A/N: Phew, sorry for the wait guys. This was a really action-packed chapter! It jumped around a ton, so my beta wanted to make sure it was golden. I may or may not be good at writing fight scenes.
Maetrix - Dadzawa is the best dad anybody could want. Oh trust me, I think I got you covered. Yeah, tbh I feel in love with my version of him. He's definitely going to be around a lot. He's a blast to write.
skidney - Thank you!
Iamthebestwriter- haha, well that is what angst is. Rest assured, I've got it covered! I've never seen Tokyo Ghoul myself tbh. I've heard about it, but I'm really picky about what I get in to lol. Trust me, I'm thinking about the plot so much when I'm at work. What do I want to do? Where do I want to take it? Would this be a good twist? I this too much?
Yeah its really tense right now. They're both trying hard to not let it blow, but I've got that covered. You'll have to read and see what happens!
Guest - PFFFT basically. Endeavor is fire lord ozai.
Maester Ta- You'll have to read to find out!
Paperworld - oh my god, yes lol. Thats because they're all the best dads. Amazing dads. I'm hesitant to add mom to midnight though all things considered...maybe Aunt. lololol.
I tried to keep it realistic. It's really hard to make it dramatic, but not have it overblown. I could have easily gone all the way some times, but I try to rein it in. I've rewritten scenes many times because of this. And yeah, tbh I'm terrible at small typoes. Thank god for my beta lol.
Thanks for the reviews guys, sorry for the wait, and I hope you enjoy! As always, thank my beta Wakacchi!
I couldn't focus on all the useless squealing around me as I stared at the impressive stadium in front of me, imaging where I might end up during the chaos. If I was lucky, I would stick with Shoto and we would easily take care of the thugs sent for us. If I was unlucky, I'd end up in the flood area where my Fire was weakest. I might even end up staying right here, where I might be able to assist Aizawa. Could I even be of any use here? Would I freeze up like before, letting myself get injured because of my inaction? It was a daunting thought, and I stood stiff and frozen as Thirteen continued with his introduction.
"Homura-chan, are you okay?" Kirishima frowned, his head tilting slightly as he noticed my unusual quietness. I had been rambunctious and energetic in the bus, so it didn't surprise me that he caught on to my silence. I nodded slowly, my eyes glued to the spot where everything would begin. I wanted to pay attention, I really did, but knowing what was about to happen prevented me from doing so.
"I'm fine. Just thinking." I mumbled, and Kirishima's frown deepened. He placed a hand on my shoulder before carefully turning me around to face him.
"You don't look so good. Are you sick? Did that ride on the bus make you all nauseous? Hey, Aizawa-sensei!" Kirishima shouted, causing a few of the others to exchange confused looks. Shoto, who had been leaning against a railing overlooking he plaza, turned his head sharply. He frowned, but remained where he stood.
"What's wrong?" Aizawa made his way through the group of whispering students, and when I looked up I saw his face bloodied and broken. I recoiled back almost immediately, my eyes quickly darting back to that same spot to avoid looking again. I saw the flicker of black, and my heart lurched.
"Hey, what's that over there?" Ashido called out, leaning over the railing Shoto had occupied earlier. Aizawa's head slowly turned around, and his eyes widened as the speck of black began to expand rapidly.
"That's that fucking villain!" Katsuki snarled, clenching his fists and narrowing his eyes dangerously as those familiar eerie yellow eyes came in to existence. Aizawa suddenly dashed ahead of everybody, holding his arms out to keep anybody from advancing.
"Huddle together and don't move!" he shouted, and confusion turned to panic as everybody seemed to slowly understand what was going on. "Thirteen, protect the students!"
"What is that?! Is this like the training pattern at the exam?" Kirishima frowned, not quite catching on as fast. I didn't say anything, keeping my mouth firmly shut.
"Don't move! Those are villains!" Aizawa snapped at us, sliding his goggles in to place as he switched in to a defensive stance.
"Eraserhead and Thirteen…. according to the teacher's curriculum we procured yesterday, All Might-san was supposed to be here. And yet…" Kurogiri caught sight of Katsuki first, his eyes widening slightly before scanning the group of students. We locked gazes, and I swallowed hard. "Maybe you two have something to do with it? I should have taken you after all…"
"I knew it. Yesterday was your lout's doing…" Aizawa muttered, his attention focused on the massive group of villains.
"You know them…? Is that what happened to your face?" Kirishima whispered urgently, eyes wide as he looked at me.
"…Yes." I finally managed quietly, tearing my gaze away from the villains to find Katsuki staring back. He seemed strangely serious for once, his usual unnecessary anger cooled for the time being. I wanted to assume he was thinking along the same lines as I was. We could have prevented this.
"This is what Aizawa-sensei wanted you to keep quiet. I understand." Shoto muttered, staring down the slowly increasing group of villains. They seemed endless, bearing quirks of all kinds that could easily tear us apart if we weren't careful.
"Where is he…we went through all this trouble…and rustled so many of us to bring along. You can't tell me that the symbol of peace is not here." The man covered in hands mumbled, clearly distressed. He tilted his head to the side, before trembling a bit. "I wonder if he'll show up if we kill the kids?"
There seemed to be a collective flinch among the students, and everybody recoiled a bit at the intensity of the words. Or maybe it was the slowly increasing number of villains streaming out of the warp gate, well beyond our collective capabilities. It was clear we were outmatched, Pro heroes or not.
"Sensei! What about the intruder alarm sensors...?!" Yaoyorozu glanced at Thirteen, who nodded carefully. It was hard to tell what her was thinking with his mask, but he seemed oddly calm for the situation. It was strange, and I couldn't help but relax at the sight. They knew something. There was something in our favor and while we didn't know what, Aizawa and Thirteen did.
"We have some set up yes, but they aren't working." Thirteen confirmed, his voice devoid of any panic one might expect. I didn't seem to be the only one suspicious either, as Katsuki observed the Pro hero with a bit of subdued bewilderment.
"Is this the only campus they've infiltrated or are the others under attack too...?" Shoto muttered, leaning forward against the railing as he observed the villains. He was completely calm, and I was a bit envious at his obvious strong will. I had known about this before it even began, and I was trembling. He had no information, and he stood there unaffected by it all.
"At any rate, if the sensors aren't working, they must have one amongst their number whose quirk can do that!" he mused, and I let out the breath I hadn't been aware I was holding.
"Can Kaminari-kun use his quirk to contact the main school?" I inquired, glancing back at the half-panicked boy. He blinked before shutting his eyes, obviously focusing. He shook his head after a moment, grimacing.
"I can't! Somethings blocking my quirk! We have to find whosevers out there first!" he called out, and I sighed. I knew it wouldn't be easy, even if everything felt different.
"Thirteen, do the evacuation procedure. And try to find a way to contact the school. There's more than we expected, we're going to need back-up!" Aizawa ordered, and I blinked. They knew. They knew this was happening and we had still come out here? Were we bait? I couldn't help but scowl a bit, hoping my assumption was false.
"Did you know they were coming?" Shoto asked sharply, turning his attention on Thirteen. The Pro hero seemed quiet for a moment, considering.
"Sort of. We had a feeling something was going to happen, but we didn't know to what extent. The tip we had was a bit vague." He must have been talking about Katsuki and my encounter. It was sort of relieving to know that I had done something. I had helped in a way, even if I didn't know how. If this was planned, then they had to have some sort of back-up here already. The question was where?
"Sensei?! Are you fighting them alone?" Izuku's concern broke through my temporary haze, and I gaped at our Sensei. He couldn't be serious!
"You can't fight them alone! That's way too many, even for a Pro." I balked at the idea, and Kirishima seemed to agree with me. "Sensei, let us help! We're training to be heroes too!" he demanded, clenching his fists. Aizawa held out a hand to hold us back, glancing behind us.
