"Do you think this will help?" Ritsu's mother asked, holding her hands pensively at her waist.

Ritsu slid his foot into his shoe and tapped the toe till the back of the shoe fit snugly. "Yeah, I think it'll be better once I see him."

He smiled despite the memory of their conversation hanging heavy in the air.

"I've got it under control today. I have for weeks," Ritsu said as he pulled on his other shoe, keeping his eyes on the ground, examining the dirt that had built up there. Soon, it would get to a point where he'd be unable to ignore it and have to clean, but he was busy today. "Anyway, we aren't meeting at the school."

"Okay, let Shige know we love him," his mom said. Her shoulders relaxed and she nodded lovingly. "You stay safe, too. Call when you get there."

"I will, mom. See you later," Ritsu said and opened the door to leave.

"Take pictures for me!"

"Bye Mom," Ritsu said over his shoulder as he closed the door.

Ritsu scrolled through his phone as the train rattled across the tracks toward Musutafu city center. He glanced absentmindedly through news articles. Interspersed among the news were opinion pieces like "Hero Academies Post Training Camp Attack: What has changed?", "League of Villains: One Hit Wonders or Calm Before the Storm?", "Rise in Quirk Liberationism-". The voice over chime broke Ritsu's focus. The music cut out in preparation for the announcement. Information began scrolling across the various screens inside the cabin.

"Arriving at Station 23. Next stop: Musutafu Mall Station," a feminine voice stated right before the doors opened. Right as her voice cut out bright pop-y music resumed playing softly over the speakers.

It wasn't music Ritsu cared much for. He tuned it out as he pressed to the side of the car while people passed around him. His phone buzzed with a text from Nii-san. I'm am at the mall. Where r u?

On the train still. The next stop is the mall where should I find you? Ritsu tapped back with one hand while using the other to steady himself while the car pulled out of the station and sped down the tracks.

Food court on the first level. His brother texted back including a handful of food emojis and Ritsu squinted disdainfully at the bright little pictures.

He just texted back, ok, and returned to his news feed.

About ten minutes later, Ristu was walking through the mall when he spied Mob sitting at a table watching one of the many monitors on the wall in the food court. A baseball game was on, but Ritsu didn't know the teams all that well and he was a little more focused on his brother.

"Nii san!" Ritsu called out as he walked up to the table.

Mob jumped but he still turned slowly to look at his brother. Ritsu was met with a kind smile and a yellowing bruise on Mob's cheek that extended up around his eye. Ritsu felt something inside him clench violently, but he kept his facial expression even.

"Ritsu." Mob stood and hugged him, and Ritsu let the hard little stone in his chest soften at his brother's touch. Mob gave him a squeeze, firm and steady, and said, "I'm glad you could meet me here."

"I wish you could come home more," Ritsu said. The two of them hugged but the truth floated sadly in the air around him. It's too much of a risk. Ritsu wouldn't pass by an opportunity to see his brother, nor squander it over an old argument. "At least you got a pass for today."

"Hmm," Mob hummed happily. He pulled away from the hug. "The League of Villains has been quiet for months and no one has threatened the school or the students in almost as long."

No one should be threatening the students at all! Ritsu wanted to yell but he kept his mouth shut and nodded. Uncomfortable questions still bubbled up inside Ritsu and to stop it, he changed the subject. "What store you do want to look at first?"

Mob stepped forward. "Not sure, I just wanted to wander for a bit if that's okay?"

"Mmm hm," Ritsu nodded and followed Mob. Eventually the question slipped out of his mouth. "Well, if the league isn't around... does that mean you might be able to come home?"

"No, I live in the dorms during the school year," Mob said. "They might keep us over the summer." Ritsu couldn't keep the dark look off his face but fortunately Mob didn't seem to notice, or at least he didn't react to it and continued with, "I'm not sure. That was just a rumor I heard."

"Can you really trust rumors?" Ritsu tried to mask his nervousness with a light laugh.

The careful glance Mob gave him from the corner of his eye probably meant his laugh sounded as strained as it felt.

Ritsu cleared his throat. "Let's go in this store."

Barring the shaky start, Ritsu enjoyed the time he spent with his brother as they fell into their usual sibling rhythm. Ritsu missed his brother's subtle humor, his genuine interest when he listened, and his quiet and earnest encouragement. Ritsu ached. Mob had been a presence sorely missed in his life.

"Are you hungry Ritsu?" Mob asked, his face was locked in a concerned micro-expression.

Ritsu realized he was scowling and shook off the look for a more neutral one as he dug his phone out of the pocket of his hoodie. It was almost noon, and Ritsu was feeling peckish. Mob was looking at the time on Ritsu's phone too.

Mob pointed the way they came and said, "We passed a place with American food, or there is a Ramen shop a little farther ahead."

"I don't think I am hungry for a full meal," Ritsu lied. He had spent more than he intended at the last few stores, he shifted his bag of clothes to the other arm. "Lets go back to the food court. I'm craving something sweet, I think."

Mob's expression didn't change much, but Ritsu could see Mob's happiness by slight uplift of the corner of his eyes. Together they made their way back to the food court, weaving lazily through the crowd. Ritsu pointed out interesting shops or ads and Mob would smile or laugh along. As much as it brought a warmth to Ritsu's chest to spend time with his brother like they used to, a dark feeling often undercut these moments. Peeking its head out every time the news covered another UA scandal, or everytime Ritsu saw that bruise across his brother's face.

