Valkyrie.
When Hawks first heard that name, he never fully understood the meaning or the term.
No, he never fully felt the same bone crushing and heart stopping terror that everyone else around him seemed to emulate, he never saw what everyone else was talking about, he never felt any once of fear at the word, mostly because their existence was all just simple stories and rumors. That's all it seemed to be to him.
Even when his little sister used that name for the first time, Hawks still couldn't connect the two together. Yes, he had seen cruel things from the girl that shared his bloodline but it was utter and complete denial that always seemed to cloud his mind so many times, protecting him from the reality that the mystical monster and his sister were the same.
But as a heavy pained scream filled the area and his own heart twisted in pain, the bird watched through blurring unsteady eyes as the villain, the true villain she had always claimed to be so many times before, seemed to emerge from inside Hikari.
No, that wasn't Hikari. Not anymore at least.
Taking one look at her gaze, the bird could tell she was in chaos, the life behind her own eyes growing fully detached from her sanity as a sort of predatory instinct seemed to awaken in her.
But as her own body moved towards Dabi, her feathers seemed to do the exact opposite, all of them detaching in an instant, almost like she couldn't control them as they flew around the room in a crimson rage.
They slashed into walls and the ceiling above with mindless nature, one of them coming straight towards Keigo before slicing a deep line across his cheek, the bird ducking to avoid any more damage.
Looking down at his own hands, the bird shivered at the action before running a finger across the gash only to find blood upon the surface of his black gloves. Hikari had just hurt him without a second thought.
A part of him wanted to scold her for such a behavior, given that they were on the same side only for the bird to clearly see that Hikari wasn't even paying attention to the damage around her nor had she made any motion to stop it.
No, her clouded and teary eyes were only locked on one thing and one thing only, the one that betrayed her and made a fool of her the most, Dabi.
Just then, her brother recalled the conversation they shared at his apartment when she almost impaled him with her feathers after waking up from a nightmare. Hikari told him that she couldn't control her quirk sometimes, that her feathers acted on their own.
Back then, Hawks was certainly concerned for her, knowing that their quirks and wings reacted based on emotion. The stronger the emotion, the more dangerous and lethal it became.
So much so that Hawks knew firsthand just how much inner turmoil Hikari had always inside of her, given that her feathers were so incredibly strong, strong enough to kill.
In order to accomplish that level of precision, you had to be so incredibly emotional distraught after all, screaming inside yourself to the point of insanity. Hawks wasn't fooled, he knew what kind of dark things always seemed to lie behind her eyes and in her heart.
She couldn't hide her inner torment from him after all, not when his quirk acted on the same principles, not when he was forced to suffer for the same results at the commission.
But this, this was something new entirely.
Because seeing her now, it was clear to tell that Hikari's mind was completely gone, that the betrayal of Dabi had completely pushed her off the edge, so much so that her own broken and dark emotions had now consumed her entirety, leaving nothing but the monster before them.
Blurs of red crimson began to circle the area all at once, her feathers moving in no particular direction as both Hawks and the president watched silently, too stunned to move as they truly took in the full presence that was Valkyrie.
Even Dabi seemed to be speechless at the sight, silent blood pooling under the stitches of his eyes as he watched Hikari race towards him with a bloodlust from deep within, her hands shaking and knuckles white from the grip on her feathered sword.
Everything about her was so unlike her, so un-Hikari like in every way that Dabi couldn't help but take a silent step back as Valkyrie descended on him all at once, sword raised with calculated intent.
Before it made contact though, the stitched man seemed to wake up from his own dream before forcing his hands outwards as blue inferno spread just inches from her face, enough for the villain to dodge the attack.
Hikari didn't seem phased though, not caring about the danger or the consequences from his quirk in order to simply step through the flames as her skin began to sizzle and burn with close contact before gritting her teeth and appearing on the other side of the fire filled wall with emotionless intent.
Gazing at the sizzling skin and burns upon her arms, Dabi faltered once more, his eyes widening for a fraction of a second before his own quirk deactivated with sudden surprise. "That's not a very smart move, Princess. You'll kill yourself that way Come on, I thought you were smarter than that."
Hikari remained silent though, the only thing escaping her lips being a low growl from deep inside her throat before the woman lunged forward again, almost like the only thing that mattered to her was his death.
And that certainly surprised the villain, realizing that she wasn't stopping her new and strange behavior.
Sure, Hikari was bold and reckless but burning herself, hurting herself without a second thought? Now that really wasn't like her. Usually she was smarter than that, usually she took pride in not letting anyone lay a hand on her.
Did that really not matter to her anymore, or was it that she was too blinded in her rage to notice anything else?
It was almost as if she didn't care if she died.
No, it was almost as if she wanted to die.
Blocking her attacks one by one, the villain felt his chest heave and his mind spiral from quirk overuse before feeling his own hands shake around the smoke that covered his palms. It seemed like the girl truly had gone insane, just like he had expected.
All those foolish memories about her wanting to stay by his side, it was all bullshit.
He really had broken her mind and heart, just like he had promised to do since day one.
Running across the titled liberation mansion, Shadow's heart pounded in anxiety as he searched the nearby rooms for the mysterious Valkyrie. That's where Endeavor and those hero kids were heading after all, so it was obvious that the girl wouldn't be too far behind.
He had graciously offered to scout ahead of the rest of the team in order to find her first. He just had to, especially after his awful failed attempt to capture her the last time at Endeavor's agency.
What was wrong with him last time anyways? He was a commission agent and he fell for that witches words and bullshit like nothing. How pathetic. If the president knew then she surely would have his head.