"Don't worry, a hero always has more than one trick up his sleeves. You focus on evacuating. We'll handle this." Just like that, there was movement around our group of students. For a moment I assumed it was Kurogiri, and I immediately brought my fire around like a barrier. It was a bit shorter than I intended, but it made my intentions very clear. I blinked before gasping, caught off guard.
"Oh, oh that's hot! Homura-san, listeners we've come to help!" Present Mic jumped back a bit from the circle of fire surrounding everybody, holding his hands up with a grin.
"Unfortunately, we didn't expect this many! Has anybody been in contact with the school?" Cementoss appeared next, his body forming out from the concrete we stood on.
"If we'd been able ta contact 'em, I'm sure they would've already. We're on our own for now." Snipe spoke gravely, twirling a gun idly in his hands. He looked over the group of students carefully, checking for injuries before turning his attention back to the villains.
"Where did you guys even come from?" Kaminari blinked, staring at the heroes who had not been there before a few seconds ago. I had only heard a small rumbling noise before they suddenly surrounded us. I didn't even know.
"I hid us in the foundation beneath your feet. We had hoped that maybe their target was at Yuuei, but clearly that's not the case. What could they possibly want…?" Cementoss graced us with an answer, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked over the villains. On the other end, Shigaraki fidgeted nervously at the appearance of heroes.
"Heroes…I hate heroes. They're already here…how did they know?"Shigaraki spit out angrily, scratching the base of his neck nervously. The other villains seemed a little less confident than they had walking in, but remained firm as they stood their ground.
"I apologize, unfortunately I made an error in judgement leaving those two students when I infiltrated the staff room. I will not make that same mistake again." Kurogiri's eyes seemed to glint dangerously, and I felt myself take a step back. Katsuki simply bristled, smirking wildly and cracking his knuckles. He seemed to openly accept the light challenge, and I wasn't sure where his confidence came from. Even with the heroes on our side, we were still outnumbered. Maybe it wasn't confidence. Maybe it was just bloodlust.
Aizawa didn't wait for any other exchanges, throwing himself forward. The cloth around his neck unraveled, tangling between his fingers as he expertly thrust it outwards. Various villains appeared to scoff at his presumably insane confidence, only to be taken down within seconds. Seeing it in person was incredible - Aizawa was good.
"I'll give 'em cover fire. Get the students to safety." Snipe didn't move forward, instead taking shots from behind the cover conveniently created by Cementoss. Said hero gestured for the students to follow while Present Mic ran forward to intercept any stragglers that made it past Aizawa.
"Safety? Let us fight, we can handle these shit stains any day!" Katsuki snapped, letting a small explosion out of his fist as emphasis.
"Yeah, we can help you guys too! That's a lot of villains!" Kirshima added on, and I grimaced. I didn't want to fight, but with this many villains we really had no choice. Especially once Kurogiri intercepted everybody.
"No, everybody needs to follow me. I'll lead you out of here, so we can put them down." Thirteen ignored the passionate requests, much to Kirishima's disappointment and Katsuki's anger. Everybody else seemed keen on leaving, however, and we all backed up towards the entrance. Kirishima pulled me along, and I quickly followed behind as we made a break for the door.
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that." That familiar, damning black fog slowly encircled the group of students. It billowed out in a circle, promising terrible things to those who tried to cross outside it's boundaries. Kurogiri's eyes roamed over all of us, lingering on me before snapping over to Katsuki.
"Greetings, we are the villain alliance. I apologize for the presumption, but we took it upon ourselves to enter Yuuei academy, the base of heroes." He was polite, and it blew my mind. I honestly considered him one of the more unstable villains solely because of how he addressed everybody. You couldn't be stable if you were so calm and courteous to those you were about to kill.
"In order to engage with All Might-san, the 'symbol of peace'" Izuku stiffened at the blatant explanation, narrowing his eyes.
"You..you're trying to kill All Might-sensei?" He grit his teeth, taking a step forward. It was a remarkable change from how he used to be, but this was not the time to suddenly become brave.
"Izuku-kun, don't!" I hissed, pulling away from Kirishima and running to him. Kurogiri's eyes followed me as I moved, and I did my best to ignore him.
"You understand very well. We wish to extinguish him. But he's not here. Has something changed?" We locked gazes, and I flinched. "Or did someone interfere?"
His whole body shifted, and the black fog seemed to raise up in the air slightly. Everybody looked around wildly, slowly sliding in to defensive stances to try and defend themselves. Mineta was the only one close to tears, but most of us were equally as nervous. Kirishima and Katsuki were the only ones who seemed ready to brawl. Even Thirteen looked hesitant, his glove popping open as he began to activate his quirk.
"This is my role." It was ominous, but it meant nothing to Katsuki and Kirishima as they suddenly lunged for the swirling black mass. Kurogiri didn't even flinch, the fog suddenly expanding and encircling half of us rapidly. Kirishima and Katsuki were both swallowed up hole, much to everybody's shock. Even I couldn't believe my eyes, considering that was not what had happened originally. They should have stopped him for a second, and yet they were countered instantly. Maybe it had something to do with knowing Katsuki's quirk? Kirishima just happened to be caught in the crossfire as well.
"Kirishima-kun, Bakugou-kun!" Uraraka gasped, covering her mouth. She looked as though she wanted to move forward, but with the rapidly expanding fog nobody was really in the position to do anything.
"Such power…just as expected from the world's 'golden eggs'." Kurogiri mused as his fog opened up multiple portals left and right. "You will be scattered. And tortured. And slain." His voice sounded almost distorted as various portals opened underneath people, and it was suffocating. Everybody was screaming, and I caught sight of Thirteen trying to help people escape from the portals. I caught sight of Shoto, who locked gazes with me from the other side. He reached out for me on instinct, even though we were clearly too far away. I couldn't hear what he shouted, his form swallowed almost instantaneously as he fell. The ground gave way underneath me, and I was falling.
"You however…I believe Shigaraki-san would like to have a word with you." I was swallowed up by darkness, and when I was able to see again, I found myself face down in the class="Apple-converted-space" /span
Four fingers held me by the base of my neck, with the fifth hovering a few inches above.
"You…. it's your fault. You ruined everything…"
It was laughable really, how little thought was put in to this bizarre plan of theirs. If they had done any research, they might have known that throwing a mass of barely educated, subpar villains at Shoto would mean absolutely nothing. They had to have known about him, since apparently, they knew Homura. It was obvious it was what she had been hiding before, and he could understand her reasons. He had been furious to see what had been done to her face, but it was expected if villains were involved. Still, he couldn't really keep a hold of his anger as he walked forward and surveyed his work.
"That fucker…! The second I can move…is he really just a kid?! Ow, ow OW!" They were like grown children themselves, howling from both the pain and humiliation at being frozen solid in one solid move. Their bodies trembled from the cold, and Shoto could only frown slightly as he walked towards them.
"At this rate, you guys will gradually succumb to death by necrosis…" he met their fearful gazes, unflinching as he spoke. The reality was he really couldn't unfreeze them. Not without Homura, and she was no longer by his side. He couldn't reach out for the Fire even if he wanted to, so he did his best to try to act as though he wasn't about to be responsible for the deaths of so many if help didn't come fast enough.
"I'm aiming to become the top hero. I want to avoid doing horrible shit like that as much as I can. But, you have a problem." He stood in front of one of the frozen villains, unfazed by the growl from the goon he faced.
"Y-you…you fucker!" he hissed, and Shoto merely rolled his eyes. "I'll f-fucking kill you when I get out…"
"You won't be getting out. I can't help you. Not without likely shattering your limbs off in the process. But you can help yourselves and me!" Shoto continued, walking past the first guy until he stood in the middle of everyone. The air seemed to drop a few degrees lower, and everybody shivered.
