Chapter Thirty-Six

Wish it was Me

"I can see, see the pain in your eyes
Oh believe, believe me and I have tried.
No I won't, I won't pretend to know what you've been through;
You should know, I wish it was me and not you."
- Take on the World (You Me at Six)

Hizashi was up at his usual time - early - to make them both a quick breakfast. He decided on American omelettes as a nice surprise for his fiancé, but Hizashi was out the house before Toshi was up. The train was quiet at this time, so even though he wore his full hero attire, he only had to sign a few autographs, although he always felt the wariness in the gaze of some people. To many he would forever be the 'ex-villain'.

He was the first teacher to arrive in the staffroom, and he set to work on the usual morning routine. Hizashi answered any emails from staff and students, and sent out some emails to the parents of all his classes, dictating a detailed idea about that what they'd been learning that week.

"Those reporters were difficult to resist," said an unexpected voice. "Did you see the damage to the gate?"

He turned around in his chair, in time to watch the small principal happily stroll through the staffroom to where the tea was kept in a cupboard at his height. Nezu was thicker than he'd been all those years ago, but was easily recognisable with his rodent features.

"The gate?" Present Mic asked as he tilted his head. "Even my voice wouldn't be able to dent that beast." His tone was amazed rather than defensive. Nezu hadn't been accusing him of anything, even if others might've instantly suspected the ex-villain of the wrong-doing. The principal knew him too well.

"It wasn't merely damaged, but completely shattered." Nezu set to work on making himself a cup of tea, already knowing the blond would reject one if offered. "It seems we've attracted some attention, even if it's not necessarily unwanted…"

"You think he's behind it?" Mic glanced around the office, but even though they were alone he didn't dare say the name of All For One.

"Perchance," he said as he finished making his drink. "I suppose time will tell, but we need to be on guard."

"Preachin' to the choir, [lil dude]..." Mic leaned back in his chair and glanced to the bottom drawer of his desk, where a large yellow envelope was hidden away beneath unused English worksheets. "Any more sightings?"

"If there were, I would tell you. We've seen nothing for several years now," replied Nezu, his voice sounding less chirpy. "Many think he might be dead, but there are rumours…"

The blond shook his head. "He ain't dead: he's gotten better at hiding…" Nezu was quiet. Hizashi continued. "If All-Might pulls a no-show, I'll go on the excursion with class 1A."

The rodent nodded and sipped his steaming tea. "It would be good for you, and help with your rapport. Some of the students are uncertain of you, correct?"

He rolled his shoulders, but there was no reason to lie. His story was well-known.

Present Mic had been rescued by All-Might from the collapsed building, in the video that had gone viral. The Symbol of Peace had nursed him back to health, and he'd turned over a new leaf to become a hero. It had been a struggle - that part was no lie - but he didn't ever regret it…

Well, he did regret one aspect of it… He'd broken his promise to Shouta.

He'd become a hero without him, and now Eraserhead was … a villain. No, not just a regular villain. Hizashi didn't know much about it, but in the early days of the separation he hadn't been too hard to find. They'd tried to track him down using the tracker multiple times, but all without success until… That time five years ago, when All-Might had fought All For One and everything was supposed to end…

It hadn't.

Toshinori had been crippled in the attack. In fact, he'd almost died. Mic had taken the information hard and initially blamed himself for it, but All-Might had pulled him from the rut quickly enough. He'd been searching for All For One for years, and with Hizashi's help he'd had the chance to confront him. Toshi had been thankful, and Mic had forgiven himself.

However, the Quirk Stealer hadn't died. If he had been gone, then surely Shouta and Giran and Kurogiri would've returned to him, and yet they hadn't, and … the tracker vanished for good.

Someone had destroyed it, and Hizashi had fallen into despair at the thought of failing, but… He hadn't failed yet.

There was no way Shouta was dead.

-x-

Hizashi made sure the students were seated on the bus before they took off. Despite his reassurance, Toshinori had used his Quirk on the way to school and had been unable to make it to the USJ. Nemuri was displeased at first, but cheered up at the prospect of Mic joining her instead.

