you were able to live to the age of 90 and retain either the mind or body of a 30-year-old for the last 60 years of your life, which would you want?”

“Body. As much as Torino can still destroy me in a spar, I’d rather not get all of the aches and pains he’s starting to go on about.”

“Really? I’d pick mind. I’ve seen what Alzheimer’s can do to a person, and I’d rather stay mentally sharp than have to suffer that,” Mirai read the next question and then went pale.

“Oh. That is a-- you know what, let’s just skip that one.”

“What? No, let’s hear it.”

“It’s a rather personal question, and I don’t know if you’ll be too keen on it. I know I’m not,” Mirai mumbled that last part under her breath.

“Well, I won’t know unless you read it.”

“Alright, fine. Number seven: do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?”

There was a long silence as sound was all but sucked out of the room.

“...yes,” Toshinori finally said after a long while, “Yes I have a hunch about how I’ll go out.”

His mind wandered a bit towards All for One and the inevitable battle between them, the one that has taken out seven before him.

“...I do too,” Mirai said at last.

Silence hung in the air a bit longer before there was a look, a clearing of throats, and the silent mutual agreement not to ask what those hunches were.

“Eight: name three things you and your partner appear to have in common. Ugh, willingness to parent, general awkwardness, and a bit of golden hair,” Mirai said, pulling on one of the yellow streaks that stood out against her dark emerald.

“Is that natural?” Toshinori asked.

“Yep. I’ve had them since I was born. What about you? What do you think we have in common?”

“Our respect for our mentors, our wish to make the world a better place, and our tallness.”

“Good answers. Let’s move on to nine: for what in life do you feel most grateful?”

“Nana,” Toshinori said after a slight moment of thought, “She made me who I am today, and for that, I will ever be grateful.”

Mirai smiled and poked his shoulder, “Mama’s boy.”

She laughed at his sputtering and then answered, “I can’t be laughing too hard, because I’m the most grateful for friends and family. They make this cruel world worth living in, ya’know?”

“Yeah. I guess I do.”

Mirai looked away from what Toshinori knew was probably a very mushy look on his part and read the next question. “Ten: if you could change anything about the way you were raised, what would it be? My foster parents. I think the universe gave me the worst possible foster parents to balance out awarding me the best possible foster siblings. I mean, they weren’t pedophiles or anything like that, but I and the others definitely deserved better. Mana especially. She shouldn’t have had to step up and take custody of us at eighteen.”

“I would have found Nana sooner. Four years just wasn’t enough.”

“To great women with names that end in ‘ana’?” Mirai raised her glass of hot chocolate in a small toast.

“To the amazing women who we owe much to,” Toshinori clinked their mugs together and drank, “What’s the next one?”

“Eleven: take four minutes to tell your partner your life story in as much detail as possible.”

“Well, I was born in Tokyo. My dad walked out a little bit after I was diagnosed as Quirkless, and my mom worked day and night to support us. She got sick when I was eleven, and I had to go to a foster home when she passed when I was thirteen. When I was fourteen, I was saved by a heroine in a white cape, and I chased her down to ask her a very important question. I asked if a kid like me could be a hero like her. The heroine was Nana and she said…” And Toshinori realized at that very moment that if he wanted to go further, he had to talk about One for All. 

“Yes?” Mirai asked.

Toshinori bit his lip and thought. Nighteye already knew about One for All from Evergreen. It wouldn’t exactly be new information. But it would be new that he was the wielder.

And also All Might.

“Are you okay, Toshinori?”

He thought about Nana’s husband, murdered in their home because of All for One. About how the spouses of One for All wielders don’t always end well. But Nighteye knew about him and was already involved. Should she know the full truth?

Should she be able to make up her mind?

“...and she said yes, but not unless I started training,” he finally continued, soldiering through Nighteye’s concerned gaze, “So she took me to Torino’s gym to train. And after months of working alongside her and him and talking with them for hours, Nana makes me an offer. She gives me a hair and tells me about One for All.”

Instead of becoming angry about keeping secrets as Toshinori expected, Nighteye simply relaxed her nervously frigid frame, “Oh. Oh! Oh thank goodness, it’s just this conversation.”

“Why aren’t you freaking out?” Toshinori asked as the woman before him simply smiled wider at his confusion, “This is a big revelation, why aren’t you freaking out? Is it not connecting that I’m All Might? That I’m destined to face All for One?”

“Toshinori, as long as we’re on the subject of quirks, ask me what mine is.”

“What does that--”

“Just ask me what my quirk is.”

Toshinori swallowed, “What’s your quirk?”

“It’s called Foresight. It lets me see into a person’s future.”

“....”

“I’m not freaking out because I’ve already seen you give this exact talk to Tenko.”

“...you can WHAT?”

Nighteye burst into laughter at his expression and started to explain, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but I figured you’d have a bigger problem with a stranger waltzing up to you and saying, ‘hey, I know about your deepest secrets,’ than just letting you tell me on your own terms. And besides, the future is always in flux. Maybe you’ll never have that conversation with Tenko, maybe you will. But either way, I know now. And I’m not mad.”

“Okay. Good. And you still want to go through with the wedding?”

“Yes, I’ll still marry you. I’m the one who proposed, after all.”

“Okay. Well, the rest of it’s pretty simple. I accepted One for All and went to UA to learn how to be a hero. Nana died a few weeks after I graduated, and Torino had to force me onto the plane to America. I graduated from Stanford with a degree in heroics and I met David, who’s been my best friend and the only man I allow to make my support gear. Came back to Japan to combat All for One, became the number one hero, was the best man at David and Emma’s wedding, became Melissa’s godfather, held David and I-Island together as best I could when Emma passed, came back and doubled my work week to make up for the days I missed, and then I got this call from an underground heroine. Something about Nana’s son being dead and her grandson needing me. And I think you know the rest from there.”

“Yes, I think I know a thing or two.”

Toshinori snorted and swatted Mirai’s shoulder, “Well, what about you? What’s your life story?”

“Okay, okay, so. I used my quirk for the first time when I was three, and my life literally flashed before my eyes. To date, that is the only time I’ve ever seen my own future, and trust me, it has not really gone to plan,” she rubbed at the back of her neck and gave a single bark of laughter, “Dad was gone before then, and mom….she tried, I guess? She had had addiction problems for a while, and when she was sober, it was great. But when the days got tougher and she was sober less and less, I could just see how hard it was getting. At one point, the two of us were living out of her car, and I wasn’t going to school, and I realized that I was holding her back from recovery. So, I tricked my mom into going to a shelter and I told the volunteers that she wanted to go to rehab and I wanted to go to foster care. 

“And that’s when things got better. I struck out with a few foster parents, and Okazaki was a rat bastard, but for the first time in this life, I had a stable roof over my head and food on the table. And I had Mana, Orochi, and Michio. There were some others, too, but they didn’t stay. Okazaki’s was the ‘transition’ home until you found someplace better, but the four of us were the only long-time residents. We got close fast. And then one day I had a vision."

A dark look grew over Mirai’s face as she continued, "I saw Okazaki come home drunk and kill Michio. And that almost broke me. Up until that point, none of my visions had ever been stopped. I didn't think I could change fate no matter how hard I tried. And then I met Nedzu. And I realized that the future can change. And then the five of us changed it.

"Life got simpler after that. Mana got custody, Nedzu and I figured out how to play the stock market using Foresight, I graduated middle school and started at Ketsubetsu, Nedzu gained personhood, Orochi fast-tracked through the medical course, Michio started at the bakery, Mana and I started at the IUCA, I got us on the AfO case, I found Tenko, and here we are."

