29/06/2021
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The Emperor's Dragon
Nestling 56
Hisashi nodded to Izuku who was sitting with Gigantomachia. Then he hit dial on his phone. It was a replacement phone. His original had been destroyed. Even if it had been retrieved, it was mined to destroy the memory if anyone but him tried to open it.
It rang for a few moments before the line connected and then a man's voice spoke. "Who is this?" The question was imperious.
"I think you know Koichi," All For One said flatly.
There was silence for several seconds. "Hisashi!" Shock now infused the man's voice. "Oh my God, Hisashi!" he gasped.
All For One felt his lips quirk. "Did you think such a thing would kill me?"
"I can't be talking to you," the man said.
"Koichi," Hisashi chided, almost gently but Gigantomachia and Izuku could both hear the warning note in his voice.
"I can't," the man repeated.
"Why not?"
"The things they are saying about you! The things you've done! Hisashi, you are a wanted man. Except you are meant to be dead."
"I am not dead," All For One said almost gently.
"The things you've done!" The man said again.
"What have I supposedly done?"
The man spluttered. "Kidnapping. Murder. Human Trafficking. Drugs. Human experimentation! The list would be shorter to name what you haven't done!"
"And you believed them?" Hisashi asked.
Izuku actually crouched where he was sitting with Gigantomachia at the side of the room. The huge man shifted one hand to rest comfortingly on Izuku's shoulder, which calmed him down.
"I don't know what to think!"
All For One sighed theatrically, making sure the sound was picked up by the phone. "You of all people should know that the truth is subjective. You know the way of the world, Koichi, or should I say Kachi?"
The man on the other end of the phone gasped, and took a deep breath. They could almost see the way he was tired. "What do you want, Hisashi?" he asked finally.
"I want what I always want, Koichi, and what you promised me," All For One replied. "In this case, I want access to the HPSC's healers."
"Oh God… I can't, Hisashi," the man begged when he said the words. "You are meant to be dead! Even if you aren't there's too much attention at the moment to do anything."
Izuku watched as his father thought for a few moments. "How long?" Hisashi asked eventually, his voice saying that he was willing to accept a short wait.
"I don't know!" Koichi replied. "Probably never. Hisashi you are damaged. Your reputation is gone. I can't… If I even mention you, I'd be gone!"
"That is the price you agreed to pay."
"I can't. I just can't. I want to help you Hisashi. I really do but I can't."
"That is your decision then?"
Izuku could see his father's lips push together. It was somewhat reassuring. He had seen that look a few times when he'd been suspended from school and went to work with his dad. It didn't mean good things but at the same time, it meant that his dad was feeling better. But seeing it made Izuku reaffirm to himself that he never wanted that expression directed towards him.
On the phone, they could hear Koichi take a few deep breaths. "I want to Hisashi, I really do. You've done so much for me but…" At that they heard him swallow hard. "I can't. I just can't."
All For One was silent for a few moments. Izuku watched as his Dad took a few deep breaths. "Well, I understand," he said finally.
"You do?" Koichi sounded surprised.
"Of course," Hisashi was conciliatory. "It's a difficult time and you never expected to be exposed. I understand it."
Izuku could tell that the man on the phone was feeling relieved. "Thank you, Hisashi. Any other time I would but I just ca-"
"Say no more," All For One interrupted. "I will not contact you again," he added.
"Thank you! I won't…" Koichi was still breathing hard. "I won't tell them you survived."
Hisashi said nothing to that. He simply hung up and silence spread through the room. It was heavy and Izuku wasn't sure what to do. Gigantomachia still hadn't moved.
"I expected that," All For One said eventually.
"Dad?" Izuku asked. He was kind of proud that his voice was stable.
Hisashi turned towards his son, using his new sight quirk. "I help people Izuku, you know that, right?"
"Yes."
"I helped Koichi many years ago. His name was Kachi and he didn't have a quirk."
Izuku gasped at that. He knew what that felt like.
"And all I asked in return was that he help me out, every now and then," All For One continued.
"But…" Izuku objected. Koichi hadn't helped this time.
"Yes. He has decided that he can't help. I am not surprised, Izuku. I am disappointed but I am not surprised. Koichi, despite being someone I used to be able to trust, isn't family. And remember what I told you about family? You told me about it earlier."
"Family doesn't betray you," Izuku said seriously.
"Family doesn't betray you," All For One repeated. "But family isn't just blood, Izuku," he continued. "Family is both more and less than that," he explained but he could see that his son didn't really understand it. He gestured, and Gigantomachia lifted his hand so that Izuku could come over to him.
Izuku came over and looked up at him. "What do you mean?"