"First, what's the basis of your plan to kill All Might." Shoto took a deep breath. "And second, if you want to save your own skins, you'll tell me where my sister is." There was a fearful silence that followed, the frozen villains exchanging nervous looks.
"Given your previous wounds on your skin, I'd say the Necrosis won't take too long to settle in. I can't help you if you don't help me." Shoto reminded them, and one guy finally squealed.
"W-wait, we can come to an agreement, yeah? W-we just wanted our lives to be easier! That mist guy and his boss approached a bunch of us. We were tired of All Might and those damn heroes making everything harder! If he just died, then we could commit crimes easier!" he confessed quickly, gulping hard as he felt his body temperature slowly lowering. Everything hurt, and the longer he stayed like this, the less chance he had to live. This wasn't worth it for any of them. Shoto seemed to weigh his response before sighing, glancing back at the center of the U.S.J.
"Useless information. You didn't mention anything about their actual plan. Or do you even know? Once I'm far enough away, the ice will naturally crumble. I wish I didn't have to leave you like this, but unless I have my sister back, there's nothing I can do. Hopefully this won't kill you." Shoto spoke truthfully, regret tinging his words as he turned on his heel.
"W-wait, you can't leave us like this! Please!" He ignored their pleas and the uneasy feeling in his stomach.
He knew the others had to have been warped all over the U.S.J, but his best bet was to reach the middle for now. He ran forward through the landslide area, using ice to maneuver his way through difficult points.
At the sound of movement behind him though, he brought his hand up in a rapid movement and sent a wall of ice flying backwards. There was a screech that followed soon after, and when he looked closer, he caught sight of floating gloves scrambling for cover.
"Whoa, whoa Todoroki-kun! It's me! It's me! Hagakure-chan!" Hagakure held her hands up, having narrowly avoided Shoto's ice. She looked like she was shivering, but considering it was only her gloves visible, it was hard to tell. Shoto relaxed from his battle stance regardless, though he kept his guard up just in case.
"Sorry, I didn't see you. Were you here this whole time?" Shoto apologized, keeping his gaze averted. He was still very aware of her costume and decided it was in his best interest to try not too think too hard about it.
"Yes! I saw what you did to those villains, that was incredible! You were so powerful!" She punched the air rapidly a few times, apparently getting to her feet. "I hope everybody else is okay too!" She clutched her hands together worriedly.
"The only way to find out is to get out of here. Over across the way a bit of debris spills out in to the landslide zone. We might find somebody else there too." Shoto peered across the way, before nodding his head slightly and trekking through the rubble. Hagakure followed along behind him, her gloves floating about.
"Why not just head over to the wall over there? We can go right to the central plaza where Aizawa-sensei is fighting? We have to help him!" she clenched her fists, and Shoto sighed.
"It's too dangerous to have you walk on my ice like that." She seemed to rub her chin at the comment before clapping her hands together.
"Well you can carry me, right? You have to be super strong, and I'm not that heavy so it should be a breeze!" The moment she looked as though she was going to prove her point, Shoto suddenly dashed forward. He put a little distance between them before stopping, keeping his back towards her while she ran to catch up.
"What? What's wrong, why don't you want to do that?" He just shook his head, staring intently ahead as he began trudging through the rubble again. Hagakure sighed, grumbling a bit as she followed suit. Shoto did his best to not think about how uncomfortable that situation would be, and found himself sighing in relief when they reached the edge of the zone. He was glad that he had looked over the entire facility earlier, because he wouldn't have noticed the slight spill over otherwise. It looked a bit difficult to climb, but with his Ice scaling it would be easy. He was a little concerned for Hagakure though.
"This doesn't look all that safe you know." She pointed out, prodding at the barely stable pile of rocks and dirt. Shoto gripped a nearby rock, pulling on it slightly. It seemed stable enough, though he wasn't sure how physically strong she was. He really hoped she could help herself.
"Can you climb it without help?" she rubbed her hands together in response, using her gloved hands to pull her body up. He assumed so anyways, as bits of rock were displaced from where he thought her feet were.
"Uuum, yeah yeah! I got it! Don't worry about me! You're a lot better at the fighting, so you should go ahead! I'll meet you back at the plaza!" she assured him, and Shoto hesitated for a split second before nodding. He opened his palms, facing them downward and allowing the ice to form beneath him and launch him upward. He knelt against the cold platform as he shot up, carefully making his way on to the top of the pile once he was high enough.
The ruins zone was, just as expected, a completely trash pile. The buildings were demolished and crumbled, with bits of debris falling off occasionally. Glass shards poked out from the ground, and Shoto had to move carefully to avoid cutting himself. It didn't help that in the distance he could hear explosions, and he knew exactly who had been dropped here.
"I'm always calm, you fucking hair-for-brains!" Katsuki's trademark, unwarranted rage blasted out form one of the many buildings. Shoto tensed up a bit, preparing for an attack when he approached one of the many broken windows. As if on cue, an explosion burst out and he had to duck to avoid being hit. Two figures suddenly hopped out through the window, and Shoto immediately brought his ice up to block another explosion. The ice cracked underneath the pressure, but it held firm, and it wasn't until he heard another familiar voice that he relaxed his guard.
"Whoa, whoa wait a second! That's Todoroki-kun!" Kirishima exclaimed, eyes wide as he stared at the other boy. Both of his hands were hardened to spear, and he was hunched over as if expecting to have to lunge. He looked a little dirtier than normal, but otherwise unharmed. Beside him, Katsuki observed Shoto before scowling, relaxing a little as well.
"Fucking hell, maybe announce yourself dumbass. I've got better things to do than waste my time playing games. I've got a fucking warp gate fucker to crush." He snarled, turning his back on the other two as he stalked forward towards the edge of the zone.
"Wait, shouldn't we head for the central plaza? We have to help Aizawa-sensei!" Kirishima called out to the retreating boy, Katsuki pausing for a moment.
"He's right. We don't get out of this mess if Sensei is taken down. The other pros should be there as well. We need to work with them." Shoto added in his two cents and Katsuki trembled slightly.
"Alright you listen to me! We take that fucker out, and they don't have any means of escape. Then we can fucking kill them as many times as we'd like. That warp fucker has to go first!" Katsuki snapped, and while his attitude left much to be desired, he had a point. Shoto and Kirishima exchanged looks, the red-headed boy grinning.
"Right behind ya then! I believe in my buddies…and you're starting to sound real manly Bakugou-kun! I'm with you now!" He cracked his knuckles, his body hardening slightly at the prospect of a battle. Shoto frowned, glancing around the zone.
"You have a point, but we should still head for the central plaza anyways. We have to go through there to get to the stairs anyways. I think we'll find our enemy there regardless." Kirishima nodded in response while Katsuki seemed to grudgingly accept his suggestion.
"Then lets fucking move! They're not going to wait all day for us!" Katsuki barked, stomping off towards the edge closest to the plaza. Kirishima and Shoto followed behind, and soon the trio of boys were running as fast as they could. The moment they reached the edge, Shoto formed another platform beneath them. It shot up fast, and they all braced themselves as they were thrown up a bit over the wall. Shoto rolled a bit when he landed, grunting. The other two hit the ground a little rough as well, slowly gaining their bearings as they stood up. Shoto looked around, and to his horror, caught sight of Homura in the middle of everything.
