Chapter Seventeen: Hawks's No Good, Awful, Very Bad Day
Ennea was on patrol again, this time with Pink at the helm. Her joy at being able to have a body and use her Quirk again was strong enough that Hawks could almost forget her freedom left him trapped in what was essentially a void. He fervently clung to her emotions and thoughts to keep himself from panicking and let it infect him, forcing himself to relax as Ennea floated themself up the side of a building and landed at the top.
"See anything?" Pink asked giddily.
"Mugging. Third street over." White said instantly.
Ennea launched themself from the building and landed lightly between three muggers and their intended victim. One came at them with a knife but Ennea grabbed it, twisting their hand to make him release the weapon and kneeing him in the gut. A light toss sent him into his fellow criminals, bowling them all over. The would-be victim stammered a thanks and ran towards safer streets. Pink winced as Ennea tied the criminals up.
"I didn't mean to throw them that hard."
"We're all stronger than we think." Red noted.
"Then we shall have to adjust to this strength to make sure we do not cause any needless harm." Silver declared.
"Why are we so strong though?" Purple questioned as Ennea dumped the tied-up criminals in front of a police station. "Gold's Quirk doesn't give him super-strength—"
"I'm an idiot." Green breathed.
"Glad you finally realized it, nerd." Orange snorted.
"Haha." Green said sarcastically, but his voice trembled. "I think we might have One For All."
"And now you're stating the obvious." Orange sighed. "What a shame. You lost your last brain cells."
"No. I mean I think we might have the stockpiling and Quirk-enhancing aspects."
Ennea halted in place on edge of a rooftop. They flailed and nearly tipped over but kept their balance. Pink sat them down to prevent any incidents.
Explain? Hawks demanded.
"One For All gets stronger with each new user." Green explained. "And so it makes the Quirks within it stronger too."
"But we don't have One For All like that." Yellow objected. "All Might and mini-you do. There can only be one user at a time or the predecessor slowly loses the Quirk's power to give it to the successor."
"Except I'm the predecessor." Green stated. "And I'm in Hawks's head with the rest of you. Hawks who… might be the successor? Kind of?"
"Are you trying to say Hawks has One For All?" White demanded. "As in the transferable stockpiling Quirk One For All?"
"I… Maybe. There's only one way to find out." Hawks could feel Green's nervousness. "We need to test One For All."
Hawks shoved down a bundle of nerves. So you want me to give you, Lord Bone Breaker, control and see if my bones break?
"We have to try One For All eventually." Green said, frustration growing. "Maybe if we— I don't know— try to use feathers off your wings it won't be so—"
I still have bones in my wings, Lord Bone Breaker.
"Will you stop calling me that?"
Never, Lord Bone Breaker, Breaker of Bones. It is only right that I call you by your rightfully earned title.
Green sighed. "What if I try another, less bone-breaking Quirk?"
Hawks considered it. That may suffice, Lord Bone Breaker.
"Will you please—?"
No.
Green sighed but Hawks could tell he was being carefully scrutinized. "It's up to you, Gold."
Hawks got vague flickers of mangled limbs and gulped. No time like the present.
Pink stood back and Green took control. Hawks and the remaining voices dithered anxiously as they felt Green focus. They did not feel anything yet, but they all braced for pain.
None came.
Green frowned at Ennea's hands and flicked their fingers.
He did it again.
Then again.
"...Did anyone else expect this to be more dramatic?" Yellow mentioned.
"Yes." Green said shakily. "I don't have Black Whip. Hold on."
Whatever he tried to do, apparently it did not work because his next thought was of frustrated alarm.
"I only have One For All's strength, speed, and agility enhancements. The rest of the previous holders' Quirks seem to be gone. Black Whip, Float… They're not here. But it's like something else is missing… Like I can't access the full power?"
Hawks should probably be less relieved by that last bit of news. He did not want broken bones, thank you very much.
"Makes sense." Purple said slowly. "It's not like the vestiges are in here with us."
"Are we the vestiges now?" Yellow asked, voice low with horror.
Green's helplessness lashed at Hawks. "I… don't think so?"
A thought struck Hawks. Wait, if you had the vestiges of the previous One For All users, shouldn't All Might have—
"No." Green interrupted sharply. "There wasn't eno— ...No." He took a breath. "I guess I was wrong. Simple physical enhancements it is then."
Hawks did not press the issue. Green silently gave control back to Pink and Ennea continued their patrol. They all decided to not acknowledge Green's feelings of helpless unease.
XXXXXXX
It was Friday, and in the case of this particular Friday, moving day. Or 'moving evening' to be more specific since it was in the afternoon, early enough Hawks had returned home to clean up before heading to UA.
Eri should be on her way there now with Aizawa and an escort of Heroes. Hawks had intended to be part of that group, but he'd been sent a murder investigation from the Commission themselves yesterday. He couldn't exactly say 'Hey, I need to ditch this investigation for a few hours and leave early to guard a little girl with a special Quirk that would definitely interest you so please ignore that last part.', and he didn't want to. The less the Commission's attention was drawn to Eri, the better.
