II. Cast Aside
Momo hardly ever used public transportation, but she did know how things worked. The rattle of the bus did little to break her concentration as she tried to make head and tails of her current situation. She had awoken in the hospital, the doctor claiming that she fell from a platform during training.
She scoffed at the memory, she wouldn't do anything as careless as that. Mr. Aizawa had visited her soon after, expressing the same confusion towards her injury. With her memories foggy, it taken a few days for her to fully recall what led up to all this. She distinctly remembered being at the book shop with Todoroki, then there was a bright light and… what happened afterwards was a blank in her mind. She could only conclude that somebody's quirk had put her into this state…
The bus rattled once more as it hit a bump in the road, causing her to sigh quietly. Sure, she could have asked a chauffeur to drive her to her destination, but she wasn't up to explaining why she was going there.
She went back to her thoughts, further evaluating her current dilemma. If this trip proved to be fruitful, then… She shook her head, she wasn't sure what it was supposed to mean.
The biggest surprise when she entered the classroom after being released form the hospital was no doubt the person sitting in the seat next to hers. It was Inasa Yoarashi, a student from Shiketsu High in her reality, but a full-fledged UA student here.
She didn't dislike him, his positive and jovial demeanour sure did liven up the classroom, too, but she couldn't help but feel like it was just… wrong. She didn't hold it against Yoarashi, not in any shape or form, it wasn't his fault after all, but… That place was Todoroki's.
Curling a strand of hair between her fingers, Momo's gaze swept over the countryside landscape zooming past the window, blurring into an array of greens and browns. Why did this place have to be located so far out of town? At least it wasn't at the other end of the country, she was grateful for that much. Her hand left her hair, reaching into her bag instead where she made sure she had the item she was going to need for this.
Convincing Mr. Aizawa had been easier than expected, but it didn't change the fact that the truth left an uncomfortable knot in her stomach. How could… How could this have happened?
She shook her head slightly. Focus, she needed to focus.
An automated voice announced the next stop, and she leaned against the window. This was going to take a while more…
"Visitor's permit?" The man at the reception desk asked dryly, not even bothering to look up from his magazine.
She slid the permit, along with her student ID, through the small available slot. The man finally looked up, and with a heavy sigh he cross-checked the information. "You're cleared. Head to room 316, the occupant will be granted permission to speak to you." The man slid a map along with her papers back towards her, promptly returning to his magazine.
She could only frown at his terrible manners. Regardless, it was not her place to comment on it, and she had more important things to do. Taking the map and her belongings, she made her way down the corridor, offering a polite nod to the guards she passed on the way. They didn't seem to take notice of her, and if they did, they chose not to show it.
The atmosphere the building held was… stale, at best. Depressing was a more accurate word to describe it. She climbed the stirs in complete silence, her steps echoing in the empty building. Ghostly would be another suitable term. Step for step, she came closer to room 316.
A guard was positioned outside, scrolling through his phone, probably while waiting for her.
"Excuse me?" Momo approached the guard, keeping her tone polite.
He seemed startled at first. "Ah, the visitor, yes?" he paused, furrowing his brows. "Although I am a bit concerned as to why a young lady is visiting a place like this… are you a relative? He hardly gets any visitors…"
I'm his friend, is what she wanted to answer, but she pulled herself together and gave the official reason. "I'm doing some research for a school project. I thought it'd be beneficial to speak to somebody my age for this…"
"I'm not really sure I understand, but I hope this helps your studies, young lady." The guard chuckled, unlocking the door for her. "I'll check in on you every twenty minutes, but you'll be granted privacy until then. You are free to leave anytime."
"Thank you." She walked past him into the dimly lit room. A chair was positioned in front of a glass wall, along with a small table. And behind the glass was…
Todoroki.
But was it the Todoroki she knew? She couldn't be sure yet, so she pulled out the chair, making enough noise to alert him that somebody had entered the room. He looked up in surprise, his messy bangs framing suspicious eyes. The person in front of her was a far cry from the usually neat boy she knew, much to her dismay. He was looking at her like a scared animal would, apprehensively looking for a way to run away.
She put on the best smile she could muster, biting back the tears that threatened to come. It hurt to see him like this. "Hello, my name is Momo Yaoyorozu." She introduced herself.
"…You came to visit me, I'm sure you already know my name." Todoroki responded after a few minutes of silence.
"Won't you introduce yourself to me anyway?" The smile on her lips was hard to keep up. Especially when he was looking at her like that. "It's basic courtesy."