Time stood still, and for a moment I thought I was blacking out. The sudden change in environment had disorientated me, and going from standing up to lying face down on the ground was incredibly disorientating. I could clearly see Aizawa dancing through the crowd of villains, his cloth knocking villains off their feet as they tried to mob him. Snipe stood by the entrance still, occasionally ducking behind the concrete barrier formed by Cementoss as he tried to keep most of the villains at bay. Present Mic stood guard at the stairs, blasting away villains who thought to gang up on the students who remained at the entrance. Cementoss himself had corralled the remaining students in to a barrier, assisting Thirteen in combatting Kurogiri. Nobody had even noticed my sudden appearance by Shigaraki, and I barely understood what was happening until I felt his hand on my throat.
"If we were just any villains…. we would have lost already. Are there any more of you hiding out there…? I wonder if they'll show themselves if I make you squeal…" he muttered, his fifth digit hovering dangerously over my skin. I tensed up, holding my breath carefully as I tried to think my way out of this. I could ignite my fire and trying to force him away, but if his reaction time was good, he'd get a full grasp on my neck before the fire even touched him. It wouldn't take him long to kill me like that.
Surprisingly, he released me after a few seconds, and something snaked itself around my arm and yanked me forward. I didn't get a good look at what was going on, but I knew better than to just let myself be dragged around. Fire ignited at the top of my shoulders, and soon I was blasting my way out of the confusion and towards the edge. Aizawa's cloth, which had apparently yanked me out of danger, was yanked off my leg to allow me to scramble to my feet.
"Homura-san, don't let your guard down. You have permission to defend yourself!" Aizawa shouted through the crowd, his eyes locked on Shigaraki as he lunged for the man. I couldn't focus on their fight though, not with my fire attracting the attention of the villains surrounding us.
I was terrified and unsure of myself, but my will to live override any insecurities and I found our fire igniting before I could even think about it. The nearest villain lunged at me, his larger form trying to knock me to the ground. I easily sidestepped him, and I found he was leagues slower than I was when I grabbed his arm and yanked back. My fire crept up down my arm and on to his, and soon he was screaming as he hit the ground. I quickly slid my goggles up over my eyes, fire igniting down both my arms as I rushed the next attacking villain, dispatching him easily with a few well aimed kicks. Anytime I grabbed somebody with my hands, fire would engulf whatever body part I touched. It was a revolting and disturbing smell, and I soon was forced to adjust my bandanna over my face instead of on my head.
Adrenaline coursed through my veins as I moved, and I had nearly forgotten about my surroundings until I heard Aizawa's cry. My eyes darted from the woman in front of me as I dug my fist in to her stomach, her eyes watering as she fell backwards from the force. Blood splattered across the ground as Aizawa's arm dangled awkwardly, something clearly broken. It wasn't just broken, as the skin over the area had rotted away almost as soon as Shigaraki's full hand had enclosed on it.
"Aizawa-sensei!" I cried out, eyes wide with panic as I turned to aide him. I couldn't just leave him like that, not when that thing was going to arrive soon. I darted through the crowd, ducking and sidestepping everything thrown my way. Snipe seemed to catch on to me intentions, firing at any villain that tried to stop my approach.
"That quirk of yours…isn't it unsuited for fighting masses for long periods? Isn't this far removed from your typical work? Isn't your actual specialty short-length sneak attacks?" Shigaraki held his arms outstretched, watching as other villains began to lunge for Aizawa once more. He barely flinched, ignoring the pain from his wound as he wrapped his cloth around the approaching villains, knocking them off their feet repeatedly. I pushed my legs harder, knowing one wrong move would get us both killed. Even with Snipe providing aide, if I miss-stepped I wouldn't reach him in time.
"Sensei!" I breathed as I slid in to the crowd, my fire whipping out at the villains around us. It was hard to control it around Aizawa, but he easily adjusted his style to accommodate my clumsiness.
"Homura-san, why didn't you head towards the other students? This is no place for you!" Aizawa gritted out, not sparing me a glance as he sent his fist in to a man's stomach, following up with a kick once he had dazed them. He kept his back to me as he worked, forcing me to defend from my side with my fire. I brought a thin whip of flame around us, trying to give us a little defense as we fought off the horde.
It occurred to me that I was hindering him slightly, since he couldn't turn in my direction without the possibility of accidentally erasing our quirk. That was something neither of us could afford, and I felt momentarily guilty. I didn't waste time on that thought though, ducking a bit to avoid an attempted grab.
"Sensei, I can't run away like this. I think we need to back up! We're too close to that gate!" I urged, never taking my gaze away from Shigaraki. He eyed me back, his fists clenched as he watched the two of us easily dispatching his lackeys. Aizawa didn't respond, so I continued my explanation.
"That gate guy told us they were here to kill All Might-sensei! None of them look like they can really do it, but they came all this way! They must have someone who can, and I'd bet anything on him coming out of that gate! If he can kill All Might-sensei, then he can kill you too!" I shouted as I was forced to back away for Aizawa, dodging a few shots from a villain aiming from afar. I hit the ground when I stumbled back, and I had to roll out of the way as someone brought an axe down where I was. I couldn't tell if Aizawa had heard me or not, but he seemed to slowly make his way away from the gate. That was good. If he could get some distance –
"Oh, by the way hero, I'm not 'the favorite' here." My eyes widened, my thoughts crashing to a halt as I felt the ground tremble underneath me. Shigaraki's voice alerted me to the problem, but nothing could truly prepare me for looking up from where I sat. I swallowed hard as a shadow overtook me, turning my head around slowly.
He was massive and repulsive, the stench emitting from his form enough to cause me to gag. He looked fit to snap mountains in half with a mere touch, his hands slowly hovering over me. His eyes remained unblinking, and his weird beak-like mouth consistently open and drooling slightly. Noumu was a monster, and I was caught underneath.
"The reason you jumped into open battle like this…was it to give your students some peace of mind? It won't matter…if they're dead." Shigaraki let out an eerie laugh, his gaze locking on to the hulking creature. Noumu remained still for a moment, and I took the opportunity to try and crawl away. In an instant, I felt Noumu's large hand crush my leg underneath his foot and I bit back a scream.
It hurt. It hurt so bad, and it was horrifying to hear the snapping underneath his foot. My eyes widened, and I covered my mouth, turning my head around slowly. Noumu's mouth opened and he let out some odd animalistic screech, keeping his foot firmly in place. I couldn't just sit here and let this happen. Fire flared to life, shooting down my lower body and climbing on to his arm. He didn't so much as flinch, and I knew right then and there I was way out of my zone.
I had thought that maybe, just maybe, I could be like Endeavor when he fought off several Noumu's at one point. I had his fire and blood, so it should have been possible. It was stupid of me to think I had a chance so early in my training, and I felt my blood run cold when my arm was suddenly crushed in his grip as well. I flinched and thrashed about, trying to free myself. There was a moment of relief when my leg was released, though the fear crept right back when I was suddenly hoisted in the air.
I could hear Snipe's shots ricocheting off Noumu's body, landing on the ground uselessly as the monster paid them no heed. I was even aware of Aizawa's cloth lashing out, spinning around and trying to yank Noumu's arms downwards to free me. They didn't even budge. Present Mic blasted at the creature as well, but all it did was almost make my ears almost bleed from the volume.
Noumu tilted his head slightly, as if listening to someone before his free arm suddenly moved. I was dimly aware of yet another snapping noise as his fist buried itself in my stomach, and suddenly I was flying. He had let go of me for some reason, so instead of being smashed to bits, I flew across the field rapidly. I saw stars, my head spinning from the intense pain of taking an All Might worthy punch to the gut.
"Homura-chan!" Izuku's voice suddenly broke through the buzzing in my head, and I felt Tsuyu's tongue suddenly snake itself around me waist. I hadn't been aware we were so close to the water, but I only felt relief as she yanked on my limp body. My body's course was forcibly adjusted, and instead of slamming in to the hard concrete, I was deposited in the water with a loud splash. I sunk for a few seconds before I was hoisted up by someone, leaning against them for support.