"So, does his dick shrink too?" she asked as he took his seat beside her near the front of the bus. He glanced around cautiously, but no one else heard the comment. Even so, he only replied to it with an unimpressed eyebrow-raised expression. She snorted, "Just checking~ I'm proud of you! Don't know how I'd last…"

"Good food helps!" Mic rolled his shoulders, moving the directional speaker on his neck so it sat more comfortably, and he watched the students to ensure they weren't doing anything unreasonable.

She snorted and glanced at the students as well, but they were a good bunch, so they didn't have much to worry about. "Won't tell you how to live your life."

"Starting now?" he said with a grin, and she rolled her eyes, but was smiling as well. "All-Might sends his apologies, yo. Just can't control himself."

"The kids'll bounce back," she said with a shrug, "and at least I get to spend some time with my best bud."

"Thirteen?"

She smacked him lightly on the arm and the duo laughed. Hizashi felt his body relax a little. Even so, he couldn't shake off a sense of foreboding, as if something was going to happen today. Perhaps he should've stayed at school: the destroyed gate could've been the first step in some sort of attack…

He knew firsthand how flimsy Hero HQ could be, and those flaws permeated UA too. It had taken Power Loader years to forgive him for his secret villainy, and even now their friendship was rocky, although it had been improving in recent times thanks to a new student who'd had an unbridled interest in support gear: Mei Hatsume. Even though Mic didn't work support anymore, she always poked him about ideas and designs, and he didn't mind helping her from time to time.

He glanced around the bus again and found himself genuinely smiling at the twenty-one students. Yes, he overworked himself and he knew he did, but he enjoyed being their teacher all the same. This was the life Shouta had sacrificed himself for, and although he knew the man would have a lot to say on the way he lived it, he'd be proud of him nevertheless. Present Mic was a hero and a teacher and he was okay.

His gaze focused on Midoriya, a young man with green hair, and his smile widened even more. All-Might's successor… He was a huge fan as well, and always asked him questions about his relationship with the Symbol of Peace. The kid had a bright future ahead, although it'd be drenched in turmoil.

Eventually the bus reached the Unexpected Simulation Joint. Here the students would test out their Quirks in faux natural disaster settings. After they pulled up, the class was diligently led off the bus by the representative: Iida Tenya. He was a meticulous student who tackled the job head-on, and just looking at him reminded the blond of his older brother Tensei. Ingenium had a lot to be proud of…

Even so, there was one student he was most looking forward to seeing today, one who was only in the class due to Present Mic's adamant protests. They'd had to overload the class and add an extra desk to the room, but the kid had reminded him too much of himself, and Nezu had agreed after some careful consideration.

Midnight was already off the bus while Mic was still on, and the final student to file off was the one he was secretly rooting for. His hair was wild and tall and messy and purple, while his eyes were an equal shade of violet. He avoided making eye contact with Present Mic though; he knew the Voice Hero was the only reason he'd been accepted into the Hero Course. Surely he was shy, and afraid of letting him down, but Hizashi knew he could succeed. He had complete faith in Hitoshi Shinsou.

His Quirk is your biggest weakness, apart from mine, said a voice he already knew was imaginary. Mic turned his head to see Imaginary-Shouta sitting on the back seat of the bus, his arms folded across his chest. You love talking too much.

Right, Shinsou's Quirk was Brainwashing: he could control any person who answered him. It was one of Mic's weaknesses, but…

The kid wanted to become a hero, and yet the school had planned to put him in the General Course.

If Hizashi and Shouta had become villains with their average Quirks, then someone with a 'villainous' Quirk like Shinsou was an easy target. Present Mic had long since vowed to protect his students from groups like SYN. The kids would never go through what he had.

Not today, Sho, he thought back as he closed his eyes. Today my attention needs to be on my students, so-

"Sir?" He opened his eyes to see Tenya's face looking in at him from outside the bus, his expression more serious than concerned. "Everyone has left the bus in an orderly manner!"

Present Mic didn't need to face the back of the bus to know the illusion was gone, and he hopped down the steps to find Midnight already leading the students ahead. So much for teamwork…

"[Thank you], Iida," he encouraged with a grin, "but feel free to [chill]! You're gonna need your energy for what lies ahead, [listener]!"