No, he was not going to make the same mistake this time. He refused.
Just then, the agent turned the corner only to find himself in the middle of a fight between a group of liberation members and a teenage boy he didn't recognize in the slightest, which was strange considering Endeavor had information on all the villains involved with Re-Destro.
The silver haired boy clutched the small knife in between his hands as blood ran down his face while the other liberation members shouted with murderous intent. "You have one chance to tell us where Takami's daughter is before I beat it out of you, you little brat."
Alpha didn't seem intimidated in the slightest though, his eyes unwavering as he spoke plainly. "You can torture me all you'd like, but you will never get what you want."
Raising his hands up, the liberation members stepped forward with clear intent, their eyes furious and hungry at the rejection. "You little shit..!"
Yet before the liberation members could make contact, a black figure appeared behind them as Alpha watched as the mysterious person incapacitated every last villain in a second, leaving the kid blinking in stunned silence.
Shadow only huffed out an exasperated breath before turning to the new presence with a raised eye and gruff voice. "You're not liberation, Who are you?"
All at once, Alpha's surprise died down into nothingness before his normal monotone speech pattern returned, the boy looking at the unconscious members with curiosity. "I should be asking the same."
It was obvious to tell that the kid was wary of the stranger, causing Shadow to answer back plainly. "The name is Shadow. I'm a commission agent working with Endeavor's agency to bring down the liberation and Re-Destro. I take it you are the same given that fight?"
And although that wasn't exactly the case, Alpha remained silent, knowing better than to give away any information about his boss, Valkyrie. He didn't even know who this guy was so he automatically didn't trust him.
The silence only seemed to make the commission agent even more intrigued, watching as the boy simply dusted himself off before frowning. "What did those villains want from you?"
Pausing for a moment, the kid narrowed his eyes. "Information."
Shadow couldn't help but press further at that. "What kind of information?"
Sensing the interrogation, Alpha then turned to the tattooed man before giving him a knowing look, almost as if he had already figured him out. "The type I'm sure you desire as well, commission agent."
Shadow felt himself freeze at that, sharply turning towards the silver haired kid before his mind ran wild. Who even was this kid? If he wasn't part of the liberation then who was he, and why was he acting so defensive? "I suppose you're right. Is that why you are being so closed off?"
Placing the small knife back inside his pocket, Alpha replied plainly. "They don't trust commission agents and neither do I."
That caused alarms to ring off in the agent's head, causing the man to press further. "Who?"
Without blinking, the boy answered. "My Boss."
Not understanding the vague term, Shadow forced himself to take a step back mentally. He couldn't just grill the kid, but he also needed to find out what side he was on. How old was he? He didn't even look over eighteen.
Watching him very carefully, the commission agent then twisted his lips into a smile littered with fake kindness, hoping it would be enough to cause the boy to open up a bit more. "Ah, I see. How did that happen? Aren't you a little too young to have a boss?"
Alpha didn't seem to enjoy the way he worded that question though, choosing to set the record straight. It wasn't as if he was forced into working for Valkyrie after all. No, he willingly went with her. "They saved me as a child, so I will spend the rest of my life saving them."
At the word, Shadow felt his eyes widen a fraction. "Saved you?"
Nodding once, the boy remembered the day before a small smile played upon his lips. Of course he couldn't tell this man too much about his boss, but he always did love to explain his loyalty. "Yes, they took me away from a quirk auction when I was a child and broke my chains of slavery. I owe everything to them."
Shadow took in the absolute adoration in the kid's expression before he felt his commission side dull down ever so slightly. Ah, so that's how it was.
Well, that answered what he was looking for. Him and his boss couldn't have been villains, because villain's didn't save anyone. They only thought for themselves.
All at once, the tattooed man grew less rigid, Shadow growing far more curious than suspicious of this mysterious presence that Alpha was speaking of. He wondered if he had met them before? "Sounds like quite a hero. So what, does that mean are you some kind of sidekick or something then? How come I've never seen you before? Are you a part of Endeavor's team as well?"
Shaking his head, the boy couldn't help but frown at that. "The only one I follow is the boss. Everyone else is meaningless to me."
At the absolute loyal dedication, Shadow couldn't help but crack a small smile. This kid must have really loved his boss if he was saying all of that. "They must be someone really special then, huh?"
The boy didn't even pause before replying, his monotone words speaking the truth as he looked at the unconscious liberation members. "Yes, yes they are. I'd give my life for them in a heartbeat."
Allowing his smile to spread a tiny bit wider, Shadow than paused when he heard a loud rustle coming from his left, the man turning before cursing under his breath. Oh right, he forgot that they were in the middle of a war. Soon there would be more liberation members to fight.
Shadow then turned back to the innocent silver haired boy before pushing his shoulders backwards. It was obvious the kid couldn't defend himself and since he wasn't a villain the agent had no problem letting him go. "Ah shit, here they come. Listen kid, you go find your hero, I'll distract these villains. Endeavor and everyone should be here soon so just lay low and don't do anything stupid."
Then before Alpha could reply, the tattooed man ran in the direction of the loud shouting, leaving the silver haired boy alone to blink in confusion. What just happened?
"What a strange man.."
The president stood by the stairway in silence at the scene before her, taking in the murderous intent of Hikari and Dabi's fight before easily ducking under a rapid feather and narrowing her eyes. How interesting indeed. What a wonderful change of events.
Just then, a very familiar voice appeared on her left as Shadow emerged from the floorboards in a rather panicked manner, seemingly out of breath. It had taken him forever to distance himself from those liberation freaks after all and they were still hot on his tail.