"Holy shit, Homura-chan! What is that?!" Izuku squawked while Tsuyu supported me with her arms, my eyes unfocused as I tried to stay awake. I didn't want to miss anything that happened, hoping that somehow everybody else would make it through unharmed. Fire was effectively useless now that I was soaked, so I was permanently sidelined. Of course, that was if you forgot about the insane hit I just took.
"Dunno…how…am I not…dead?" I eventually mumbled, slowly stringing my words together. I didn't look at the two of them bobbing in the water, and I was only vaguely aware of Mineta's frozen form next to me. I was focused on the fight in front of us, the hulking monstrosity slowly turning its attention of Aizawa.
"I think…Sensei erased his quirk. But he's still so strong…is he even human?" Izuku gaped, his eyes locked on Noumu's back. The creature let out another screech before it lunged at Aizawa, who quickly jumped back to avoid being grabbed. Apparently, my encounter with the creature had given him enough warning to know better than charging him directly. The other smaller villains seemed to have scattered at this point, apparently afraid of the creature let loose in the midst. Present Mic took the opportunity to join the fray, blasting away the remaining lackeys while he made his way to support Aizawa. It was better than Aizawa being alone, but this was still not a good situation.
The way those two fought was honestly incredible. When I had stood with Aizawa, it was awkward, and I didn't know how to avoid getting in his way. Present Mic clearly had fought with Aizawa plenty of times. He ducked around the threads of cloth whizzing through the air, screaming during the intervals where Aizawa had left him an opening. Noumu was shifted slightly from each one of Present Mic's shouts, but it was still clear they were outmatched. Aizawa seemed to notice this two, and eventually he was yanking Present Mic out of the way before the creature got too close.
"No…no he's not…that's insane. I…" I started coughing, and I was once again made aware of the fact that I had just taken a hit meant for All Might. If Aizawa hadn't erased his strength at that moment, I would have been killed right then and there. I could feel myself growing heavier, and I knew it was becoming harder to support me like this. I couldn't really move on my own, but I could nod towards the edge.
"You…you need to leave…me…there! If he…turns on you…you can't hold on to me…" I eventually wheezed out, and it was surprisingly Mineta who answered.
"Are you insane?! All of this is crazy…we're going to die!" he squeaked, throwing himself suddenly at Tsuyu. She tensed up as soon as his hands got a little too close, and suddenly he was struggling to stay afloat. I snorted and then winced, swallowing hard.
"Do it…put me there…I'll be fine…" I repeated insistently, Tsuyu and Izuku exchanging looks. Tsuyu eventually nodded, carefully hoisting me over the edge. Moving at all hurt, and I moved the arm that wasn't snapped like a twig to cover my mouth. They didn't need to be distracted by me right now. If anything, I'd just be insanely tired after a visit with Recovery Girl. Hopefully, there wouldn't be any permanent damage.
Out of the corner of my eye, as I laid there fighting to stay awake, I caught sight of Kurogiri's mist slowly forming behind Shigaraki. The duo exchanged words I couldn't focus on enough to hear, but Shigaraki looked pissed. If I could guess, it was likely Iida had made his escape. As long as All Might was on his way, we would be safe.
I watched as he suddenly whipped around, reaching for Tsuyu quickly. His hand snagged her face, and everything seemed to freeze for a second. Izuku was shouting something, pulling back his fist as he took aim at Shigaraki. Present Mic and Aizawa both tried to get around Noumu, jumping to the side to avoid the creature's sudden lunge for them. At the very edge of my range, I suddenly felt a cool breeze, slowly dilating up in to a frantic storm. I couldn't do it anymore. I tried to stay away, but there was only so much I could handle. I closed my eyes and drifted off, the ground shaking beneath me.
Shoto had wanted to freeze everything on sight, but he couldn't do that. He had arrived just in time to see Homura fly across the field, and he would be forever grateful to Tsuyu for catching her. Who knows what he would have done if she hit the hard ground. His Ice had lashed out almost right away, but years of training let him keep his cool for the time being. He couldn't risk freezing everybody around him due to a slip in composure. Instead, Katsuki and Kirishima made up for his quiet.
"H-holy shit, what the fuck?! Did he just…kill her?!" Kirishima breathed, his eyes narrowing to slits and his body hardening in response. He was furious, and it was unusual for such a happy-go-lucky guy. Katsuki's eyes were wide with shock, and Shoto couldn't tell what he was thinking. The two both trembled a bit as they looked at the monstrosity that might have just killed their classmate, and suddenly they were running. Shoto found himself following before he could even consider it.
"No, couldn't have. There's no fucking way that bitch died from that. She definitely broke something though." Katsuki narrowed his eyes, shooting forward in bursts with his quirk. Shoto could only hope in Katsuki's bizarre display of faith.
They only hesitated slightly when the entrance to the facility suddenly exploded, All Might's massive form suddenly dashing across the clearing. He wasted no time in clearing out the stragglers, passing by both Thirteen and Cementoss as they pulled the remaining students out of his way. Shoto and the others only pushed themselves harder, crossing the gap quickly as they approached the impending fight.
"It's all right now…for I am here!" His very presence was uplifting, and though Shoto was plagued by thoughts of his sister's broken form, he found his adrenaline propelling his body forward in a mad rush. Kirishima let out a series of whoops and Katsuki even grinned, their eyes lit with the fire of hope.
On the other side of the field, All Might quickly scooped up Izuku and the others, being sure to carry Homura carefully. She was out cold, but she was still breathing and for that All Might was grateful. He didn't know how he would feel if one of his own students was killed due to his own carelessness. It would haunt him forever, alongside other scars. The large hero carefully deposited her in Izuku's arms before glancing back at the small huddle of villains.
"Head towards the entrance you three! I have to leave Homura-san with you! She's unconscious!" he urged them, the trio staring at him with wide eyes. Tsyuy adjusted to the sudden movement easily, but Mineta stood there in a daze for a few seconds.
"So fast…" Mineta breathed, dazed by the sudden relocation. Izuku watched All Might with wonder, carefully lifting Homura on to his back. She was small and light, and he was able to carry her by himself. Mineta fidgeted behind them as they began to walk towards the entrance, loking back at the impending fight every few seconds.
"Mineta, if you keep looking back you'll make yourself even more nervous." Tsuyu hung back a bit behind Izuku, prodding at the smaller kid's head to get his attention. He flinched and looked back at her, eyes wide and fearful.
With Aizawa, Present Mic, and All Might the fight was extremely close. Aizawa kept the other two at bay for the most part, erasing their quirks whenever they tried to intervene in the battle between Noumu and All Might. Present Mic attacked Kurogiri and Shigaraki head on, forcing them to retreat as he blasted soundwaves at them. Shigaraki would make a few attempts grabs at Present Mic, portals appearing around as Kurogiri aided. It was an odd fight, since one or the other's quirk would suddenly stop working at random intervals. Aizawa was good, but he couldn't keep them both quirkless forever.
"Do you think he can beat them? When Midoriya-kun punched him…nothing happened! You saw how powerful his punches are! That's insane!" he babbled. All Might was engaged in combat with Noumu on his own, since Snipe's shots did nothing to even distract the creature. He punched the creature with as much force as he could muster, only for everything to be absorbed through Noumu's quirk. The creature in question remained oblivious to the hero's attempts at damaging him, charging at him relentlessly. Aizawa seemed torn between both fights, unable to erase Noumu's quirk and keep the other two at bay at the same time. One wrong move, and someone might die.
Izuku suddenly came to a halt in front of them. He glanced back before suddenly adjusting Homura on his back, gesturing for Tsuyu to take her. Tsuyu tilted her head but obliged, making sure to not rattle Homura too much.