His brother faced much higher stakes if he lost control. Ritsu hasn't had an episode since mid October, but his control seemed weakened. His thoughts trended darker and more prone to flare ups that Ritsu struggled reign back in. The school counselor had gotten involved. Ritsu suspected his vice president had something to do with it.

He watched Mob move carefully through the crowds and felt himself trying to mimic his brother. Yet, Ritsu's movements weren't right. It felt unnatural to him and he ran into people more than he avoided them. After the third time, Ritsu felt very silly and stopped. He pursed his lips trying to figure out what he was doing wrong. Seemed that where Ritsu stumbled, Mob bounced back with the same measure of control as before. To Ritsu, it was just a matter of figuring out how.

"How has school been for you?" Mob asked out of the blue. It didn't feel all that probing, but Ritsu had to keep himself from stiffening and getting defensive.

"It's been fine." Ritsu glossed over some strained relationships, his growing irritation with his quirk's interference in his day to day life and said, "I've been struggling to decide where to apply for high school, though."

"Hmm," Mob thought very hard about that one and settled on. "Reigen had some good ideas when I talked to him."

Ritsu didn't even bother trying for a polite smile. "No."

Mob opened his mouth to say something and Ritsu cut him off.

"How has school been? You mentioned that they increased your battle focused classes. So that must be tough." Ritsu was probing. If he is uncomfortable, then…

Ritsu didn't know why he was hoping Mob would tell him bad news, nor why he wanted his brother corroborate his suspections.

Mob was quiet for a second and said, "I have been doing better with them now."

It was not the answer Ritsu was expecting. It also wasn't the answer Ritsu wanted. UA had hero classes, but Mob hated being made to use his quirk, he always had. Desensitization was certainly a possibility. Yet, when Mob still lived at home he would be very sullen most days. Often the air was so tense it was hard simply walk past his room without getting tangled in it. Ritsu on many of these nights had even wondered if it was his own quirk tainting the air.

Yet, Mob returned again and again. He almost died due to the school's negligence and still he went back. Ritsu imagined himself doing something similar, forcing change by jumping into the fire repeatedly. He could only see himself and others getting burned. The last month of teacher's notes and talks from his parents were evidence enough. Still, Mob seems to be very willing to take the risk lately.

"How?" Ritsu asked while deep in his thoughts. Why?

"I've… I've changed my perspective," Mob said slowly, like this was the first time he was verbalizing his thoughts on the matter. Ritsu hung on every word. Mob didn't elaborate.

"Oh… that's all?" Ritsu asked. What was it about UA that changed something so fundamental?

"I like helping people. I have people I want to protect," Mob added at last. He breathed in sharply through his nose and nodded, seeming satisfied with his own answer.

Ritsu smiled. He could be satisfied with that answer, too. Mob was just doing the right thing.

"Mob! Hey!" Someone called from behind them and Ritsu looked over his shoulder to see an older boy with a quaft of blond hair and a bright smile waving them down. Hugging close to his heel was a little girl with red eyes and pale blue hair pulled up into a braided bun at the top of her head. They addressed Nii-san, not him, so Ritsu felt no obligation to try too hard. Ritsu just hoped they wouldn't talk long.

"Mirio-san," Mob greeted him and he tilted his head to the side to look at the little girl who looked at him with a hint of fear. "Eri-chan, how are you?"

She buried her face in Mirio's hip so suddenly she jabbed him with her horn. Mirio yelped and grimaced. Eri pulled away just as suddenly looking up at him with big fearful eyes.

"It's okay, Eri-chan," Mirio said, and he put a hand on her head. "You didn't hurt me."

But you yelled, Ritsu cocked a brow but he kept his thoughts to himself.

"I guess she is still nervous around others," Mirio said and Ritsu noticed his brother stiffen.

Ritsu could tell that Eri-chan's fear might be more personalized to his brother than Mirio was suggesting.

Eri- Eri- Eri… Ritsu mulled over the name and than he remembered.

She was the girl Midoryia helped rescue. He looked over at Mob who was chatting with Mirio. Ritsu didn't know the specifics of that day, Mob was often tight lipped around events with his powers. Even if it was important, like applying to hero programs that decide his future. Regardless, Ritsu knew Mob was there and what ever happened below the city had pushed Mob to his limit.

Did she see It? Ritsu wondered and looked down at Eri had her face mostly buried in Mirio's leg again except for one eye that was uncovered enough to nervously watch Nii-san.

A hand was thrust in Ritsu's direction and Mirio waited for Ritsu to acknowledge it.

"We've never formally met, but I'm Mirio Togata. Your brother has told me a lot about you, Ritsu-san." Mirio smiled brightly.

Ritsu a little surprised by the honorific but he took a breath and then shook Mirio's hand. "It's nice to meet you. Are you a student at UA?"

"Yes, I am a third year," Mirio said. "I'm watching Eri for Aizawa-sensei today. I find that getting out into a neutral place like a mall is an easy way to get out around people. Also there are lots of tasty snacks here. Eri-chan, what was your favorite the last time we came here?"

"Bubble Waffles," Eri said into Mirio's hip, her voice was muffled and just barely audible over the mall crowd.

"We actually are heading there now," Mirio told them both. "Have you ever had them? They make the waffles in front of you and they have twenty flavors of ice cream and even more toppings."

"I think we-" Ritsu looked over at his brother to see an intensely interested look in his eyes, and Ritsu sighed and grumbled, "Lead the way. It sounds great."

Mirio chatted with Mob mostly and Ritsu did his best to keep his feelings and his quirk from spilling out into the crowd around them. He didn't want to project his bristling annoyance onto anyone else, let alone Mob. The day was going so well, he didn't want to kill the mood now.