And so Hawks pulled another all-nighter and left as early as he dared on Friday. As he zoomed around the apartment and tried to calculate where the escort should be on its route by now, he quickly made himself another cup of coffee and chugged half of it, hoping the caffeine would pull him through.
"You've been drinking more coffee than usual." Green mentioned.
I'm tired and I need the energy. You know why.
Ennea had been out every night that week except last night, so yes, they certainly did. It sucked that most of his free time consisted of time he should be sleeping, but what else was he supposed to do? Suspiciously take a day off so Ennea could run around in the daytime? That would definitely end well.
"Still, relying on caffeine is not healthy." Silver scolded.
What else am I supposed to do?
Hawks got the impression of someone shrugging helplessly. He considered his nearly-empty mug and set it on the countertop. He moved a feather from his wings so it just barely touched the mug's handle.
Pink, may I?
"Go ahead."
Hawks felt Pink's presence strengthen and he closed his eyes, focusing on the feather. The slosh of shifting liquid alerted him and he opened them to see the mug floating serenely upward. Hawks took the feather away and it continued to levitate, though much more slowly. He brought the feather to his hand and broke it, used to the strange twinge the breakage brought. The cup clattered to the countertop and a bit of coffee sloshed out.
Cool.
"I can't believe we didn't figure this out sooner." Orange scoffed, disgusted with them all.
"In our defense, we kinda forgot to factor in the 'detached feathers don't return if damaged' aspect of Gold's Quirk." Green mentioned.
Hawks's cell phone rang. He saw Aizawa's number and was already heading towards the window as he answered. "Is something wrong?"
"No." Aizawa reassured him. "We'll be arriving at UA soon."
"How soon?"
"Ten minutes."
"I'm en route." Hawks said instantly. He dropped his mug in the sink and went out the window, taking to the air. He transferred the call to his headphones so he could hear. "Anything suspicious?"
"Nothing yet."
The limited information frustrated Hawks. His lips twisted into a frown. "I should be in the escort."
"You were busy with that murder case—"
"Not busy enough that I couldn't be there for Eri—" Hawks realized he had interrupted the other Pro Hero and winced. "Sorry for arguing, sir. You're right. I know my mission."
"Hm." Aizawa said, which Hawks knew was Aizawa-speak for 'I disagree but I don't think you'll understand why so I'm not going to argue with you'. He scowled at the sky, but the source of his ire could not see it. "So you are aware: When we arrive, a couple of students will be helping." Aizawa lowered his voice. "They will be around a lot and I'd like Eri to get used to them."
Red's panic nearly choked Hawks. He plummeted a few feet, caught himself, and cleared his throat.
"Okay. Thanks for the heads up." Red? You okay?
"I'm fine— Oh, why am I bothering to pretend? Pink..."
"She's afraid we'll see Jiro." Pink explained for her.
Ah.
"The school day will be over by the time we arrive. It's very unlikely she will be there." Yellow soothed Red. Just the smallest bit of grief clouded his presence, showing he too might be a bit off-kilter if they unexpectedly ran into their previously— er, future?— Nomu-turned friend. "And if we do see her, remember she's alive."
"That's true." Red murmured. "But I think I'm going to remain cut off for this one. I… I'm not ready."
"I'm going to hang back too." Yellow added abruptly.
Okay.
He felt them retreat, leaving him with six voices to converse with.
"Hawks, are you still there?"
Oh. Aizawa was still on the line. Oops.
"I'm here." Hawks said breezily. "Anything?"
"Noth—"
BOOM.
The sound of an explosion and screeching tires was all Hawks needed to hear. He shot through the sky, distorting the air behind him as he flew at breakneck speeds. He distantly felt Red and Yellow reemerge, drawn out by his and the others' combined sense of urgency.
They should have known Overhaul would try something. They should have known he would not remain silent forever. They should have known they should have known they should have KNOWN—
As the world faded into a blur and rushing air, Green's voice came clearly to Hawks as if they were his own thoughts.
"Overhaul overly relies on his Quirk, which allows him to disassemble and reassemble things with a touch of his bare hands. He's not that big of a hand to hand fighter— he actually freaks out when people touch him— but he can heal the damage he takes. Keep your distance."
"Or just beat the shit out of him." Orange snarled. "He's slower than us and can't take too many hits. Plus some of his underlings might take the blow if you try long distance fighting."
"You actually listened when I told you about him?" Green asked, surprise clear in his voice.
"Of course I did! I wanted to beat that bastard to paste if he came back for Eri."
Was he talking about this timeline or theirs? It didn't matter now. Overhaul had made his move, and Hawks arrived at the scene.
The car was a totaled wreck of crumpled metal. Two other cars smoked near them, one of them tipped onto it's side. Someone unidentifiable was nothing more than a splatter of blood and body parts on the road. Hawks knew it was not from the crash.
Eraserhead crouched behind the sideways car with Eri in his arms. Beside him was a white-cloaked Hero, Suneater, which meant Fatgum was likely nearby because Amajiki was still a student.