"President, there you are! We have to stop this, the liberation are right behind me and they are heading this way. We have to capture Valkyrie and get out of here before.."
Yet that's when the tattooed man froze, taking in the display before him as his own words ran cold, seeing Hikari's crazed state as she fought Dabi along with Twice and Re-Destro's dead bodies on the ground as the entire space filled with a rage of crimson feathers. "W-What happened.."
The woman only put a hand up to stop his ramblings before speaking plainly, obviously far more intrigued than horrified like she should've been. "Patience, Shadow. Let's see how this plays out."
Blinking in disbelief, the man couldn't help but turn to his boss with confusion. There was murderer right in front of them going insane with the liberation right behind them and she just wanted them to stand there and not do anything?!
So much so, the agent couldn't help but take a step closer to the destruction in front of him, his eyes traveling from Hikari's tear soaked face to Hawks' burned and disintegrating feathers. "B-But.."
Just then, the president's voice turned cold, not enjoying the disrespect. "That is an order, Hotaru."
At the sound of his real name, Shadow felt himself flinch unknowingly before immediately freezing his steps in place in compliance. It had been awhile since she had used his real name, he must have really disappointed her.
Twisting his lips together tightly, the tattooed man frowned before bowing his head once at her command. What else could he do? She was his boss, his controller, just like Hawks. They were in the same cage after all. "Yes, ma'am."
The woman hummed at his answer for a moment before lifting the silver gun in her hands towards the air with a sickenly cruel smile, something that only Hawks and Shadow had witnessed given the chaos in the area. "Now, let's give that birdie a little test, hmm?"
Not understanding, the agent's gaze fell towards the gun before speaking out of turn once more, his voice wavering with uncertainty. "What are you.."
Yet that's when the president fired the gun into the air, letting off a loud shot into the space before she emptied the contents and threw the object over the railing in order to land by Hikari's feet. "You said the liberation was close by. Let's see how long they take."
Just then, the door seemed to burst to life as dozens of liberation members flooded into the scene, obviously had heard the commotion by now before looking over at their bosses dead body with newfound murderous intent.
And it only took one look at the gun by Hikari's feet for the group to condemn her immediately, blaming her for the dead bodies as they leaped into attack in order to tear her apart.
Watching the group approach his little sister, Hawks felt his blood run cold with fear before forcing to move his muscles to no avail. No, he couldn't just stand here and watch his baby sister get hurt. "N-No..please…"
Shadow couldn't help but be concerned as well. His whole entire mission was to capture Valkyrie and now it seemed like the president was doing something completely different. Framing her for a murder, what good would that do? "Why did you do that? They'll kill her before we capture her."
The woman remained silent though, her eyes glued to the scene before her.
And as the liberation members ran towards Hikari, the woman barely blinked, her eyes still never leaving Dabi's as they continued to fight, almost as if the villain was still the only thing she could see in her clouded psychotic rage.
Yet it seemed like Hikari's feathers were far more in touch than her spiraling mind, the girl sensing the threat immediately before each singular feathery object seemed to find its purpose as they barreled straight into her enemies.
Then Hawks, the president and Shadow watched one by one as each liberation member was gruesomely impaled over and over again with no mercy, not even one villain managing to break her bubble and get within a couple feet of the monster before they were cut down.
The sight was horrifying to say the least, blood quickly appearing on the marble floors as Hikari took down the entire liberation without a single touch, her feathers instead doing all the work as they cut through bone and skin until each and every last member was left unconscious and in a pool of their own blood.
Hawks felt like he was going to be sick, watching as Hikari's feathers calculated every single movement. It seemed like even though she'd lost her mind, her quirk was still in defense mode. Was that even possible though? Could she control her feathers to this degree without thinking about it?
The sight of the carnage only seemed to make the president gasp in interest, her voice full of calculated pride as she clasped her hands together." Extraordinary. Perhaps I chose the wrong Takami after all. What else can you do?"
For years she had tried to get Keigo to do the very exact thing but he was never able to. Even though she wanted him as an assassin it seemed impossible, his mind just wasn't tormented and weak enough to achieve the weapon she was looking for.
But this, now this is exactly what she wanted from the beginning. A quirk that could kill without even touching the victim, a quirk that could be used in so many wonderful ways.
Now this was exactly what Keigo failed to be.
Hikari hardly cared though, not even realizing the destruction around her as she swung her sword towards Dabi once again, causing the villain to step back as she screamed the same phrase as before in his face. "You piece of shit, I'm going to kill you, I'm going to fucking kill you!"
And once again, the villain noticed as Hikari paid no attention to the fire in his hands, and the inferno that covered his entire body, the girl leaping forward before purposely grabbing onto his arms to throw them away.
Yet as Dabi turned off his flames to save her another set of burns, the woman only growled with fury, knowing that he was holding back his power. Why was he being so considerate? It felt like a hole through her entire chest and it killed her all over again.
Because he stopped replying, Hikari felt her insanity spike before all of her feathers detached themselves from the unconscious liberation members, the bloody bristles barreling into Dabi, knocking him off his feet and pinning him to the ground as the sharp objects lodged themselves into the marble to keep him in place.
Almost immediately, the girl was on top of him, using her shaking hands to slam his head into the marble floor over and over again with psychotic intent as the tears continued to pour down her cheeks. "You used me, you tricked me, you played around with me just like everyone else in my fucking life! How dare you! This whole time you were laughing at me, making fun of me behind my back!? You sick bastard, I trusted you, I loved you!"