At a few points, Ritsu caught Eri watching him when she thought he wasn't looking. A quick sideways glance, and a squint of his eyes, and she'd snap her head forward, her lips pressed in a thin line. She didn't seem to like his brother, and Ritsu knew it was dumb, really dumb, to be mad at a little kid about that, but he could only supress so much while these two barged into his Saturday out with Nii-san.

Ahead there was a cute little store front. The sign had a smiling waffle cone surrounded by happy mochi balls that read Bubble Waffles. The smell of warm waffle batter filled the area as much as the conversation from the insanely long line that wrapped around the corner.

Mirio checked his phone, scrolling through what looked like an app. "Says the wait is only about twenty minutes. That line looks rough, though. Do you still want some?"

Eri nodded her head with a determined look in her eyes. Ritsu looked at his brother.Do you really want this? He was met with a much more subdued but equally determined look.

"Well, if you want some... you are waiting in that line," Ritsu said flatly.

"Okay, I'll treat us," Mob said pulling out his wallet.

"Oh! If you are staying behind, do you mind taking Eri to a table and watching her?" Mirio asked with a bright energy, sunny energy, that overpowered Ritsu.

"I- I guess." Ritsu found himself saying before he could think it through.

"Eri-chan, you'll stay with Ritsu-san okay?" Mirio said sweetly to her while she looked even more uncomfortable than Ritsu did, but with some quiet words of gentle encouragement and a squeeze of the hand, she nodded. Mirio walked her over next to Ritsu and spoke to him. "She likes to watch the crowds from the balcony so if there is a table open take it."

"Alright," Ritsu said. A little hand curled around his fingers. Ritsu didn't want to say it startled him, but it did.

"We should get in line," Mob said to Mirio.

"Right!" Mirio smiled broadly and then gave a thumbs up to Eri. "I'll be back super quick."

"Be good Ritsu," Mob told him, then he added is a surprisingly serious tone, "Keep her safe."

"Right Nii-san." Ritsu gave a half smile. Be good.

He looked down at Eri and she was actively trying not to look at him. Her grip on his hand was loose at best, and where she was glued to Mirio's side, she kept a gap about her arm's length between them. Ritsu scanned the tables and saw one family pick up and leaving. It was hugging the wall that overlooked the floor below.

"Let's get a table." Ritsu squeezed her hand loosely and walked her to the table just as a worker wiped it clean.

Eri sat on the opposite side of him looking over the balcony to the people below. Ritsu pulled out his phone and swiped through his texts for updates on student council. After a while, he turned to social media to see what his friends were up to. Five or so minutes later, movement on Eri's side of the table caught his eye. She was standing on her chair listening to the music playing over the speakers with a sparkle in her eye. Ritsu listened and groaned internally. It was a popular idol group playing, but even if Ritsu liked the genre, the song Spring Love Candy POP POP was painfully overplayed.

Nii-san would tell me to make an effort. To Eri he asked, "You like Plumb Sugar Beats?"

She nodded her head. "Do you?"

"No." Ritsu said a little harsher than he intended. He didn't want to lie to the girl, but he knew Nii-san would have scolded him for killing the bright look in her eye.

"Okay." She turned away from him and resumed watching people below.

Ritsu's jaw dropped open to say something but he closed it glumly. He had an opportunity to make a connection with her and he ruined it. Wasn't she here to get used to people again? To see the world as a less scary place and Ritsu felt like he just made that a little harder.

"I mean, it's not my kind of music but-" He stammered until Eri gave him a flat look. Ritsu stopped trying. Fine, I didn't want to say it either.

As he looked away from Eri, he accidently locked eyes with a strange man in a black coat. It was purely by chance he caught the eyes of a stranger standing on the other side of the cafeteria across from him. Still, it felt strangely personal so he looked down at his phone feeling a little awkward. Ritsu glanced up one more time, wondering if the man had noticed or if it was just him, but the man was still looking in their direction. To be sure he wasn't crazy, Ritsu looked around and behind them. No one was looking back, and there wasn't anything but tables behind them. Ritsu was certain that the man was staring straight at them. The hairs on the back of his neck started to rise and Ritsu grabbed Eri's hand as the realization struck.

He was watching her. Ritsu was sure of it.

"Do you know that man Eri-chan?" Ritsu asked and pointed in the direction the man had been standing. He's gone.

Eri looked around and back at Ritsu confused. He stood up to get a better vantage over the sea of bodies but saw nothing, at first. Ritsu swore he saw glimpses of that black coat getting closer. His phone was in his hand instinctively. I should call Nii-san.

Then mall erupted into screams and explosions and the balcony collapsed beneath Ritsu. He heard a scream shockingly close on his left side and saw Eri beginning to tumble backwards. Ritsu instinctively reached out and grabbed her hand. He pulled her toward himself as if the ground under him wasn't also falling away. For a handful of terrifying seconds Ritsu and Eri were surrounded by a cacophony of grinding and shattering stone while they tumbled together across rubble to the ground floor.

Plumes of dust made Ritsu's eyes water and his throat tighten as he struggled between gasping for breath and coughing. Hitting the ground floor with a pair of knees in his diaphragm didn't help his breathing, either. Ritsu couldn't move, or think, or hear. He could only try to breathe. Eventually, his body sucked in one, deep breath of air and the world came rushing back into focus.

Eri was shaking him and weeping silently. There were tears in her eyes and streaming down her cheeks, carving dirty canals down her face through white concrete dust. Ritsu blinked and wondered if his hearing hadn't come back yet.