"And here we are," Toshinori nodded, “Engaged and playing a game where we’re supposed to end it head over heels in love.”

“Let’s see if that last one sticks,” Mirai scrolled and found the next question, “Twelve: if you could wake up tomorrow having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be? Wait, do they mean ability as in personality trait, or ability as in quirk?”

“I’d imagine personality trait, seeing as this is pre-quirk times, but why not both?”

Mirai nodded and shrugged to herself, “I think I’d like to be a little less worried about the future. A lot of my problems would probably be solved if I could just throw caution to the wind and decide that I couldn’t care less about sticking to what I think is the ‘right’ outcome to everything.”

“And the quirk?”

“Teleportation, hands down. Especially if it was long-range. Imagine if you could just pop to anywhere in the world and spend a day roaming the streets of Paris or Rome or Constantinople or New York. Ugh, I would kill somebody for that power. What about you?”

“I think I would like to be taken a bit more seriously by others. Many misinterpret my optimism for naivete and are prone to dismiss me out of hand. I’d like to be acknowledged as serious without having to sacrifice the most important part of being a hero. As for a quirk, I’ve always admired those with super speed.”

“Got a future Idaten member on our hands?” Mirai asked playfully.

“I think I’d prefer the Flash.” Toshinori bumped his shoulder against Mirai’s and turned his attention towards her phone, “What’s next?”

“Hm. It says that that’s the end of the first set and that questions start to get a bit more personal from here on out. Would you like to stop or take a break or something?”

He thought for a moment before shaking his head. “No, let’s keep going.”

“Alright then,” Mirai said with a small smirk and a tap of a ‘next’ button, “On to question set number two.”

Chapter Text

“Question number thirteen,” Mirai started, “If there was--”

The heroine cut herself off with a snort, and Toshinori looked at her. “What is it?”

“Sorry, sorry. I just-- question thirteen: if a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself, your life, the future, or anything else, what would you want to know?” she gave him an exasperated look, “A little bit redundant for a gal who can see the future.”

Toshinori agreed with a laugh, “I guess so. But there still has to be something you don’t know the answer to. I myself would like to know who the next holder of One for All is. It would certainly make my life easier.”

Mirai looked away quickly and scrunched her shoulders in on herself.

“...no…” Toshinori whispered, “You know?!”

“It’s not a sure thing!” she was quick to protest, “There are a million different ways the future could go, and I know of at least one other viable candidate, possibly more, that would work as holders. But do I know of one particular candidate that would excel with One for All? Yes. Am I going to tell you who they are? Hell no.”

“But why not?”

“You’ll find them on your own, trust me,” Mirai said, poking him lightly on the shoulder, “And besides, it’s your quirk and therefore your decision to make. I have no right to interfere and force you to give it to one specific person.”

“Can I at least get a hint?”

“Tell you what. After you already have your heart set on a holder, I’ll tell you whether or not it’s the same one I foresaw. And you won’t learn a second sooner.”

Toshinori groaned. “Not even an age range?”

“No.” Mirai looked at her phone screen and then said, “I would want to know what happens after I die.”

“What?”

“My answer to the question. I’d ask the crystal ball what happens when I die. It’s the one thing I can’t foresee. When people die, I just get pulled out of my quirk. And I would very much like to know what comes after.”

“That’s a bit morbid,” said Toshinori.

“I’ve got my reasons,” Mirai said, hastily returning to her phone and scrolling, “Fourteen: is there something that you’ve dreamed of doing for a long time? Why haven’t you done it? I want to go to a Broadway show. I love music, I love musicals, and I want to see how modern musicals stack up against pre-quirk ones.”

“And why haven’t you gone?”

“There was never enough money before,” Mirai said, “Using Foresight to cheat the stock market worked, but a lot of the money was put to Orochi’s med school, my hero school, Michio’s bakery, and Mana’s supplies. Not to mention everything that Nedzu needed to gain personhood. Law school and years-long trials aren’t cheap. And then when I got settled at work and the expenses eased up, I couldn’t just pack up and leave. Not with the All for One case. So, Broadway’s a distant dream. And you?”

“I would dearly love to return to America for a time. See the sights, revisit some of my favorite places, make some new memories. But similar to you, All for One and my duties as the number one hero keep me here.”

“It sucks when wants and duties don’t mix,” Mirai said sympathetically, “Maybe when this is all over, we can pack up and go.”

“Maybe,” he agreed doubtfully, “What’s the next one?”

“Number fifteen: what is the greatest accomplishment of your life?”

“A lot of people would probably say becoming the number one hero, but my greatest accomplishment is graduating from Stanford with honors.”

“Damn. And here I am, barely even a high school graduate. You said you majored in heroics?”

“Yes. I know most would consider it an “easier” program and degree--”

“--which is bullshit--”

“--which is bullshit. But I was also combating a language barrier the entire way, so I am immensely proud of myself.”

“Amazing. Mine would be…. I really want to say saving Nedzu, Michio, Tenko, and Keigo. Because it’s one thing to save a person on the job. It’s another to do it off the clock and to intimately know exactly how wrong it could have gone otherwise. All four of them had a worse fate before them, and I stopped that. And despite how terrified I am of not knowing what comes next, a part of me is thrilled and proud beyond measure that I was able to help them.”

“I have to say I agree,” Toshinori said, “But what were their worser fates? Could any of them still happen? Do we need to take measures to keep them safe?”

Mirai scowled. “I’m not telling you Nedzu’s. He wouldn’t want you to know, but trust me when I say it’s been handled. I already told you Michio’s during my little autobiography. And as for the kids….are you sure you want to know?”

Toshinori grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze, “Yes. Absolutely yes.”

She let out a breath and answered, “Keigo would have stayed homeless for a long while before his mother sold him to the Hero Public Safety Commission.”

Toshinori froze. “Sold?”

“They wouldn’t call it that on paper, but that’s what it essentially would’ve been. Keigo would have been broken down and rebuilt as Hawks, the Commission’s perfect agent. He would’ve broken the top ten heroes when he debuted. But he wouldn’t have an ounce of freedom. He wouldn’t have a say when his handlers told him to infiltrate a group of villains, or when he murdered on their orders. It would’ve been hell on earth for the kid,” Mirai shuddered, “And Tenko would have been almost as bad. Maybe even worse.”

Toshinori squeezed Mirai’s hand, “What was it?”

“The night we met, I said the only reason I found Tenko before All for One was pure dumb luck. That wasn’t a lie. Tenko would’ve been living on the streets for weeks before All for One found him. And then adopt him. Shimura Tenko would’ve become Shigaraki Tomura: the successor and future holder of All for One.”

Something inside Toshinori’s chest went wild and burned at the admission. “No….”

“He would have grown up believing heroes were worthless and the entire hero system a sham.”

“No, no, no, no, no….”

“All for One would have forced him to wear the dismembered hands of his family, forever a reminder of how the heroes failed him.”

“NO!”

Mirai nodded, “Yes. But you listen here, Yagi Toshinori. Tenko is safe, Tenko is sane, and I’m pretty sure the both of us would die before we gave him up to All for One. That future, for better or for worse, is dead and buried. It won’t happen. And the longer Tenko stays happy with us, the less likely that timeline will come to fruition. That’s why we are getting married and adopting them before All for One can come after Tenko, or the Commission after Keigo. It’s not going to happen, not on our watch.”

Toshinori sunk into the sofa and put his head in his hands. How close was he to losing his master’s grandson? How much had he almost lost forever without even realizing it? What would his life be like had he never met Mirai?