Not realizing that Dabi wasn't fighting back, Hikari continued her torture, using her fists to merciously punch the villain across the face as blood began to paint her knuckles silently. "Stupid little Hikari, crybaby Hikari, that's always how it is, right?! That's how it will always be. You're just like all of them, that presidential bitch, Riku, Kiego, you are all the goddamn same!"
Then, lifting her sword up into the air, Hikari's hand began to shake as she found herself in the very same position as her brother was just moments before, with the choice to end the life in front of her once and for all. "Enough, I've had enough of all of you!"
Feeling her entire body shake, Hikari's breath ceased in and out in pained huff as she glared daggers at the man before her, everything within her telling herself to finish the job once and for all, to kill the one that played with her mind and heart.
Her own tears began to cloud her eyes in a blurry mess as her hands turned pure white from the hold on the hilt of her sword as she tasted blood on her tongue. She had to end it, end the games, end the torment, end the suffering. Yes, he deserved to suffer.
Just then, kind and sickening sweet words from her past came crashing back into her as HIkari recalled every thing Touya had ever said to her like an internal torture. But now that she knew his actions were fake, the past hurt more than she could bear. It was all fake, he didn't mean any of it. He was just playing with you. It meant nothing.
Yet even so, Touya's smile flashed inside Hikari's mind a moment later, causing more tears to leak from her eyes and pour down her face.
Fuck, she loved him. Even though he betrayed her, even though he set her up, she had fallen in love with him anyway. How utterly pathetic.
And as the moments turned silent, it was obvious to tell that the blonde was in internal turmoil, her mind spiraling at a rapid rate as Hikari's arms remained raised above her hand in shaking conflict.
Yet that's when Dabi's voice broke through her insanity, his tone far too soft and kind then she could handle as it crumbled her entirely. "Hikari.."
Flashing her clouded eyes down towards the villain before her, Hikari felt herself falter as she no longer saw the cruel villain she had told herself to hate but rather the boy she had fallen hopelessly in love with. "It's okay, I already know.."
Not understanding, Hikari remained frozen as Dabi's eyes flashed with pity before glancing towards the sword still hovering over her head with a knowing look. "You're asking yourself why you can't go through with it, right? Even though your big brother ended a life, you are wondering why you can't do the same? Right?"
Immediately, the cloudy gaze in the girl turned clear as reality punched Hikari in the face like a tidal wave of emotion. He was right, even though Keigo had ended Twice's life without a second thought it seemed like Hikari was incapable of the same.
She just could forget the past, all the kindness and hope Touya had given her through her entire life. Even if it was fake, it meant the world to her, it kept her alive. She couldn't ignore that even if she wanted to.
And for a moment, the girl tried to prove him wrong, her hands growing even more shaky as she willed the sword to pierce him entirely, to murder him in cold blood as Keigo had done so easily.
Feeling her lungs give a pained scream of internal torment, Hikari's sword moved a moment later, the woman closing her eyes as the pure force of the blade came down towards Dabi's body as Keigo, the president and Shadow watched intently.
A loud crack was then heard throughout the space as Hikari's heavy suffocating breath became the only noise present, the sweat on her forehead and tears upon her cheeks ever prevalent as she squeezed her eyes together in shame.
Dabi then turned his head to the side only to find the feathered blade just inches from his face, barreled into the marble instead as Hikari slumped over with a cry of disappointment and failure.
He was right. She couldn't go through with it. Even though he had done such awful things, even though she hated him, Hikari just couldn't murder another in cold blood. She didn't have the strength. She wasn't Keigo, she wasn't Dabi, and she wasn't her father.
The villain seemed to expect this though, looking down at the broken and shattered girl before lifting his hands upwards to cup her cheek and catch the tears that poured onto his fingers. "Oh Princess, Don't you get it? We just aren't the same kind of evil. We never were."
His touch was gentle, far too gentle then it should've been, causing Hikari's head to shake away his hand to no avail, her voice cracked and short as she hyperventilated above him. "S-Stop, don't touch me..I…"
Dabi didn't listen though, the warmth of his hand never leaving her face as the villain spoke the truth that she never wanted to hear until now, the truth that would break her entire world. "You've fooled the entire world into believing you're a villain but you could never fool me. That's just not who you are, Hikari, no matter how much you want it to be the truth."
Lowering her eyes, the villain watched as Hikari fell apart, the nostalgia in his eyes ever telling as he recalled the very flaw that caused her downfall. "Keigo, me and everyone else in this shitty world will only ever see the worst. We won't forgive, we aren't kind and we only think of ourselves. But you Princess, you are completely different, always have been."
The girl remained silent, causing Dabi to continue, simply forgetting about the watchful eyes around them for a millisecond in order to rub his thumb across her tear stained cheek. "Don't you get it? I want my dear family to burn, I want them to suffer and then when everything is done, I want to join them in hell. There is no forgiveness, there are no regrets, and there is no going back. That's what I wanted from day one, what I've been living this shitty little life for."
Pausing the torturous movement, the stitched man then sighed to himself before adding softly. "But that's not what you want, is it? You don't want Keigo to die, you don't want to erase him from your mind, simply because you can't help that sickening kindness in your heart."
Dabi then let his hand travel down towards her chin before wrapping two fingers around the surface in order to pull her girl towards him.
No, he needed to make sure she remembered these next words, that way she'd know just how wrong she was. "You always want to believe there is something more, even when they betray you, even when there isn't anything but hate in their heart. And that's your downfall Princess, it's the thing holding you back from truly being evil, from being like me and Keigo and everyone else. "
Realization crossed her eyes before the villain's hand then traveled towards Hikari's chest before pushing her backwards as the girl easily stumbled off of him, giving the man the opportunity to sit up now that her feathers had lost their sharp texture.
