Trace was following Mirio. He had applied for Nighteye's agency like Mirio suggested. He was nervous but Mirio's presence kept him calm. He would be fine.
"So, something you should know about Nighteye", Mirio began, "he values humor here, as long as you can make him laugh, you'll be in".
Mirio led Trace to a door at the end of a short hall. He opened the door to reveal a pretty tall and lengthy person with green hair and glasses sitting there.
Nighteye looked up to see Trace with Mirio. Trace looked nervous but determined, and Mirio… well, he looked like his normal self.
Mirio flashed a pretty big smile. "Nighteye, I have a student who wishes to do their work-studies here". Mirio held a hand as if presenting Trace. "This is Trace Wilqs, aka, split, he is the kid who defeated All-For-One, and he even equaled me in battle".
Nighteye looked at Mirio flabbergasted. "He equaled you in combat?".
Mirio nodded. "Yeah, he is quite a surprising student, even though he's a first year, he possesses enough power to defeat pro villains and heroes alike, he has even bested All Might according to the hero exams at UA".
Nighteye stared at Trace who didn't seem nervous or confident. He seemed neutral. "Mirio, I am going to test this kid, if he passes, I will accept him". Nighteye rose to his feet. He easily had an entire foot on Trace. "In my hand is a stamp, if you can take this stamp from me, I will happily take you on".
Trace nodded. "Alright, but I request you use your quirk, otherwise, this won't be a fair challenge for you".
Nighteye looked at the kid surprised. He wanted a disadvantage. Nighteye chuckled, much to Mirio's joy. "Mirio, step out of the room for a minute, this shouldn't take any more than 3 minutes".
Mirio nodded before stepping out. Once the door shut, Trace looked Nighteye dead in the eyes in order to activate Nighteye's quirk. Once Trace was certain nighteye's quirk was activated, he lunged at the stamp in his hand, but nighteye effortlessly dodged to the side.
Trace smiled when his back was to Nighteye. He was excited. He needed to outthink Nighteye to win. He began moving quickly around the room with his eyes shut. He would test the very limits of his quirk. He began bouncing off the walls several times, being extra careful as to not hit anything in the office. He continued bouncing trying to disorient Nighteye. After a minute or two, he lunged at Nighteye, his target in sight. He reached out for the stamp, and swiped it straight from his hand, surprising Nighteye. Trace landed with a thud smacking against the wall. But he stood tall, showing Nighteye the stamp.
Nighteye sat there amazed. "How did you get past my quirk, that shouldn't be possible".
Trace smiled. "I can literally will myself to overcome a quirk, such as mind control or manipulation".
Mirio opened the door with a girl behind him. "So, how'd the test go", Mirio turned to see Trace holding the stamp he was supposed to take. Mirio flashed a grin before pumping his fist in the air. "All right, knew you could do it Trace".
Nighteye kept a calm expression on his face. "You are truly an impressive individual Trace, I look forward to having you on the team". Nighteye handed Trace his acceptance paper to stamp.
Trace flashed a look of determination. "I will give you the best of my abilities sir", he stamped his paper, now becoming a part of Nighteye's agency.
After a few minutes of introduction, Nighteye went out to patrol, bringing Mirio, Trace and Bubble Girl with him. Once they reached an intersection, he split the group into two to patrol. Mirio and Trace would patrol one direction, while Him and Bubble Girl would patrol in another direction. Once everything was explained, they split off and began patrolling.
Trace walked in silence for a minute. He needed to start a conversation. His stress is crazy today, but he couldn't figure out why. "Hey Mirio", Trace had a look of pain on his face.
Mirio turned to see this and began to worry. "Is everything all right Trace?".
Trace put a hand to his arm. "Y-yeah, just a little nervous is all, but I was wondering, how did you get your hero name "Le Million".