Toshinori was almost certain he could ask the heroine, and she would be able to tell him in great detail. But not tonight. He didn’t think he could process that truth tonight.

“Let’s try to think of better things. Here, question sixteen. What do you value most in a friendship? I need a friend who’s understanding. I have a lot of stuff I play close to the chest, and I need a friend to understand that it’s never personal if I keep something from them for whatever reason.” Mirai said, “What about you? What’s your perfect friend trait?”

“Flexible,” Toshinori decided, dark thoughts slowly oozing out of his mind, “I am naturally busy all the time. If a person is going to be friends with me, they need to be okay with changing plans on a dime.”

“A hard thing to find sometimes. Seventeen: what is your most treasured memory?”

Toshinori smiled, “The day I met Nana. It was actually a pretty horrible day leading up to that moment, but the one conversation with her changed all of that.”

“Mine was probably the day during my third year when I convinced Void and Athena to intern with me at the IUCA. That entire week was one long non-stop cycle of fighting crime and pulling shenanigans with my friends.”

“A lovely memory. What’s next?”

Mirai sucked in a breath, “What is your most terrible memory? Yeah, no, I’m tweaking this one. All traumatic memories are out, embarrassing stories only. I’ll go first. 

“I just turned eighteen, and it was my third-year work-study with the IUCA. Obviously, that meant I was ready for a ‘seduction case,’ which is pretty standard for undercover missions. The problem with this is that I had never flirted in my life, and I am a literal stick with limbs so I couldn’t even show off my boobs and let the mark get distracted looking at them. There I am, eighteen and clueless, but I decided that if Athena could do it, then I could, too,” Mirai started to laugh a bit, but talked through her giggles, “So I make eye contact with the mark, confidently march up to them, and blurt out ‘Get distracted by my sexy.’ And it worked.”

“How?”

“The mark was too gobsmacked to say anything, and I just wouldn’t shut up. By the time I stopped babbling, the intel was downloaded and the other field agents were out. And I just downed my drink, stood up, and left. Stormborn didn’t let me forget the mission for weeks.”

“Well, if it makes you feel better, it still can’t hold a candle to my most embarrassing memory.”

“And what’s that?”

“Why, the All Might Dildo Incident, of course.”

Mirai blinked incredulously. And then giggled. And then snickered. And then was laughing so hard that she couldn’t breathe. “Ohhhhh my God. The Dildo Incident! And you’re both All Might and Toshinori, so you got double the-- oh my GOD!”

Toshinori smiled. “Laugh it up, laugh it up. I’ll never live it down.”

“No, you will not.” Mirai agreed. She laughed for a bit longer before wheezing and rubbing the tears out of her eyes. “Let's move on before we kill ourselves from the embarrassment. Nineteen: if you knew in one year that you would die sudden-- oh come on! We just avoided a traumatic and morbid question. Two back-to-back is unfair.”

“What’s the full question?”

“If you knew in one year that you would die suddenly, would you change anything about the way you are now living? Why?”

“I’d have to gradually pull back from heroics, and find a successor, for one,” he said, “But other than that, I don’t think I’d change anything. Why change if I'm already doing what I love?”

“I’d get my affairs in order, say goodbye to everyone I love, make sure Nedzu quadruple pinkie promises not to destroy the universe, and then speedrun my bucket list. I may love my job and the life I lead, but there are still things I want to do before my time is up.”

Toshinori squinted at her, “Is that second-to-last one really necessary?”

“Absu-fucking-lutely.”

“Alrighty then,” he said, wondering exactly how unhinged the dog-bear-mouse-thing would be without Mirai in his life.

“Question twenty: what does friendship mean to you? Friendship, to me, is just siblinghood without the official moniker. You tease them to death, enjoy their company, would suplex them out a window if the event called for it, would kill and die for them if the event called for it, and argue endlessly about their trash opinions about mediocre media.”

“You don’t have a lot of casual friends, do you?”

“Nope,” Mirai took a sip of cocoa and eyed him, “It’s ride-or-die or nothing with me. What about you?”

“Friendship is a person who would go out of their way to remember my coffee order and get it for me when I’m running late.”

Mirai gave him a look. “That’s it?”

Toshinori sputtered, “Yes that’s it! Not every friend needs to be willing to die for me.”

“By that definition, I’m friends with every employee in the Tokyo IUCA. Raise your standards, you deserve better.”

“Well, then you’re friends with every member of the IUCA. Lower your standards and embrace your status as Madam Nighteye: the Friend-Shaped Heroine.”

“Oh, my fucking-- you know what? No. This is not the question we are going to fistfight over. Twenty-one: what roles do love and affection play in your life?”

“I wish there was more of it,” Toshinori answered easily.

Mirai softened her gaze and gave a sympathetic look, “It’s lonely at the top, huh?”

“You have no idea.”

“Well, get ready for aggressive cuddling then, because I thrive on love and need it to function. Twenty-two: alternate sharing something you consider a positive characteristic of your partner. Share a total of five items. Okay, kind of low-hanging fruit, but I like your smile.”

“I like your eyes. They’re very expressive.”

“Thank you. I’ll be sure to add expressive eyes to my resume. Uhm, you’re very kind, as all heroes should be.”

“And you’re very sharp, as more heroes should be. I couldn’t imagine piecing together a case using the barest minimum that I’ve heard you can do. More heroes should be able to do that, instead of having someone point at a criminal and say ‘go, fetch’.”

“Your sense of humor is a bit bizarre, but I think I kind of love it,” said Mirai, “The way you tell stories and say jokes is ridiculous, but I think you’re going to milk Dad Jokes for all they’re worth the second you are able, and it’s going to be great.”

Toshinori thought, and then said, “Your dedication. I’ve always believed you should put a hundred and ten percent into everything you try, and I think you do that, no matter what it is. It’s very hard to oscillate from putting your all into heroing, and then turning around and putting that same level of work into your home life, but you do that with an ease I admire.”

“You’re unexpectedly smart. Like, really, really smart. I knew you were bilingual, but the fact that you graduated from Stanford with honors is really impressive. And I know you’re the number one hero, and the sheer amount of physical knowledge, and emotional intelligence, and deduction skills, and everything that you need to know to hold that position for so long and to keep such a huge gap between you and everybody else is astronomical. And I’m a little bit in awe of that.”

“You’re very good at saying exactly the right thing. I don’t know how you do it, but there’s a grace in your words and a meaning behind everything, and when you say it, it always sounds exactly like what others need to hear.”

Mirai swallowed, “You have an aura around you that just instantly puts others at ease. Like it wouldn’t matter if they’re having the worst possible day, if you’re there to help them, it’ll all get better.”

“There’s a sureness in every step you take that’s extremely comforting. It’s as if you know that every move, every decision, is the right one, no matter the circumstance. Like a general marching into battle, and the rest of us are your soldiers getting swept up in the fight. But it’s okay because we know you’ll lead us to victory and then get us back home safe and sound.”

And suddenly, Toshinori was intimately aware that his face was centimeters away from Mirai’s. He felt his cheeks go crimson and pulled himself away from the heroine. He reached for a long-forgotten cup of cocoa and took a swig in an attempt to steady himself. “I believe that was five.”

“Yeah. Yeah, it was. Ugh, twenty-three. How close and warm is your family? Do you feel your childhood was much happier than most other people’s?”

“I don’t really have much of a family. But I’m immensely happy to join yours in the coming month,” he coughed and continued, “As for the childhood question, it was happy, I think. I didn’t have the newest toys or the grandest family vacations, but it was full of love.”