"Family is more than blood," Hisashi said again. "Family are those who have proven themselves to you, who will follow you through anything. Family are those who you can trust, who will die before they betray you."
He saw Izuku blink at that.
"Gigantomachia is family," All For One told his son. The huge man said nothing.
"Kurogiri?" Izuku said the name as a question.
"Yes," Hisashi agreed.
"The Doctor?"
"Not quite family but close," he agreed with his son and waited to see if Izuku would add another name.
"Will my friends be family?" Izuku asked.
All For One timed his breathing with the oxygen pump that was still giving him air. "Maybe someday," he decided. Hitoshi would be. He'd made sure of that. Uraraka and Himiko were both unknowns but there was a possibility they would stand with his son against all comers. He hadn't missed that his son hadn't mentioned Tomura. It was telling. The alliance between them was obviously one of convenience. It might yet become something more permanent or it might not. Either way, he would be entertained watching it.
Izuku was used to real answers from him, rather than the sugar coated versions most parents gave their children. His son nodded before he looked to the ground.
Hisashi could tell something was wrong. "What is it?" he probed.
"Why-" Izuku sniffed and then gulped. "Why did All Might attack you?" he asked in a rush.
It was a question he had been expecting. Kurogiri, Tomura and the Doctor had made it clear to Izuku that he had been attacked by the Number One Hero, and they had told him that Izuku was upset about that. Of course, Izuku knew well enough that the Heroes had been looking for him. But now it was time to reinforce that the Heroes were not all that they seemed.
"My Little Dragon, you know the government doesn't like the way I help people."
"Why though?" Izuku demanded. "You are just helping people!"
It was good that Izuku remembered that. "They don't like it because it challenges them. Imagine what would happen to Koichi if they knew he was quirkless?" All For One asked his son.
"No one would like him," Izuku said softly, recalling his own experience.
"And if they found out that Koichi had power?" Hisashi prompted.
Izuku shook his head. He knew the answer but he didn't want to say it.
"Little Dragon?"
"They wouldn't be happy."
"They wouldn't," All For One confirmed. "They would most likely remove him from office. It would not be nice, so I do understand why he betrayed me. Koichi has lost his courage. He has lost the drive to change society. That's why he said all those things. He has been seduced by the society that used to hate him. He's forgotten what society is like to those who don't conform. That's why he wouldn't help me."
"That's not right," Izuku objected.
"I know, My Little Dragon. I know. That's why I want to change the world. That's why All Might attacked me. He," Hisashi took a deep breath and shook his head. "He doesn't know better, and I'm afraid, as the Number One Hero, he will never know better."
All For One did not react when his son nodded, but internally he was pleased. He was prepared to spend further time convincing Izuku of his truth but it was better that his son was already accepting. It gave him a base to work on.
"Izuku," he said his son's name seriously. He saw the way his child stiffened and looked at him, recognising his tone as the instruction to listen carefully. "I learned long ago, that I could stand up to any hero but that won't make changes. Not by myself. Therefore I need help but… you've just seen it, who can I trust? Those I help? No. Koichi means well but he isn't steadfast and he's not the first to betray me.
"And I've told you, that I need both you and Tomura. But, the original plan called for you to support me," Hisashi sighed. "Now, My Little Dragon, I think you will have to replace me."
"No!" Izuku's objection was instantaneous. "No! I can't replace you. I won't replace you!"
"I'm not going to die, Izuku. But I will have to take a step back. I can no longer be the face of change. That will be you."
"No! I don't want to!"
"Izuku," All For One said gently. "You are my son. You are my heir. It is your birth right, and I will be there," he pressed home that statement. "And it won't be for several years. You are still in school."
For some reason that caused Izuku to burst into tears.
"Little Dragon?"
Izuku just kept crying. All For One glanced over at Gigantomachia but the huge man shook his head, indicating he didn't know what was wrong.
"They don't…" Izuku managed to choke. "They don't understand!"
"What don't they understand?"
"They don't understand what happened," he howled.
That made sense. Izuku's friends would still believe that Heroes were good people and that society was right and just. They hadn't experienced the other side of society. They probably wouldn't. Well, not as bad as it could get. Himiko's quirk, being blood based, would be accepted so long as she didn't use it, and Hitoshi… Publicly, society would be against him but Hisashi knew there were those who would see his quirk as great resource. That might still happen, but Hitoshi would be loyal to Izuku.
"Don't be too hard on them, Little Dragon," Hisashi said. "You will have to teach them, and guide them, so that they do understand."
"But…" He heard Izuku swallow snot. "I can't just say All Might is bad."