Yelling above them told him no, he could hear. Eri was just that eerily quiet. Like someone had taken a remote and muted her. It was unsettling and Ritsu didn't have time to unpack why that was so. The villains were arguing amongst themselves, Ritsu could hear three different voices above them.

Over the speakers a fourth voice boomed. "This is a hostage situation. Come out of your hiding spots." After a moment the voice added, "Your cooperation will facilitate your survival."

Ritsu's mind worked quickly. Someone was, had been, watching them. The balcony collapsed. The villains are arguing. This hostage speech feels last minute.

"We are looking for one person." The same voice announced before the monitors all changed to show a single face, Eri, staring back.

Someone messed up, and they don't know where their target is. They also have control over mall systems. Ritsu unzipped his hoodie and threw it over Eri, zipping her up and pulling the hood over her blank eyes. She had already stopped crying by this point.

"Look down." He urged her. They don't know where she is and I don't want to find out what happens when they do. "My brother is the strongest person I know. He will help us. He- He is a hero in training. He has his permit."

Ritsu hoped his words were bringing her a sense of ease, because they were doing nothing to ease his anxiety. She slowly raised her hands to the edge of the hood and pulled it down over her forehead, flattening her bun against her head.

"I saw her over here before that idot started destroying shit." Some man said near the new edge of the balcony, prompting Ritsu to pull himself and Eri under a ledge out of view. "I could have grabbed her and we'd be done with it."

"Well that's not what happened!" Another person snapped back. "If she's been fucking crushed I'll kill him."

They're psychotic. Ritsu kept his arm out to his side, to stop Eri from wandering too far forward exposing them both. She didn't move except for her hands which crushed and twisted the fabric of the hoodie which fell past her knees.

"Were you not going to before?"

"I'll kill him twice."

They are idiots and they are psychotic. Ritsu squeezed his eyes shut. He had a moment. That was a lie, he didn't have a moment. The sound of at least two men grunting and clumsily shifting their weight across unstable stone, informed Ritsu of that much.

Little bits of rubble clattered overhead and onto the floor around them as they got closer. He grabbed the sleeve of Ritsu's Eri's hoodie and started to inch along under the cover of the rubble away from the voices. They moved quietly, hand railing the collapsed balcony. Ritsu kept one ear trained behind them as he peeked around corners, trying not to jump every time he or Eri kicked a rock, nor get angry that she seemed unwilling to walk forward on her own leaving Ritsu to clumsily drag her behind him.

Behind them, Ritsu heard the crunch two people landing on the ground floor. Ritsu gritted his teeth and tightened his grip on Eri, ignoring her small gasp as the pulled her quickly around the next corner.

"Did you hear that?" was all the motivation Ritsu needed to break into a sprint down a dark hallway.

A hallway with restrooms on the left, a door labeled 'employees only' on the right, and 'Emergency Exit' in neon red over top of a door at the end.

Yes! Ritsu screamed internally and he let go of Eri's and sprinted to the door, slamming both hands on the crossbar only to find that it didn't budge. Not an inch. No! No no no no! This can't be happening. Is it fake? Ritsu slammed into the door again but something hard was clearly in the way as the metal of the door ground against something earthen on the other side. They blocked the exits. Ritsu's heart beat faster and faster until he felt light headed and his mouth felt dry. He gripped the handle until his fingers went white. We're trapped… We're- Ritsu turned slowly to look back the way they came. They were heard. There was no doubt about that with Ritsu stupidly slamming himself into the metal door. There were voices in the distance coming steadily closer.

His eyes traced along the hallway expecting to see the villains pouring around the corner. Instead his eyes fell on Eri, who after he let her go, didn't follow after him and remained planted in the middle of the hallway. She trembled. Chewing her lip, balling the hoodie up in a white knuckled grip as tight and desperate as his. She's scared… Ritsu breathed in sharply, as he saw her bruises and scrapes. He saw her staring blankly towards the ground with eyes hollowed out by fear, and for a brief moment he saw himself. She's scared!

He let go of the door and closed the distance between them, an earnestness in his voice that was missing before, "Eri-chan. It- it's going to be alright." There was no recognition in her eyes but she did flinch when he started to speak. "I'll find a way out. I'll-"

Shige always said he was the smart and talented one. By god, he needed to be those things right now. He scanned the hallway. They weren't getting outside. If they had time to block off this random emergency exit, the main doors would be blocked, watched, or both. Returning the way they came wasn't an option and hiding in a bathroom never worked in movies. Only one way in and one way out, and very few places to hide. He looped an arm around Eri, who was stiff like a doll, and propped her on his hip as he carried her to the employee entrance. He tried the handle but it stopped short with an unsatisfying click. With a breath to steel himself, and a rush of adrenalin Ritsu kicked the door in and ran through before he could dwell on the men yelling at him to stop, or before he could register the pain in his heel and knee.

Ritsu ran, abiet awkwardly with a child on his hip, through the backroom. He threw a free arm out pulling or tipping clothing racks behind him to obscure their path. A crash, followed by loud colorful cursing would have brought a smile to his face if it wasn't pulled so taut with fear. Ritsu ducked through a doorway and found himself in a massive department store, specifically the women's clothing section filled with tall, round clothing racks of maxi dresses and pants.

He set Eri down and whispered, "Follow me."

They ran through the store, Ritsu ducking and weaving through the clothing racks to break line of sight with the doorway they came through. Ritsu planned to keep running till they found the exit. His mind only worked so quick, while his legs were unfortunately quicker. Ritsu turned a corner to see two men, one with goat horns, and another with clawed hands creeping away from them down a makeup aisle. On instinct, Ritsu shoved Eri into the center of one of the round clothing racks before chucking a small glass statue past a set of escalators and diving in after her.