Hawks and the voices' attention snapped away from the ones seeking refuge, zeroing in on the brown-haired man standing carelessly in the center of the street as the few remaining civilians fled. Hawks absently hurried their escape with his feathers, but the action felt rather detached, as if he were on autopilot.
He only had attention on him.
Hawks did not need to see the plague mask he wore to recognize him on sight. He looked just like he had years ago during their fight when he was just a first-year student at UA.
Overhaul was speaking, he realized. He faced towards the car where Eri hid, unconcerned by the violence around him as the Expendables fought the other Heroes, including Fatgum. None of them seemed to notice Hawks had arrived. One advantage of people barely looking up, he supposed somewhere in the detached portion of his mind. Hawks should be more aware of what they were doing but he could not divert his attention from Overhaul.
"And now a Hero is dead because you did not come with me when I asked so nicely. Look at what you did, Eri—"
Hawks's sharp gaze snapped to Eri, and he saw her crying.
Shaking.
Afraid.
Worst of all, it was clear she was trying to get out of Aizawa's arms and go to Overhaul.
Hawks's mind went strangely quiet, like the calm before the storm.
Only Green's voice came to him, eerily serene. "Beat the shit out of him."
Hawks did not waste any more time. He just attacked.
Feathers slammed into Overhaul with extreme prejudice. One went straight into his eye and he shrieked in pain. Hawks watched Overhaul yank the feather out with a scream. Giving him no time to remove his gloves, Hawks smashed into Overhaul feet first. The yakuza's remaining eye dilated with pain but Hawks did not let up.
A fist broke Overhaul's nose in a spurt of blood. Hawks flitted back just long enough to be sure Overhaul's gloves were still on and shot in again, knee connecting with the yakuza's solar plexus.
Something moved in Hawks's stretched awareness and he grabbed Overhaul, yanking him in the way. The bullet struck the Shie Hassaikai leader instead and Chronostasis cried out in horror. A swarm of feathers— more like wasps than fluff— forced Overhaul's second in command away. Hawks must be hallucinating because he thought he saw glints of metal in the swarm.
It did not matter.
Only Overhaul did.
You're never taking her again.
Hawks's veins burst into flames, but he barely noticed. The heat started in his wings and tore through his body, but ť̸̥h̷͇̉e̸̘̔y̸̠̐ hardly felt the pain. For every one hit Overhaul attempted— and it looked like someone got hit by a bullet that temporarily erased their Quirk. How unfortunate.— Hawks got four successful strikes. He gave Overhaul no time to retaliate. Not a second.
Because Kai Chisaki and his men w̵̥͝o̶̹̓ù̴͍l̶͎̏d̸͉͘ ̸̢͂ņ̶͐ë̸͙́v̵̢͋e̴̛̻r̵̳͂ ̵̠͊t̷̖̚o̴͖̚ṵ̴̋c̸̞͛h̸̥͛ ̴̝̀t̵̫̐h̸̗́a̶̹̐t̸̯̓ ̴̫̽l̵̻̉ï̵͉t̸͔̕t̶͓͗l̶̗̈́e̴̢͐ ̵̧̊g̷̥͌í̶̬r̵̻̋ļ̶̍ ̴̲̀a̸̱͊g̸͍̈́a̴͔̎i̵̘͌n̷̛̩.̷̤̀
A golden filter slid over Hawks's vision and—
Crunch.
They broke one of Overhaul's arms. They should remove it completely but doing so would be unheroic and cutting or ripping an arm off was too close to torture for their liking. They knew what it was like from experience, and besides, they were a Hero. Heroes did not maim people and they were a Hero as they always dreamed.
But this bastard deserved it. He deserved it for hurting Eri. He hurt her. He tortured her. He killed her. He traumatized her so much she ran into their extra room at Aizawa's apartment after having nightmares and she could not even smile until—
They felt movement around their swarm of feathers and knocked out the Expendable behind them before he could even raise his katana. They felt more movement and realized Chronostasis was trying to attack them. The attack was so slow to them, they were almost tempted to watch its path, following it with gold-filmed vision. But they would not be distracted from their target.
A feather intercepted, slicing the arrow-like hair clean off as it knocked the plague mask off Chronostasis's face. If Chronostasis screamed in pain, they barely registered it. No one would be allowed to interfere. This was the monster that hurt Eri. This was the beast that tortured a little girl. He would not escape them. He would not hurt her again. Never again.
Pressure built in their wings and their hand raised as golden energy washed over their vision like a film of flickering lightning—
Their vision wavered, sliding like the world would not stay still. Like they were drunk. Fury ignited their veins and their feather struck the drinking man right in the temple. He fell from his perch on a building and into a crumpled heap on the ground.
They turned back and Overhaul was running. The monster glanced back and his eyes were wide with fear. He should have known better than to try to run from a bird of prey. Even with his speed hindered, they were incredibly fast. A feather struck Overhaul's head, and his body jolted once before he slumped.