Mirio smiled. "Well, I know I can't save everyone, that's the sad truth of this world, we can't save everyone, but I'm gonna shoot for a million, if I can do that, then I can be proud that I could save those people". Mirio turned to Trace. "Now it's your turn, how did you get Split, it seems like a neat name".
Trace looked to the ground for a minute. "My name was meant to be used for both me and Djinn, since we could swap control between one another, but now I can't call on Djinn without the risk of death, I wish I could find a way to safely bring him out, but I don't know how". Trace began to tear up slightly. "Sorry, I have a condition that heightens my anxiety to a crazy level, causing me to have heightened emotions, but it helps with my quirk so I can't complain too much".
Mirio sat there in silence for a minute. Trace clearly had a lot of inner turmoil inside of him. Was this a result of Djinn? Mirio was about to put a hand on Trace's shoulder when a young girl came running at them from the alleyway.
She wrapped her arms around Trace, holding on for dear life. "Please help".
Trace was surprised. He turned to the alleyway, holding the little girl the whole time. There was no longer stress, or pain, or fear… no… what he had was determination and the protectiveness of a bear to their cubs.
Mirio looked at Trace with amazement. He could barely believe this was the same Trace that literally just a second ago was about to burst into tears. Mirio turned to the alleyway to see a man with a mask covering his mouth. For some odd reason, it resembled a bird in a way.
"Eri, come back, you know you can't run off on your own honey", the man stood there, with a calm but worried expression on his face.
Trace's eyes narrowed as he recognized the man. Overhaul. The villain they were told to avoid.
Mirio must have been able to sense Trace's discomfort, cause he quickly put on a smile and said, "Good morning sir, is this your daughter?".
Overhaul sounded calm, but Trace could sense something beneath it. Annoyance? "Yep, but she ran off, so I had to follow her so she didn't get lost".
Trace looked down at the girl who was shaking quite a bit. It was only then when he noticed the bandages covering her arms and legs. Trace looked at Overhaul with worry. "Is she okay, she's covered in bandages".
"Eri is a bit clumsy, but we do the best we can to fix it up", Overhaul sounded purely annoyed at having to answer that.
Trace held Eri even closer. "If I may sir, allow me to heal her wounds, I have the power to fix up wounds, it just makes me slightly tuckered out".
Trace watched his facial expressions. But he didn't really show any. It was as if he was conflicted with whether or not it was a good idea. Eventually he looked at Trace. "Alright, if it makes Eri feel better, then go for it".
Trace smiled. His hands began to glow green as he transferred her injuries to himself. Trace took note of each wound transferred but made them all scratches for his body. She had so many small holes on her body, as if she was repeatedly poked with a needle.
Once the transfer was done Trace set her down and prepared to let go, but she held on with her life. "Please don't go".
Trace felt worried. If she was this scared, what was he doing to her? Trace looked at Overhaul. Anger began to overtake Trace. He needed to calm down, but he couldn't. His voice was a little louder than he wanted. "She is scared, what the hell happened to her to make her this scared sir". Trace was no longer thinking.
Mirio could only watch as Trace began to shake with anger.
Overhaul looked annoyed by this. "She's a little kid, anything will scare her".
Trace began to yell. "THIS ISN'T JUST A SIMPLE SCARE, THIS IS DEEP-ROOTED TERROR, WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO HER", Darkness encased Trace, much to Mirio's and Overhaul's surprise. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER".
Overhaul closed his eyes for a second. "Look, follow me into this alleyway, I'd rather not discuss her condition in public".
Trace and Mirio followed at a distance. They both knew how dangerous of a situation this was. Overhaul began to remove his glove, causing Eri to break from Trace's grip. She began to run at Overhaul, but Trace jumped in front of her.
Trace turned to the girl, "Go to Le Million, trust me".
Though Eri first tried to get past him, his look of authority convinced her to go to Le Million instead.
