Katori joins Todoroki and the others once they are off the ride and she keeps her head down and eyes off of Bakugo. He's not an idiot; he's third in their class. To think that he didn't catch her words would be a fantastical delusion. He heard what she said and his mind is certainly spinning at the realization, but he doesn't say anything to her, and that honestly makes it worse for her. She wants him to yell at her, to accuse her, to force her to say it to him. But he doesn't. He keeps his mouth shut and his cautious eyes on her.
The students move as a group to their next ride when Katori finally gets the courage to glance back at Bakugo. His eyes are dead set and locked on hers. She gulps at his intimidating stare and quickly pulls her head away.
Their next destination is a rollercoaster that Katori vehemently refuses to go on, but Midoriya convinces her it will be fun. She sits next to Todoroki, and when the ride begins, she immediately latches onto his collar and buries her face in his chest for the whole ride. The two-toned boy glances down at the girl, wondering how she can launch herself in the sky using Bakugo's Quirk, but shies away from stable rides like these. Either way, he doesn't seem to mind her hanging on him much.
After their ride they decide it's time for dinner. The sky begins turning with blues and purples and pinks painting the scenery above them. She looks up, smiling at the cotton candy skies, and her heart stops racing for a moment.
She seats the giant stuffed Hawks plushie to her right while Todoroki sits to her left. They order their food and begin eating as a class. Katori doesn't have to look at Bakugo to feel his eyes on her and she just wants this night to be over so she can escape his stolen glares.
Katori notices that Kirishima watches them as well, brows furrowing in confusion at what could have gone wrong between them, despite all his attempts to bring these two together.
They all talk amongst themselves, laughing and having a great time as a collective group. Katori smiles as Jiro forces Kaminari to use his Quirk and fry his brain into stupidity for the sake of a good joke, and she stifles back laughter at the dumb face the blonde makes.
She leans into Todoroki, as she curls into a laugh and his hands land on her shoulders so she doesn't fall over. She looks up at him with a smile, cheeks blaring red as she leans back within the confines of her seat. He sees the blush kissing her cheeks and finds one reaching his own.
Her eyes scan the area of her friends when they land on two turquoise pools that stare daggers into her eyes. Her mouth slightly drops at the sight of the patchy-skinned villain that watches her from across the food court. He leans against a wall behind a ticket booth with his hands in his pockets.
When he sees her eyes on his, she notices a slight shake of his head, as if warning her to stop what she's doing. She swallows hard, feeling her throat collapse under the pressure of his glare.
"I'll be right back," Katori smiles at Todoroki before lifting herself from the table. She turns around to see that some of her friends watch where she is going, so she heads in the opposite direction of the patchy-skinned villain, so not to be seen approaching the likes of him. She's sure he will be following her no matter what direction she moves towards.
She heads towards the restrooms when she makes another turn down an area where trailers are piled next to one another. She stands in a small opening between two trailers where she is completely obscured from her classmates. Within seconds, the black-haired villain turns the corner and saunters towards her with a lopsided grin on his face.
"Gotta say, princess, that dress leaves nothing to the imagination," he rasps with a feral look in his eyes as his turquoise pools scan her up and down with hunger lacing his expression.
"You're a pig," she presses with narrowed eyes and he laughs at her tone, finding her idea of intimidation to be cute.
"Daddy's little girl is starting to act all grown up," he teases her with a lick of his lips.
"Where is my father?" she asks him, her eyes never leaving his in case she needs to assume his Quirk.
"Not pleased with you," he smirks, tearing at the staple at the edges of his lips.
She opens her mouth, preparing to challenge him when she feels herself falling. Her legs catch the ground and she's suddenly no longer at the festival. She looks around frantically, trying to take in her surroundings when she realizes that she is at the League of Villains' hide out. She looks up to see the purple warp gate from the USJ above her, and figures he must have teleported her here.
Within seconds, Dabi jumps down, hands still in his pockets as he lands with ease into the room. He turns his head to her, looking at her through his lashes when she hears her father's voice. "What the hell are you doing?" his voice is low and foreboding. It's a voice she has learned to leave the room when she hears; a voice that means death is imminent.