"Chisaki!" Chronostasis screamed.
The horrified pain in his voice may have stirred something in them if they did not know he was worried for a monster. Overhaul did not rise, successfully knocked out via a brief electric pulse, and they looked at the remaining members of the Shie Hassaikai, considering their options.
Chronostasis looked back, and the color drained from his face. He took a step back, then two, then turned.
"Fall back!"
The remaining Expendables startled, but obeyed. A part of t̴̗̿h̴̰́e̷̳̚m̵̧̋ was surprised Overhaul's guards were fleeing. They thought the yakuza members were more loyal then that, but a part of them deduced they likely thought they would be able to rescue Overhaul at a later time.
They would not allow that to happen. To them, the Shie Hassaikai seemed to be running in slow motion. They watched each painfully slow pace and raised their hand as feathers flitted at their shoulders, aiming like spears—
The feathers froze in midair and fell to the ground. They felt a brief flash of confusion— what was Aizawa-sensei doing?— but it barely lasted a second. Their wings would not move and they could not fly so they ran after the yakuza like lions after terrified gazelles.
Something wrapped around their wrist and they almost ignited to burn it away before they realized they could not. Why was Aizawa-sensei stopping them? They turned to stare at him, not glaring, but questioning.
Aizawa's eyes glowed red and his hair floated, but they could see he was straining himself. "That's enough, Hawks. Any more and you might kill them."
A part of them were hurt by their beloved sensei's words. Did he not trust them? Why?
"Not kill." They said. "Not maim. Not even them."
Aizawa-sensei put a hand on their shoulder. "You need to calm down."
They did not understand. They were calm. They were in control. Why was he stopping them? The Shie Hassaikai were right there—
The other Shie Hassaikai were gone. They moved to pursue but Aizawa-sensei did not release them. They were not his students anymore. They could protect themselves. So why did he stop them?
"Must secure enemies." they hissed. "Won't let them hurt Eri again."
"I know." Aizawa-sensei said calmly. "You've done enough for today. You've captured their leader."
They looked and saw Overhaul, Rikiya Katsukame, Toya Setsuno, Yu Hojo, Soramitsu Tabe, and Deidoro Sakaki in cuffs, being hauled away. Chronostasis, Mimic, Kendo Rappa, Shin Nemoto, and Hekiji Tengai had escaped, but Eri's main abuser had been caught.
The golden tint faded.
Hawks stared at his shaking hands. His knees buckled and smacked into the pavement, sending jolts of pain up his thighs. Neither he nor the voices noticed as they sat in stunned silence.
"What was that?"
"That's what I would like to know." Eraserhead said neutrally.
Hawks slowly looked up at him, forcing himself to keep a blank expression. His worry for himself vanished and he looked around wildly for Eri. He spotted her in Suneater's arms and relaxed. Overhaul had not taken her. They were so glad—
They?
Hawks only had a second to realize the walls were gone.
Then white-hot pain lanced through his head, blinding him.
It was like the past months never happened. All he could do was drown in the well of emotions and thoughts and screams that might be his own but also weren't. There were a lot more voices screaming than usual, and he eventually realized he was not alone outside of his body either. He realized something was clasped around his wrists and terror nearly stopped his heart.
He'd been captured.
He'd been captured—
He—
"—He's having another seizure!"
"We're almost there. Tell Toshinori to—"
S̵̡̳̽̐c̵̭͊͐r̶̢͎̅ë̵̝́a̶̖͚̐m̵̜̀͛s̷̡̙̄ ̶̖͊͘p̷̟̍̕ȃ̴̺̳͘ǐ̴͈̞n̶͓̲̕ ̵̼̓ͅc̵̳̈́̾o̴̦͚͛u̵̹̿l̵̙̕d̴̮͈̊͐n̸̖͐̒'̷̰̋̉t̵͍̤̎ ̶̡̔s̶͚͎̓͆ê̶̡̏͜ė̴̺͝ ̸͎̖́͠c̶̼͓̉ọ̸̄u̴̫̓͝l̴̨̩͑d̴̨̲͂͝ṇ̵̳͆́'̷͓̫̽̊t̷͙͍̂ ̸̙̖͆͘b̴͔̒̏r̵̨̅ē̶̖a̴̡̫͆̆t̵͉͍̑h̵̛̘͋e̴̙̓͌ ̴͓̭̽c̶̜͆͘ò̵̮͑u̵̪͒ͅl̷̺̽͑d̸͇̝͠ň̷̫̤'̴͉̈́͊t̴̳̙̂ ̵̥̝̊̐f̶̢̜̑ė̸͚e̵̯͓̓ḽ̷͕͠ ̶̲̃h̴̖̠͂͠i̷̩̓s̸̱̊ ̷͋͜͝ḅ̴̞̕o̵̡̮͒d̴̪͋y̵̡̆—̶̨̮͂̒
In the blurs of rioting color, he thought he saw Aizawa-sensei's distorted face, surrounded by black mist. His eyes were gone. Bloody holes were all that remained.