He didn't trust her. His eyes said it loud and clear. He didn't trust her… She pulled herself together, she had prepared herself for this mentally. But there was only so much that preparation could do.
"… I'm the inmate of room 316. Shouto Todoroki."
The word "inmate" sounded so harsh, but she couldn't even begin to imagine what things must be like here. At least the receptionist chose to use the formal word "occupant".
"…what does some random girl want from me?" He asked gruffly, eyes narrowing further at her. "…did my family send you?"
Momo had considered asking his family, but she wasn't sure how to explain that she knew him… after all, in this world, he had spent the past five years in a mental correctional facility.
Being called a random girl on the other hand kind of stung, but once again, she did her best to dismiss the emotion. "No, I merely wanted to talk to you."
"Talk to me? Why?" He sounded so incredulous, as if the idea itself was like saying that pigs grew on trees. "Nobody… "
She did come here with the small hope that he'd recognize her, and they could work on getting out of this together, but with that possibility falling flat, she had to resort to plan B. Figure out what happened. Somehow. She wasn't entirely sure of how she was going to accomplish this, but she knew she'd find a way.
"Todoroki…" He perked up at the sound of his name. "…what do you think about heroes?"
"Heroes…?" His eyes swept downwards, then back to her face. "…that uniform… is like… father's old one. You're from UA?"
He didn't look happy about it. Maybe she should have changed into a different outfit…? On the other hand, she wasn't sure if they'd accept her student ID if she was in casual wear, and officially she was here on school business. "I am. But don't think too much of it. I do not have any affiliations with your father."
"Heroes…" Todoroki looked to the side. "I wanted to be a hero when I was younger."
She had expected him to be a lot angrier about the topic, even prepared herself emotionally to be screamed at, but the defeat in his voice was… honestly, it was a lot worse. It hurt.
"But that's out of the question now." He went on, closing his eyes briefly. "I'm stuck here until the foreseeable future. I still don't know how this interests you in any way, …what was your name again?"
"Yaoyorozu."
"…Yaoyorozu." He said flatly. "I'm sure you have more worthwhile things to do than hang out in a dump like this."
"I don't see what the problem is." The smile she mustered this time was filled with sadness. "I'm merely talking to somebody who's my age, somebody who…" She chose not to finish that sentence, not yet at least.
"You're attending one of the most prestigious schools in the country." He pointed out flatly. "Are you telling me there are no people your age there?"
She laughed a bit at that. "There are, there are. But…" This would probably be a sore topic for him, but she had to take the risk. Stringing together the words in the best way she could, she cleared her throat. "Don't you think you'd have attended UA as well, if the circumstances were different? Who knows, we might have even been classmates… I was curious."
He flinched visibly. "I don't think about useless dreams and possibilities."
She couldn't say that she understood, but she could imagine the painful thought of never being able to become a hero. She fiddled with the hem of her skirt, then quickly clenched her fingers into determined fists. "Todoroki." She said firmly.
"What?"
"Will you be my friend?" She made sure to look him in the eyes, hoping he would understand how serious she was about this.
He stared at her, his expression morphing between different emotions. "…what?"
"Can we be friends?" She asked again.
"Do you even know why I'm here?" He leaned forward, coming closer to the glass, a grimace on his face. A palm pressed against the clear surface as he glowered at her. "Do you really want to be friends with somebody like me?"
"I'm sure…" I know… "…you are a kind person, deep down."
Todoroki backed away from the glass, putting distance between them. "Do as you will. Don't say I didn't warn you." A pause. "I think we're done here."
She couldn't force him to do anything he didn't want to, and he was starting to look uncomfortable. She could only take what she could get. "Thank you for talking to me. I'm sure I will be back soon."
He didn't answer anymore. With a soft sigh, she exited the room.
"Good evening, until the next time we meet." She bowed her head slightly to the guard.
"Wait, you're coming back?" He asked, confused. "This really isn't the best place to spend your free time. Youth is short-lived, you know?"
She merely smiled in response. Todoroki was her friend, whether he knew it or not.
"Where'd you rush off to after school yesterday?" Jirou inquired between mouthfuls of food. "You were super nervous about it. Something family-related?"
"Ah, no, it was… a personal errand." She explained vaguely. Jirou didn't know who Todoroki was, after all. And if she did, it was only because she'd heard the false rumours regarding him and what he supposedly did.
"Personal errand? Now I'm really interested!" Ashido joined the conversation, flopping down onto a nearby chair. "Tell us, tell us!"