She looks over at her father who stands at the bar with his arms crossed over his chest. His expression is hard and his furrowed brows and darkness of his eyes show how dissatisfied he is with her.
She gulps at the sight of him, never once in her life seeing him look at her like this. "I…I don't understand…" she croaks as her head falls down to look at her fiddling hands.
"Look at me, Katori," he commands her with a hard tone and her eyes are back on his. "What do you think you are doing?"
Her lips quiver as she speaks, "I'm with my friends…"
"Friends?"
"Classmates," she corrects with a wince. "I'm just with my classmates. We were just eating and—"
"I told you they'd indoctrinate her," Dabi interrupts with a smug grin, proud of himself.
"No one asked you, you patchy-skinned bastard!" she growls at him, lifting her hand up and pressing a blue flame from her fingertips.
"Katori!" her father barks at her and she drops her hand, snapping her attention back to her father before the pyro can return her threat.
"Listen to yourself," he shakes his head. "I didn't teach you to speak with others in this fashion. You're taking after that fowl mouthed blonde you can't seem to stop gawking at." Katori gasps at her father's words, shocked that he's been watching her as closely as he apparently has. "I am so disappointed in you," he says and Katori's heart sinks out of her chest, having never once heard those words come from her father.
"Do you think me foolish?" her father continues to her with a hard-pressed glare. "Why on earth would you be here, laughing and playing games, wearing that," he says, eyes scanning her disapprovingly.
She licks her lips, trying to alleviate her drying mouth. "I'm gaining their trust," she tells him with a whine in her tone. "Dad, I was just trying to—"
"Sir," he corrects her with a harsh hiss.
"Sir," she repeats as her eyes dare to glance over at Dabi who impassively watches the exchange.
"Katori, look me in the eyes and be honest with me. Have your intentions with these students weakened because of your time with them?"
"No, Sir!" she tells him quickly. "I understand my goal."
"And what is your goal?" he asks her.
She swallows hard, "To infiltrate UA under the guise of a student and lure All Might into an isolated place where you can assume his power and dismantle him," she returns softly.
"And are we in an isolated place?" he challenges her.
"No, Sir," she returns.
"And is All Might here for me to assume his power?"
"No, Sir."
"Then why are you acting as though you are one of them?" His words are strict and they take her aback. It's a harsh reminder to her that she is not one of them. She foolishly allowed herself a moment of fun with the rest of the heroes, and for a fleeting moment, she forgot all about her father and her mission.
She looks at her father with watering eyes, fearing him and his disappointment in her. "I'm sorry, Da—Sir," she begins. "I had intentions of gaining their trust, but I took it too far and allowed myself to get carried away. I won't let it happen again," she tells him with a respective bow of the head, knowing these words to calm her father when his underlings do it.
Her father exhales, lowering his shoulders and unlacing his arms from his chest. He knows exactly what she's doing, and saying what he wants to hear. He watched her with those other students and saw the gleam in her eyes. He will have to enact their attack on the students sooner than he would like.
He moves towards her with slow strides, building the tension between them as if he will strike her or move against her, and when he is in front of her, she gulps once more at his proximity. She winces when he places his hand on her shoulder, and he sneers at her for her adverse reaction to him.
"Do what you must to get to All Might," he begins, "But always have in the back of your mind that you are not one of them. Remember that you are a villain, and when they learn of that, they will never accept you as they do now. They don't give a damn about you, like I do, little one," he reminds her now softly. "Remember who has always been here to protect you from anyone who looked to hurt you," he tells with an increasing soft tone. "It was never the heroes who protected us from villains; because that's just how Heroes are; they're hypocrites."
Dabi watches the exchange between Replicant and his daughter with narrowed eyes. His approach is nothing like Endeavor's was, but he can see the clear manipulation and abuse layering behind his soft tone. She doesn't react to her father as someone traditionally does from physical abuse, but he can see the mental manipulation tactics that he uses on her. He's making her believe that she's not safe or wanted anywhere outside of his parameters. And he can see that his words are working on her.
Katori's eyes glisten up at her father, on the verge of tears as her chin quivers at her tone. "Yes, Sir," she responds with a breaking tone.