He didn't comment on the feathers, he didn't make some joke or tell her that he could've killed her during their conversation. Because he totally could have, given that her feathers had lost their concentration minutes ago.
No, he didn't say any of that, the man choosing to simply stand and tower over the emotionally distraught bird in silence.
Falling against the marble, Hikari remained silent, the information far too much to process as Dabi took a step closer only to lift his hand outwards in order to rub the top of her head like he used to do as children.
Yet at the very last second, Dabi paused before curving his fingers into a fist before allowing his hand to fall down by his side. That action was something Keigo used to do for her after all. He just stole it all those years ago.
Instead, the villain remained silent, looking down at Keigo's broken sister with unsaid pity before lowering his half lidded eyes all at one. "I told you, didn't I? You're too fucking good. Too good for Keigo, too good for me, too good for everyone…"
Silence appeared after that, the two of them remaining still before the door seemed to burst open as Endeavor, Deku, Todoroki, Bakugo, and a variety of heroes burst into the scene before stopping in their tracks at the bloody carnage before them.
Almost immediately, Dabi seemed to gain his smug ego back, staring at his father for the first time in years bringing a new fire in his chest as a low chuckle escaped his lips. "Ah, just the people I was looking for! If it isn't dear old dad and my younger brother!"
And taking one look at his white hair, somewhere in Endeavor knew exactly who the man in front of him was, his worst nightmares coming true all at once. "N-No..it can't be…"
Shoto seemed to be a little more confused though, the boy taking Dabi's new look before feeling his mouth run dry. "W-What?"
The villain was happy to explain though, his arms lifting out with psychotic joy as a dark laugh filled the entire space. "What's with that face, little Shoto? Oh yeah, that's right. You've never met me before. Far too busy with being daddy's favorite that you can't even recognize your own brother. How rich is that?"
Realization seemed to cross Shoto's face then, his eyes growing wide with horror as he saw the villain in an entirely new light. Could it be, after all this time, Dabi was the one he was searching for, Dabi was his brother? "T-Touya?"
Cackling with dark humor, the villain felt his entire body burn with unsaid blue flames before his expression grew far more unhinged than before. He had waited years for this, for them to finally recognize him after all. "Ding ding ding, we have a winner!"
Although from a couple feet away, Hawks could only focus on his sister, his blurry dizzying gaze never leaving hers as she remained emptily, still on the floor. What was she doing, what was she feeling right now? He didn't know.
How had everything gone so horribly wrong? If he hadn't been so selfish, so cruel to Touya than none of this would have ever happened. He really failed, both as a brother and as a hero.
Even so, the bird couldn't help notice that his little sister was so utterly alone right now, fighting her own breaking sanity as he stared. She was going through this by herself, just like she always had for years, and Hawks refused to let that happen again.
Forcing his entire body to move, the bird closed his eyes shut in excruciating pain before digging his nails into the floor in order to drag his body inch by inch, everything within in fighting to reach his little sister and stop her tears.
He reached her in a couple minutes, the girl not even realizing his presence as she continued to stare towards the ground in a hollow broken manner as silent tears poured down her cheeks.
And that look on her face broke her big brother's heart, Keigo pushing his lips together to hold back a sob before reaching a shaky hand out in order to touch her knee and let her know he was there. "H-Hika-chan, i-it's okay, it's going to be okay..I'm right here..."
Hikari didn't respond, her face just a blank as before as her brother felt tears work its way into his own eyes. If only she had been born with a better brother than him. "I-I'm sorry Hikari. I failed you again. This, this is all my fault.."
Just then, a wave of fire cut through the space as Dabi laughed sadistically towards his family, fully intent on making their lives a living hell. "Come on, Enji, Shoto, dance in hell with me! You think you can change?! Well, I'm here to show you that the past never forgets!"
And while Endeavor and Shoto were busy with their newly revealed family member, the president seemed to take her chance, the woman pointing her finger from the bloody and gruesome carnage to the heroes watching the display. "What are you just standing around there for? You see the destruction, you see the murder's. Follow through and do your job as heroes before it's too late."
The other heroes seemingly turned at that, their eyes traveling around the room as Deku huffed out a breath in pure horror, not sure if he should help capture Dabi first or help with this unnamed villain. Everything was all moving too fast. "W-Who did all this?"
Lowering her eyes, the president only answered plainly, not caring about whatever tantrum Touya was pulling at this very moment. No, she had more important things to focus on after all. "I saw it myself. It was the villain, Valkyrie."
A small gasp was overheard throughout the space, causing even Endeavor and Shoto to gasp through the fiery inferno that plagued their vision. But that couldn't be possible, it just couldn't be. Valkyrie saved them before. "W-What? No, that can't be right.."
The president couldn't help but frown at the disrespect though, her tone growing cold and cruel. "Are you questioning me boy? I know what I saw. That woman tore up every liberation member without mercy before murdering both Twice and Re-Destro in cold blood. She's a danger to society and needs to be taken care of."
At that, Shadow's eyes couldn't help but widen, knowing that the woman was speaking plain lies. Dabi had clearly just daunted the girl for not being able to kill, he had just admitted that it was her brother that had murdered Twice, not her.
And even though he didn't know who her brother was, the agent believed the villain's words, knowing how distraught and stunned Valkyrie was to hear them. But if that was the case then why was the president trying to make her out to be the murderer? Why would she lie?
It was almost as if she had another goal in mind for the girl.