"It's really nothing that would concern you." Momo waved it off. "More importantly, about today's math lesson, …"
"Math?! How is math more important than your personal life?!" Ashido pushed out her bottom lip into a pout. "Yaomomoooo, your priorities are all wrong. We're young, we gotta have fun! It's the perfect age for friendship and romance to blossom!"
"…Romance?" Momo muttered hesitantly. "I think we're all a bit too young for that…"
"No! We're at the perfect age!" Ashido pumped a fist into the air. "Highschool sweethearts, blossoming, brief romances, the couple that will never confess to each other until ten years later, it all happens during your high school years!"
This conversation seemed familiar, she was sure she'd heard it before. Sometimes, she wished she could be as energetic as Ashido. As optimistic, as well. But… Now was not the time for that. There were more pressing matters at hand.
"Oi, Miss Number One Student." Jirou waved a hand in front of her face, snapping her out of her thoughts.
"Oh sor- wait, what did you just call me?"
"Huh? Miss Number One Student?" Jirou seemed confused. "What's wrong with it? You're our class' top student, remember?"
"No, I'm n-" She cut herself off. Wait, did that still apply in this reality? Todoroki wasn't here, Yoarashi was terrible at academics… She glanced over at Bakugou and Midoriya, what about them? Did she truly surpass them here?
"Yaomomo, are feeling okay? You seem a bit out of it…"
She shook her head quickly. "I'm fine."
It was true.
She closed the copy of the school magazine with a sigh. How did it come to this? Was it because of her strive to be the best? Was she trapped in some sort of psyche-based illusion?
How was she supposed to break out of it? Renounce the number one position?
Another thought nagged at her, whispering treacherous speculations. Did she, deep down, see Todoroki as an obstacle?
Was that the real reason things came to this? No, she shook her head. Surely not. She wasn't… envious of him. Or… was she?
[-]
He needed to talk to her. Say… something. Shouto knew she probably wouldn't take well to him apologizing, but it was the only possibility that his mind could come up with. He groaned in defeat, rubbing his forehead.
He had to fix this, somehow. Even though he knew this wasn't part of his reality, he couldn't stand the thought of it, the sight of her stuck in a position like this. It was just… wrong. There was no other word to describe it, and if his selfish desires led to this, it was his responsibility to take care of it.
"How did it go?"
Shouto looked up at the source of the voice, frowning when he saw Mr. Aizawa leaning against the window next to the empty seat. A quick glance in the other direction told him the others had already left the classroom for their lunch break.
"About as well as you can imagine." He answered hesitantly.
"I told you not to expect too much." Aizawa sighed. "I went to talk to her about her admission to UA, which will probably be forcibly removed soon. Somebody with limited mobility will prove to be a liability at some point."
His teacher's words were harsh, but not without truth. Even with support items, even with her quirk, it was going to be difficult for her to become a hero.
"Couldn't Recovery Girl do anything?" Shouto inquired. "I'm sure tha-"
"Too much time had passed by then." Aizawa frowned. "I shouldn't be telling you this, but… all the passengers on that plane would be dead if Yaoyorozu hadn't been there. She used her quirk without authorization to create lifeboats and other necessities for everyone and exhausted herself to the point her own body couldn't keep up with any attempts at self-recovery. By the time external forces finally found them, and the whole quirk part was covered up from the media, by the time Recovery Girl was called in…" He shook his head. "I trust you to keep quiet about this."
"…why did you tell me all this?"
"I didn't tell you anything, remember?" Aizawa turned away. "But… I'm not sure. Teacher's instinct, I guess."
Shouto ran his fingers across the cover of the book, tracing each character carefully. He remembered when Yaoyorozu had seen it in his bookshelf, fervently asking him to loan it to her because she had been looking for that particular book for some time.
They were supposed to work on a school project together, but that day mostly consisted of her raiding his bookshelves. The memory brought a small smile to his face. He'd make sure he could return to that reality.
The elevator dinged, alerting his arrival on the fourth floor. He put the book back into his bag and made his way to her hospital room.
Momo Yaoyorozu.
He took a deep breath. His fist hovered over the door, and just as he was about to knock, somebody tapped his shoulder. It was the nurse from the other day.
"I'm surprised you came back." She smiled gratefully. "Most people don't."
"I… came to give her something. As an apology for what I said." He wasn't sure why he was telling the nurse this, but it seemed to appease her.
"Thank you. I can tell you are a very kind person. Please be patient with her… she… she's having a hard time accepting this."
Shouto nodded numbly. Readying himself once more, he knocked.
Yaoyorozu openly glared at him when he entered. "You again? Are you here to ask me more unnecessary questions?"