"Take her off my shoulders! I have to help them!" Izuku clenched his fists and suddenly took off in a run, dashing towards the scene unfolding before them. Mineta called out to him, but he ignored the smaller boy. He couldn't let All Might die like this. He needed him. He needed him to teach. The world needed him.
Kurogiri had slipped through the cracks, opening a portal in between Noumu and All Might. Aizawa cursed, his eyes focused on Shigaraki when he managed to get a hand on Present Mic. All Might swore under his breath, having thrown Noumu behind him in a backdrop slam. The creature's body sunk through the portal, his head appearing right behind All Might. He wrapped his arms around the hero and crushed them in, putting increasing pressure on his body over time.
"All Might!" Izuku screamed, pulling back his arm to punch forward at Kurogiri when an explosion rattled the ground. He blinked in astonishment as Kurogiri was suddenly slammed to the ground with impressive force, and not by him.
"Outta the fucking way!" Katsuki smirked, his fist slamming in to Kurogiri's real body as he blasted forward. The villain grunted, his body falling back as Katsuki pinned him underneath. He held the man down with his hand, sparks flying out for emphasis. "No funny business out of you, you shadow-ass mobling!" he sneered.
Behind him Kirishima ran up with Shoto in tow, the duo breathing heavily form the exertion. Shoto wasted no time, slamming his foot on the ground. Ice traveled down his arm and shot across the field, encasing Noumu in a layer of ice. Kirishima ran forward in front of them both, his body hardening and daring anybody to try and threaten them.
"The symbol of peace won't go down as easy as you clowns!" Shoto announced, his eyes cold. Homura was out of danger, which was good, but that didn't make their situation any less dire. If All Might was having trouble, then they were way in over their heads. That didn't mean they could just stop fighting though.
"...Noumu…take care of that explosion boy. We have to leave…" Shiragaki knew then the game was over. There were too many of them, and even with Noumu they wouldn't be able to fight this. He had been forced to let go of Present Mic the moment Aizawa threw himself at him, and was farther from the battle than he would have liked. They were cornered, and he knew it.
"The second you so much as twitch, I'll load you with a nice little explosion. Right here, right now!" Katsuki hissed down at the villain, his palms popping for even more emphasis. Kirishima snorted.
"That's not a very heroic line dude…" They got a little too comfortable. Shoto had even relaxed just a bit, standing up from the crouch he had been in when there was a loud cracking sound. Noumu, who had been frozen, snapped half of his body off when he suddenly stood up.
"How is he moving…?! Didn't half of his body just snap away…?!" Izuku stared in horror, taking a step back. All Might frowned, holding his hand out in front of the students.
"Stand back, all of you!" All Might shouted, and suddenly Aizawa was behind everybody, his cloth snapping out and yanking everybody back one at a time. Shoto didn't fight the cloth that suddenly snapped around his waste and pulled him back, but it startled him. Katsuki howled in rage when he was also forcibly evacuated from the area, seconds before Noumu suddenly sent a blast in that direction. Kurogiri took this time to warp away, appearing besides Shigaraki.
"Shigaraki-san, we should leave. We are outmatched!" Kurogiri muttered, Shigaraki twitching in response. He was right, they had no possible way of beating this. Pro heroes stood in between them and their goal, along with these talented kids that thwarted their plans at every turn. Those damned kids…!
"…it's our game over screen…we can't kill All Might…but we can kill someone…Black mist-!" Shigarki suddenly laughed, and Kurogiri sighed. A portal slowly appeared underneath Noumu, the creature suddenly falling through before anybody could do anything. "…Noumu, finish the job…! It's a game over…but we can get a consolation prize…!"
Shots rang out through the building as Sniper caught wind of the plan, jumping over his cover and running forward. His bullets continued to bounce off the emerging Noumu uselessly as the creature appeared before Tsuyu, Mineta, and Homura. Mineta immediately started tearing up, and Tsuyu shot out her tongue to try to pull them away from the danger. Shoto ran forward slowly until his arm was suddenly yanked, and he found himself being blasted forward by Katsuki.
"Well, you fucker? Don't be a little bitch and stand there!" he snarled, his palm outstretched behind him as he suddenly shot them forward. Shoto immediately got the picture, ice covering the floor beneath them and they both skated across the ground at high speeds.
"Well?! Don't make me ask twice you moron!" Katsuki snarled, and Shoto assumed he meant using his ice. He brought up a wall that tore across the ground towards the trio, hoping it would reach them in time. Katsuki scowled, grabbing Shoto's hand roughly. "No, you fucking shit-for-brains, use your fire. I know you can fucking use it. USE IT!"
Shoto reacted instinctively at this point, reaching for the fire and tugging hard. The hand Katsuki gripped in his suddenly burst in to flames, and Katsuki smirked. He poured his explosion in to it, and suddenly a blast shot out from the two of them and coated the Noumu. Shoto swore at the backlash as they were both flung backwards, Katsuki only howling triumphantly at their success. Well, assumed success anyways.
"No fucking way…" Katsuki stared in shock once the two of them hit the ground roughly, watching as the creature barely flinched. It had stopped for a second, only to move forward for the trio once more. That was when a streak blurred over them, All Might pulling back his arm and slamming it in to the Noumu. He didn't just punch the creature. He channeled his power in to his fist, completely overwhelming and nullifying every regeneration quirk the creature had. Everybody stared in shock as smoke began to obscure the area, and even Sniper was forced to stop firing once he couldn't see anymore.
"…Shigaraki…!" Kurogiri's mist suddenly expanding, and any other portals he had in the area suddenly dissipated. Just as All Might went for the final blow. Noumu suddenly fell through a portal that appeared beneath him, slamming shut just as fast as it opened.
"For the time being we failed…but we'll get you next time, symbol of peace All Might!" Shigaraki's threat reverberated through everyone present, and for a moment everything seemed to stop.
"Tch, we would have killed it if it was her fire." Katsuki scowled, clearly annoyed as he got to his feet. Mineta had at some point fallen to the ground, hyperventilating while All Might stood in front of them. Tsuyu brought he tongue back carefully, looking a bit shocked but okay for the most part. Homura still hung there, dead to the world.
"Are you guys okay?!" Kirishima called out, sprinting across the field towards the group. All Might seemed to twitch, and for some reason dust seemed to kick up in the air again. Shoto blinked, and before anybody could do anything, large cement walls suddenly surrounded the hero.
"Leave the injured to the care of your Senseis. We would prefer everybody make their way towards the entrance. " Cementoss walked down the stairs after confirming everybody was safe, his wall blocking Kirishima and the rest. Tsuyu backed up from the sudden wall in front of her, holding on to Homura tightly. Mineta had apparently tried to latch on to Tsuyu at some point, her foot firmly in his face while he laid on the ground.
"Where should we go Sensei?" She tilted her head, waiting for instruction. She eventually released Mineta, who sobbed quietly as he got to his feet. Cementoss looked over the ragtag group, his eyes lingering on Homura the longest.
"Take her to the entrance. Make sure to be careful, we don't know how serious her injuries are yet. Wait there while we gather the rest." Tsuyu nodded in response to Cementoss, carefully adjusting her hold on Homura before scaling the stairs. Mineta trailed behind, still a little distraught.
"If you're not injured, head to the entrance. As for the rest of us…" Aizawa's eyes darted to the other sensei's who had only just arrived, closing his eyes. "There are more villains in the rest of the zones. We still have a few students to rescue."