“I love my family. They mean everything to me. I think you appreciate family a lot more when you’ve had to build it up brick by brick,” Mirai thought, and then shrugged, “My childhood can be split into ‘before siblings’ and ‘after siblings.’ The before wasn’t overly pleasant, but the after? Glorious, magnificent, wouldn’t change it for the world. Overall, I think I consider the second half my “real” childhood, so yes. My childhood was probably happier than others.”

She scrolled down and looked at the next question, “What an anticlimactic question to end a set on. Boooooo, it’s so boring. Twenty-four: how do you feel about your relationship with your mother?” Mirai looked up from her phone and pouted, “There is no relationship to speak of. I haven’t seen my mother in over a decade, and I would have to meet her again to see how I would feel about a relationship existing in the first place.”

“I’d wish my mother was still around, be it Nana or my birth mother. But I treasured the time I spent with both and look back on those days fondly,” Toshinori said, “You said that’s the last question in the set?”

“Two down, one to go.”

“Then let’s continue,” Toshinori said, leaning down to look at the screen as Mirai pressed the button and moved onto the next page, excited to see what awaited them.

Chapter Text

Mirai set her mug down and read aloud, “Twenty-five: make three true “we” statements each. For instance, ‘we are both in this room feeling…’ ”

“We’re both heroes,” Toshinori said instantly.

Mirai nodded, thinking, “We both live in Tokyo.”

“We’re both pre-quirk hero fans.”

“We’re both recently engaged.”

“We’re both working to bring down All for One.”

“We both are planning to adopt.” Mirai concluded, “Huh. That was easier than I thought it would be.”

“We must have a lot in common.”

“I guess so.” She looked back to her phone and read off the next question, “Twenty-six, complete this sentence: I wish I had someone with whom I could share…” Mirai looked at her phone and furrowed her brow, “I don’t think I have a secret like that. I’m private, yes, but Nedzu knows most of everything.”

“I do believe the important words there were ‘most of,’ ” Toshinori pointed out, “But this doesn’t say secret. It could be sharing a hobby instead.”

“Oh. If we’re taking that definition, then I wish there was someone I could share my pre-quirk fixation with. My ever-loving, ever-patient people try, trust me. But they just don’t quite get it. And that’s a bit of my own fault, but still. It’d be nice to have someone to nerd out with,” Mirai shrugged.

Toshinori squeezed her hand, “Maybe I can be that fellow nerd.”

“Well then, nerd, what about you? What would you share if you could?”

“The spotlight. I’ll never regret becoming a hero, nor the Symbol of Peace. But having all eyes on me constantly isn’t great. Especially when they all expect perfection.”

“Well, can’t blame you for that. But I’ll expect none of that in this household. Frankly, there is nothing more terrible than being perfect, and I’ll have none of it under this roof. Silly, ridiculous, good-enough-for-Saturday-at-home vibes only,” Mirai declared confidently, and then scoffed off a laugh, “We’re going to be a couple of hermits, aren’t we?”

“I do believe that can happen,” Toshinori agreed, “But I think we’re getting the slightest bit off track.”

“You’re right. Twenty-seven. If you were going to become a close friend with your partner, please share what would be important for them to know.”

“Does being All Might count?”

“I think they want something new.”

Toshinori thought for a moment before saying, “My regular coffee order is a large frappuccino with extra whip cream.”

Mirai blinked and then pointed accusingly at him, “This is your thing about friendship and knowing coffee orders, isn’t it?”

“Yes. And now that you know mine, we are officially friends,” Toshinori said smugly, as Mirai screeched and went for a throw pillow.

“YOU-- NEED-- BETTER-- FRIENDS!” she said, accenting each word with a hit to his shoulder from the pillow.

Toshinori laughed, “But don’t I have better friends now that you’re mine?”

“I-- that isn’t-- ugh!” she tossed the pillow at his chest and flopped back into her seat with a groan, “Raise your standards! My answer is that you should know that I’m an insomniac. So don’t be surprised if I leave you strings of messages every morning, or if you wake up to find all of your paperwork miraculously filled out. Work helps me wear myself out and turn off my brain.”

“I’ll wish for more visits from the Paperwork Fairy, then. What’s twenty-eight?”

“Tell your partner what you like about them; be very honest this time, saying things that you might not say to someone you just met. I like your smile, your dedication, your sense of justice, your intelligence, your sense of humor, your kindness, your optimism, your eyes, your golden retriever-esque qualities, and your arms.”

Toshinori regained his footing a bit after he recovered from Mirai shooting off compliments rapid-fire. “I like your eyes, I like your intelligence, your wit, your dedication, your eloquence, your passion for the things and people you love. I like your confidence, your caring side, and just about everything else I’ve seen from you in the little time I’ve known you.”

“Thanks. You too,” Mirai admitted before returning to her phone, “Twenty-nine: share with your partner an embarrassing moment from your life.”

“Didn’t we already do this?”

“I mean, yes, but no. We changed the other question before, remember?”

“Fine, another embarrassing moment besides the Dildo Incident,” Toshinori said, talking over Mirai’s quiet wheezes and murmurings of ‘the Dildo Incident,’ “This one was in high school. It was my first year, and my usual English teacher was on maternity leave. And I swear to my dying day that the substitute they got for us didn’t speak a lick of English. I caught and pointed out a bunch of grammatical errors, and the teacher decided to respond to this by dedicating the rest of the week to asking me third-year-level questions. It would be ‘Himigai, how many letters are there in the English alphabet?’ ‘Twenty-six!’ ‘Amazing job, Himigai. Yagi, translate this sentence to English, identify the past participle, and then read it aloud in English.’ I got so many of those questions wrong, and then the teacher would mock me for it. I could barely stand to speak for the rest of the day.”

“That’s horrible!” Mirai exclaimed, “I hope that teacher got reported.”

“Well, they weren’t just doing it to me. They did it to anyone who corrected them or got on their bad side. Mind you, because this was UA and we were all overachievers, that got to be the entire class by the end of the second week. And the entire school by the end of the month.”

“They must have been reported then.”

“No. We all got our own little slice of revenge instead,” Toshinori smiled, remembering the past, “You know the one week or so stretch where there’s no sports, clubs, or activities? We all got out individually and decided that that week was open season on the sub. It was beautiful. About six students with telekinesis worked together to get their car up on the roof, I and some of my classmates switched all of their papers with embarrassing photos that somebody found, and someone, I never found out who, was able to successfully dye their clothes a multitude of neon colors for the entire week.”

Mirai chuckled a bit. “Well, it sounds like they got their comeuppance. Mine’s got a little less pranks, though. Sometime when I was in middle school, a neighbor asked me to walk their dogs. And scrawny little me, who had no muscles yet and weighed about a hundred pounds soaking wet, decided that she could absolutely walk the four fully-grown mastiffs that weighed at least one-fifty. Each.” 

Toshinori held back a groan in sympathy.

“Yeah. I was an idiot. After getting dragged a few blocks through who-knows-how-many mud puddles, I finally corralled the dogs back to their house and went home in defeat. And Mana just took one look at me and said, ‘Did you walk the dogs, or did the dogs walk you?’ with zero sympathy in her voice.”

“Poor little you.”

“Thank you! Vindication. Anyways, thirty. When did you last cry in front of another person? By yourself? The last time I cried was the night after I found Tenko. Just full-on burst into tears about the whole thing. Evergreen and Thunderclap talked me down. The last time I cried by myself was the last time I watched Toy Story 2 by myself. Jessie’s flashback gets me every time.”

“Those are… two very different situations.”

“I know. But I still cried nonetheless. And you?”