They might have screamed. Then they— he. He he he he HE— he definitely screamed as fire caressed their cheek.
Aizawa-sensei's face blurred and his eyes were back, glowing red. No trickles of blood stained his cheeks. No black mist surrounded his face. His dark hair brushed Hawks's face, leaving fire where it touched.
"Hawks, can you hear me?" he said clearly. "We're getting you to help."
Hawks. He was Hawks. Aizawa was not his sensei. He—
Wait.
'Help'?
...Were they taking him to a hospital?
No. No. They could not be taken to the hospital. If they— If he was admitted, they— he. HE. He was him not them. If he was admitted, he would be forced to leave Eri's side. He couldn't let her die again. He struggled and tried to beat his wings to give himself some leverage but someone huge pinned him down. He might have tried to tell them that he needed to find Eri but he was not sure he spoke.
His head split apart and he inhaled, only to feel drowsy. He blinked, and realized his vision was not blurry, but misty. He felt so tired. He could not lift his arms anymore. There was mist around him. It must be sleeping gas.
That meant only one thing.
Midnight's Nomu was here.
No.
A gas mask. He had to… make a gas mask.
He could not lift his hands. They were too heavy.
His eyes were too heavy, too…
Hawks mercifully blacked out.
XXXXXXX
Aizawa strode across the staff room, opened the cabinet, took out two aspirin, and swallowed them dry.
That done, he dragged a hand down his face and walked right back out, not stopping to acknowledge Midnight as she called out to him. He had no time to linger. Not when Hawks could wake at any moment. So he headed back to Recovery Girl's office. Usually it was a place for banged up students. Now, it served as an impromptu hospital.
Or a prison.
Aizawa acknowledged that thought but did not linger on it. It would be illogical to before they learned the full situation. Hawks had done nothing wrong unless spontaneously showing abilities he never showed before had become a crime. Those like All Might may think him cruel for his thoughts but the fact was something wasn't right with the Winged Hero.
First of all, last Aizawa knew, Fierce Wings did not make him glow with golden light. Even when he activated Erasure, the glow in Hawks's eyes remained, covering his sclera, irises, and pupils in a layer of gold.
Second of all, the way Hawks took on the Shie Hassaikai was… troubling. Even in his report, Aizawa could only describe Hawks's actions as "forcefully efficient". Reports were not for speculation, so he left out his theory that Hawks had not been in control during that fight. And not in terms of power, for his every action had been steadily moderate, neither going too far or not far enough.
Even his breakage of Chisaki's arm had, from a point of view, been logical since Aizawa had seen what he'd done to one of Fatgum's sidekicks. He had not looked up their name yet, not ready to add another name to the list of people he'd failed. For now, he focused on the living.
Hawks actions had been efficient and controlled, yes, but at the same time there was something definitely wrong and almost feral about him during that fight, like he were a wild bird protecting its nest. Aizawa may be inclined to believe Hawks had some territorial instincts but truthfully his reaction screamed 'trauma' more than 'Quirk-related mental state'.
Theoretically, Hawks's Quirk could have awakened— or had been previously held back by some personal trauma— but surely he would have done that already? From what All Might had passed on to Aizawa and Nedzu from Tsukauchi— and Aizawa was not thinking about that now too along with everything else— the Commission would accept nothing less. So a new, unexplained aspect of Fierce Wings was possible, but unlikely.
Aizawa disliked the other options, to say the least.
Still, the benefit of the doubt was necessary to consider. Hawks looked as shocked as the witnesses. Not to mention he'd begun seizing. And possibly hallucinating if his horrified looks when he looked at Aizawa were any indication. Midnight had been forced to sedate him with her Quirk, which got her a literal smack on the wrist from an irate Recovery Girl.
Indeed, they took him to UA and Recovery Girl, the closest safe location and where the students were absent and All Might was if he was needed. Fatgum and his team lingered too, and while the logical part of Aizawa acknowledged that the BMI Hero may be a good counter to Hawks should he need to be restrained, he could not get the image of the young Hero's convulsing body out of his mind.
Aizawa's compassion stirred and he could already hear Present Mic teasing him about it. Eri was with him now, and had been a bit too agreeable when the man told her she could call him 'Uncle Mic'. She only needed to be told that Aizawa needed to help Hawks for her to run to a stranger's side and agree to stay with them. There would be a time to deal with that worrying habit, but now was not it.
Hawks was stable, but still unconscious. Recovery Girl had vetoed taking him to a hospital just yet for reasons she refused to share with Aizawa. He suspected it may be due to who else would find out Hawks was there if he was admitted. All tests for drugs and other poisons came up negative. Hawks had not been hit with Trigger or another Quirk-enhancer. As far as Recovery Girl and those tests could tell, there was no external factor responsible for his seizures. That was both a relief and the last thing a Aizawa wanted to hear.
He could only thank a higher power that no civilians or cameras had witnessed the incident. It would have been plastered on the internet within the hour if someone had. Apparently a bunch of technology had gone haywire right after Overhaul and his men attacked. Aizawa made a mental note to check to see if any of the yakuza had a technology-blocking Quirk.
