Hey! It's me, I'm back. I told you this would be out was was a lot of fun writing this chapter. Sorry for any spelling and grammar mistakes that were missed. And with that, enjoy guys, gals, and nonbinary pals.
Akito held his umbrella in one hand and his little sister's in the other. Harue was holding the flowers for their aunt tightly as she could. The elevator ride was slow. Almost painfully so. When they finally reach the sixth floor, Aki had to try not to bolt out.
It took him and Harue a minute to find the room, but when they did, he had to stop Harue from running like always. Akito pushed the door open slowly. And there was his aunt. Her eyes were closed but she was awake- that's not what bothered him. The bruises on her face and neck, the cut and burns that littered her under the hospital gown, and the IV in her arm, that's what bothered him. It made Akito's stomach churn and eyes water.
"Auntie Kosuke!" Harue squealed, ripping off her mask, as she cried tears of joy as if nothing was wrong. Their aunt opened her eyes and smiled. She sat up a bit as Harue rushed over and handed her the flowers.
"We got your favorite!" Harue said happily.
"I see that," said Aunt Kosuke. She patted the bed, signaling for Harue to come to join her. Harue all but jumped on the bed and snuggled up to their aunt. Akito stained by the door quietly.
When Aunt Kosuke saw him she moved Harue to her lap and patted the bed again. Akito came reluctantly, not wanting to cause his aunt any discomfort. When he sat down his aunt wrapped her hand around his shoulders and kissed his head.
"Are you two alright?" she asked.
"We're okay!" Harue promised as she began to tell Aunt Kosuke about everything that happened since she was admitted to the hospital. Their aunt smiled through it all.
"And then when we went to go get your flowers, the lady was closing the shop, but she kept it open, it was really nice, and Nii-chan was very quiet, and, and, and-"
"You should put your mask back on Harue," Akito said quietly.
"She's fine," Aunt Kosuke said, running a hand thru Akito hair. The nine-year-old looked down at his hands and then to his aunt and then asked, "What happens now?"
Aunt Kosuke's face fell and she looked out of the window at the rain. Then she smiled again and said, "Don't worry about that Mooncat, I'll take care of it."
Akito wanted to argue, but he didn't. He just sat quietly and began to count the minutes until he got here.
XXX
Shoto Yukitomo began to get dressed for class. They were going to an off-campus facility to train today. He had just finished putting on his boot when he walked out, and down to the front of the school. He found Yoarashi and went over to him.
"Oh man! Rescue training! I'm so freaking pumped!" the taller boy yelled out, jumping in the air. Shoto chuckled quietly. Then he looked over at Midoriya talking to Uraraka. He was in his gym clothes since his hero costume was basically destroyed in his battle with Bakugou.
"If you like him, just ask him out," Yoarashi said, thankfully in a quieter tone than normal. Even still Shoto jumped about a foot in the air.
"I don't know what you're talking about, and be quiet," Shoto hissed. Yoarashi chuckled. "I can't do either of those things."
Just then, Iida began to blow a whistle and started to instruct them onto the bus. Shoto was about to head on when he felt something tug on the bottom of his pants. He turned around to see Gekku looking up at him.
"Hey," he said looking down at the cat. She meowed and threw her paws up to rest on his knees. Shoto leaned down and scratched her head. Then there were more yells from Iida.
"I have to go," Shoto said, "I'll see you later."
Gekku didn't like that and began to meow louder. When Shoto didn't turn back around she began to follow him. She stopped at the bus doors and let out one more sad meow before the doors closed.
XXX
"You can't," Rumi said with her hands on her hips, that smirk of hers planted on her lips.
"Oh yeah?" Hawks asked, crossing his hands over his chest.
"Yeah," she said.
"Alright then," he said, "why don't we place a little bet then, hm?"
"You are so on," Rumi said, "What are the stakes?"
"Loser has to get a tattoo," Hawks said.
"Done."
XXX
It was quiet this afternoon in the parlor. Dabi wasn't doing much, just looking over the bruises he got from fighting with that little weasel of a bitch Shynah. After Fuyumi and his brother went to bed that night, Dabi had gone out to find Shynah, and warned her to stay the fuck away from his sister if she liked her face the way it was.