It was tight and Ritsu was forced to crouch and wrap himself around Eri to fit. Throwing the statue seemed like a good idea at the time, but as the villains' boots squeaked across the tile flooring toward their hiding spot and not away. Ritsu might have just exposed them more by doing that than by just simply sneaking into the clothing rack. He could feel the sway of the fabric against his back where he'd disturbed it. It was also at this time Eri was suddenly taken off mute and she whimpered into Ritsu's chest, pulling down on hard on the front of his shirt till the back of his collar dug into his neck.

Nii-san, where are you? Is this what you train for? Are these the situations you are putting yourself in? Ritsu could feel his quirk slipping from his control, it was too much. How do you stand it? When you know how much is at stake when you lose control. He anxiety rolled off him thick like molasses, and Eri's grip on him only became more desperate. I can't lose control. I can't I can't I can't.

"Do you feel that?" One of the villains asked the other, their progression stopped. There was an anxious edge to his voice.

Ritsu placed a steady hand on the back of Eri's head. Just change your perspective, he said. You are so good at putting on a brave face. Maybe you can do that here, too.

Ritsu closed his eyes and tried to project, Don't look, move along. They started to shift forward, the squeak of their boots getting louder but they were much more hesitant and careful now. Ritsu could tell that wasn't going to work and he thought of all the reasons why they wouldn't want to look. Nothing here.

Another step closer.

You were seeing things.

Closer still.

Behind you!

Closer.

Ritsu could feel his anxiety rising and hoped they were feeling anxious too. Then Ritsu's eyes snapped open, and he projected one more thing. The feeling of apathy. Shifting gears from anxiety to apathy was a stuttering and uncomfortable process that started off as a sharp tingling in all his nerves that sputtered out and was replaced with a numbness that sank into his fingers and toes. Eri went from sniffling to silent. She sagged against him, seemingly unwilling to hold up her own weight anymore. The villains didn't take another step either.

"What are we doing here?" One of the men asked.

"Should we check? I swear we heard something." The other seemed a little more resolute in his words but his voice was bored and uninterested. "That might have just been some other kid. We should be searching that rubble not the women's clothing section."

Somewhere else Ritsu heard what sounded like an entire display fall over and clatter across the ground. It shocked Ritsu and he lost all focus. Eri clutched his shirt. He could feel his fingers and toes again.

"What the hell was that?" The first man said with renewed life in his voice.

Ritsu could hear their boots clomping across the floor away from their hiding spot. He parted the clothes on the rack opposite of the two villains and eased Eri and himself out. They were going to come back and check that spot. Ritsu knew he had only bought them time with that stunt. They moved a little slower and a lot lower to the ground away from the villains.

Ritsu peered around a corner into a tween girl outlet store. The place was a fair distance from the collapsed balcony. The displays of plastic and metal jewelry and accessories were still intact. It was bright and colorful and someplace you wouldn't think to hide compared to the darkened stores surrounding it.

"Come on, Eri-chan," Ritsu whispered. She squeezed his hand tightly and followed quickly after him.

Ritsu was feeling very exhausted. Maybe it was the stress, the pain, or using his quirk but Ritsu scanned the room three times for hiding spots and each pass over the store felt like his first. He rubbed his eyes. Having them closed felt so nice he almost stood there simply enjoying the quiet and the dark.

Eri had kept walking forward and the tug on his arm jolted Ritsu back to the present and he shook his head.

"Right." Ritsu followed Eri to the counter.

He looked over the edge and saw a pair of sneakers pull out of view.

"Uuuh?" Ritsu leaned over farther. "H-hello? Is this hiding spot taken?"

There wasn't a response for a couple seconds and Ritsu's attention started to shift to the open door behind them and the hallway beyond. The villains hadn't found them… yet. A sad sigh and chuckle came from under the counter.

"Not much of a hiding spot anyway." A woman crouched behind the counter, just tall enough so her blue hair and yellow eyes were visible. "My god, you two are young. What are you doing walking around?"

Ritsu had the vague idea of a reply to that but no words came out and his face crumpled a little bit. He didn't know. He was running for his life with a little girl he met this morning and he didn't really like at the time. Now he was fairly certain she would get him killed today but his brother said to keep her safe. A brother that hasn't found them yet, assuming... None of this made sense. The woman's face washed over with pity and guilt and she quickly unlocked the gate on the counter and let them through.

"Look, I just work here, I tried the exit out back. It was blocked from the outside." She explained quickly and quietly as she ushered them into the back room. "Unless you have some strength enhancing quirks? No? Neither do I, but I can hide you in one of these lockers."

She opened a white cupboard and pulled out a large utility bin. Crouched over, Ritsu could fit even if it was uncomfortable. Eri had plenty of room. Together it was a tight squeeze. The worker gave them a weak, toothless smile as she closed the door. Ritsu could hear plastic scraping against the tile. She must have slid the bin in front of their door. It was a pointless defense but Ritsu's anxiety eased ever so slightly anyway.

"Are you okay?" Ritsu whispered. It felt like a question he could ask now that they've stopped running.

She didn't say anything but he felt her horn rub across his chest a few times as she shook her head no. Ritsu laughed. Quietly, but he honestly laughed. It was a brief but lovely release from the stress that was strangling his heart.

"Dumb question," he conceded and tried to shift his legs and hips into a more comfortable position preparing for a long wait. "If we're lucky the heroes will get here before the villains do."