Trace turned back to Overhaul, who had removed his glove. He lunged at Trace, but Trace easily dodged, throwing Overhaul into a wall. "What have you done to her villain". Overhaul reached a hand out to grab Trace, but he simply backed up slightly. He grabbed Overhaul and threw him further into the alleyway. He charged at Overhaul, landing blow after blow on Overhaul. After a few seconds, Trace slammed Overhaul into the ground. He prepared a big blow but stopped a mere inch from his face. His body screamed out in pain. Every bone was aching. Every bit of muscle was hurting. He pulled himself out of his shadow form. That's when he realized what he did.
He just made a huge mistake.
Trace fell to his knees, coughing up a bunch of black gunk. He had no fight left in him. He tried to get to his feet, but it was impossible. His body refused to move, besides to cough up more black gunk.
Overhaul put his hand mere centimeters from Trace's face before turning to Eri. "Okay Eri, it's time to head home, otherwise he might not feel so good".
Eri ran to Overhaul, putting her hand in his as to save Trace's life. They walked further into the alleyway, leaving Mirio to tend to Trace.
"TRACE, CAN YOU HEAR ME", Mirio was worried about his partner.
"Mir.. Mirio… I… can't… move…", Trace was barely conscious.
Mirio began thinking quickly. The best option he had was to contact Nighteye. He pulled out his phone and called Nighteye directly. After a couple tries, Nighteye picked up.
"Mirio? What happened?", Nighteye was purely confused.
Mirio however was panicked. "We encountered Overhaul, Trace was injured protecting a civilian, we need you down here as soon as possible sir, something's wrong with Trace".
Nighteye began running as fast as he could. "I'm on route, just hold on".
(1 hour later)
Mirio had pulled Trace out of the alleyway and set him upright. "Stay with me Trace, help is on the way".
Trace was barely conscious. "It hurts… so much". Trace couldn't think straight. His body refused to move. He could barely make out footsteps coming toward them.
Mirio turned to see Nighteye and Bubble Girl running up to them. Both with a look of horror on their face. Trace was covered head to toe in darkness. Even his eyes were just black pupils with barely any white visible. "Nighteye, he was injured in combat with Overhaul, I don't know what to do, this is unlike anything I've seen before".
Trace turned to Nighteye, a look of guilt on his face. "Nighteye… I'm… I'm sorry… I... I could-n't stop him", a tear fell down Trace's face.
Nighteye bent down to Trace's level, wiping the tear away. "Stay with us kid, you'll be okay". Nighteye turned to Bubble Girl. "Call an ambulance, he needs medical attention as soon as possible".
Bubble Girl nodded before pulling her phone out, she turned her back to the group as she made the call.
Nighteye turned back to Trace, who was starting to close his eyes. "Trace! Look at me!".
Trace turned his head as much as he could, barely meeting Nighteye's gaze.
"Don't close your eyes, try to stay awake", Nighteye began to worry more.
After a few minutes of keeping Trace awake, an ambulance pulled up beside them. Some medics came out and hoisted Trace onto the gurney so they could transfer him to the hospital. They put him in the ambulance, which Nighteye jumped into.
Nighteye turned to Mirio and Bubble Girl. "You two continue patrolling, I'll see to it he's all right".
Mirio and Bubble Girl nodded before they began walking in a random direction.
Nighteye turned to Trace who was coughing up more black gunk. Nighteye put a hand on Trace's shoulder. "Stay with us kid, you will survive".
Trace, however, didn't respond back. He was in too much pain to speak back.
The doctor put an oxygen mask over Trace's face, giving him more oxygen to put into his lungs.
The ride was essentially to stabilize Trace.
(next morning)
Mina ran into the hospital with Jiro and Kirishima. They were in the area so they could actually go see Trace. Mina ran up to the receptionist. "Excuse me, I'm looking for a person named Trace Wilqs".
The receptionist began typing into his computer. After a few seconds he turned to Mina and said, "he is in room 202".
