Chapter 83

.::Sight for Sore Eyes::.

Evening at the Villain Alliance headquarters found most of the villains still caught up in the wheelchair races, which had become increasingly enthusiastic. They now had different categories beyond just speed, like "longest wheelie" and "most unique launch method." The last in particular had people excited and adventurous with their attempts, even recording the launches with their phones to compare in hallways around the base.

Aiko hadn't gotten too involved. At one point she did briefly join in as a judge for the more showy races and categories, but she mostly stayed out of it and kept them away from the hallway with Kurogiri's bedroom. The misty man hadn't left his room since last night, which was normal for "off" days. He tended to be more introspective on those days as he grappled with whatever memories and feelings had surfaced, so she'd rather not disturb him.

Since he didn't leave the room that also meant he didn't make himself meals, leaving it to Aiko to deliver food. With dinnertime rolling around she headed over with a bowl of oden, having made a large pot of the dish so there'd be plenty for Tomura, Himiko, Izuku and his friends. Not like any of them were allowed to cook after all (and for good reason).

"Hey, Giri, I got dinner," she called softly after knocking on the door. She didn't get a response, which was pretty normal enough. She turned the handle and entered only to instantly stop though, staring at the now empty bed. "...And he's gone. Great." She sighed, putting the bowl on the dresser.

Alright. So the Alliance's misty quasi-noumu caretaker left his room while flooded with fresh memories from before he became... well, that. Usually he tried to avoid people on days like this, but he did leave sometimes if he felt better. Sometimes. It didn't happen often. Usually off-days didn't last more than a day, either, so the fact he'd been like this for two days was already unusual. In any case, nothing to do but search for him.

The kitchen was her first stop, but as expected it was empty save for Mustard and one of the grunts making their own dinners. He also wasn't at the bar, though it was slightly more lively than expected since a few grunts had decided to hang out there to avoid the chaotic wheelchair races. They hadn't gotten into the alcohol, but they had turned on the television hanging behind the counter to watch some shows while they ate.

With that, the two most obvious places were out. Aiko returned to the hall and stood for a moment, thinking it over, and then set course for a part of the base she'd been trying to avoid.

The hallway with Eraserhead's cell was empty when she reached it. Her mouth thinned as she walked to the door and stopped in front of it, closing her eyes to listen. She couldn't hear anything inside, and she knew Izuku was still caught up in the races, but that didn't mean Eraserhead was alone. It was all too easy to imagine Kurogiri inside and the two staring each down in silence. Eraserhead because he would be naturally wary and bewildered by the man's presence, and Kurogiri because he was just... off today.

The thing was, Eraserhead was clearly the trigger for Kurogiri's current nostalgia rush. It had started after he took dinner to the hero, which would have been the first meaningful interaction since his arrival. She had suspicions on why Eraserhead triggered it, based on what little she knew of Kurogiri's life before falling into All For One's clutches, but nothing concrete. If she was right though, she wouldn't find it too odd for Kurogiri to visit him again.

Probably.

Maybe.

...She had no idea how to handle this. Aiko had zero idea how to handle someone with resurfacing memories from a totally different time in their life where they were basically another person. She felt like she sometimes barely understood normal social interactions, let alone something this complicated. Not for the first time, she silently bemoaned how things would have been so much simpler if Kurogiri had been a natural-born Kurogiri.

(Though if he had been, things would have gone so differently back then and they wouldn't be here now.)

She sighed quietly as she pushed the thought away. Her first instinct was to quickly peek inside and check if Kurogiri was there, but that would involve seeing Eraserhead, and him seeing her. Izuku hadn't explicitly told her to stay away from the hero, but it had been more or less implied. Even without that, Kuroe had also said she should probably avoid him since her presence clearly caused him distress.

"Seiko," she called lightly, and turned to see the demon child standing right next to her as she expected. "Do you know if Giri is inside?"

"No," the Eldritch abomination replied, perfectly monotonous as always.