Aizawa halted outside of Hawks's room where Snipe, Fatgum, and Suneater stood guard. The youngest of the three looked so far out of his depth Aizawa was genuinely worried he might have a breakdown. He felt a bit of sympathy for the kid. Amajiki was one of the Big Three and would graduate within a year, but he was still a student. Yet he had been thrown into something he never expected. Hell, he'd been thrown into something none of them had expected.
"Anything?" Aizawa asked.
"He's still unconscious." Snipe reported. "Hasn't even twitched."
Aizawa nodded in acknowledgment and went back into the room. Fatgum silently followed and closed the door behind them. They both sat in the available chairs and continued to wait. It was around one in the morning by now. Eri was hopefully asleep and in her bed.
She was supposed to be greeted by the faculty and a few students, all welcoming her to UA. She was supposed to be shown around by an enthusiastic Mic. She was supposed to be reassured by Hawks and tucked in by Aizawa, certain everything was okay and safe.
Instead Overhaul had attacked. Instead, Hawks had defeated him, but ended up convulsing on the ground. Instead, the students had been ordered to go home, no arguments, and rushed out before their team could arrive. Instead, Hawks was unconscious and Aizawa stood guard over him, ready to nullify a possibly-unstable Quirk.
Aizawa had been prepared for things to not go according to plan.
He just did not expect things to go so badly.
A tentative knock did not draw his attention away from Hawks, because he had to be ready.
Fatgum answered in his stead, and Midnight poked her head in.
"Mic texted me. Apparently Shoto's still awake. He's wondering if he can come back tomorrow. Well..." She looked at the clock. "Later this morning, I guess."
The headache Aizawa had was unaffected by the aspirin he'd taken. He resisted the desire to put a hand over his eyes, keeping his sights on Hawks's unmoving form. "Tell him it's uncertain but possible. Regardless, Eri would love to see him when she is able."
Midnight nodded slowly and glanced at Hawks. "Is Recovery Girl sure we shouldn't move him?"
"Yes." Aizawa said, tone clipped.
Her blue eyes narrowed slightly. "But we usually only keep staff and students here."
"Hawks was on a UA-sanctioned mission when he was… injured. He will remain here."
He could feel her gaze on him. "Does this have to do with the application?"
Aizawa forced himself not to glare at her because at least she showed some discretion. If she asked outright if this had to do with All Might's worrisome discovery about the Hero Public Safety Commission, he might think she was an impostor. Nemuri would never be so careless and mention it in front of an outsider.
"Perhaps." he said neutrally.
It was only because he was watching Hawks so closely that he saw his eyelids twitch. He stood up, hair floating, and Midnight instantly backed out of the room. Fatgum also stood, movements slow but deliberate, but Hawks did not snap awake and sit up.
Golden eyes fluttered open and remained fixed on the ceiling. Aizawa waited for them to travel around the room and see him and Fatgum but they did not move. He slowly realized his initial assumption was incorrect. Hawks was not focused on the ceiling. He likely did not see it at all. Just to be certain, Aizawa called his name.
"Hawks?"
No reaction.
"Hawks, can you hear me?"
Still no reaction.
Midnight came back with Recovery Girl a minute later. Toshinori Yagi hurried in right after her and Aizawa stifled an annoyed glower. Did All Might not know the definition of 'discreet'? Thankfully, Fatgum did not question why All Might's 'secretary' was at UA.
Recovery Girl asked Hawks a few questions and, upon receiving no answer, began to check his vitals. Aizawa watched the proceedings carefully, keeping his eyes peeled for any sign of a golden glow. None came, and Hawks remained as unresponsive as a doll as she checked him over. Finally she stepped back, lips pressed thin.
"Is he catatonic?" Aizawa asked, dreading the answer.
She eyed him neutrally. "From what Toshinori has said, Hawks may simply be— as he puts it— 'sunk into his head.'"
It was a non-answer if he ever heard one. "And how would you put it?" Aizawa asked the nurse in a level tone.
She jabbed him in the leg with her cane. "Nothing I'll share with you. You're not his family."
"He doesn't have a family." Toshinori said softly. "Except for young Miruko, of course."
Recovery Girl's thin eyebrows rose. "Please tell me you called her."
As they shuffled their feet and avoided her eyes, she smacked Toshinori in the shins.
"Call her, idiot!"
Toshinori stammered an apology and hurried out, yanking out his phone as he went. Hawks did not notice. He continued to stare at the ceiling, so still and vacant that if not for the beeping of the heart monitor and the movement of his chest, Aizawa may think he was dead. Recovery Girl continued to speak to him. She received no response, even when she touched his arm. Aizawa did not look away for a second.
A few minutes later, another tentative tap interrupted his vigil. Suneater leaned into the doorway, visibly unnerved.
"The Rabbit Hero, Miruko, is outside. She's threatening to kick the security doors down."
"Well, let her in." Recovery Girl snapped.