Mina thanked the receptionist before signalling for her friends to follow her. They went up to Trace's room. Everyone stood outside the door. They tried to ready themselves for anything they could see, but nothing could have prepared them for the sight in the room. Mina opened the door to a horrifying sight. Trace was lifeless. His body didn't move apart from slight breaths. His skin kept swirling between black and pale skin. His face stuck in a pained expression. Trace himself was out cold. Mina held his hand in her own, rubbing it with her thumb.
Jiro couldn't avert her eyes from the sight. He was in a coma essentially. It was like his body couldn't handle it anymore. Parts of his skin were bubbling, as if a war was going on in those locations.
Kirishima held a hand over his mouth, resisting the urge to find the nearest restroom. Trace was in bad condition.
No one knew what to say. What could they say in this situation?
The door opened behind them, surprising everyone in the room. Everyone turned to see Nighteye, standing in the door.
Nighteye did a quick survey of the room before saying, "Is now a bad time?".
everyone shook their heads to indicate no.
Once Nighteye was sure he was okay to enter, he shut the door behind him, walking up to Trace's bed. His condition has worsened from yesterday. His quirk was surely a strange one. "If you've had this since you were 10, then why weren't you experiencing these side effects sooner?".
Everyone looked at each other in shock. Nighteye had a good point. Why didn't Trace experience episodes like this before if he had gotten Djinn at age 10?
No one would receive an answer until 3 days later though. But those 3 days were hell for Mina. She was so worried about him. He had been out for a week before, but he had never been on death's door like this before. Every free second she had was spent with Trace. The teachers tried to convince Mina that he would be alright, but she didn't budge. They eventually had to start exempting her from assignments in order to keep her from being kicked out. She was terrified that she would lose him. Multiple knots had formed in her stomach. Everyday she would go to his hospital room and sing, hoping it would awaken him. But no matter how long she would sing, he wouldn't even stir. His vital signs dropped daily. He was growing weaker with every passing day.
Niighteye had talked to Kirishima solo in the room before. He talked about a raid on the yakuza who had Eri which Kirishima happily accepted to be a part of. But they waited. They needed to ensure they had enough troops for the raid.
Eventually the 3 days passed. The doctor was checking on his vital signs. They were so low, that they presumed him dead. They were about to place him in a body bag when he opened his eyes, and shot up, his skin returning to its pale color. Doctors screamed. His vital signs were so low that he shouldn't have been able to wake up at all. But here he was, standing straight up, surveying his surroundings. He looked at his hands and remembered what had occured. He turned to the doctors who had a look of fear in them.
"How am I alive?", Trace was confused as he was told he would die.
The doctors were staring at him. "We were wondering the same thing to be honest".
Trace stood straight up, amazed he was alive. "This is amazing, I need to tell my friends, they'll be so excited to see me".
Nighteye stepped into the room, hearing Trace was awake. "Apologies Trace, but for now, we can't people you're awake, otherwise the yakuza could build up their defenses. For all they know, you're incapacitated so they slacked off some".
Trace balled his hands into a fist. "You best let me come with you Nighteye, I have a duty I need to carry out to Eri, and I won't take no for an answer".
Nighteye nodded. "Understood, You're in on the operation, but I don't want you to use your shadow form, that appears to be what caused you to be injured".
Trace nodded. "I understand, Djinn will have to take a back seat on this operation".
The doctors quickly cleared Trace to leave the hospital. The only people who knew he was awake were Kirishima, Aizawa, Tsuyu, Uraraka, and Mirio.
Trace stood at the entrance of the building with Nighteye and Mirio. Today, they take down the Yakuza.
(20 minutes later)
Trace was using his barriers to hold the hallway in place as the police traversed the area. The halls kept attempting to contort, but Trace held strong, keeping the halls in place as they moved. It was strenuous but Trace could manage. Eventually, they found the cause of the hallways contorting, and captured him, ending the madness in the halls. Trace ran as fast as he possibly could. Mirio had run way ahead of them. Trace couldn't live with himself if Mirio got injured or worse. So he pushed himself beyond his limit, he left his inhibitors off for this mission, he couldn't afford to hold back.