"Then, can you check real quick?"

"No." The response was instant and had Aiko scowling, feeling her irritation rise.

"Are you serious?" she hissed. In response the shadow brat tilted her head in a flimsy attempt at mimicking human emotion, falling flat with those soulless eyes still totally empty of anything actually human.

"Yes," she said simply, and Aiko wanted to scream. She settled for grinding her teeth as she glared at the pint-sized shadow demon, fists clenching at her sides.

"Why not?" she ground out.

"I don't want to."

...Aiko hated Seiko. This thing wanted nothing more than to make her suffer. She knew Seiko could easily pop inside and check the situation from within the shadows without ever showing herself. Seiko knew she knew that, and she also had no reason to really turn it down, but she still refused for no other reason than to make Aiko stressed.

As she tried to count her breaths so she would calm down and not try to murder the physical embodiment of nightmare fuel, she heard movement from behind the door. "Aiko?" Eraserhead called, quiet and almost hesitant.

She felt her ire vanish as her head snapped towards the door, surprised he'd called out at all. She'd been trying to talk quietly so as to not draw his attention, but as usual, the little monster had gotten on her nerves.

When she turned back, Seiko had vanished. Stupid demon.

She resisted a quiet groan as she turned to the door again. So much for not interacting with Eraserhead. Responding might stress him since she was a trigger for him, but not responding could just cause more stress, right? Leave him even more on edge? Why couldn't social interactions be simple? How the hell was growing up with a bunch of literal murderers less complicated than this?

"Sorry, I didn't mean to be noisy," she said after a moment's thought. "I was just talking to someone, I wasn't planning to see you. I'll just go now." There. Quick answer and affirmation she'd leave so he wouldn't spend who knows how long spiraling about whether he'd actually heard her or if she'd enter.

She turned to hurry off, but only got one step before he called, "Wait." She immediately halted and turned in surprise, not expecting him to call out again. Given, well, everything, she hadn't expected him to call her at all.

"Yeah?" she asked after a moment, to let him know she was still there, and there was a long moment of silence.

"Can you bring Sushi?" he finally asked. The request had her briefly confused, since asking someone who triggered what might be a panic attack to bring over a cat didn't seem normal. Once the initial confusion passed, understanding quickly dawned on her though and she nodded.

"Sure, I'll be back soon." She turned and headed off to Hijack's room, hoping the cat would still be inside and not roaming the base. A quick visit would be better for everyone in the long run.

Sushi's fur was just as soft and velvety as Shouta remembered. Softer, even, the kitten's body vibrating under his bare palm with a content purr. It felt like a balm to his frayed nerves and oddly comforting, even with Aiko sitting in the same room.

He'd called out on impulse when he thought he'd heard her voice from the hall. It had been too muffled to make out what she said, but her voice had been firmly imprinted in his memory. It had been nerve-wracking to ask for help, but after spending all day thinking about Sushi, he'd decided to take the risk. He knew from Midoriya's brief visit at lunch there were a bunch of wheelchair races today (which was... bizarre, to say the least), so he'd been worried about the kitten escaping Hijack's cell and getting hurt.

Fortunately, Sushi clearly seemed fine, if a bit frisky and eager for attention. She also now had a bell around her neck, so it seemed they'd tried to take some steps to mitigate the risks. "Do you know how she's getting through doors yet?" he asked, keeping his gaze trained on the black bundle of fur.

"Not yet," Aiko replied. "From what I know she hasn't done it since getting the bell, though we think she did it a couple times before yesterday. If you've got any guesses, we're open to it." He just hummed noncommittally, scratching Sushi's ear. He brought his other hand over to cup the kitten's head on either side, and then activated Erasure.

Sushi startled at sight of red eyes and floating hair, giving an inquisitive mew as she squirmed in his grip. Shouta kept a firm hold on her though, feeling the familiar burn of his Quirk as he gazed down at her eyes. After a moment he stopped and felt his hair fall to his shoulders, and released the kitten so he could rub at his eyes with a soft hiss. Shit, he'd forgotten how bad the dry eye could be after so long without using it...