The Space Hero 'Thirteen' was already greeting the students inside, so Mic and Iida had to hurry to catch up. Thankfully they didn't miss much as everyone was too busy gawking at the facility with its various rescue zones, although now they were all inside Thirteen took it as his cue to continue. "A shipwreck, a landslide, a fire, a windstorm, etc! I created this training facility to help you deal with different types of disasters! I call it the Unexpected Simulation Joint, but you can call it the USJ!"

Thirteen took the time to talk about Quirks and their responsibilities, but Mic was distracted by the imaginary voice.

Don't you think the students would've preferred All-Might being here? Shouta stood beside him again, casually scratching the back of his neck in the way the real one always had. You shouldn't support his recklessness. It's irresponsible and you know it.

I trust Toshinori's judgement, he thought back as he lightly tapped his foot. And I'm sure they'd rather me here than only Thirteen and Midnight. Thought I told you not to bother me today. I will tell my psychologist 'bout you distract me.

You won't, because this is the closest you'll ever come to talking to me ever again.

Present Mic's stomach dropped, but not because of the imagined words: his stomach dropped as all the overhead lights sparked with electricity, flickered and died. Thanks to the windowed-globe of the structure, the sun kept everything inside brightly lit, but even the fountain at the centre of the area fizzled and spurted and-

Dark mist swirled and billowed before it. A pair of familiar yellow eyes appeared in the growing cloud, and a pale hand stretched out, but… Someone was attached to the limb this time…

His usual hallucination, he tried to tell himself, but something was off: everyone was gasping in shock. "Stay as a group!" Midnight hurriedly informed her class as she pulled the whip from her belt, the cuffs around her wrists clinking noisily. "Mic, with me! Thirteen! Protect the students!"

The students were clearly confused, and so was Mic, but when Midoriya curiously stepped forward, his sense of urgency kicked in. Hizashi cut him off and held out a hand, his mouth pulled into a scowl. "Stay back, [listeners]."

This wasn't a hallucination?

This wasn't a hallucination.

From the cloud of mist emerged villain after villain, and at the centre was one covered with disembodied hands. Even so, what really had his focus was the mist itself because…

It was Kurogiri!

Hizashi bit his lip. All For One must've been behind this then, but… He scanned the faces of the villains. The only Shouta he saw was the fake beside him.

No, he had to focus on who was there rather than who wasn't. Kurogiri was there and he was teleporting waves of villains inside the USJ building! The man with the hands across his body stood out, until a hulking figure emerged beside him, with a bird-face and an exposed brain, and more muscles than… well, All-Might… Even so, the way the hand-man signalled at the bird to stop confirmed his suspicions: he was the co-ordinator.

"This is a real villain attack!" Midnight warned them. "Stay on guard! This is not part of the trip!"

Present Mic stood beside her. Together they were a barrier. Together they were a formidable duo. Together they would protect their students from harm.

"So, you were the ones who broke down our front door!" the Voice Hero called out, not needing to use his Quirk at this stage as his speaker amplified him anyway. "You sent the media in to hide ya tracks!"

Not like you didn't enjoy that part, countered Imaginary-Shouta, but he went ignored.

The students were chattering, trying to figure out the reason why the villains were there, but right now that wasn't important. They were there and it was up to the adults to take charge. "Kaminari," Present Mic said, "try to send a message out, yo. Thirteen, you've gotta get the kiddies outta here. Midnight and I'll give 'em a show and slow 'em down."

Nemuri nodded once. The villains were approaching, but thankfully they hadn't reached the base of the stairwell yet.

"What're you gonna do?" asked Midoriya, his voice quivering with fear. "There're too many of them! You're both emitter Quirks and neither of you are short-ranged fighters! Even together you can't take them all on since your Quirks don't work well together! Present Mic's sound waves disperse your pheromones, and your pheromones would put him to sleep if he inhaled them! You're not strong enough!"

Present Mic snorted. He knew it was well-intentioned, but he really hated to be told things like that… "You don't hafta hold your breath for us, [listener]: I can hold mine all by myself."

Midnight and Present Mic would protect their students, no matter the cost.