Eventually, Trace came across a dead end. But instead of searching for another exit, Trace just broke through the wall. He stepped out into a room that was pretty big. And in the middle of it was Overhaul with a person who looked like a plague doctor . Trace immediately pounced, knocking the plague doctor guy to the ground. He immediately turned to overhaul who was swinging at Trace.
Trace vanished into thin air, surprising Overhaul greatly when he got struck from behind. Mirio was defending Eri with his life. Trace appeared in front of Overhaul who had thrown something red at his friend. The plague doctor caught it and loaded it into his gun. It appeared he had two shots in the gun. But Trace knew what was in his gun. They erased quirks. Djinn had a plan, but Trace was against it. The first shot was fired at Eri. Eri was cowering in fear, she would surely feel a great deal of pain if the sart connected. But it never did. Mirio had taken the dart to save Eri. he had voluntarily given up his quirk.
Trace stared in Horror as the plague doctor fired a second shot at Mirio, hoping to overdose him.
Djinn grabbed control of Trace and ran as fast as he could. Trace would die if he stayed. He jumped in front of the dart, making sure it hit him and not Trace.
Trace could only watch in horror as the darkness started to dissipate from him. "DJINN!". Trace was on his knees. His skin went pure black, but started to lighten as the darkness dissipated into nothing more than air.
Trace watched as the smoke disappeared. He was about to fall when he heard a voice.
"Trace, look at me".
Trace looked up to see Djinn standing in front of him. They were separated from each other. Djinn hugged Trace closely as a tear fell from his eye. "I will always be with you Trace, because I will always be in your heart. Without me here, you can fight at full power, so go… go and kick their asses", Djinn fully disappeared, causing Trace to fall to the ground. Trace broke down, sobbing violently into his hands. "DJINN, PLEASE… COME BACK". Trace had lost a part of him that day. He was broken once more.
Trace tried multiple times to recover Djinn with his restore quirk but to no avail. Djinn was gone.
Trace sat there. He lost a friend. And it was their fault. It was THEIR FAULT.
Trace stood up, his eyes pure black. "Let me ask you a question", Trace sounded pissed.
Overhaul had a smirk under his mask. "You know what, sure, you're gonna die anyway so go for it".
Trace smiled maliciously. "Do you believe that even the worst of people can change, that if they try hard enough, they can change for the better?".
Overhaul began to laugh. "No one can change, no one".
Trace closed his eyes for a second. "Alright, let me ask a better question", Trace opened his eyes, revealing golden eyes, sparks were flying from Trace's body at max capacity. "Cause if you take another step forward, well then heh heh, I won't go easy on you".
Overhaul took a step forward mockingly. "Let's see what you got bitch".
Trace's eyes narrowed. He moved millions of times faster than light. Before Mirio could process what was happening, the fight was over. Overhaul laid on the ground, bloody and bruised. But his arms were mangled in directions no human arm should bend.
Trace stared at Overhaul with hatred. "If you truly think no one can change, then you don't know my story". Trace closed his eyes, waiting for the stress to take over for a minute. But it never did. He stared at his arms, waiting for his scars to get encased in darkness, but they never did. Trace realized his stress was gone. Though he wasn't happy about losing Djinn, he was glad he could stand for more than one fight.
Trace turned back to Mirio who was staring at him, sorrow in his eyes. Trace sighed. "I'm not gonna kill him, though it's hard not to with what he did".
Trace walked up to Mirio and Eri before taking a seat with them. "How are you holding up Eri".
Eri was still hiding herself with the blanket. "Is he gonna hurt me anymore?".
Trace turned to look at overhaul who was out cold. "He won't be hurting anyone anymore, he won't ever be able to hurt another person again". Trace began running a hand through Eri's hair to calm her. "And we will protect you".