Keigo as well felt his eyes raise at the information, his lips running dry with unsaid horror before staring up at the unmoving eyes of his sister. The president was trying to frame her for all of this? No, it couldn't be..
Taking a step closer to his friends, Deku couldn't even wrap his head around the thought, the boy keeping a close eye on Dabi as he shook his head in denial. "Hikari, is she right? She can't be. This had to be done by someone else.."
Hikari remained silent though, her feathers sensing the tension in the space as her own eyes closed in realization, mostly because she knew her words wouldn't matter in the end, they never did.
And she wasn't surprised at the president's words, she wasn't even shocked. No, right now Hikari was so emotionally destroyed and torn apart that the girl only remained in complete and utter silence. She deserved it after all, she deserved to reach this horrible end.
After all the worthless and thoughtless mistakes, after misjudging Touya's character, after being far too pathetic to be anything other than a complete failure, she deserved to suffer the consequences.
Always thinking she was so high and mighty, always thinking she was better than the person she was before, what an absolute joke that turned out to be. No, after today it was clear to her that she was still the same soft, snotted nosed, crybaby, nobody as before, forever innocent and forever stupid.
Because up until now, she truly believed that Touya/Dabi was her friend. She believed that he stayed with her all those years simply because he cared for her in a way no one else did. She was looking for a fairytale, a savior, so she created one in Dabi.
But the heartbreaking truth of his betrayal was still something she couldn't completely wrap her head around, because the villain was right all along. She wanted to see more, she wanted there to be something else there. She wanted to have missed something.
But there was nothing to miss, right? That's how he was. He betrayed her, summoned the president and threw her away like it was nothing. That was reality, not the sugar coated lies she was desperate to find.
And even though she was so angry, she was so beyond furious, she couldn't kill him. She couldn't kill anyone.
No, Hikari simply didn't ever have the heart to go through with something so final, mostly because of that pathetic ideology of kindness, of finding the good, that there could've been some sort of redeeming quality to them.
It was something Hikari had not been able to admit to herself until now and it wasn't until he flat out told her the truth that it had truly started to sink in.
That's why she could never truly erase Keigo from her life, why she saved Todoroki, Deku and Bakugo from Dabi in that alleyway, why she defended Endeavor in front of the heroes and why she didn't see Dabi's true intentions until they blew up in her face.
Because she was always desperate to see the good even when there wasn't any.
Dabi was right, she could try to pretend, she could play make believe all she wanted but pure villainy and pure heroism, now those weren't who she was. The truth was, she was just a mistake, an abomination that didn't belong anywhere.
And now the president was telling everyone to attack, to commend her as a murderer even though it was her seemingly "heroic" big brother that killed Twice. But even still it didn't matter, because he was a hero and she was a villain.
How ironic, the girl unable to kill being accused of a murderer? It was almost comical in a sense. Even if that was the truth, it wasn't like anyone was going to believe her. In fact, her feathers could sense the unease in the room at this very moment, waiting for her to make the first move so they could justify their cruel attacks.
That's always how it was though, wasn't it? Even when Hikari didn't want to be a villain, even when she tried to be something more, the world just shoved her back into that same small confining box. They labeled her as a villain, so much that Hikari had tried to force herself to believe it, to make things easier.
But the truth was, she was only a failure in every sense of the word. If only they knew just how much she hated herself for that very idea, for not ever having the strength to kill.
Gazing over to her brother, Hikari's heart began to twist unnaturally. She was still unbelievably hurt by him, by his actions and choices of tonight. That hadn't changed in the slightest.
And if everyone found out about his crimes then Hikari was sure he would be locked away for his entire life, stripped of his precious hero title and shunned from the public. Then he'd become just like their dear old father, angry and alone.
The truth was, she still wanted to hate her brother, she wanted to hate him for the past, for leaving and abandoning her and for still being wrapped up in the commission's web. She wanted to disown him, to forget he ever existed and walk out of this room without a care in the world.
But just as Dabi said before, it was her kindness that kept her from truly hating him, from truly writing him out of her life. What a horrible sickening disease it was, this kindness. She despised herself for always being so weak, so soft.
For as much as she wanted to hate him, as much as she wanted to sell him out, it seemed it was just impossible. She just loved her big brother too much, even though she probably shouldn't have. That's right, even after everything, she still loved him.
And now look where it had gotten her.
Because staring at her big brother's face there were only two options for them. Keigo was the one that killed Twice after all, he was the one that had done the unthinkable, and he should've been contended for his actions. It was simple, that's the way society works, you commit the crime, you take the consequences.
But if he was convicted then what did that mean for him? Surely his hero career would be over, then he'd truly be just like their bastard of a father, broken and shunned. Would that cause him to turn into him fully, would that change him into a villain like herself? She didn't know.
And she absolutely hated herself for thinking about that possibly. For as much as she boasted about making Keigo suffer, the idea of him actually suffering left a painful throb in her heart, fearing that her brother would someday end up like her.
Maybe that's why she never mentioned Keigo around Riku, never told him where her brother was for all those years? It was because she wanted him to be happy, she wanted him to be better than her. She wanted him to be a hero, just like his dream.
That's right, she was a villain and he was a hero. That's the role the world had chosen for them, and even though neither of them could fit into that box, Hikari knew that nothing would ever change.
Because even though everything was over for her, she knew it wasn't for her brother.
He was a hero after all, maybe not in his actions but that was the title society had given him. He was accepted, loved and cherished, the complete opposite of her in every way.
Sure, he wasn't perfect, far from it actually, but she couldn't separate herself from him even if she tried. He was a part of her, the reason she wanted to be stronger, the reason she wanted to go through all of this.