Shynah clapped back telling him to watch his ass, unless he wanted to be found in a river in a body bag. There were some more threats, and before long the little bitch had decked him in the face. Dabi didn't fucking care if she was a girl, he was going to beat her. Hard. For scaring his sister, and for coming near them. He wasn't sure when Quirks got involved, but they were both lucky neither one of them killed the other. He walked away with a banged up torso, bloody knuckles, and an animal like scratches on his back. Shynah had only a few minor burns and one ugly black eye that wasn't going away soon.
Looking back, Dabi admits it wasn't the smartest choice he has made. Fuyumi would kill him if she ever found out about it. Which is why he wasn't going to tell her.
Speaking of the white-haired she-devil, she was calling him now. He knew it was before even looking at the caller ID because the ring tone was a recording of Fuyumi saying "I'm calling you," that he'd recorded to make his ringtone for her. She hated it.
"What's up?" he asked, even though he could tell right away that something was very wrong. In the beginning, he could tell what she was saying. She was talking fast, and crying, and sobbing. The first words he could understand were "The news, have you seen the news?!"
"Fuyumi, what the hell is going on?" he tried but all got was more crying.
"Shoto," she said, "Shoto, I-I don't, I have no i-idea if he's-"
"Fuyumi what about Shoto?" he asked her, trying not to get worked up himself. Then his phone buzzed another call from UA.
"I'm getting another call, from UA," he told Fuyumi.
"Answer it!" she cried. "Answer it right now and tell me the minute you know."
"Fuyu-" his phone rang again and he answered the call.
"Hello?"
"Hello, are you Dabi Yukitomo?" a voice asked.
"Yes," he said, weakening with fear.
"I'm a caller for UA. Today your brother Shoto Yukitomo and his class went to an off-campus facility. That facility was attacked by villains. The situation has been maintained, however, we are asking parents and guardians come and pick up their children."
"WHAT?!" Dabi yelled, "How?! How the hell did this happen?! My brother! Is my brother okay?!" he demanded.
"Sir," the voice said calmly, "I'm not allowed to tell you anything. We just ask that you come to the campus to collect your child."
"Oh, I'll come, and I have a few words that I'm going to give to someone," he then pressed the hang up button as hard as someone could. Then his anger subsided. Horrible images flashed into his minds. His baby brother, broken, and bloody, and mangled, and dead. The thought made him want to vomit. A part of him said he should have never let Shoto enrolled in UA.
He shook himself. Now's not the time. He had to tell Fuyumi what was going on, but she happened to come through the door of the parlor. Tears still fresh on her face. Dabi opened his arms as wide as he could and held her as tight as possible as she rushed to him.
"O-oh gods," she sobbed, "T-the news is s-saying that, o-only one of them g-got hurt. Wh-what if-?"
"It's not Shoto, Fuyumi," Dabi swore, "The brats too strong and stubborn to get hurt," the raven-haired man blinked back his own tears of fear and panic.
They took a minute to collect themselves, before running to UA faster than anyone had before. There was a swarm of people in front of the gate- news reporters, and other people from the media. Dabi and Fuyumi pushed their way to the front.
"Family only," someone in front of the gates said, holding out his hands.
"We are family!" Fuyumi cried, "Shoto Yukitomo, he's our younger brother!"
"ID," the man said. Dabi yanked his out harshly and shoved it in the man's face.
"This good enough?" Dabi asked, ready to lose it with everyone. The man looked at Fuyumi, who the fumbled a little to get her ID card out. Once the man saw it, he opened the gates and let them in. Before they could get far there was another person to stop them. This time a woman, the R-18 Hero Midnight.
She told them the Shoto was fine and in the classroom, with his fellow student, unharmed and waiting to get picked up. Fuyumi looked like she could pass out with relief. Dabi, on the other hand, stayed angry. They ran the whole way to the Class 1-A room.
"If there is a single hair out of place on his head, I will burn this fucking place to the ground!"