"No, but you can point out the failings of Heroes. You can point out where society fails those without quirks, or those with quirks deemed wrong. I think you might find your friends are more sympathetic than you believe."
Himiko would be. She'd befriended Izuku when he was supposedly quirkless. Hitoshi would support him, even without the insurance. Uraraka was the one he wasn't sure about. He had helped her parents but that may not translate into her loyalty.
Hisashi heard Izuku sniff and then his son nodded. "Will you help me?" he asked softly.
"That's not even a question, My Little Dragon!" All For One was offended. "Of course I will! I told you, I will support you in everything,"
"Thank you," Izuku whispered before he moved forward again and put his arms around his father's waist and held on.
All For One raised his hand and placed it on his son's head. "I will always support you," he repeated.
-ted-
Shouta Aizawa thought he had a pretty good poker face. At least, he thought he did until Scarab started laughing at him.
"Kid, what's got you so worked up?" The older hero asked.
Shouta looked over to the woman. He didn't know much about her. He hadn't looked into it and he knew, even if he did that there wouldn't be much information on her. You didn't remain an underground hero for as long as she'd been one if people could find your information. He did know that she was at least in her mid forties which made her something of a legend in the Underground Heroic community, such as it was.
He hid his face in his scarf but didn't deny anything.
"Come on, sit with me," Scarab instructed as she swung her legs over the side of the building they were standing on. She patted the spot beside her.
He complied, still not saying anything.
"I'm gonna guess that you are pissed about Toxic Chainsaw," Scarab said, looking out at the city lights.
He had no tells. He knew he had no tells but somehow, Scarab knew she'd hit the mark. "Yeah, I thought so," she said after a moment. "You're sensible, so I know you aren't upset that we didn't get credit."
Shouta gave a sharp nod at that. He didn't want credit. That would mean having to talk to the media and that… Urgh. Thankfully Scarab thought the same.
"So it's gotta be something else." Scarab was silent for a few moments before she began laughing.
Shouta glared but that just caused Scarab to laugh harder.
"Oh kid!" She chuckled before leaning back and looking up at the stars. "You're pissed All Might got the credit!"
He said nothing and eventually Scarab recovered and tilted forwards again. She looked over at him, her mask covering her features except for her eyes. Aizawa could see that they were sincere. "He didn't have a choice," she said seriously.
"What do you mean?" Shouta demanded.
"All Might didn't have a choice," Scarab repeated.
He didn't say anything but Scarab knew he still needed an explanation.
"The HPSC didn't tell me much," she said. "But, you heard about the fight down in Mie?"
Shouta nodded. He didn't follow the news much but Hizashi had pointed out the discrepancies in the reporting. His friend had noted that originally the news was saying the damage was bad, but then the incident disappeared. Hizashi paid attention to that sort of thing because he wanted to start a radio show. Even if it was going to be talk back, news was an important part of radio.
"All Might took out someone. They won't say who, which tells me that whoever it was, was really bad news. Bad enough that the government doesn't want the public to know."
"So they are using Toxic Chainsaw as a cover?" Shouta asked, already knowing the answer.
"Yep," Scarab said, leaning back again. "But it's more than that. Usually when one of us undergrounds takes out someone big, we brush it under the carpet."
Shouta nodded. There was no, or only limited reporting on what underground heroes did. It was usually because it wasn't exciting. They did the type of things that made things better, but no one really knew about. Taking out muggers, or robbers was important but against a full scale battle in the middle of the day, no one cared.
"When we can't keep it quiet, you'll be asked to nominate a Hero to take the credit. Or the HPSC will suggest one." Scarab shrugged. "This time it was All Might but it's part of their contracts. They have to take credit for our achievements."
He'd sort of known that but… All Might. The man didn't need the extra credit.
"Usually I nominate Agent Silver to take my credit," Scarab told him.
Shouta didn't know the name.
"She's about rank 500. We went to school together," Scarab explained. "But when the HPSC tells you that they are giving the credit to someone else, you go along with it. And really, I was just thankful it wasn't Endeavor."
Shouta looked at Scarab closely.
"You'll find out kid," she shrugged. "Look, it wasn't All Might's fault that he got the credit and I know he probably doesn't want it but them's the breaks. So let it go."
Aizawa took a deep breath and then blew it out into his capture weapon before he nodded.
Scarab looked at him, her eyes half closed. "Good kid."
-ted-
Lesson 1 for Izuku - don't be afraid to help people but make sure they pay you.
Lesson 2 for Izuku - be subtle when educating your friends about the corruption of society.
Lesson 1 for Aizawa - when the HPSC says something, you go along with it.
Lesson 2 for Aizawa - think! You are an underground hero and therefore have to be smarter than the others.
-ted-
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