"You okay?" Aiko asked, and he grunted.

"Fine." He pulled his hands away from his face, not wanting to show off any more weakness than absolutely necessary. In that brief window of time Sushi had clambered onto his lap and tried to bat at his dangling hair, clearly curious about how it had floated.

"Do you think it worked?"

"Probably. Not like we can ask her to test it though." Aiko hummed quietly.

"Sushi-chan, can you use your Quirk?" she called. The kitten ignored her, still focused on Shouta's hair, while he leveled Aiko with a deadpan stare. The woman just shrugged. "What? Quirked animals are supposed to be smart, so worth a shot."

"I don't think she'd understand Japanese," he replied dryly. He then grunted as Sushi jumped up to latch onto his hair, the strands slipping through her teeth but still snagging on a knot just enough to give his head a sharp yank. He rubbed the area around the roots with a small grimace as she plummeted back onto his lap.

"If she did, I guess that wouldn't happen, either," Aiko remarked lightly, and he glowered at her but said nothing. He turned his attention back to Sushi, gently pushing her back before she could try to jump again.

For now, he just savored the fact that she should be safe. Key word being should. Using Erasure on Quirked animals felt different from using it on humans, so he couldn't be absolutely certain it worked. His fingertips tingled though, just like the other times he used that particular trick, so he'd assume it had if only for his peace of mind.

"Are you going to tell the kids?" he asked.

"You can if you want. I'm not talking to anyone about your Quirk though." That had Shouta pausing, glancing up at her warily.

While Aiko's presence made his skin prickle and brought plenty of unpleasant memories, he didn't feel quite as shaken as during their last encounter. Since he'd initiated the contact this time, he had time to brace himself before she entered with Sushi. He still didn't like having her in the same room, but as long as she kept her distance like this, he could put up with it.

He at least felt comfortable enough to ask questions. "How many people know about it?"

"Just me and Kurogiri," she replied with a shrug. "And that's only because he was around back then too. Never saw any reason to tell anyone else after destroying the files." That had him pausing, and he glanced at the mittens on the floor. Neither of them had been around when those got put on, so it seemed that actually had just been Shigaraki being overly cautious about Midoriya's safety.

Well, that was one potential trump card if they ever attempted an escape. Not that success would be likely with Aiko around. He could only hope Midoriya was telling the truth about her living elsewhere.

...And also that she didn't have some kind of telepathy Quirk and could hear his thoughts of escape. For the sake of his already frayed nerves, he'd assume she didn't.

Before the conversation could continue they heard a knock at the door. "Eraserhead, sir, I have dinner—what are you doing here?" Midoriya pushed open the door and entered only to freeze upon seeing Aiko, eyes going wide with shock and alarm. Within an instant the teen recovered and had moved into the cell, firmly placing himself between her and Shouta.

Seeing the kid basically use himself as a human shield had a surge of instinctive panic swelling in Shouta. No matter how good terms the two might be on, his instincts as a hero recoiled at the idea of the kid potentially pissing off someone so dangerous. Even adults with fully trained Quirks would be at risk around her, let alone a teenager.

"I called her in when I heard her in the hallway," he said before the situation could potentially escalate. That had Midoriya jolting in surprise as he turned to look at him.

"What? But—why?" In response Shouta glanced down at Sushi, who had abandoned him to greet the new arrival. Midoriya followed his gaze just as Sushi rubbed his ankles, apparently only now noticing the kitten for the first time. His shoulders slumped and he groaned. "Did she sneak in again?"

"Guess so," Shouta murmured, deciding not to explain he'd asked Aiko to bring her. No point saying more than absolutely necessary; that would just lead to more questions he'd rather avoid. The kid already knew more about his Quirk than he'd like, and Shouta doubted he'd accept "I just wanted to see a cat" as a good enough reason to call out to Aiko after their last encounter.