He glances back at the warp villain and he opens up a new portal. "Go enjoy your dinner," he commands her in a fatherly manner that's laced with an underlaying patronizing tone as she approaches the gate. "And Katori," he calls out to her and she turns back to him. "Keep your hands off that Todoroki boy, you look desperate," he demands with a harsh tone that tells her it's more of a threat.
She nods at him, turning from him and entering the portal. She unclasps her fists when she is back at the festival; the sound of deafening screams and chiming rides all around her. Her heart races wildly and she feels like she's going to have a panic attack. She has never once feared her father, as he has always been nothing but a loving presence in her life, but as she struggles to take in a breath, she feels crippled in the fear.
"Katori!" she hears her name being called out to see Mina running towards her with a frantic wave of her hand. "Where'd you go? Doesn't matter! Let's go, we're all going to ride the rollercoaster again!"
Katori swallows the lump in her throat, not allowing herself to look outwardly distressed and to continue the façade that everything is alright. Her father's words scratch at the back of her head, reminding her that she is not one of them.
She questions herself why she is here, and what this has to do with their mission. Why did she join them? Why did she agree to this when it has nothing to do with luring out All Might? How can she even think about trapping All Might after fighting him and finding true respect for him?
"Hey, are you alright?" she asks, stepping towards her. "You look really pale."
"I'm fine," Katori assures her quickly. "I think I just ate too much cotton candy," she says forcing a shaking smile.
"Oh, maybe don't go on the rollercoaster then," Mina winces with a laugh.
Katori nods as she joins the pink skinned girl to the table where the rest of the students sit. She takes her seat next to Todoroki and her stuffed Hawks. The two-toned boy glances over to her as he finishes up is food. "Are you alright?" he asks her, seeing the shock still lacing her eyes.
She shakes the feeling out of her head, reminding herself that she needs to get a hold of her emotions. "Yeah, sorry, I'm not feeling too well. I think I ate too much cotton candy," she tells him as she told Mina, sticking to that weak story.
"Do you want me to take you home?" he asks, looking at her with upturned concerned brows.
She almost wants to laugh at that idea, not sure where home even is for her anymore. She's been sleeping at UA for a while now, but where she sleeps doesn't make it her home. She used to live in a large house, paid for by the money her father made as a high ranking Yakusa. She cherished that home and the villains who kept her safe in it while her father was away.
But she cannot return to that house with her father and she wonders if she ever will be. When this all comes to light and everyone learns about her, where will her father's plan lead them? He's never been one to keep her involved in the details of his plans, but as they begin to come to fruition, she can't help but fear what will come of the life that she's built here.
Before she hated sleeping at UA, missing her father and his company so much. Now, it seems to be the closest thing she has to a home, because at least there, no one is disappointed in her.
"No," she says shaking her head. "But I think I'm going to skip the rollercoaster."
"I'll wait with you then," he says in a comforting tone that flutters her heart. She tries to push the feeling out of her stomach, knowing what her father said and his history with the Todoroki family. No wonder he was so disappointed with her.
She looks up at the two-toned boy, looking into his eyes and seeing the care in them and she wonders how he fakes it with her as her father believes him to. She wonders what Todoroki will do when he finds out that she is a villain. Will he kick her to the curb as her father tells her he and the others will?
She glances around at all of the people she came here with. She looks at each of their smiles and infectious laughter. She thinks about how their expressions will change when they find out that she is a villain. Will they still laugh with her? Will they still smile with her? Will they still care to wait with her when she doesn't want to go on the rides?
Her eyes land on the hard red stare of Bakugo who watches her with cautious intent. 'He knows'. But why is he not saying anything to her? Why is he allowing her to continue to smile and laugh with her friends?
Classmates.
Their eyes land on one another, lingering and challenging the other to turn away, but neither's stare falters.
'Just do it,' she tells him with his eyes. 'Just out me and let this nightmare be over already.' She can't find the strength to come out and tell them all who she is, but if Bakugo does it; he will be freeing her from this imprisonment her father has placed on her.
Katori ends up being the one to break the bond of their stares, looking up at Todoroki as she says, "I think I am going to head out. I'm not feeling very well."
Before the two-toned boy can offer her a ride home or react to her words, she turns away from him, feeling a heavy sinking in her chest at everything that's transpired today.