With a faint smile on his lips Ritsu gently tapped one of the drawer walls with the knuckle of his index finger. Just in case. Eri snuggled up against him, trying to find room in this cramped space. A few times she pressed hard on his gut as she shifted around, rattling against the door. Ritsu did his best to keep from making pained noises as she settled but he did kick the wall by accident once when she elbowed him in the crotch. Eventually she stilled and gave a defeated sigh. Ritsu felt her settle against him and he in turn settled against the wall.

Nii-san, where are you? Ritsu looked at the crack in the door. It was dark, the worker had shut the light off a while ago and it was only marginally brighter out there than it was in this storage space. I hope you are okay.

Ritsu figured it had been ten or fifteen minutes tops. Maybe less, since the seconds seemed to have stretch into minutes after they had fallen from the balcony. His brother was powerful and he showed that power in times of stress. What could be more stressful than a hostage situation where the villains are after your younger brother? Although, Mob wouldn't know where he is right now. Did he think he was dead? Would that make it more stressful? Or was that not enough? Ritsu's face scrunched up in confusion. What was Mob waiting for?

Unless… Ritsu felt tears start to gather in the corners of his eyes and he blinked them and the thought that inspired them away.

Somehow Ritsu drifted off into sleep. He jolted awake following a loud bang in the room next door and the terrified screams of a woman. Eri was clutching his shirt again and Ritsu pulled the hood over her head, ignoring the futility of the action. The cupboard they were in was very hot and Ritsu could feel the sweat soaked into his shirt and his mouth was dry as sand.

He didn't want to fight. He prayed that they'd just move on. Threats were being thrown around and Ritsu's mind felt too garbled to pick out the specifics. Ritsu tried to concentrate on his quirk and repeat his success earlier but the crick in his neck, his parched throat, and feeling light headed from heat and the stale air, was making it hard to project anything other than vague exhaustion. He slumped against the wall again, his chest heaving against Eri's weight. The air he sucked in was hot and dry.

That women cried in the next room and then he heard loud footsteps enter the backroom. Bright light broke through the cracks around the door. Ritsu flinched as the storage bin was thrown across the room and slammed loudly into the far wall hard enough he could hear boxes falling off a shelf. When the doors opened, cold, fresh air rushed into the space and Ritsu had one second to enjoy it. When that second was over he curled protectively around Eri and glared at the two men.

"Get out of there." The man with the clawed hands ripped Ritsu out of the cupboard roughly by the arm and he tried to pry him off of Eri.

Ritsu reactively threw an elbow back and stuck the man in the eye. He swore and stumbled back, clutching his face. The other villain with the horns grabbed Ritsu's shoulders. So, Ritsu reached out to the counter and grabbed a wrench and tossed it behind him. A grunt and the release of his shoulders was all Ritsu needed to grab Eri and sprint with her into the store front. Their moment of rest was nice, but it was over.

A few displays were knocked over and it slowed them down enough for a very irate looking goat man to stumble into the doorway followed by a clawed man with a new red eye.

"You fucking punk," the horned villain seethed and kicked a toppled display over "I am going to wring your skinny little neck."

"Not until I take one of his eyes," said the other man as he raked his claws across the door frame, leaving behind four gouges in the wood.

"Eri!" Ritsu picked her up and dropped her on the other side of one of the fallen displays. "Run!"

She squeaked when she hit the ground. Ritsu saw her only hesitated long enough to see him try to hop the same display and be thrown backwards by the horned villain. He made a hollow grunt when his back hit the hard floor. He couldn't dwell on it for long before Ritsu had to roll out of the way of not one, but two attempts by the horned man to stomp him. Aiming first for Ritsu's chest, than his head. Without time to even breathe, Ritsu pulled himself under a table narrowly avoiding being slashed by a clawed hand. Ritsu felt sick seeing the gouges in the floor where he was. Just out of sight, Ritsu could hear Eri scramble across the scattered earrings from toppled displays, slipping on the little slips of plastic toward the door.

"Hey! Get back here!" The clawed man who had been menacingly approaching Ritsu spun around and ran after her.

Ritsu lunged forward and grabbed his ankle, tripping him. The man cursed as he fell forward and smashed his jaw on a glass display case. Ritsu watched blood spurt from his mouth before his fell sideways striking his temple against the corner of another display and collapsed unconscious onto the floor.

The victory was short lived for Ritsu. A booted foot struck Ritsu in the chest and sent him skidding across the floor into the legs on the opposite side of the table. The horned man grabbed Ritsu by the front of his shirt and pulled him out from under the table and into the air. He growled than slammed Ritsu into the table top. Little makeup displays and glass bowls of accessorarries dug painfully into his back and ribs as the man ground him into the table. Ritsu cried out in pain but he was picked up and slammed down onto the table again and the breath was knocked from his lungs silencing him. Ritsu heard something crack and he wasn't sure if it was the table or if it was him as his whole body screamed against the abuse. Ritsu was lifted into the air again and he braced himself for a third impact.

The horned man snarled in his face. "I hated him but that was a mistake, 'cause I hate you a lot more right now."

Ritsu struggled in his grip, kicking wildly in the air in an attempt to hit anything. His feet struck but it didn't seem to do much anyway. Ritsu reeled, trying to think of something as he clawed at the hands holding him, and he kicked at the body of the person attacking him. A fist came flying towards his face and Ritsu just barely got his arms up in time to prevent the full force of the punch from striking. Although his defense weakened as his strength failed and his arms started to drop right before the second punch landed. Ritsu felt something rupture and his nose start to bleed.