"I'll take care of the villains if ya'll go round up tha students." Snipe reloaded his gun, firing off a few shots for emphasis. The bullets flew through the air, controlled by Snipe's homing quirk before hitting multiple targets throughout the U.S.J. "Seems there's still a good handful of 'em"
"Shouldn't be a problem now. We've got this handled, yeeeah!" Present Mic whooped, throwing his arms up in the air before turning his attention towards Kirishima. "Which zones did you come from listeners?"
Kirishima blinked, then rubbed his head. "Uum, well Bakugou-kun and I came from the ruins zone. And I guess Todoroki-kun would have come from the Landslide zone? I think it was just us, unless Hagakure-chan…" he trailed off, suddenly looking concerned. Shoto closed his eyes, sighing quietly.
"No, she was with me. I believe she climbed out, but I don't know where she went." Present Mic nodded enthusiastically before gesturing for the other teachers. Soon, everybody was bustling about as they did sweeps over the zones to locate everyone. Shoto nearly forgot about the incident in the Landslide zone, suddenly turning towards Aizawa when he remembered.
"Sensei, I froze a few of them in the Landslide zone. I couldn't break them free without hurting them unnecessarily. They need help as soon as possible!" Shoto frowned a bit, hoping he wasn't too late. He didn't want or mean to kill them. Aizawa glanced at him before looking over at the Landslide zone.
"We'll handle it. Head to the entrance. We need to check everybody once we've rounded all of you up." He instructed and Shoto nodded, heading up the stairs quietly. He let go of Fire as soon as possible, letting it slide back to Homura without a word. At the thought of her, he nearly tripped on the stairs. He held on to the bar carefully, ignoring the confused looks given to him as he reached the top.
Homura was currently lying on the ground for the time being, Ashido fussing quietly over her unconscious form. He hadn't gotten a look at her earlier considering the situation, but now that he did, he felt sick. One of her arms and leg looked as though they had been crushed, malformed and bruised. As far as he was concerned, the real problem had been where she had taken a direct hit to the stomach. Her breathing was shallow, and it was clear she was struggling, and yet somehow, she was holding on.
Her costume itself was destroyed, the metal piece on her back in shambles. Metal bits seemed to fall off every time she was moved, though of course that was the last thing anybody wanted to do right now. Her goggles had apparently snapped off at some point, Tsuyu holding them carefully in her hands. The real problem though was that she was completely soaked, and if she continued to lie out there like that she would have more problems than just wounds.
"Hey, do I need to make something for her? She must be freezing!" he glanced back at Yaoyorozu, accompanied by Jiro and a dazed Kaminari. He was muttering incoherently, though the thumbs up he was repeatedly given assured everyone that he was okay. They walked up the stairs carefully, Kaminari supposed by Jiro while Yaoyorozu rushed forward. Blood King flanked them from behind, a little hesitant to pass them just in case Kaminari suddenly fell backwards. Jiro managed to help him all the way up, however, and only giggled slightly as she guided him towards the group.
"Is she okay? What happened?" Jiro managed to sober down pretty quickly, looking grim. Shoto considered his answer.
"She was injured by a villain. She could use a blanket. She fell in to the water." Yaoyorozu nodded at the subtle request, taking a deep breath and thinking. After a few minutes, she managed to pull a small blanket from her arm.
"It's not anything fancy, but it should help." She assured Shoto as she draped it over Homura, making sure to not aggravate any of her wounds. The girl made no movements, only twitching just a bit. She seemed stable, thankfully.
"Thank you." Shoto mumbled after a few moments, and Yaoyorozu smiled slightly before backing up. She turned her attention on the others, hoping nobody else had gotten injured. Shoto knelt after a moment, ignoring the others for the time being. He just watched over his sister's form, frowning. That was when he heard the whispers.
"—frozen solid. Couldn't get them out easily–"
"Some of them tried to free themselves. Doesn't look pretty."
"—might die—"
He didn't react outwardly, but on the inside, it hurt. Shoto had wanted to subdue them, not hurt them. He had wanted to stop those villains from doing anything cruel, but instead he had done something cruel. If Homura had been teleported with them, she would have been able to free them. She could have saved them. He couldn't.
He glanced down at his sister, acknowledging her strength. She was strong and kind and did whatever she could to help. She had nearly died herself fighting off the villains, and he had just likely killed, if not crippled, at least a dozen of them. The realization hurt. It burned. It angered. She was walking forward, becoming a true hero and leaving him behind. She was doing just like she said she would.
The sight of her back… it only made him feel despair.
To say I was exhausted…was a major understatement. Waking up days after passing out was incredibly disorientating, especially when Recovery Girl's quirk was involved. It hadn't been easy either – it was a struggle to stay awake once I opened my eyes. A quick check confirmed I had all my limbs, though I felt incredibly stiff and weak. When I tried to sit up from the bed I was lying in, I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. I grunted, bit my lip, and carefully adjusted myself until I was sitting up. I needed to figure out where I was. I needed to know everybody was okay.
"Ah, Todoroki-chan you're awake!" I blinked, startled by the nurse who suddenly entered the room. She had a cute black bob cut with bright blue eyes, though my attention was more focused on the floating clipboard that hovered behind her. She giggled, clearly having gone through this before.
"Oh, don't worry about that. It's just my quirk. I can float things if they're light enough. Now that you're awake, I'll send word to Yuuei. Recovery Girl-san should arrive later today for another treatment!" she hummed, and I could only stare blankly. Another treatment? That was a little bit concerning, and apparently, I showed it on my face.
"You've been out for two days since Recovery Girl-san has been working on you. It took a lot of energy out of you, so we've had you here for the time being. I think you should be cleared to return home today, if not, tomorrow!" I only nodded quietly, mind buzzing as she rattled off a few more medical things before leaving the room. Two days, huh? It was crazy to think I'd been out of it for that long, but I guess I should have expected it with what I went through. I let my hand slide over my stomach, wincing at the pain. Recovery Girl was apparently due for another visit, but I had a feeling this wasn't something that could be fixed that easily.
I let out a sigh, wincing just a bit before glancing over at the table next to the bed. If Yuuei was open now, everybody would have just ended lunch. I didn't have to wonder if they thought about me at all, considering the small pile of gifts and cards next to the clock. I would have to read them later, since I didn't feel like leaning for them now.
The next few hours I spent there were insanely boring. Occasionally the nurse would pop in for a chat, and eventually I turned on the news to see what was happening, but for the most part I just laid there quietly. When Recovery Girl showed up, she was not alone.
"Homura-chan, we were so worried! I'm glad you're okay!" Izuku stood on the other side of the bed, and we both politely ignored how ironic it was that I was the one here this time. It was likely a joke with bad timing and poor taste. Uraraka, Ashido, Iida, and Kirishima also crowded the room, though they kept back to give Recovery Girl space. I was a little disappointed to see Shoto hadn't shown up, but I tried to ignore that for now.
"Thanks, honestly. Was anybody else hurt? The news channel was kind of vague…" I mumbled, holding out my hand for Recovery Girl as she gave it a quick peck. I felt a little more tired than I'd be comfortable with, but the consistent pain in my stomach had subsided.
"Surprisingly, you were the only one hurt really bad. A few scrapes and bruises, but everybody else made it out fine. Even this troublemaker!" Recovery Girl jabbed a finger at Izuku, who smiled sheepishly. She then frowned, turning her attention back to me. "You're going to have to avoid taking hits like this again though. Not all of this healing was because of my quirk." I cocked an eyebrow at that.
"It wasn't…? What did they have to fix that you couldn't?" I tilted my head, hoping it wasn't too bad. If I remembered correctly, Izuku would eventually damage his arms to the point where they were practically unusable. It ended up with him taking on an even better style, but it was still a problem.
"I speed up the body's recovery rate, but it doesn't always recover right. They had to reposition a few of your bones to make sure they healed correctly when I applied my quirk. This of course takes time. I would expect your left leg and right arm to be considerably weaker from now on. Not that I suggest you do anything strenuous." She rattled off, and I nodded numbly.