Suneater winced and hurried away.
The pounding of feet was the only warning they got before Miruko shoved the door open and rushed to the bed, dragging a poor Suneater with her. She caught sight of Hawks and released the intern.
In her hurry to reach Hawks's side, she nearly knocked the sturdy and immovable Fatgum into the wall. Or through the wall, considering he left a dent. In another setting, Aizawa might be impressed. She was certainly stronger than she looked, though that should be expected from the Number Five Hero.
Miruko sat on the bed next to Hawks and cupped his face with her hands.
"Hawks. Hey. Baby Bird, it's me." She forced a smile and brushed a lock of hair away from his face. "I'm here. You doing okay in there?"
Hawks did not respond. Miruko's ears drooped and her hands fell to her sides. Her shoulders shook and for a moment, Aizawa thought she might cry. Then she raised her head, revealing furious red eyes.
"What the hell happened?"
Aizawa knew what was going to happen, but gladly put himself forward as the target. "Our mission's details are classifi—"
"Ohoho, you do not want to pull that shit with me right now." Miruko breathed. "I know about 'Starling'. Hawks will fill me in on what happened anyway. Tell me what happened."
Aizawa did not respond. She was not his superior, and he had no reason to tell her the details. He and Miruko glowered at each other as they refused to back down, eyes burning red.
Fatgum put a hand on her arm, either to comfort or perhaps restrain her. "Hawks appeared to overload his Quirk. When he deactivated it, he began convulsing."
Miruko paled. "He hasn't been sleeping much lately. And I kept seeing him take aspirin. He said he had headaches. He's had them since he came back."
"Headaches or migraines?" Recovery Girl questioned.
"Probably migraines. He tends to downplay how much pain he's in. The fact that he told me he was in pain tells me it was excruciating."
Recovery Girl's elderly features seemed to age another hundred years in an instant. "He may need an MRI scan."
"Do you have the equipment here?" Miruko asked. "Hawks wouldn't want to be taken to the hospital like… this." She looked at him, then away, her hair falling into her face. "If the Commission sees him like this I don't know what they'll do to him."
And that was why the staff of UA was so hesitant to bring Hawks to a public hospital. Suspicious Quirk usage or not, Hawks had enough problems. He did not need the Commission to become involved. Which was why that little detail was supposed to remain between the UA faculty, Miruko, an Underground Hero All Might refused to name, and Tsukauchi.
Apparently Miruko did not care about being discreet. Still, Taishiro Toyomitsu was a trustworthy soul and an honest Hero. The chances of him secretly being on the Commission's payroll were slim to none.
Aizawa finally turned away from Hawks to lock eyes with the BMI Hero, gauging his reaction. "The Commission bought Hawks, groomed him to be a Hero, and keep him in their employ using… concerning methods. We have plans to remove him from the situation."
Fatgum's cold expression could turn the sun to ice. "I see. If you need any assistance, tell me."
Aizawa acknowledged that with a curt nod and turned back to Hawks. He was beginning to suspect his Quirk might not be needed, but it was better safe than sorry.
"I don't have all the equipment." Recovery Girl answered Miruko. "This office is not built for long-term patients."
"It's not meant for long-term patients with possible neurological disorders." went unsaid.
As she and Miruko began discussing the options, Toshinori stepped close to Aizawa and kept his voice low. "This is… unsettling." he admitted quietly. "I witnessed an episode like this but it was nowhere near as bad as this one."
"You did?" Miruko asked, audibly confused.
Toshinori froze, and Aizawa realized he had seen an episode as All Might. His coworker could truly be the Symbol of Stupidity at times.
"Oh, right." Miruko said before Toshinori could do more than hum nervously. "You were there at…" She glanced around and Aizawa realized she was looking for cameras. "…his friend's place before I arrived." She looked back at Hawks and her shoulders slumped. "How long will this last?"
"Could be minutes, hours, or days." Recovery Girl said bluntly but not unkindly. "We'll get a clearer picture once we have an MRI."
Miruko bit her lip.
"Don't give me that look, missy." Recovery Girl continued gruffly. "We're not going to throw him out on the street and expect you to care for him. He can stay here for now, until we know what can be done." She nodded at the other bed. "And that spot's open if you want some sleep."
Miruko stood, jostling the bed Hawks lay on, but he did not react. She bowed deeply. "Thank you."
Toshinori cleared his throat. "The UA staff is in the process of making accommodations for ou— themselves here. I'm sure Midnight has some pajamas you could borrow if you would rather not leave. Or we could send someone to pick up something of yours if you'd prefer that."
"I'll borrow them, thank you." Miruko said briefly. She paused and her eyes narrowed. "I still can't believe they called you before me."
The guilty look on Toshinori's face was so blatant Aizawa wondered how he had yet to be discovered. His lying skills were truly abysmal. "Er. Well, you see, All Might was—"
"'ll-Migh'."