“I… ugh…” Toshinori scrambled for an answer, “The last time I cried by myself was when I watched Guardians of the Galaxy 2. And the last time I cried in front of someone else was-- Nana’s funeral, I guess.”

“That long?” Mirai asked, furrowing her brow, “Is that healthy?”

“Most of my time is spent in front of others. And nobody wants to see All Might cry.”

Mirai cupped his cheek with her hand and put her other hand on his shoulder, “Well, if you ever need to cry here, I won’t mind. Everyone needs to every once in a while.”

Toshinori pulled away and refocused on the woman’s phone, “What’s the next question?”

Mirai must have seen something on his face because she took pity on him and moved on, “Question thirty-one. Tell your partner something that you like about them already.”

“My, they certainly are piling on the compliments today.”

“I’m sure we can think of something,” Mirai said with a playful smile.

“I think you…” Toshinori began, racking his brain for something that he hasn’t already said, “I think you have beautiful hair. It’s long, and elegant, and I imagine you can wear it in so many different beautiful ways.”

“Thank you. You look like a person who would give amazing hugs.”

“Thank you. I think I give good hugs. But then again, I don’t know if I’m the best judge of that.” Toshinori said.

“Thirty-two: what, if anything, is too serious to be joked about? Rape,” Mirai answered immediately, “It always gets on my nerves when people make racist, quirkist, sexist, and other jokes where minorities are the punchline, but I cannot stand if people joke about rape. I’ve stopped too many incidents and helped too many victims for some asshole to turn around and joke about how ‘he brushed my shoulder so it’s rape.’ I swear to God, I will snap one of these days, and break somebody’s nose.”

“Well that got serious quickly,” Toshinori thought. Aloud he said, “I agree with you. Completely. But the thing that always got on my nerves is when people joke about trauma that they’ve never experienced. I always felt like that invalidated actual survivors. And it’s always much more disrespectful than survivors and victims making their own jokes about their experiences.”

“Yeah. That sucks too,” she agreed, “When will people learn to stay in their own lane?”

“Never, in my experience.”

“Yeah. That blows.” Much more morose, Mirai returned to the questions, “Thirty-three. If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate with anyone, what would you most regret not having told someone? Why haven’t you told them yet?”

“I would most regret not having told Nana goodbye for the last time. There was never a chance for that final farewell,” Toshinori said.

“Do you want the list in chronicle or alphabetical order?” Mirai asked sarcastically, “When you know the future, there is just so much that you want to tell people. That they would’ve been a millionaire, but they would’ve been miserable the rest of their life, so I’m happy that their business venture fell through. That if they didn’t walk out on that relationship then, then their ex would’ve cheated on them with their brother. That if they don’t change careers in the next two years, they will get shot in a robbery gone wrong. Sometimes I tell it, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes it makes it better, sometimes it makes it worse. But if I had to choose one thing that I would regret keeping to myself, it would be telling my siblings the full truth about everything I know. And I haven’t told them because it’s been so long that I’m afraid they’ll never talk to me again if I do.”

“They wouldn’t.”

“Probably not. But for all that I can see the future, I’m a little too scared to prove it,” Mirai said, “Let’s move on. Thirty-four: your house, containing everything you own, catches fire. After saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make a final dash to save any one item. What would it be? Why?”

She drummed her fingers on the arm of the sofa in thought before saying, “I would save the safe box with all of my vital information. You know, birth certificate and all of that. It would make getting back on my feet a lot easier.”

“Practical.”

“I think you mean boring.”

“Yes, but still, practical. I think I would grab my collection of comics. They’re probably worth enough to rebuy a whole new apartment,” Toshinori said.

“Too true,” Mirai said, “Thirty-five. Of all the people in your family-- seriously?” she made a face at the screen and continued, “Of all the people in your family, whose death would you find the most disturbing? Why?”

Toshinori mimicked her face of disgust, “Does it really say that?”

“Yes. Talk about morbid.” Mirai shuddered and hugged her arms around herself.

“The boys,” Toshinori said easily, “I don’t think I need to elaborate.”

“No, you don’t. And I think I agree completely,” Mirai said, “Last question, now. We’re in the homestretch. Thirty-six: share a personal problem and ask your partner’s advice on how he or she might handle it. Also, ask your partner to reflect back to you how you seem to be feeling about the problem you have chosen.”

Mirai set her phone to the side and turned to Toshinori. “I feel like I’m going to be dealing with a lot of rapid-fire changes very soon, and I’m currently very stressed about it all. I mean, it’s been a few days, and suddenly, I’ve got two kids, a fiance, and the number one hero joining my biggest case at work.”

“Okay,” Toshinori began, “I am not the person you should be coming to for this, firstly. And I might sound like a bit of a hypocrite right now, but I do think the best thing you can do is take any assistance you feel you need. You are very much not alone in all of this, and the people who care about you want to help. And you should let them.”

“Easier said than done,” she muttered, “But how do you think I feel about all of this?”

“I think you feel just like you said: stressed. But I also think there’s a part of you that knows you’re going to get through this all just fine.”

Mirai just rolled her eyes but nodded. “And you? What’s your big mystery problem?”

“I’m worried about my work. I can’t step back from heroing, not now when the hunt for All for One is truly picking up. But I also know that the boys need to be a priority. And I don’t know what to do about that.”

“Well, firstly, I think you need to talk to me about this,” Mirai reached for his hand and squeezed it, “I’m going to be your partner in all of this, and telling me when you have a problem is going to be half the battle. And second, I think we both need to sit down and hash out your schedule together. Find some time that will be best for all of us. And if that means I’m with the boys on my own for a while, then that’s okay. But if that means you start taking vacation days instead of working seven days a week, then that’s going to be okay, too.”

“And how do I feel about this?”

“Stressed. But also guilty. You don’t want to cut back your time being a hero, but you also don’t want to make the boys feel like you’re not there when they need it.”

“Am I such an open book?” Toshinori asked.

“No. I’m just used to reading people,” Mirai said, “And now we stare into each other’s eyes for four minutes.”

“That long?”

“It’s what’s written,” she pulled up a timer and set it between them, “Four minutes, no talking, complete eye contact. Let’s see if we fall in love.”

And Mirai started the timer.

Mirai’s eyes burn into his, and Toshinori stares back, a little unnerved. Her golden irises almost looked cat-like; shifting, quick, and wise. A few moments passed, and then they both seemed to settle a bit, getting comfortable for the long minutes ahead. Toshinori focused on her gaze and wondered at it.

What was hiding behind that wall of molten gold?

What exactly had those knowing eyes seen?

Toshinori continued to look and contemplate. A heroine, a mother, a girl who grew up too fast. He had learned a lot about Mirai in the past few hours, and he considered how kind of a heart she must have to continue as she did. And the more he had learned, the more he had wanted to know. What made her want to be a hero? What would she change if she could? What was her favorite story? Her favorite movie? Her least favorite? Would she have gone to college if she could have? Did she ever want to go later down the line?

Staring at Mirai like this, looking at her, seeing her for the first time, Toshinori had a realization.

He wasn’t in love with her. But Toshinori wanted to know Mirai better. And if that meant inviting himself into her life like he has, then he’d continue to do so just to learn more about the woman in front of him.

“What are you doing?”

They both fell back from each other in surprise, Mirai letting loose a small string of swears in English. 

“Keigo, don’t scare us like that,” Mirai said.

“Sorry,” the boy said, burying his face into his Endeavor doll.

“No, it’s fine, Young Keigo,” Toshinori was quick to reassure, “We were just surprised, that’s all.”