XXX
Shoto sat quietly in the corner of the room and waited for someone to come to get him. The USJ had been attacked by villains. The 'how' of it all was still unclear, but Shoto didn't care right now. He was scared during the whole thing, but not as scared as his classmates were. It was more like he was nervous.
He had handled himself well. Kept out of villains grasp and stayed unharmed. Midoriya, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. He had broken his bones again, trying to help All Might. Shoto would admit it, he was impressed.
Midoriya was more than a smart guy, flashy Quirk, and a cute face. He was selfless and willing to jump in no matter what. And now he was knocked out in the nurse's office.
Shoto rubbed his eyes, he should have listened to Gekku.
Yoarashi sat next to him. He wasn't as upbeat and excited as he normally was though. He was still taking a lot, which was at least something. Everyone at least looked to be okay. He doesn't know what they were thinking, but he never did. Sometimes he wished he could read minds instead of the Quirk he had.
Shoto ducked his head down. He thought about his siblings. He wanted his brother.
Just then the door banged open, Shoto's head shot up to see Dabi and Fuyumi standing in the doorway.
"Shoto," Dabi demanded. Everyone pointed to the teenager in question. Shoto's body acted before his mind. He rushed over to hug his brother and sister. Fuyumi pulled him as close to her as she could and then Dabi wrapped his arms around the both of them.
The room was quiet. Shoto felt a few tears hit the back of his neck. Whether they were Dabi's or Fuyumi's, Shoto couldn't tell, nor did he care. It was a while before either of the two let him go, but when they did, Fuyumi cupped his face.
"Are you okay?" she asked. It was clear in her voice that she was crying. Her face was red, her eyes were a bit puffy, and her glasses needed to be cleared.
"I'm fine," he said.
"I will be the fucking judge of that," Dabi said, grabbing Shoto's face, and began to scan every inch of him he could.
"Dabi," Shoto said in a voice close to a growl. He had just remembered that his classmates were still there, and he could hear a few of them snickering.
"Shush," Dabi said, turning Shoto's head in his hands. It was another minute before Fuyumi told Dabi to stop it and the Shoto was fine. Dabi sighed and pulled Shoto into another hug. When he was let out Dabi asked, "You are okay, right?"
"Yes," Shoto said.
"Good," Dabi said. The raven-haired man looked around the room to see that the rest of the teenagers in the room were watching them.
"Well, this is awkward," Dabi said.
"You think?" Shoto asked, annoyed. Fuyumi chuckled and told Shoto to get his stuff. He did, and Shoto waved goodbye to his classmates. He and his siblings were shown back outside. Dabi's arm was around Shoto's shoulders and Fuyumi's hand rested on his back.
When they got home, Natsuo was waiting for them. He had jumped over the couch and all but squeezed the daylights out of his baby brother. Shoto but let out a tiny groan, but didn't protest.
"Do you have any idea about the heart attack you gave me?" Natsuo asked, not even close to loosening his grip.
"Sorry?" Shoto asked, unsure how to respond. Natsu shook his head and hugged his little brother tighter. Much to the dismay of Shoto's ribs.
Soon all four of the Yukitomo siblings were hugging, a long time passed before Shoto was able to walk free.
Later that night Fuyumi made soba, because she wasn't going to say no to Shoto anytime soon. Shoto offered to help, but he was still banned from the kitchen after he tried to make ramen in the coffee pot and broke everything.
Dinner was quieter than normal. No one was sure what to say. At one point Shoto put his chopstick down and asked very quietly, "Do you want me to stop going to UA? Are any of you okay with me being a hero at all?"
They all looked at him.
"Sho, why would you ask that, kiddo?" Dabi asked.
Shoto shrugged. "You were all worried and- I don't. I didn't think any of you really cared about heroes…"
"Shoto," Fuyumi said gently, resting her hand on top of his, "Do you wanna be a hero?"
"I think so," Shoto said, "But-"
"Sho. It doesn't matter what we think," Natsuo said, "All that matters is that you're happy. Then we don't care. You could be a homeless person who lives under some bridge, an' as long as you're happy, we'd be fine."