And just like with Dabi, she still found the good in him. Perhaps that was her downfall, perhaps that was her kryptonite but if it came down to choosing her brother or herself..
Hikari already knew who she would choose every single time.
Making her decision, Hikari then forced herself to stand, Keigo's hand falling off of her's in the process as her wings outstretched into their usual gruesome skeletal structure before the sound of gasps and horrific screams were overheard.
The reaction caused the woman to twist her lips into a bitter smirk, knowing exactly what the heroes were thinking right now. She never had a chance to succeed, did she?. "It doesn't matter what I say cause we all know you're gonna take her side, right? How very heroic of you. Always sitting in the commission's pocket like loyal dogs."
Not understanding where she was going with this, Keigo felt his head start to spin, forcing his eyes back up towards his little sister with concern. "Hika-chan, what are you..?"
Yet that's when Hikari opened her mouth once more, doing the one thing she promised she'd never do as a villain.
She decided to save him.
Her words were clear, the woman twisting her lips into a small feral smirk as she lied and willingly signed her life away for another. "That's right. I killed them. What are you gonna do about it?"
Widening his eyes, Keigo immediately snapped his head towards his sister as he took in the dark, obviously fake look in her eyes. Wait, she was going to sacrifice herself for him, wasn't she? No, he couldn't let her, he wasn't worth it.
And as the man fought another round of dizzying force, the bird felt his voice grow hoarse, shouting at his sister in order to beg her to change her decision. If the heroes thought he was murderer then her life was going to be over. "Hikari, stop it! She didn't..I did..I..."
Quickly lifting her feathered sword outwards to block Keigo's face, his sister then stepped in front of the bird before continuing her act, purposely harassing the heroes in front of them so they would take action. "Go ahead and attack me, lock me away forever, I don't care. Just know that doing so will be the worst decision of your entire life. So come on, show me what you got heroes! I'm waiting!"
The president was happy to play along to her lies, pointing an accusatory finger at the girl as she held back a victorious smile. "You heard her, she confessed herself. That should be all you need to make your decision."
Feeling his heart beat out of his chest, Keigo fought another round of dizziness as he desperately tried to claw at his sister's legs in an attempt to make her change her decision. "H-Hikari, no stop it, what are you doing?!
Although that's when Hikari looked down at her pleading big brother, a small sad smile upon her face as she recalled the words she told him as children before he left her forever. "It's okay, Kei-chan. You can still be a hero like this, right?"
The phrase was bitter sweet, Keigo knowing exactly what they meant. Back then she had said those words to convince him to go with the commission and now she was saying them in order to take the fall for his crimes.
Because she knew that he could still keep the title if she confessed to the murderers, she knew he could go back to how everything was before. That's why she was sacrificing herself, why she was pretending to be her villain persona.
So that he could be free.
But ironic as it was, Keigo didn't feel like a hero anymore, he didn't feel free. No, he was the one that consciously committed those crimes so he was one the one that should've been punished. It didn't matter if the world thought Hikari was the villain, he knew everything was completely backwards.
Feeling his tongue turn dry, the bird felt tears escape his eyes as Keigo's entire face fell in realization. "W-What.."
Hikari didn't bother responding though, glancing back to the heroes before tightening the hold on her sword. How funny, they still weren't sure what to make of her, were they? Well time to change that. "Now, let me show you who Valkyrie really is!"
Detaching all the bloody feathers from her wings, the objects sharpened visually before every last hero that once defended her started to make their defense, quirks at the ready. Hikari didn't blame them though, knowing that their black and white thinking would only see her as the enemy.
But that's what she wanted after all, because if she didn't become the enemy then Keigo would, and she was not going to let that happen.
Then all at once, Hikari's feathers zoomed towards the group of heroes as they sprung into action, causing Shoto to widen his eyes as he turned away from Dabi for a mere moment, panic clear on his features. "Stop it, Hikari isn't a villain, she saved me, she.."
Of course no one listened to his pleas, Todoroki's hands already growing scolding with fire as he lifted it up to protect his friend that had selflessly saved him back at his fathers agency.
Yet before he had the chance, a burning sensation stopped his thinking as blue flames appeared across his back, Shoto crumbling down with a stab of pain as he gritted his teeth. Crap, he wasn't paying enough attention to the situation around him.
Forced to turn back around, Dabi's feral grin spoke through the silence, a dark chuckle emitting from his throat as he got the attention back on himself. "Don't turn away from me, little brother! I'm not finished with you!"
Seeing the altercation, Deku felt his eyes widen, already making his way to his friends only for Shoto to aggressively shake his head as he fought through the pain. "Forget about me! Get to her and Hawks."
The green haired boy hesitated for a moment, his feet still moving towards Todoroki only for Deku to take in the absolute desperation in the boy's expression. "Please, Midoriya."
Lifting his arms up, Todoroki then removed the half burnt jacket that stuck to his skin before throwing it in his friend's direction as the fabric touched his fingers.
Wait, this was the jacket that Hikari had given him back at Endeavor's agency.
And that caused Deku to freeze, his lips twisting together in conflict before turning around and seeing Hawks and Hikari a couple feet away, heroes descending on both of them.
Then he realized that Todorkoi was right, they needed far more help right now. Hawks looked like he was about to pass out at any second.
Running off in the direction of the number two hero first, Deku kneeled by the man only to immediately smell the sickening aroma of burnt and melting skin before widening his eyes in horror at the state of his wings.