Aiko held up her hands in a placating manner as she stood up. "Since you're here now, you can take her back to Hijack's room later. I'll just head out. I need to get back to looking for Kurogiri anyway."

That had Midoriya whipping around to face her. "Wait, is he missing?"

"More just wandering. And since he's a living warp gate, there's a lot of places to wander," she muttered under her breath with a wry smirk. "Anyways, I'll just get going. Bye for now." She nodded at them as she headed off, and when the door closed Shouta felt a large tension seep from his shoulders he hadn't even noticed.

Once she was gone Midoriya spun to face him yet again. "She didn't do anything, did she? Did you really ask her inside? Did she just barge in? Are you okay?"

"Kid, calm down," Shouta said before the questions could spiral too far. "I'm fine, and I did ask her to come in. All she did was remove the mittens so I could..." He trailed off then, both of them suddenly focused on his still-bare hands. In her rush to leave Aiko hadn't actually put them back on, or the handcuffs either. This was the most free he'd been since getting captured.

For a moment neither of them spoke, just staring at his hands. "...I won't tell anyone if you don't?" Midoriya finally said, and Shouta snorted softly.

"Fine by me." Eating with actual utensils would be a refreshing change of pace. Midoriya set down the plate and headed off to get a bowl of rice and chopsticks to add to the meal. While he waited for the kid's return Shouta grabbed the water bottle and twisted off the cap to take the painkiller Midoriya had brought with the meal. His leg didn't hurt too much right now, especially since Midoriya had been bringing him the pills every day now, but he'd rather not risk Sushi eating it.

The novelty of being able to remove the bottle's cap himself wasn't lost on him, and he quietly huffed at finding something so mundane to be novel. It was amazing how many things he'd taken for granted before this nightmare began—things he shouldn't have to take for granted.

That had him thinking about last night's radio broadcast. Shouta wouldn't allow himself any serious hope yet, not with such dangerous stakes, but just knowing that the others knew he was alive... Well, it made the future feel a little less bleak.

Hopefully no one would get in any trouble while trying to find him.

So to recap: Hizashi was now the prisoner of a bunch of teenagers who may or may not be forced to work for a villainous organization. He still had no idea if they were being held against their will or tricked or what, but right now they all seemed to be on the same page about him. That page being "don't let him leave, and don't try to work with him."

Also, they might be trying to poison him. Maybe.

"I swear it tastes better than it looks," Mime groaned, holding a spoon towards his face. "Please, just eat it." Hizashi just kept his mouth clamped and eyed the bowl warily, still trying to identify its contents. It might be curry rice, maybe? Except all mixed together instead of in two separate sections. Also, he wasn't sure what that black stuff was.

"Forget it Mime, we can't force him to eat," Akai called. She sat in a corner with a couple other masked teens, all of them playing cards. "If he wants to go hungry, it's his problem."

"Or you could make him eat, by stepping on his foot so he opens his mouth and shoving the spoon inside," Kaitou added, far too nonchalantly for such a suggestion. The damn crow gave a caw of agreement, and Hizashi just glared at them sourly.

"Come on guys, I already drew the short straw about feeding him," Mime groaned. "It's already awkward enough without force-feeding!"

"You know, you could just untie me and I could feed myself," Hizashi pointed out casually. He was promptly met with a chorus of "no"s from all the gathered teens, making him huff. He hadn't expected it to work, but worth a shot.

"Just eat the curry-rice," Mime grumbled, holding out the spoon, and Hizashi clamped his mouth shut again. The teenager let out a frustrated groan, head hanging with exasperation.

At this point Hizashi still knew very little about his situation. There'd been a constant rotation of people in cheap festival masks serving as guards, and he couldn't interact with any of them since he'd been stuck in the cube. Even now he couldn't make much conversation because this "Mime" kid seemed like he'd try to shove in the spoon of questionable dinner the second he opened his mouth.

