Hey, guys! Another week gone by, and another chapter to upload! This is the last flashback chapter for now, so, I hope you've all enjoyed what's happened so far. I do still have some background stuff to go through, but that'll come as the time goes by!

Anyway, enough of my rambling, thanks to everyone who reviewed/favourited/alerted/read this fic. It's been a crazy couple of weeks, can you believe it's chapter 10 already?

Xxxxx

Chapter 10

The election day had arrived and Hiro could feel nothing but anxiety. He had already spoken to Honey Lemon, Fred, Gogo and Wasabi, all of whom had told him at length that they would always stand by his side no matter what. And Hiro believed them; San Fransokyo needed the Big Hero 6 to set an example now more than ever before. Hiro looked up and stared at the television screen that could bring him some of the worst news for him and the Japanese people of San Fransokyo.

'We're getting reports that this has been the most successful election in many years. Polling booths, which have been open since 7am this morning have seen substantial queues all over San Fransokyo in what has been described as one of the biggest game changing elections in quite some time.' Hiro heard the reporter comment on the television. Anxiety swirled through Hiro's system at the mere prospect of what could happen in the coming weeks following this election. Things were definitely going to change in San Fransokyo.

In the following hours, rumours came and went through the café. Hiro sat in the back with the gang, listening and pretending that he wasn't there. He didn't want to be seen, he didn't want to trigger any unnecessary issues on such a tense day. Hiro thought back to Tadashi, and once again, couldn't help but wonder what Tadashi would have done on this day. Would he have carried on as normal? Would he have gone back to SFIT to carry on his studies for the day? Or would he have stayed at the café like Hiro had done?

For all his false bravado about being an ex-bot fighter, Hiro was scared. At least with bot fighting and being part of the Big Hero 6 there was a certain knowledge that came with the territory. He knew where he was, he knew how to handle these people. He knew that beating them at their own game and outwitting them usually provided the end of that issue, but he could not understand how he would be able to change months and years worth of ingrained thoughts.

The polls didn't officially close till 10pm, but Hiro already knew what the outcome would be, he could guess it from the attitude of most of the people who had come into the café, and he knew from the run up to the election that he knew the one man who had been all any one could talk about. Hiro had heard many Japanese talking about the vote, many of them afraid of what would happen, some even too afraid to turn up to the polling stations because of threats by other people.

Hiro himself had also been threatened not to show at the polls, they had told him that he would regret it, and so would Aunt Cass. Hiro had tried to warn Aunt Cass after the incident, but she would not listen to him, saying that she would not be scared off by racists who wanted nothing more than to control other people purely for being different to them.

At least Hiro could go to bed tonight knowing quite happily that Aunt Cass had voted to keep him free.

Xxxxx

Hiro woke the next morning with a drowning sense of dread. Everything in his body told him that today was a day that he could not face. Turning his bed, Hiro turned to look at Tadashi's side of the room. Everything was still in pristine order, not a speck of dust had surfaced on this side of the room. Hiro made sure that Tadashi's room remain exactly the same way as he left it, never dirty, never dusty, with everything in its proper place. It was the potentially the only place in the entire world that Hiro cleaned and kept the way it should be. Hiro couldn't risk anything of Tadashi's going missing.

Looking at Tadashi's cap on the bed, Hiro stared at it hard and wondered about Tadashi, wondering how he was doing wherever he was. If Tadashi was thinking about what was going on, and what he was doing. Hiro wondered if Tadashi was looking down at him, and trying his hardest to make sure everything would be all right. That Hiro would not ever have to get up and face this day.

Walking down the stairs Hiro heard the stillness in the air, no sound, no movement. Hiro didn't know how to interpret this, but the anxiety and foreboding rose in his body, his blood pumping faster and faster through his veins. Hiro felt feint, but he didn't know how to handle it.

With each shaky step further down the stairs, Hiro felt his head become lighter and lighter. With each footfall he felt the cold stairs on the stairs, he felt the adrenalin rush, he felt the cold of the house.

At the bottom of the stairs, he turned to the living room, where he saw Cass sitting on the sofa, her mandatory morning black coffee in her hand forgotten. Then, all of a sudden, sounds rushed back to Hiro in an explosive mess, he could hear Cass' short breaths with super hearing, hearing each inhale and exhale, he heard the static of the television vibrating through his skin.

Hiro almost felt as if he couldn't bear to look at the screen, but a stupid sense of bravery forced him to look. He almost wished he hadn't.

'The new rules, as set out by our new Mayor John Norman: House arrest for all Japanese after 8pm, any Japanese seen out after curfew will be punished. Japanese are no longer permitted to walk in groups, and must be accompanied by a person of non-Japanese descent at all times. Any attempt to break this law will be dealt with severely…'

Hiro listened to the list with growing horror and a growing sense of horror. He knew things were going to be bad, but he could not imagine them to be this harsh. At this moment, Hiro began to question why he had to be punished and be born Japanese, but he could not control it, just as much as they couldn't control what ethnicity they were.

'No Japanese are permitted to own any kind of business, all current shop owners will have to sell their assets and donate the money to the San Fransokyo bank. This will be used to help balance our economy, and provide a better experience and better funding for non-Japanese businesses.'

Hiro looked up to Aunt Cass who was watching the news report with rapt attention.

'What's going to happen to the café?' Hiro asked her, worriedly.

'Nothing, sweetie.' Cass told him distantly.

'You can't lose your shop because of me.' Hiro told her, he wasn't going to ruin this for her, too.

'Honey, it'll be fine. The shop is owned by me, not you. They can't do anything about it.' Hiro understood that she was only trying to be helpful to him, but at the same time, he also felt slightly hurt. He knew that this was going to end badly for Cass because people knew he lived her, and people knew that Cass' sister had married into a Japanese family. But, Hiro was sure that Cass was aware of this just as much as he was.

The list continued for some time, a whole new regime for Japanese families, all of which spelling the demise of the Japanese tradition, and included the destruction of many Japanese heritage buildings and places dotted throughout San Fransokyo.

'And, finally, Mayor John Norman has decreed that no person of Japanese descent will be permitted to attend any Higher Education Institution throughout San Fransokyo. No matter what their thoughts on the subject may be.'

Hiro looked to Aunt Cass sitting on the sofa in front of him, and realised that this was going to be the end of it all for him. Hiro guessed Tadashi hadn't really been trying his hardest after all.