The timer between them went off, and Mirai quickly dismissed it. “Internal alarm wake you up?”

“The Sequenced reruns are supposed to be on soon,” Keigo said.

“Well, I don’t know about TV, but I think I can swing a glass of warm milk, a bedtime story, and a song if you want. Toshi, are you staying?”

“I think I better head out,” he said, “I go back to work tomorrow, and I don’t want to be completely exhausted.”

“Then I’ll see you soon,” Mirai said, bowing her head politely. She grabbed the boy by the hand and snagged her mug, “Now let’s see if we can’t get you back to sleep. I know you’re potentially nocturnal, but we can’t have you waking up halfway through your sleep cycle. That’s not healthy.”

“G’night, Yagi-san.”

“Goodnight, Young Keigo,” Toshinori said.

Mirai waved goodbye before shuffling the boy to the kitchen and seeing if she could find a glass for him. Toshinori saw himself out, crossing paths with Nedzu on his way. He bid the mammal (rodent?) a goodnight and got all the way back to his apartment before realizing that Mirai had called him ‘Toshi’.

And that he hadn’t minded the nickname in the slightest.

Chapter Text

“This is bullshit favoritism! Bullshit favoritism of the highest degree!” Void half-shouted, pointing an accusing finger my way, “Evergreen literally grounded you to headquarters for a month. Why are you going out?”

“If you want to take my recruitment lecture at Ketsubutsu Academy, be my guest,” I retorted. Void shut her mouth quickly, and Athena snorted somewhere behind me.

“On second thought, enjoy your day. Grab me a boba from that one tea place in Musutafu.”

“I still don’t understand why you hate revisiting Ketsubutsu,” Athena said, giving up all pretense of not eavesdropping and turning towards us, “Our high school days weren’t that traumatizing, were they?”

“If you think I’m going to show my face to Starling-sensei within the next ten years, you’re both crazy and stupid. You’re crazupid.”

“And while you’re over there terrified over our graduation prank, I’m still left wondering at how people still think Athena and I had nothing to do with it,” I said, rolling my eyes. I double-checked my case (four stamps for demonstration, papers, hero license, thumb drive with my presentation, tablet, goggles from Mana’s upgraded suit that I had unfortunately grown too attached to, quirk-suppressing cuffs), and then threw on my bullet-proof suit jacket, just in case. “I got to get going if I don’t want to miss the train. See you both later.”

I left them to their bickerings and short goodbyes, before taking the elevator down to the sixth floor and walking towards the Blue Room. I was just about to open the closed door when Koushi spotted me through the door’s window and gestured for me to stop. I froze, hand still on the doorknob, and pedaled back a few steps as the daycare teacher opened the door and slid out.

“Sorry about that,” he said, shutting the door quietly, “But all of the kids just went down for naps, and I didn’t want to wake them up.”

“Keigo, too?” I asked, a little bit amazed.

“He’s either asleep, or pretending to be,” Koushi laughed, rubbing the back of his head, “But either way, he’s laying down and being quiet, so I’ll count it.”

“If I wasn’t literally engaged, I would kiss you right now.”

“And if I weren’t married to a darling husband, I’d say thanks,” the silver-haired man stopped rubbing his neck and took on a more serious look, “What’s up?”

“I’m heading out to Musutafu, and I just wanted to say goodbye to the boys. I should be back before the workday ends, but if I’m not, they’re to be sent home with my sister. She’s got a lab in this building. Ask the front desk for Imada Mana.”

“I’ll be sure to tell them and do just that. And congratulations on the engagement!”

“Thanks,” I said, a semi-forced smile gracing my lips.

Koushi turned back around and retreated into the Blue Room of the IUCA Daycare, and I robotically made my way back to the elevator. 

Ugh.

Feelings.

I was honestly extremely skeptical of the thirty-six questions challenge from last night. I didn’t go in expecting to fall head-over-heels in love, and I didn’t. I didn’t. But there was just this, this, this vulnerability that Toshinori and I shared that I haven’t completely had with a person since Nedzu.

I mean, Mana, Orochi, Michio, Void, Athena, Stormborn, Evergreen, and Thunderclap probably could have answered every single question for me, and have gotten them all right. But reaching that level of knowledge and connection with another person over a span of years is a lot different than reaching it over a span of hours. And even though Toshi still doesn’t know everything about me-- doesn’t even know more than half --I haven’t bared my soul to someone like that since I was a kid when Nedzu wanted to know exactly how I knew the future without the help of my quirk.

"Why does speedrunning the friendship process make my head feel dizzy?" I thought, stepping out of the elevator and into the main lobby, "Am I dehydrated? When was the last time I drank water?"

"Hey, Nighteye. Isn't it a bit early for a lunch break?" Jin asked, looking up from his desktop. 

"I've got a lecture at Ketsubutsu. It should be saved to the calendar under ‘special events.’ If not, it should definitely be on my individual calendar.”

“Special events, special events,” the teenager muttered, clicking through tabs on the computer.

“Top right corner. Click the little arrow and scroll down.”

“Thank you! ‘Special events: M. Nighteye for guest lecture @ Ket.’ Looks like you’re all set. If I could just have you sign out, you’ll be good to go.”

“No problem,” I said, grabbing the light pink paper and signing on the next free space and marking my departure time, “I’ll see you in a bit.”

With a final wave and a smile, I walked out of the building and towards the station, mind scrambling all the while. There was just too much on my plate right now to worry about some unexpected closeness with Toshinori. That was probably it, too. My life was being turned upside down, and I was still finding my footing. Obviously, I would form a connection with the man who was going through it all with me. 

Even if I did think his ridiculously pretty sapphire-blue eyes were gorgeous.

“Ah! No. Stop that,” I thought to myself, feeding the ticket machine my train pass and walking over to the waiting area, “He’s a friend, and nothing more. Maybe not even that yet. You’re going through too much right now, and your emotions are all over the place. Put these feelings in a box and let them sit. If they don’t fizzle out after you get custody of the boys, revisit them then.”

But those eyes. And that hair. And the abs--

“DOWN, GIRL!”

Flustered and confused, I continued to argue with myself all the way to Musutafu, trying to talk my rabid fantasies down all the while.

*****

The train landed in Musutafu right on time, and I grabbed my case and started making my way toward the school.

I hadn’t even known that Ketsubutsu had been located in the same prefecture as UA until I had been reborn into this world, but I honestly shouldn’t have been that surprised. Ms. Joke and Aizawa knew each other because their agencies were so close. And if they both worked at their respective schools, then they couldn’t have agencies that far away. Even Nedzu, who lived in Tokyo and commuted to UA every day, was pushing it.

Plus there was that throw-away line about Aizawa and Ms. Joke maybe meeting up to host an inter-school training event with their classes. I’m pretty sure that got changed into the 1A vs. 1B arc, but I’m honestly still bitter I never got to see that go down.

Could I bribe Nedzu into making that happen? Do I have the power to do that?

As I figured out the chances of me getting that favor from Nedzu, I rounded the corner of the block and caught sight of the school. I smiled a bit but quickly felt that smile fall as I came face-to-face with a woman trying to steal a car.

From the Ketsubutsu parking lot. 

In full sight of the school and the classroom windows.

“Is she insane?” I thought, blinking owlishly at her, “The teachers will spot her in an instant and stop this. Or some student or other. God knows Void would have rushed in to ‘prove herself’ the second she was able to.”

I ducked behind a nearby car and peaked out to watch her. She was short, around five-foot-three, and had her hair cropped in a wild pixie cut. There was no outward tell to her quirk, or any eye-catching traits to distinguish her. She had dark brown hair and brown eyes. She continued to hotwire the car, mumbling a bit while she did. And still, no one came.