They were almost completely gone, just like Hikari's, leaving only pieres of half burnt feathers in its place. It looked incredibly painful also and Deku was surprised that the bird hadn't lost consciousness yet. "Hawks! Oh my god, your wings, they're..."
The hero mumbled something under his breath that Deku didn't catch, the boy only lowering his lips into a frown before offering him a bit of reassurance and placing the jacket over his shoulders in order to pat away the lingering flames. "It's okay, we are going to get you out of here."
And that, Keigo seemed to spring to life, his eyes flashing open in a groggy state before desperately grasping onto the kid's hero suit with a raspy plea. "N-No, I can't leave..not without my sister…"
Widening his eyes at the painstaking realization, Deku immediately turned back towards the fight between Hikari and the heroes before seeing her broken wings in a new light. Wait, did he just say what he thought he did? "Your sister?"
From a couple feet away, Hikari felt her chest twisted in overuse, her feathers growing duller by the moment as she fought through the heroes that took her side only weeks ago. Now they were dull faced, determined to bring down the monster in front of him.
Ducking under another attack, the bird frowned, one of her feathers latched onto Aizawa's clothes before hosting him up in the air and away from her just as she kicked Best Jeansist in the stomach roughly.
He groaned, doubling over as Hikari sensed ten more attackers approach, her stamina practically not existent from her fight with Dabi and her mindless use of her feathers before.
So much so, that the girl didn't register an arrow coming in her direction until it was too late, Hikari turning with widened eyes before a large blur stepped in front of her before she could even think.
Shadow watched with stunned silence as well, recognizing the figure immediately. Wait, isn't that..?
The arrow pierced his chest immediately, the very sight causing Hikari's blood to turn completely cold as a small drop of blood poured from a familiar head of silver hair. "A-Alpha?"
Smiling lightly at his unharmed boss, the teenage boy only spoke plainly, his knees already beginning to buckle under him. "I'm glad I got here in time. Now I can save you for a change..."
His body fell onto the floor a moment later, the heroes remaining silent as Hikari stared at the young boy in absolutely horrified silence. When did he even get here, why didn't she sense him, why didn't she save him?!
She wasn't sure if he was dead or alive but Hikari hardly had time to check as a dozen bodies rammed into her a moment later, taking the opportunity of her vulnerability to catch the supposed villain off guard.
Hitting the cold marble floor, the heroes climbed on top of her in order to keep her in place as Hikari's eyes only remained locked on the boy she had promised to protect, her body automatically trying to break out of the hold.
Memories of being tied down, memories of being hurt by Riku and her abusers suddenly flooded into her mind as Hikari's subconscious grew panicked, the girl not being able to tell the difference between her delusions and reality.
She hated it, these hero's hands reminded her so much of the past, of how those villains used to hold her down and pressure her into things she couldn't control. No, she hated that feeling more than anything. "D-Don't touch me!"
At the same time, Dabi couldn't help but watch the display, seeing Alpha's body on the floor before the president's voice echoed from behind him. "Don't think you can get away so easily, Touya. I'm not finished with you."
At her threat, the villain couldn't help but chuckle, turning back to his dearest family before deciding that they would have to finish this another time. This was just the beginning after all. "Too bad, you're too slow."
Then the man lowered his eyes towards Endeavor and Shoto before speaking cruelly. "This is just the beginning, Enji. I'm going to make sure you are destroyed, and then when you have nothing left then I will kill you and our entire family myself."
Lowering his hand into his pocket, the villain then pressed a button before his lips started to pour with black goo, sucking him into a newly appeared vortex, his laughter dark and full of enjoyment.
Although before he fully disappeared, Dabi's eyes couldn't help but travel towards Hikari's, the two locking gazes as she struggled under the hero's grip.
This was all his fault after all, and they both knew it.
Lowering her eyes into disgust, Hikari spoke coldly, her entire expression showing pure signs of hatred for the man before her. "You're dead to me."
And for once, Dabi wasn't proud, he wasn't cocky or sarcastic. No, the man only lowered his eyes, the laughs of his own voice dying down into nothing before giving a small sad smile.
"I already knew that, Princess."
Tearing his eyes away, the villain then disappeared a moment later.
And with it, was the game he had played for the last seven years.
I'm sorry this took so long. In the middle of writing out my outline, I got serious writer's block and didn't know how to translate my ideas in a chapter format. Hopefully everything was worth it though.
Here we have, Hikari in the hands of the commission, Hawks unconscious and his wings burned and Dabi disappeared. Lots of things happening as we go into the last season of this book. Of course there will be one more chapter but it's a past chapter so this is where we are going to leave everything until S3.
Hikari giving up her freedom in order to cover for her brother because she still loves him? Her kindness does seem to be her weakness, just as Dabi said.
I love that at the start of this story it's perceived that Hikari is the villain and Hawks is the hero. Everything is very black and white but the further we get into this story the dynamics have started to change and now even though "Hawks" is titled a hero, he has committed more crimes than his "villain sister" who basically lied to the commission for the sake of saving Keigo and took the fall so he could continue to live his dream.
And of course, Dabi saw through Hikari's character from the very beginning, already knowing that he was far more heroic than he and Hawks will ever be. Very interesting stuff.
Also Shadow is seeing that Hikari may not be the big bad villain he thought she was. We will see where that goes. He knows she's lying about killing Twice and Re-Destro after all. Dabi said it himself that she couldn't kill.
Don't forget to comment! It helps me update faster and makes my day!
Next Chapter: Last chapter of S2. It's Valkyrie backstory time, how the villain first came to be. It's also the last backstory chapter in Hikari's perspective.