"Um? Natsu? I would not be fine with that," Fuyumi said.
"Hush now," Natsuo said, holding up a finger. Fuyumi hit the back of his head.
"What our brother is trying to say," Dabi started, "is that we want you to do whatever you wanna do with your life. Whatever that is, Sho, we want you to have it. Yes, we're gonna worry, but only because that's our job as your big siblings. Okay?"
Shoto nodded. "Okay."
"Good," Dabi said. There was quiet.
"Can we watch Frozen after dinner?" Shoto asked, looking up hopefully.
Dabi sighed. "Only after we watch the Little Mermaid."
"And Lion King," Natsuo added.
"Done," Shoto said.
XXX
"Well, fuck," Hawks said. He looked at Rumi who was smirking her ass off. He lost. Now he had to get a fucking tattoo. What the hell?
XXX
Harue hugged her brother tighter. Her daddy and Auntie Kosuke were in Auntie Kosuke's hospital room yelling, a lot. They were using big people words she didn't understand. Things like 'lawsuit, and 'custody', and 'visitation rights'. They kept talking about a trial, and something happening in a few months.
Harue whimpered. She was scared. Auntie kept calling Daddy 'bastard' and Daddy called Auntie something that sounded like bike but started with a 'd'. She wasn't sure with either word meant, but she knew she wasn't allowed to say either of them. Uncle Iroh was trying to calm them down. They yelled over him.
Nii-chan closed his eyes and was holding back tears. If Nii-chan was crying, it must be okay for Harue to cry too. Nii-chan was her big brother, so that meant he was super strong. And if someone like Nii-chan cried that meant she could too. But Nii-chan wasn't crying, so Harue didn't either.
No one seemed to care, or want to do anything about grown-ups yelling in the room. Their voices were muffled, so no one but Harue and Nii-chan could hear them.
Harue wonders to herself if there was anyone else who had ever been afraid of their daddy like she was.
XXX
A few days after the whole USJ mess, Dabi was back to work at the tattoo parlor. He had Fall Out Boy blaring and was trying not to lose his fucking mind over the fucking pile of bills he had.
Soon Irresistible came on the speaker, and just as the choir hit, Dabi heard the door open. He jumped at his desk a little, then went out to see who was here.
When he saw who it was, he wasn't star-struck, per se. It was more, 'what the fuck are these two doing in my shitty-ass tattoo parlor?' He wasn't stupid, he knew what the number three and number six heroes looked like.
Miruko was dressed in combat boots, cut off shorts, a white tank top that said, 'girls are great' in black block letters, and there was a red flannel tied around her hips.
Hawks was dressed in converse, a simple white t-shirt, black skinny jeans, and had rings and bracelets on.
The two were bickering back and forth.
"I can't believe this," Hawke grumbled with his arms crossed over his chest.
"Hey, remember, this was all your idea," Mirko said, a smirk painted on her lips.
"Can I help you two?' Dabi asked breaking their conversation up. They turned to look at him. Mirko clapped and rubbed her hands together, "My friend here needs a tattoo," she said, with a huge smile on her face.
"Well, you're in luck, because that's all we do here," Dabi said. "Have a seat." Dabi gestured to the couch. The two pros walked over and sat down on the worn-out black sofa.
"Can I get either of you anything?" Dabi asked carefully.
"No, we're good," Hawks said.
Dabi nodded and took his seat in the chair. "What can I do for you?" he asked.
"Bird brain here thought he could beat me in a race, and now he has to get a tattoo," the female hero said.
"Well, that's not the strangest thing I've heard from someone in here," Dabi said. "So, you know what you want?"
Hawks sighed, "No, I haven't really thought about getting a tattoo."
"All right, that's totally fine. I tend to suggest starting small," Dabi said, "But you can do whatever."
"Oh, get a big one, I wanna see you cry," Miruko said.
"Shut up," the winged hero groaned.
Dabi cleared his throat and said, "If you want you can pick something from the books or we can do something else."
"Can I just have an artist choice?" Hawks asked, "Honestly, I have no idea what to get."