Eri had a smile on her face, but neither Mirio nor Trace could see it since she was still covered with his cape. "Thank you both so much".
A wall busted down close by. Trace and Mirio turned to see a few familiar faces. Fat Gum, Kirishima, and Aizawa as well as many policemen. Trace and Mirio stood to their feet, with Mirio carrying Eri.
"Civilian secured", Trace had no enthusiasm in his voice.
Everyone looked at Trace with worry.
"Everything alright Split?". Tsuyu had a look of worry on his face.
"Yeah, just a tad bit worn out", Trace smiled to try to hide his pain.
Trace scanned over the people around, but noticed something off. "Where's Nighteye?".
Many eyes looked toward the ground.
Trace began to worry a little. "Guys, Where's Nighteye?".
Aizawa finally spoke up, drawing the short stick. "Nighteye was gravely injured due to a member of the league of villains".
Trace sat there shocked. How was Nighteye bested in combat? Trace was about to push for questions when Eri began sneezing. Trace immediately turned to Eri who had a runny nose. Trace pulled a tissue from his pocket, handing it to Eri to use.
Everyone looked at Trace with shock. "Since when did you become a father figure", Kirishima teased.
Trace turned to his friends, "When I first met Eri, she was covered in injuries from overhaul over there, He saw her as a way to get money, so he used her, she didn't have a family to look up to, so I want to help her live a normal life again".
Everyone was amazed at Trace's resolve.
"We need to find her a family that will love her unconditionally, a family that will give her a normal childhood, heck, I'll adopt her if it comes to that, but she needs a family". Trace's eyes were a mix of blue, pink, and green.
After a few minutes of silence, Aizawa had a brilliant idea. "What if we have Eri live in the UA dorms, this way we could train her to use her quirk, and ensure her safety at the same time?".
Trace smiled widely. "Thank you Mr.Aizawa".
They left that underground facility after what felt like days of backtracking to Trace. Trace's first goal was to get to the hospital Nighteye was in.
Unfortunately Trace would never find it in time. By the time he found Nighteye, he was gone. He never had a chance according to the doctors. Trace was crushed by this. His goal was to heal Nighteye once he found him. But he never got the chance. He was dead long before Trace got to him. Trace began to weep. He was far too late. He could feel hands on his back, but he paid them no mind. He had lost so much today. He wasn't sure how to cope with it yet.
(3 hours later)
Trace stood on the balcony, his hands on the railing. The night was beautiful. Stars were shining, the moon was in full glow, he could see for miles in front of him. Tonight was amazing.
A hand on his shoulder caught his attention though. He turned to see Eri holding Mina's left hand. "She wanted to see you before heading to bed".
Trace smiled warmly. He bent down to Eri's level. "So, you wanted to see the puppy", Trace said jokingly.
Eri began to laugh. She enjoyed being around him, he acted like a true father to her, but wasn't too stern. Eri wrapped her arms around Trace. "Thank you for saving me puppy".
Trace closed his eyes as he hugged Eri close to him. "You're welcome sweetie".
After a few seconds, Eri broke the hug, stepping back to her original spot by Mina. "Good night puppy".
Trace kept his smile the whole time. "Good night Eri". Trace watched as Mina and Eri went back inside. He was about to follow them when a chill ran down his spine. He turned quickly to see a shadow staring at him.
"Trace".
Trace smiled. "Hey Djinn, how's life on the other side".
Djinn smiled. "It's been a blast, I discovered I wasn't the only shadow out there, I met someone pretty sweet, She actually went through a very similar situation, but enough about me, when did the family start?". Djinn was giving Trace a sly smirk.
Trace laughed at this. "Not like that Djinn, We saved Eri, so until we can find someone who will love her unconditionally, She's staying here, she tends to stick around with me and Mina though since she's most comfortable around me". Trace had a smile. "So I guess I do kind of have a family, but it's kind of nice".