He shook his head. "My words probably don't mean much to you, but I am sorry." He placed the book on the table next to her bed. "I think… you'll enjoy this one. I'll take my leave now."
With that, he turned around, ready to leave again.
"Wait. Why…" He glanced over his shoulder at her when she called out. She looked troubled. "Why are you doing this? How did you even find this book?"
He could tell she was trying not to reach for the book. That she was curious, maybe even a little bit excited. It was small little things like this that reassured him that there was still hope. If he could get her to speak to him normally, then…
It still felt wrong to ask her for advice, but maybe she could help him regardless.
"I said some insensitive things the other day. I'm sorry." But today wasn't the day for deeper conversations. He'd come back another time for that.
"Are you excited for the sports festival, Todoroki?" Midoriya asked over lunch. Iida and Uraraka were at the table with them.
Excited was probably the wrong word. "I guess." He answered anyway.
"I must admit, ever since Bakugou punched you, you have been a more sensible person." Iida said. It was almost as if they all liked to rub in the part where Bakugou punched him.
"Is that so?" He feigned ignorance. It wasn't like he could say that he was basically a different person at this point in time.
"Yep, it's true." Uraraka quipped in. "You're a lot nicer now, too!"
"I see. Thank you." Having this conversation felt awkward. He wasn't sure what to say without being too different from back then.
It felt so wrong. His father was gleefully laughing on the side-lines while he received the first place medal from All Might.
This world hadn't just affected Yaoyorozu. Bakugou and Midoriya too…
This… this is not what he wanted.
He didn't deserve this medal.
When he came home, a familiar scent greeted him.
"Ah Shouto, come, come, sit down!" His sister called him excitedly. "I made your favourite!"
She looked so happy, so proud of him. He entered the dining room, seeing that the table had already been set. Fuyumi grabbed him by his shoulders and steered him towards his seat, the wide smile on her face never fading.
"You did so well." She said gently. "Congratulations."
He could barely muster a thanks as she rushed back into the kitchen.
He loved her cooking. More than anything, he loved her soba. But… somehow… he had lost all his appetite.
He had strived for first place so badly all the time, but now that he actually could hold it in his hands, all he wanted to do was throw it away as possible.
"I believe congratulations are in order." Yaoyorozu said quietly. Her hands were clasped in her lap, resting on the book he had brought by the other day.
"Thank you." He muttered quickly.
Back then, Yaoyorozu had congratulated him as well, but it had held more meaning. She was part of the team that helped him to victory back then. This time, she was merely an observer.
"…did you like the book?"
"I have to admit, it's suspicious that you would know what kind of books I read." She finally looked over to where he was standing. At least she seemed calmer. That was good.
But he didn't have an answer to that. He could hardly tell her that he knew her and her preferences. "You… seemed like that kind of person."
"You're surprisingly sharp if you could deduce that from two meetings, one at which we didn't even talk to each other." She frowned. "First you ask about my well—being, then you bring a book. Why? What are your reasons for being kind to me?"
He wasn't sure himself, to be honest. This Yaoyorozu was a stranger, after all. He could have very well left her here and try to find a way back without ever talking to her again. However, if this really was his fault… if this reality was his doing… he had to do something.
"It's not as if our families are connected, or as if you owe me anything. I don't understand." She went on when he didn't respond. "Do you… perhaps… want me to do something for you?"
Todoroki was a terrible liar, especially when it came to lying to her. Remaining silent would be best for now, changing the topic too abruptly wouldn't help either.
"I'm right, aren't I?" She sounded… sad. Disappointed. "Well, I'm afraid I'm not of much use anymore, so maybe you should ask someb-"
"That's not true." He interrupted her. "You're not useless. You never will be."
"…what?"
"Excuse me, I have to leave now." He cut their session short, leaving as abruptly as he came. He had to watch his words, if he said too much he might not be able to fix it again. He had reached a point where she would talk to him normally, and he was determined to keep it that way.
He glanced back as he closed the door behind him, catching one last look at her surprised expression.
[-]
Momo stood under a nearby shelter as she waited for the next bus. The hard drumming of raindrops meeting plastic echoed around her.
She sighed, slowly clutching the fabric of her shirt. Envy? Jealousy?
They were friends, she shouldn't have such despicable feeling towards him. They had to support each other, no matter what. No matter what…
The bus pulled up in front her, but she didn't get in.
[-"These hands could hold the world
but it will never be enough."-]
AN: Heyoo~ I hope this chapter clears up some stuff xD
as always, I'd love to hear your thoughts :))