“Someone must be coming any minute now,” I thought desperately, as she pried open the panel under the wheel and started moving around wires, “How could someone not have seen her by-- oh. Oh. Oh shit!”

I took a second glance at the school building and scrutinized it closely. Just as I suspected, there was the faintest tell-tale haze of an illusion quirk.

Fuck.

Illusionists were the worst to fight solo. If I had somebody there with me, I could use Foresight and we could navigate the fight without any surprises. But alone?

I pulled out my meager four stamps and the cuffs and thought. Every illusionist was different, but there were some common weaknesses. Very few could make solid illusions, or keep their illusions up while they were distracted. And I’d wager that the large wall she was keeping over the school was draining her energy fast. If I could get the jump on her, and keep her distracted until someone from school noticed, then I should be able to stop her.

Deciding on my course of action, I readied myself, slid over the car, and threw my first stamp at the woman’s hands.

“Son of a--” she shook out her hand and looked up from where she was lying on the floor of the car. She froze for a moment, before sending out a billow of fake smoke and using it to cover herself.

I closed my eyes and twirled my second stamp between my fingers before throwing it with all my might at the place where I heard footsteps coming from. A surprised cry of pain told me the hit had landed.

I dashed over and nearly tripped over where the car thief had hidden in the smoke. I tucked and rolled, reaching back and grabbing her by the ankle, pulling her down with me.

I pinned her to the ground, my much larger hand keeping her chest and all attached to it in place.

“You’re under arrest for suspected grand theft au--” a grunt burst from my lips as I felt like I was being punched in the shoulder. The woman before me shifted, and I saw that rather than holding her down by the chest, I had the thief by the lower stomach, giving her enough room to fold over me and attack.

She slipped away, and as I tried to rise up and roll out my shoulders to shake off the pain, I felt something move under my skin move. And based on the unabiding pressure, I think I know what it was.

“Did you seriously just stab me?” I yelled, starting to run after her, sure to follow the footsteps and not one of the many silent clones the woman was sending out.

She kept running, but I was gaining pretty quickly on her. I readied the cuffs and got ready to tackle her, before a boy in a Ketsubutsu uniform bounced in front of the parking lot exit, and threw an electric net at the car thief.

I hastily dove out of the way, skinning my knees and my hands in an attempt to change directions and get out of the way of the net. It pinned the thief to the ground and let out a shock, tasing the woman as she fell.

“Are you alright?” the boy asked.

“I’m fine,” I said, rising to my feet and searching the parking lot. I turned my back on the kid and kept looking around, urgently listening for footsteps.

It was silent, but then the boy cleared his throat and said, “Well?” 

“Well, what?”

“Aren’t you going to say thanks?”

“What for? All you did was nearly electrocute me.”

He sputtered as I tried to shush him, “I helped you catch a villain!”

“No, you didn’t. That’s an illusion.”

“No, it’s not! See, she’s--”

“There’s no smoke from burning clothes, there was no shout as she went down, and her limbs aren’t convulsing from contact with a minor source of electricity. And if we simply do this,” I stepped on the ‘thief’s’ foot, and the illusion disappeared with a small poof, “We can clearly see that the ‘villain’ was not, in fact, caught. Now hush, I’m trying to listen.”

The student’s cheeks went crimson, and he muttered something about being a stupid idiot.

I just told him to stay where he was and made my way back to the car to see if the thief returned to try and steal it again. And with a knife buried in my shoulder, I almost wished she got away, just so I could go to medical and get it checked out.

I signed up for this, I know I did.

But if I had it my way, I wouldn’t be here, fighting a villain in the Ketsubutsu parking lot.

Especially not without most of my gear.

And especially without knowing that at least twenty kids are staring out the window and watching me as I scramble to salvage the situation.

“Why do I listen to Nedzu so much?” I thought, grabbing one of my stamps off the ground and listening closely to my surroundings as I returned to the car, “Think, what would be the weakness in an illusion? I know they’re not solid, and they don’t make noise. What else can help me see through this situation?”

I stopped mid-step, the solution crashing down on me.

See through. 

That’s it!

I raced back to the car I had hidden behind earlier and flipped open my case. Mana’s words from nearly a week ago ran through my head as I pulled out the green-lensed goggles she had built for me.

“This visor not only has your usual prescription, but it also has a built-in HUD mechanic, a camera to record and review patrols, and infrared vision and night vision modes to find criminals.”

“Best. Sister. Ever.” 

I slid the goggles down over my face and flipped through the modes until I landed on infrared. I whipped my head around, searching for the criminal. The kid was still sulking by the exit, and I could vaguely see some outlines descending from the school building. But there, barely out of the corner of my eye, was a blip of orange-red heat. I smirked, readied the cuffs once more, and took a running tackle at the blob.

This time, the scuffle was cleaner. The thief must have run out of hidden knives, and with the infrared canceling out the illusion, I was able to quickly cuff the woman and pin her to the ground.

“You are under arrest for suspected grand theft auto, resisting arrest, and assault and battery against a hero on duty. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have a right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you.” I slid off the goggles and pushed down my surprise at the woman’s appearance. Gone were her brown hair and eyes, and in their place, coral locks and dark, dark navy blue irises that were nearly black.

“Sasaki Mirai!”

I looked up at my name being called and smiled at my old homeroom teacher. “Hey, Starling-sensei. Sorry, I’m late for class. You mind writing me a hall pass?”

*****

“And to conclude, while the life of an underground hero is different from many of our more well-known counterparts, we still serve an important role in keeping the peace in our modern heroic society. I see the potential in all of you to become amazing heroes, and if you ever want to try giving the underground a chance, feel more than free to talk to your sensei about getting into contact with me or one of my colleagues at the IUCA. We would be more than happy to have you. Are there any questions?”

Twenty hands shot up, and I looked around before pointing to a mauve-haired girl sitting criss-cross-applesauce on the asphalt. “Yes?”

“Does your shoulder still hurt?”

“No. The EMTs have done a wonderful job at patching me up, and I thank them greatly. You, there in the second row. What’s your question?”

“You said in the overview of your gear that your jacket is bullet-proof. Why did the knife go through it?”

“Bullet-proof does not equal knife-proof and vice versa. You, with the extremely long eyelashes.”

“Is your shoulder going to scar?”

“Okay, are there any questions that aren’t about my stab wound?” The rest of the hands dropped, and I sighed deeply. “Well, if that’s the case, then I release you back to Starling-sensei’s tender mercies.”

“Thank you, Sasaki-chan,” said my old teacher, turning to her class, which was camped out in the parking lot a little ways away from the brand new crime scene, “Return to the classroom and gather your belongings. You are dismissed for the day, and likely for the next few days as well. Assignments will be posted online until the investigation is concluded. Good day.”

Cries of ‘thank you, sensei,’ echoed throughout the parking lot before a majority of the students started back to the school building. Starling-sensei then sighed and pinned her gaze on me. “How is it, that even after five years, you’re still a problem child with a penchant for trouble?”

I gasped dramatically. “Sensei! How could you? I am completely innocent in this situation! And don’t you remember, it’s Void you have to look out for.”

“Says the woman who was recently stabbed.”

“For Nedzu’s sake, it’s my stab wound, not our stab wound. Leave me be. And besides, I’m healed and on a month-long patrol ban. I’m fine.”

“If you say so,” Starling gave me a look, and I felt as if I was fifteen again and being interrogated about Void’s latest prank: guilty, even though Sensei couldn’t prove anything.