"What about the sports festival? Will I be healed up for that?" Izuku grimaced at the question.
"Do you really think that's wise, Homura-chan? If you can't do your best out there and you get hurt worse, you could end your career before it even begins!" Iida lectured me lightly, and I couldn't help but snort. Seconds later, Recovery Girl lightly smacked me with her hand.
"What you need to worry about is recovery girl. I'll check up on you in a week to see if you're fit, but I don't want you doing anything strenuous for this whole week. The hospital already has a recovery plan for you set out, so if you really want to participate, then I expect you to be a good patient." She reprimanded lightly before hopping off the stool, apparently finished. "You should be okay to be released to your family tonight, but they might hold you for another day. Don't do any more stupid things!" She huffed, a little harsh but I could tell she worried. I simply gave her a smile, and she rolled her eyes.
"Recovery Girl-sensei is pretty terrifying. Definitely the manliest woman I've ever met. In a respectable way of course." Kirishima hastily added, saving himself from any possible harm. Ashido and Uraraka only giggled though, and I didn't have the strength to smack him upside the head.
"At least she healed Homura-chan. I think if I got injured again, she'd do worse than smack me." Izuku joked, and everybody laughed at that.
"So, nobody got hurt? Not even any of our Senseis?" I probed for information, and was rewarded spectacularly.
"No, everybody left with only minor injures! Our Sensei's performances were as expected, and everybody left without harm. Except you, but from what we were told, you did amazing work!" I furrowed my brow in confusion.
"Uum, I'm pretty sure all I did was get in Aizawa-sensei's way. He couldn't use his quirk as efficiently with me there. I think all I did was cause extra chaos." I muttered, and Ashido sighed loudly. She suddenly hopped up carefully on to the bed, leaning back over my legs. I quirked an eyebrow at her.
"Hey, don't give me that look I've been suffering in class all day! But yeah, Homura-chan, you did amazing! I saw you take out some villains! It was awesome! You're amazing!" I flushed at that, ducking my head. Uraraka giggled, patting it lightly.
"Yeah, you were really cool. I'm glad you're on our side. Hopefully we don't have to do that again." She added, frowning slightly at the thought.
"It was kinda cool though. You should have seen Bakugou-kun man! He was a beast! We destroyed all of those guys in the ruins zone!" Kirishima grinned, flexing his muscles a bit as he preened. "Actually, that list bit he did with Shoto was amazing too!"
"Huh? What'd he do?" I frowned, and everybody seemed to remember I wasn't conscious at that point. It was a little awkward at first, but Kirishima pushed through it.
"He took Todoroki-kun's hand and I guess they combined quirks? Made a HUGE explosion. It was incredible!" Kirishima spread his arms out for emphasis, and Uraraka snorted.
"Wait, did they kill that monster? For real?" If they did, well, that was pretty damn amazing. I couldn't even do a dent to it, but I guess it was to be expected from Shoto. It was surprising that he used our Fire at all, but I could guess Katsuki probably made a huge deal about it.
"Ah, well not exactly! But they stopped him long enough for All Might-sensei to hold him off!" That was strange. They way Kirishima answered implied that they had only held Noumu off instead of capturing him like last time. It was a little worrying, and I had to wonder how much had really changed while I had been out.
"They didn't capture that monster? Did they get away?" I must have sounded a little panicked because everybody exchanging worrying looks at my insistence.
"Well, no they all got away. But they captured all those small-time thugs instead. You're not worried about that thing coming back for you, are you?" Izuku tilted his head slightly, and I sighed. That wasn't the problem. Contrary to popular belief, I did not get traumatized every time I got my rear kicked by someone bigger than me. Maybe they were worried my trauma had triggered during the fight? It had been close…but adrenaline had let me keep my wits about me.
"No, I trust in our Senseis. You just have to worry about someone like that running lose, you know? That guy was scary strong." I unconsciously put my hand to my stomach, and suddenly I had everybody's hand patting my head with various degrees of strength. It was weird, but silly, and I couldn't help but laugh.
"We got your back Homura-chan! Don't worry, we're all heroes, right? We have to stick together!" Uraraka cheered, and Iida did a weird arm gesture for emphasis. Eventually, we fell in to a comfortable conversation until they were all ushered out by a nurse. I ended up staying there for the night, keeping myself busy with the cards I finally rummaged through. Just about everybody had left a card with their signature, and for some bizarre reason, Katsuki had left a threat with a little more money. Shoto hadn't left anything, but I figured I would talk to him tomorrow.
The oddest card of them all was unsigned, but based on the handwriting, I could tell they were a female. Regardless, I got the oddest feeling from that card and I made sure to stand it up carefully among the others. Then, I fell asleep.
**Omake**
The years had been gentle to her, and she had managed a fragile sort of peace in her time in this room. There was no yelling or fighting, only the daily visits from the nurses and sometimes even her two eldest. Sora would bring sweets whenever he managed to visit, telling her about his misdeeds in school and occasional achievements. Kaito never brought anything, but he kept her up to date with everything that was happening. Most importantly, she was able to hear about her twins.
Shoto was a quiet boy, and she was relieved to know that he rebelled against Endeavor at every turn. If Endeavor looked left, Shoto would look right. He still followed his dream, but he kept her words in his mind and strived to achieve them without Endeavor's help. He tried to do the right thing, even when he had a hard time expressing himself. He didn't make friends easily, but he managed to get along with his classmates well enough. It was a little worrying that he rejected his own quirk so harshly, but from what she knew, Sora and Kaito were trying to counsel him.
Homura was a different issue. She was her daughter, and nothing would change, but sometimes the burn on her arm would tinge with regret. She could still see that angry ball of fire, defending her brother from harm. She had kept that fire with her as she had grown, and was turning in to a lovely girl. She was funny and kind, and though her relationship with Shoto was strained, she still tried to look out for him. Homura was still very much daddy's little girl, but she didn't let that stop her from doing what was right. She still hurt daily though, and like Shoto, was receiving counseling from the duo.
When she had heard about the U.S.J. incident, she was almost brought to tears. Her daughter was in the same hospital, though in a completely different ward. She was so close, but she couldn't see her. No, she didn't want to see Homura. She wanted to see Homura and Shoto.
"Please…can you…please give this to her…" she held out a small blue card to the nurse, her hands shaking a she did so. Endeavor would never allow her near Homura, especially if she was in a bad state. She couldn't blame him. She didn't know what Homura would do if she saw her mother who had hurt them so many years ago. She couldn't stop loving her twins though. She longed for the day that she could see them both.
"Ah, Todoroki-san, I don't know if I can…" the nurse hesitated under Setsuko's gaze, her eyes pleading silently. She gripped the card firmer, pushing it carefully in to the nurse's hands.
"Please…this is all I can do. I just need her to know…that I want her to be okay. I want them both to be okay." The nurse's resolve crumbled at that, and soon she was leaving with the card in hand. Setsuko could only close her eyes, smiling slightly before glancing out the window.
One day, she would see her twins. She would see Fuyumi, and the boys as well. She wanted to see them all together. They would be together again someday. She was certain.
A/N: That was the most action I've written in anything. I did my best so hopefully it came out alright. I don't think I'm amazing at fight scenes to be honest. I have the tendency to overdescribe by mistake. This was a favorite arc of mine to write personally, but now there really is a small break! You know what that means - small fillers! Can't say how long or how many chapters, but we won't be skipping right to the sports festival.
Anyways, I am sorry about the wait. We wanted this chapter to be perfect! Thank you guys for your reviews - always makes my day! Also thank you for favorites and alerts as well!
See you next time!