Ritsu kept his arms up trying to block any consecutive strikes. He squinted through the pain as he searched the room for Eri. He couldn't see her anywhere and breathed a sigh of relief just as he was slammed back into the table.

Ritsu's head cracked against the table top but he gritted his teeth and seized the glass display bowl with one hand and smashed it against the man's head, or at least he tried. The bowl didn't shatter but the dull grunt from the man and the atonal ring of the bowl harmonized for a second in a strangely satisfying way. The grip on Ritsu loosened as the man stumbled to the side clutching his head. Ritsu sagged against the table, unable to hold his own weight up for a second, but he stumbled to his feet just before the horned man could. Ritsu wasn't given a chance to recover and he wasn't about to give the villain a chance to breathe either. Resolute, Ritsu gripped the bowl in both hands, and putting his back into it, he swung down onto the man's head. The bowl shattered spectacularly across his horns and the force slammed the man's face into the tiles. The villain let out one, pitiful groan and he too was unconscious.

"Ha…" Ritsu stumbled backward a step.

The world spun lazily and Ritsu abruptly lurched forward and clutched the same table he had just been beaten with for stability. Pain bloomed across his torso and limbs, and Ritsu couldn't do anything else but breathe. If he was going to be honest with himself, right now it was enough to just breathe.

"I'm sorry," a pitiful voice said from behind the counter.

Ritsu couldn't even bring himself to raise his head to look at the woman. Ritsu assumed she looked apologetic, or at least guilty, because she sounded like she was. Although, with pain flaring across his body from most likely his many broken ribs, Ritsu couldn't give two shits if she was sorry or not. Pain fueled fury filled the air like hot steam in a sauna. If it didn't hurt to do so, he would have smiled when he heard her gasp and duck out into the back room.

Although Ritsu did frown when he heard the crunch of plastics from heavy footsteps entering the store.

"I- I'm sorry."

Ritsu's head snapped up and looked to the door to see Eri with tears welling in her eyes and her entire arm held at a painful angle in one, large, meaty hand.

"I didn't run fast enough." She hiccuped and looked down shamefully.

"Its- It's…" Ritsu wanted to say it was okay, but looking up at the man holding her and how he seemed to fill the entrance, and how comically small he and Eri were compared to him was really not okay, "We'll be okay. Eri look at me."

She glanced up but her look of hope contorted into a grimace of pain as the hand squeezed her arm.

"Hey!" Ritsu shouted and his quirk erupted around him in cutting waves of fury, "Leave her alone!"

The man squinted and recoiled slightly like he had gotten too close to an open flame. He then smiled. "You do that?"

He ignored Ritsu's order and pointed at the two goons sprawled unconscious by Ritsu's feet. Ritsu spared a glance and when he looked up the large man was nearly upon him. Ritsu cried out in surprise and stumbled painfully into the table behind him. He reached out for something to strike the villain but he himself was grabbed instead. Ritsu was slowly lifted away from any potential weapons by the jaw and neck. Panic set in as Ritsu's airway was restricted. He glared viciously at the man, Ritsu's panic turned to anger. His quirk was lashing out around him to little effect. The man peered at him curiously for a moment, looking like he was contemplating something.

Ritsu felt the man's thumb start to push toward his index and middle finger with Ritsu's neck caught precariously in the middle. Ritsu coughed and the blood pressure in his head was almost as painful as the pressure being exerted on his neck. His legs twitched and squirmed while he weakly beat and pulled on the fingers.

Strangely at this moment Ritsu heard the light pop-y sounds of Sugar Plumb Beats and thought angrily, I can't believe I'm going to die in a tween store to the sound of Spring Candy Love POP POP.

"Stop it! You're hurting him." Eri screamed and tried to pull her arm free with all her strength.

Ritsu fixed the villain with a death glare. The villain laughed heartily. It only made Ritsu focus his fury onto the villain who cringed under the assault.

"I'd be careful with those murderous vibes there," he said at last. "Especially when I've got my hand around your throat."

Ritsu's anger turned to horror at the realization. He froze clutching at the hand around his throat.

"Oh, I felt that too." The man said and he lessened the shearing pressure on Ritsu's throat. "You're spunky and I like that. Also you somehow managed to lay out two of my guys so I don't know if I should keep you or kill you."

Ritsu swallowed and his throat rubbed painfully against the villains hand.

"You're not going to get very far." Ritsu choked out. The fight hadn't quite left him and he had plenty of anger he didn't know what to do with. "My brother will wipe the floor with you if you kill me. So go ahead! My only regret is I won't get to see him smear you across the ground-"

The hand tightened around his windpipe and Ritsu couldn't breathe in or out. Ritsu admonished himself, Stupid, stupid, stupid! What is wrong with you?

HIs eyes started to roll back into his head and the world turned hazy when the pressure released and he dropped to the floor. Ritsu coughed and sputtered on the ground. He wasn't aware of anything other than the sensation of being lifted by the front of his shirt and his heels dragging along the ground. After a minute or so Ritsu realized the man was talking to him and Ritsu's head lolled in his direction.

"...it'll be a while till- Ah let me guess you didn't hear a word of what I just said?" The man gave him a big toothy grin, "Doesn't matter, I was just babbling. You have a brother here?"

Ritsu suddenly reached up and dug his fingers into the man's arm as a warning.

"I'll take that as a yes." He watched Ritsu who did his best to project the feeling of stay away from him into the villain's mind. "I like this hostile little act you've got going on. The brat here is so unresponsive."

He shook Eri and she whimpered but cut herself off quickly.

"My brother will stop you." Ritsu swallowed the blood from his nose, it was thick and made him nauseous.