Aizawa was not the only one who jumped. Hawks had moved at last. His head was turned towards Toshinori, eyes unblinking, though Aizawa occasionally saw a film flick over his glassy gaze. His lips moved, but other than a few, indecipherable mumbles, he said little, his mouth moving more than it made sounds.
"—lossssst 'er. 'ailed." Tears trickled from his dull eyes. "Fai'urrrrre 'ero. 'ailure. L'st 'em 'll. 'ost 'er. Sh's dead."
Aizawa understood that last one. Realization clicked and he moved into Hawks's line of sight. "Hawks, Eri isn't dead."
Hawks stared at him— No, that wasn't right.
He stared through Aizawa as if he were not there.
Then his eyes rolled back and he started seizing.
Toshinori froze, Miruko shouted, Suneater turned as white as his cloak, and Aizawa's Quirk activated.
Recovery Girl snapped an order and everyone except Aizawa and the nurse found themselves herded outside by Fatgum. Aizawa saw Miruko claw at his arm as she was lifted by the larger Hero but he did not let go even as the door swung shut behind them.
Only Aizawa and Recovery Girl remained in the room as Hawks went through another seizure and fell unconscious once more without a flicker of golden light to be seen. As he watched UA's nurse professionally check Hawks's vitals and ensure he was not choking on vomit, Aizawa almost envied her calm. He could feel his veneer of composure cracking with every beep of the heart monitor.
None of this was supposed to happen.
None of it.
Yet here they were.
Only one thing was for certain.
They could not let the Commission— or anyone— know what had happened today.
XXXXXXX
Even as he lay bound in the back of a prison transport, Kai Chisaki was calm and composed, if slightly annoyed. The Heroes thought they had captured him, but the Shie Hassakai was still free. The diseased Heroes were no closer to finding the yakuza's base than they were before, and Overhaul was confident it would remain that way.
He knew this arrangement was temporary. Chronostasis had done the wise thing and preserved their remaining resources by retreating. His friend would no doubt stage a rescue along with the remaining Precepts. All Overhaul had to do was wait. Once he was free, he would continue as he had. He had no doubt that he would have retrieved Eri if not for that… thing.
Quirks were a plague, and that Hero— Hawks— was the most infected one he had ever seen, to the point where the Quirk acted more like a parasite. Overhaul feared no Hero and never would— why fear something so disgusting?— but that thing was not a Hero, or even human. He would have to be careful to avoid it in the future. He knew it existed now, so the unforeseen circumstances that had resulted in his capture would be taken into account for next time… in that it would have to be distracted when the Shie Hassakai made another move.
The truck braked and Overhaul realized they had reached their destination. The two guards came into the back and rolled him out like luggage on a cart. Overhaul sneered at them from behind the muzzle-like gag over his mouth and imagined how satisfying it would be to kill them. They were inside some type of structure that resembled a multi-layer parking lot. It was certainly not what Overhaul expected from Tartarus but he didn't particularly care.
He would not be here for long.
The guards pushed him into the building, where a man in a doctor's coat waited for them. Overhaul had to fight back a glower. So they were taking him to a check up first? Did they think he was diseased like the rest of them?
"Doctor. We brought him as ordered." One guard said.
"Wonderful, wonderful." the bespectacled man said, beckoning them inside. "Leave him here. I'll send reports to the Commission as promised."
The guards pushed Overhaul into the room— a doctor's office— and left. Overhaul watched them go and looked at his new warden with boredom. The man was blatantly nonthreatening, like a rat in the sewer. Disgusting, fat, but easy enough to kill.
The doctor smiled at him. "You know, when I first heard of your Quirk, I so desperately hoped you'd end up in my care. Why, with your Quirk, you could have become the greatest doctor in the world."
Overhaul's disgust tripled. So this man was one of those delusional fools. The kind that saw Quirks as a gift and not the plague they were.
"You're very lucky, you know." Said delusional fool continued. "You could have simply stayed in jail, being wasted, but luckily my employers showed some sense and realized your Quirk is too useful to let rot in Tartarus."
The doctor's smile twisted to become as kindly as a vulture's.
It was at that moment Overhaul realized his previous assumptions could not be more wrong.
"It's been a while since I have been granted the chance to perform modifications for this side." the doctor mused. "I almost forgot how wonderful it feels. It almost makes me question why I looked to him for assistance with my research. But then I remember that as open-minded as the Commission may be, they're still blind to the truth." He took in Overhaul's expression and chuckled. "I see you're understanding why I dare to tell you this. Do I need to bother to say you won't remember this conversation? In fact…"
Cold eyes glittered behind thick glasses. "...you won't be able to think anything soon without my permission. You may consider yourself a big fish, Chisaki, but you've grossly overestimated how influential you yakuza are. They will not find you here. All For One himself doesn't know about this facility, and it's run by his oh-so righteous and lawful enemy!"
The doctor took out a device and clamped it around Overhaul's head.
"Oh, and please feel free to scream at any time. Let it all out. No one will hear you."
Something pricked the side of Overhaul's neck and everything went dark.
XXXXXXX
A/N: Next update will be the 14th-ish.