Djinn held a fist out to Trace with a smile. "Just remember, I will always be with you Trace, don't ever forget about me".
Trace began to hold a fist out, but instead, pulled Djinn into a bear hug. "I will never forget about you Djinn, you can count on that", Trace stared at Djinn with a smile, his eyes a neon green.
Djinn smiled, returning the hug instantly.
They sat there for a solid 5 minutes before they separated.
"I'm gonna miss you Djinn, but have the best life you can", Trace had a single tear falling down his face.
Djinn was practically mirroring Trace, having his tear run down the opposite side of his face. "It's gonna be strange not being with you at all times, but I will never forget the good times Trace".
Both people smiled, they would see each other again, they both agreed to that. "See you later Djinn, it was nice seeing you", Trace began walking into the building as Djinn dissipated. He walked up to the 4th floor and entered his room. Inside was Eri and Mina playing super smash bros. Turns out, all Eri really had to do while she was trapped was play nintendo switch games, so she's amazing at super smash bros. She rivaled Paroxidal, but wasn't better than him yet. But Trace was determined to change that. After all, his era as the king of smash bros was done, he had passed that title on to Kirishima a few weeks back when he defeated him at a tournament. Trace wasn't gonna pull an endeavor and force her to play, she played when she felt like it, not when he wanted her to. Trace sat down on the bed with them, watching as Eri destroyed Mina with Banjo and Kazooie.
Eri cheered as she won, "I did it puppy!".
Trace smiled warmly. "You are amazing at this game Eri, but now you face me". Trace grabbed his pro controller from his desk and prepared to play against Eri.
It was a legendary match, with Trace barely beating Eri, though Eri wasn't upset about losing, it was a good match either way.
"That was fun Puppy, can we play again?", Eri had puppy dog eyes going which just melted Trace's heart.
"Sure Eri, we can play again", Trace repicked his character and prepared for another round.
They would play until Eri fell asleep, which was about an hour later. 9pm.
Trace scooped her up in his arms, and set her on the second bed he ordered for his room. He had managed to find a spot for it without it being in the way as well as allowing Eri to be comfortable. Once he had tucked her in, Trace turned to Mina who had a warm smile on her face.
"Look at you, being a father wolf", Mina partially said it to tease him, but also because she was impressed with him, he seemed good with kids.
"Does that make you the mother wolf?", Trace said teasingly.
Though neither of them blushed. "I guess so".
Trace and Mina jumped into the other bed in one another's arms.
Trace smiled as he listened to Mina and Eri snoring. He would protect them with his life if he had to. He had gotten so much in life. So what if he had a crappy childhood, so what if there was a ton of bad in his life, the good practically outweighs all of that. No more what life threw at Trace, he persevered and kept pushing for his friends. Everything he's gone through has created bonds that would last a lifetime. He had made so many friends. He had come such a long way from the 8 year old him. If he had said to his younger self that he would one day be seen as the number one hero and would have dozens of friends at your side daily, he would have laughed at him. But look where he is now. He lived in a dorm with his friends, and he would always have them with him.
He snuggled up into Mina more, enjoying the contact between them.
"No matter how dark things seem, there will always be light", Trace closed his eyes, yes he had a bad day, but with Eri and Mina with him, he was happy as could be. It seems like a stupid phrase, but it holds so much meaning. Even if you fall, you get back up. Even if you're blue, you'll eventually be yellow or green or even polka dotted. Even if you feel alone, you are never truly alone.
Djinn watched from the heavens as Trace fell asleep with his small "family". And he smiled. "You'll be fine Trace, you have plenty to look forward to, after all". Djinn smiled widely, he turned to look at Nighteye who was smiling at Trace as well.
"No matter how dark things get, there will always be a light in that darkness, there will always be hope, and love, and determination, and courage... But most importantly, there will always be others who help you carry that light".
"Have a good life Trace", Djinn turned back to his card game with Nighteye.
Trace smiled in his sleep. There will always be the light in the dark.