"We've been here for almost thirty minutes. Where is he? Unless," he peered at Ritsu a little harder, "You wouldn't happen to be Kageyama?"

Ritsu would've recoiled if he wasn't held so tightly by the villain.

"Yeah… Yeah! I saw you brother. You have the same hostile little face."

He's alive… Ritsu's grip relaxed just slightly.

"Yeah, he's not going to help you. He's been sitting obediently with the rest of the hostages." The villain smirked as Ritsu's face fell. "He even went so far as to help us move the rubble. Hero types I swear."

Ritsu felt everything tune out. He isn't coming... Ritsu stared at the ceiling as he was dragged along, his thoughts didn't have much form but there was an undeniable flicker of betrayal. Ritsu was jostled slightly.

"Don't tell me you lost all your fight already?" The man laughed at his expense before tossing him on the ground like a used towel. The villain turned away and started talking into a phone. "I got the girl."

"Ritsu!" Mob cried from the crowd and he heard him stand and hushed whispers begging him to sit back down.

"Don't you dare," The villain snapped, the warning in his voice was strong.

Ritsu felt waves of force ripple across his skin, mimicking that same warning right back at the villain but eventually it retracted. Ritsu vision started to blur but he could see enough to see Mob's blurry form sit back down.

Seeing it first hand, was worse for Ritsu. Mob wasn't going to help him. Ritsu groaned in pain as he shifted his body to look in the direction of his brother and glower.

Nothing? All this and you have nothing? Ritsu seethed. Bruises flared across his body, sharp pain from broken bones prodded at his mind like cattle prod. I thought you were dead. Twice in one year, but you were fine and I'm the one got smeared across the floor by three different villains.

Ripples of power started to flow across his skin, but they were more hesitant and guilty. Ritsu was too dizzy sit up let alone to stand and he had no strength left to fight physically. So he latched onto the one thing he could still control, his anger. Ritsu gritted his teeth, and looked at the brother he could barely see for answers to questions Ritsu asked though silence.

All this talk of hero work and when I need you, you're not there? Are you kidding me? Do you have to suppress your emotions anymore? Or did UA just make you more numb than before?

A heel caught Ritsu in the side and he involuntary cried out as he rolled over his cracked ribs. A few more taps with the heel, each sending a shooting pain through Ritsu's body, and Ritsu was lying supine and looking away from his brother.

"Hey! Stop aggravating your brother." The villain snapped at Ritsu and he returned to whispering angrily into his cell phone. The villain's face marred in confusion.

Ritsu looked up to see Eri sitting quietly with her knees pulled to her chest under the large hoodie. He reached out and touched her shoe, and tried to project some sense of comfort. Of course now Ritsu's quirk decided to fail him and all he could offer Eri was a battered hand. She reached down and held his fingers tightly. Ritsu rested his head against the cool floor and waited to be taken away by the villains. At least Eri won't be alone.

The flurry of action that takes place, not even a minute later, largely passes unnoticed by Ritsu while he lies in a daze on the floor. Pro heroes came crashing through the ceiling and rushing down the halls so quickly no one in the room could react fast enough. If there was a fight, Ritsu wasn't aware of it. It wasn't until someone crouched over him asking if he is okay that Ritsu realized something was happening. Someone was telling him he's safe now.

Ritsu started to put his muddled thoughts into some kind of working order as paramedics carefully turned him over and set him in braces. He looks over in time to see Mr. Aizawa talking to Mob. Mob is looking down, his face a mask, but a hand on his shoulder from Aizawa and kind nod soften Mob's look. Aizawa gestures in Ritsu's direction and Mob sprints over to Ritsu's side.

"Ritsu!" Mob called out to him, sliding across broken glass on his way over.

He stopped just short of the gurney Ritsu was strapped into. Mob's hands trembled has he reached out to touch his brother like he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

He didn't touch him though and instead he carefully gripped the side and said breathless, "You're alive."

"You're not hurt." Ritsu replied automatically, his words flat and slurred.

Mob nodded and bit his lip. Behind his eyes Ritsu could see Mob's mind reeling. Bits of Mob's hair was floating around him and his aura of power was pulsing across Ritsu's skin but Mob didn't break. Aizawa slowly approached, his eyes locked on the two brothers.

"But I am." Ritsu felt like those words carried a hidden weight to them.

"I know, I know." Mob stammered, before adding quietly, each word laden with immeasurable guilt, "I should have been there."

"Yeah, you should have been," Mob looked as if Ritsu had just slapped him and Ritsu felt an ugly sense of triumph at the sight of Mob, mouth in a stunned 'o', eyes wide, his face forced into something more than a microexpression. Ritsu didn't continue that thought, but he did lock eyes with his brother. Both of them, just one looking into the other with so much to say between them. Although, that's how they've always communicated the most important information right? Through silence. Ritsu swallowed some mixture of blood and spit that gathered in his mouth, and said to the medics who looked fearful to interfere. "I need to go to the hospital."

Ritsu felt a heavy blanket of apathy fall over him, numbing his fingers and toes, and more importantly his emotions. His brief prompt was enough to start wheeling him away to the ambulance when Shigeo reached out and touched his arm.

"Ritsu, I'm coming with you." Shigeo said, his eyes still wide, his fingers steady.

"No, I think… I don't need you to be there for me." Ritsu felt some pressure in him release, like when Shigeo touched his arm it popped some bubble Ritsu had been living in. Ritsu felt relief.

Shigeo pulled back, his face unreadable as Ritsu was carried away to be loaded into the ambulance.