“Why’s your student still getting interrogated by the police?” I was quick to ask, trying to shift Sensei’s piercing gaze anywhere but at me.

“Akaguro-kun was the first person to see you fighting after the initial glamor dropped, and was a principal witness for the rest of the fight. I imagine they’re asking for his full account of everything.”

“Then let’s go over and get him dismissed! Can’t let the officers hold him back too long.”

I dashed away from Starling-sensei and skidded next to the pair of police talking to the student.

“Hello again, Nighteye-san. Is there anything we can do for you?” one officer asked.

“Not unless I can steal your victim. Starling dismissed the kids, and I don’t want him to be left behind by his classmates.”

“No problem,” said the second, “We’ll get out of your hair. We’ll be sure to send the report to Tokyo for you to complete!”

“Thanks!” I called after them before turning to the boy, “I asked the others earlier, but I don’t know if you had the chance. Do you have any questions for me about being an underground hero? Just nothing about the stab on the shoulder, please and thank you.”

He eyed me up wearily, before clenching his fists. “Yeah, actually. I do. How do you deal with it?”

“Deal with what?”

“The scum who do it for the glory, or the money, or the prestige,” he gestured at the spot in the distance where the police officers were examining the earlier boy’s net, “Yano nearly trapped you with the net, and then you would’ve been hurt and the villain would’ve gotten away. Doesn’t it make your blood boil that there are so-called ‘heroes’ out there that aren’t worthy of the name? I swear, some days I want to bring the fakes of this world to justice and purge the world of those false heroes.”

“Wow,” I said, whistling at the melodrama, “Slow your roll there, angst lord. That’s a lot of teenaged bullshit for one body.”

The kids sputtered as I continued, “Firstly, don’t you dare take today’s events as a reflection of all heroes. Your classmate is a kid. You’re a kid. Neither of you are heroes yet, so obviously you’re going to make mistakes. Secondly, yeah, the kid was a bit full of himself, but you know what? He was also the only person brave enough to come out here and help. The way I heard it, he jumped out of a fourth-story window to try and give me a fighting chance. That takes guts, and even if it didn’t end up the way he planned it, his heart was in the right place. So I don’t think he’s one of the ‘fakes’ you’re talking about. And thirdly, ‘bring the fakes of this world to justice’ is just about the most self-important way to say you want to double up in heroics and law.”

The boy stared at me incredulously, “Double up?”

“Yeah, you can do that at Ketsubutsu,” I said, pointing over my shoulder at the school, “Granted, it won’t be easy, but you can do it.”

“Why would I want to do that?”

“Kid, I’m going to level with you here. You’re right; there are heroes out there who should never have become heroes. Just last week I had to stop one from nearly killing a civilian. I and two of my colleagues offered to back the man in court, and you want to know what he said? ‘What jury would take my side?’ As long as those few rotten heroes know they can get away with what they do, they’ll keep doing it. But,” I said at the boy’s look of despair, “If there was a determined lawyer out there who would take those cases, well, who knows. Maybe they might just change the world for the better.”

The boy looked away, and I ruffled his brown hair in an attempt to make him lighten up, “And besides, it’s either that or kill them. And I’d rather you take them to court instead.”

“Because you don’t want me to stain my soul?”

“Yes. But also because killing’s how you get martyrs who the world would bend over backward to declare innocent of anything and everything. Suing is how you drag a person’s name through the mud so horribly that they can never recover and return to their wrongdoings. Take it from a friend of mine; a nice, long, loud, vicious day in court can do so much worse than a murder ever could.”

The boy looked at me in shock, as if I had turned his world upside-down. I just laughed and pulled out my phone, “What’s your name?”

“Akaguro Chizome.”

“Okay, Akaguro. Here’s what I’m going to do. I just put your name down on the IUCA intern list. Based on your, well, everything, I feel like you would do much better in the underground than you ever would in the spotlight. Intern at the Musutafu branch during your upcoming internship week, and see how you feel about it. And talk to Starling-sensei about doubling up in law. I think you might just be surprised at how much you enjoy it.”

“Alright, I will,” Akaguro nodded, “Thank you, Madam Nighteye, for the advice.”

“No problem. I look forward to seeing you at home in the IUCA.” I bid the kid goodbye and headed off to the tea place Void wanted boba from.

It wasn’t until hours later on the train ride home did I realize that I just called Stain the Hero Killer an angst lord.

To his face.

Chapter Text

I Stare Back: @Mama Nighteye hey did you get my boba?

Mama Nighteye: Yes. I’m on my way back to Tokyo.

I Stare Back: sweet

The Boss™: I’d request that you don’t use this chat for personal uses, but I know we’re well beyond that at this point.

i of the storm: well look at that. old dogs CAN learn new tricks.

I Stare Back: how was the lecture?

Mama Nighteye: It was good! All of the kids paid attention, and I added one to the IUCA intern list. No guarantee that he’ll actually take the offer, but he was definitely interested. 

Mama Nighteye: I also may have accidentally talked him into doubling in heroics and law? It was a bit unclear, but he might!

i of the storm: that’s a bit of an odd combo. 

24 Karat Gold: Who’s the fool that wants to double major in the most demanding tracks possible? Ones that demand entirely different skill sets, no less?

Mama Nighteye: I think his name was Akaguro Chizome?

Mama Nighteye: …..wait a minute.

*****

Mirai 💝: Please tell me Stain’s real name isn’t Akaguro Chizome.

Nedzu 🖤: You know I could never lie to you, Mirai!

Mirai 💝: Son of a bitch.

*****

I Stare Back: where did mirai go????

i of the storm: 🤷

24 Karat Gold: Should we spam the chat until she returns?

Mama Nighteye: No need. I’m back.

Mama Nighteye: Just….

Mama Nighteye: It’s been a long day.

I Stare Back: it’s not even noon?

Mama Nighteye: I reiterate.

Mama Nighteye: It’s been a long day.

i of the storm: well i hope you’re down for a long night too. because it’s…*drumroll* GIRL’S NIGHT!

I Stare Back: 🎉🎊🎤💃

Mama Nighteye: ….

Mama Nighteye: Could we possibly reschedule? I completely forgot about Girl’s Night, and I honestly just want to go home, eat a pint of Phish Food, snuggle, and nap.

i of the storm: not a chance.

I Stare Back: we’re getting you house-warming stuff for you and your husband to be, and MAYBE starting on dress shopping.

Mama Nighteye: “Maybe”?

I Stare Back: ok, DEFINITELY starting on dress shopping.

I Stare Back: love you, M, but you and I are both hopeless with fashion, and getting you to a store is like pulling teeth. it’ll be better if you just bite the bullet and get this done and over with.

Mama Nighteye: Hi, pot. I’m kettle.

I Stare Back: at least i have an idea of what i want to wear. and A already looked it over and approved it. all i need to do is get it tailored and i’m good. what do YOU have done in the dress department?

Mama Nighteye: ….

Mama Nighteye: ….I know I want it to be white?

i of the storm: hopeless. absolutely hopeless.

i of the storm: we’re going dress shopping.

i of the storm: and NOTHING is letting you wiggle out of that. not even your inherent aversion to shopping. also, why do you hate shopping?

Mama Nighteye: It’s super tedious. And also people.

Mama Nighteye: Plus, I was stabbed today, so everyone’s legally obligated to be nice and let me have my way.

i of the storm: weird time to grow a sense of humor, but okay.

Mama Nighteye: [SASAKI, MIRAI_REPORT_#00001328.pdf]

Mama Nighteye: [EMT_RELEASE_FORM_#00258491.pdf]