"I can do that," the raven-haired man said, "Wait here. I got something I think you'll like."
Dabi came back a few minutes later with a sketchbook. It was opened to a page of a feather and as it went up it turned into flames.
"Wow," Hawks said, taking the books in his hands, "You did this?"
"Yep," Dabi said. Hawks mulled it over in his head for a minute before nodding. Hawks was going to get it on the back of his shoulder so his wings could hide it. Dabi was almost shocked to find that the man could change the size of his wings.
"Just so you know," Miruko said to Dabi, "He has very sensitive skin."
"Oh, my God, Rumi! Shut the fuck up!" Hawks yelled. Dabi chuckled and went to work. As he started on the winged hero's tattoo Miruko looked around his shop. She was looking at the pictures over by the door when she asked, "Who this?"
"My siblings," Dabi said not looking up from his work, "I got three of them."
"Oof," she said.
"It's not that bad," he said, "My youngest brother just started UA. Hero Course."
"Well, we'll have to keep an eye out for him in the Sports Festival, won't we?"
"Yeah," Dabi said. Time went on. Miruko asked more questions and Dabi readily answered them. At one point she asked, "What do your parents think of this whole tattoo thing?"
"Well my mother, bless her, says she happy I'm doing something I love. She says I might have to give her one someday," Dabi shook his head and smiled at the thought of his mother sitting in his parlor getting a tattoo. It was crazy.
"And your father?"
"Dead."
"Oh, sorry.
"Don't be."
Every few minutes Dabi would ask Hawks how he was feeling, and when he wasn't told to stop or that it hurt, he kept working. When he was done, Hawks sat up and huffed. "Take it easy," Dabi advised.
"Does it look good?" Hawks asked.
"Actually, it does," Miruko said, looking over the tattoo.
"Thank goodness," he said carefully putting his shirt back over his head.
"Hey, so, I was thinking," Miruko said.
"Oh no," Hawks grumbled.
"Shut up," she laughed. "I was thinking that I kinda wanna get a tattoo now too. And I'm cool with whatever. Like, I can come back, or I can do it now. It doesn't matter to me," she said.
"I can do it right now," Dabi said, "I'd just need a minute to get everything set up."
Miruko nodded her head and took a seat in the chair that Hawks had been in a few minutes ago. When Dabi came back, Miruko showed him the tattoo she had picked out. It was of a crescent moon that was simple enough but had some nice detailing. Miruko had Dabi put it right on her forearm.
While Dabi worked on the female hero, it was Hawks' turn to ask questions. "How long have you been running this place?"
"Two and-a-half-years," Dabi said, "Weird question, but how'd you find my shop? I'm just curious."
"Rumi found your Instagram," Hawks explained. "We saw your work, and thought it was pretty sweet."
"Awesome to know that's working," Dabi said, "It was my sister's idea."
"You got a lot of followers," Hawks said.
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean they all come to get stuff done."
"How much does it take to run this place?" Miruko asked, much calmer than Hawks had been.
"More than you'd think," Dabi said, sounding annoyed.
"You post all the tattoos you do on your Insta?" Miruko asked.
"Most of them go there and my website, yeah," Dabi said. "I normally ask my clients if they're okay with it. Not a lot say no."
"Neat," Miruko said. It was still a while before the heroine's tattoo was done, but when it was, Miruko inspected it.
"Holy hell," she said, "This is awesome."
Dabi chuckled. He led them back to the front of the store and gave them both instructions on how to make sure they didn't get infections. The two heroes paid and had Dabi take a photo of their new ink.
"Well, thank you for coming," Dabi said, a little awkwardly.
"Thanks for having us," Hawks said. Dabi looked at him for a second before clearing his throat and opening the door for the two.
"Thanks again," he said.
"You're welcome," Miruko said, stepping out.
"See ya," Hawks said. Dabi nodded and closed the door. He looked down at his phone. Maybe two pro heroes coming into his parlor could help him more than he'd thought.
XXX
When he and Rumi got far enough away from the tattoo parlor, Hawks said, "Well, that guy was hot."