(Seriously, what were those black things? Wait, were they... raisins?)

"I swear it's not poisoned!" Mime whined, and Hizashi hadn't even said that out loud so the kid had no reason to suspect he'd think that. Now he really wasn't keen on eating it. He turned his head away and the kid groaned. "Dang it, this would be so much easier if we just had—"

"Mime," Kaitou called sharply, and the boy promptly fell silent. Kaitou seemed fairly irritated now, shoulders tense before relaxing. "Alright, if he doesn't want to eat, then he can just go hungry. We can give him breakfast tomorrow instead."

"Right, guess you have a point," Mime sighed, putting down the bowl. Hizashi startled as he turned back and cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Wait—" He spoke too late, the boy blowing another invisible cube into existence around him. He slumped with a groan, already aware they wouldn't be able to hear him. And he still didn't want to risk using his Quirk and having it bounce back at him.

It seemed like they wanted to keep him for the long haul, which was very bad. He needed to try to get information as soon as possible because everything about these kids set off alarm bells even without the whole hostage situation. With the barrier back in place, he wouldn't be able to do any investigating until they removed it again. Maybe he should have taken the questionable-looking food, if only for the opportunity for a conversation. It wasn't likely they'd actually poison him.

Still, the situation was bad, but not as bad as it could be. At least they weren't torturing him.

The thought had Hizashi's mouth thinning, immediately thinking of that cold, cement room with dried blood and stains on the floors and walls. His teeth grit in apprehension at the memory, of how Lady had said the word months. Shouta had spent months tortured on and off in that hellhole, and now he was in a different one going through who knows what.

These people might be tied to the Alliance. The chances were admittedly slim, but they weren't completely zero. While getting captured wasn't ideal, it might eventually lead him to Shouta. If it did, at least they could get reunited, even if as fellow prisoners. And hey, the others would eventually figure out he went to Odawara and follow the trail from there. Hopefully, anyway.

(Unknown to Hizashi, at that moment a flock of birds had just resumed traveling after a long break near Nagoya, a particularly large hawk carrying a broken phone on order from Kouji.

When the heroes would ping his phone the next day, they'd find the signal in Kyoto, nearly three hours away by train.)

BONUS:

~A Conversation between Aiko and Kurogiri~

"Why are you on the rooftop."

"I am watching the stars, Aiko."

"It is currently cloudy and snowing. There are no stars."

"That's only if you look with your face eyes."

"What does that even mean?"

"I... don't know. I just felt like saying it for some reason. I don't think I regularly said it back then, either. Though if I did, I would probably not remember... or would I...?"

"...Can we just go inside now? Please?"

"I do not want to."

"Giri, it is snowing and you aren't even wearing a coat."

"I do not mind."

"There is a layer of snow on you."

"It does not bother me."

"...When did I become the responsible adult? I am not fit for that role."

"Technically, neither was I."

"..."

"..."

"...Yes, you're right. The stars are probably very pretty tonight."

"Mmhm."

Lots happening in today's chapter. Not much to say, I look forward to your reactions and speculation. Have I mentioned that Aiko REALLY hates Seiko?

By the way, as many of you know, Ignite has a Discord server (code is 6WWwTXU). However, it's not just about Ignite to the Call specifically, but also MHA fan fics in general. One of my hopes is that it'll become a sort of "hub" for multiple fan fics, so people don't have to join a million servers. Two other fan fics, Aftershock (by me and CocoaNerd) and Cut off the Branches (by CocoaNerd and only on AO3) have gotten their own channels on it.

Well, recently we made a new channel for another story that's become popular on our server: Incident Zero by Ya Boy Guzma. It's a take on a world where AFO and All Might die in their battle, just like in Ignite... And Izuku ends up getting AFO in the process. It's a real great story, highly recommend it! You can find it here on FFN pretty easily!

Question for next time: what would be some more creative names/monikers/terms for Aiko to call Seiko? She has had years to come up with stuff, I have not.