Chapter 11: Of Dreams

Bubaigawara Jin wasn't certain if he had died and gone to heaven or not. The voluptuous woman smiling at him certainly couldn't have said what he thought she had just said. He rubbed at his eyes with both fists, making sure that she wasn't some distorted figment of his clearly over-active imagination.

"Um... what?"

Walking around the stunned convict and taking a seat on the lavish couch that resided in his room, his opulent setting further making the villain known as 'Twice' wonder whether he wasn't just dreaming, the female he easily recognized by her costume as 'Midnight' continued to smile sweetly at him, "Are you a shy boy, Jin?"

"I am to be your newly appointed guardian hero, appointed due to our compatibility."

The way she said it was just as suggestive as the first time she mentioned it moments ago. Was she doing that on purpose?

Jin gulped, stammering a little, "M-ma'am, I think maybe you have the wrong guy... why am I here? Who cares! I want to leave!"

She tutted at him, waggling one long gloved finger his way, "That won't do. You are here because you were caught robbing a bank, plus there is a rather lengthy criminal rap sheet beyond that, so you can't simply leave unless you want to return to Tartarus. If you stay in our special program, I promise to take very good care of you."

He balked with his entire body. She giggled, clearly enjoying his obvious nervous reaction to her incredibly sensual tones. Jin rubbed at the back of his head with both hands, feeling more out of his depth in this conversation that he ever had in any discussion ever. Was she seriously flirting with him or was this some kind of set up?

There were many rumors surrounding the highly controversial heroine Midnight, but he had figured they were just the over-embellished wet dreams of thugs she had brought in whom enjoyed the curvaceous figure and skin-tight, revealing bodysuit.

"W-what kind of program... what do you want with me? Are you some kind of hooker!"

Midnight frowned in a dark way to his second personality's statement, making Twice fearfully clap both hands over his own mouth as he realized he had certainly crossed the line with such an insulting phrase.

She stood up and strode forward, Jin backing away just as quickly until his back hit the opposite wall and he let out a terrified squeak as the muscular woman loomed closely, her high heels making her a bit taller than him as she glared down at the cowering man, "I will make every effort to be kind to you, Jin, but if you get vulgar with me again, I will have to punish you... do you understand?"

His gaze falling to the whip hanging at her waist, Twice nodded vigorously, "Y-yes, ma'am! I can take it!"

Eyes widening with horrified realization that what he had just said practically challenged her, he could only watch as she smiled at him hungrily and casually pulled the whip from where it was coiled. His hands were over his mouth again but it was too little too late. Nemuri let the implement unfurl as she leaned ever closer, "I see we are going to have to establish some boundaries..."

.*.

Yagi Toshinori fidgeted where he sat in the spacious office that belonged to the esteemed Principal of U.A., Nezu. At least Aizawa Shota wasn't here this time. Not that he hated the man, but Eraser often had derogative things to say concerning Toshinori's ability to govern his new program, and he was struggling enough without the criticism.

Nezu was as affable as usual, smiling in his unique mousy way as he walked along the length of his desk, the furniture he stood on being vastly larger than his diminutive form. The Principal had a special chair that was set to a height where he could see over his desk, but the mouse often chose to walk out onto the desk itself anyways when speaking to visitors.

"I understand that you have a deep-seated need to fulfill every request given to you for aid at the office, but you are certainly learning by now that you can't handle all of the workload of your department. If you keep trying to manage every task there is your division will fail to operate smoothly."

Rubbing at his blonde head, Yagi grimaced, "Y-yes... I have quickly noticed that the amount of paperwork alone is far more than I can keep up with while also acting as young Shimura's guardian and attending to the meetings needed of me for the operation... I'm really backlogged at this point and I was wondering if you had any advice?"

Nezu nodded at him, "Indeed! As I was saying, you are trying to shoulder too much. This isn't like when you used your amazing quirk to take on the impossible." The little mouse laughed, a tinny little squeaking sound. "But this is living proof that the adversity faced by the common office worker is far greater in scope than even a gang of super-powered sociopaths!"

Toshinori nodded his blonde head sagely, "I have new-found respect for the bravery of the average layman, sensei."

The white mouse lifted a tiny claw, "To become an amazing manager you must master the art of delegation! I have already taken the liberty of advertising openings for secretarial and supervisory positions for your new office. I'll e-mail you a list of available candidates Thursday."

Clapping his large hands together with a large smile on his face, Toshinori gave his mentor a short bow, "Oh, thank you so much! I should have known that you had already foreseen the need for this... again I apologize for allowing my required documentation to get so backed up."

Frowning, All-Might rubbed his hands together as he brought up the last item that he had been curious about before leaving, "Ah... about the portfolio... wasn't I supposed to set up the psych evaluations of the entrants from Tartarus? It feels like I'm taking advantage of you by not asking for that work, and you already have so much to do as Principal..."

Nezu nodded, his features hard to read since they weren't human, "That is true, but I realized early on that you personally are not really best suited for this sort of selection process..."

"Ouch." Toshinori dropped his eyes, looking a little downtrodden by the assessment but not able to refute it at all.

His smile returning, Nezu's tone was encouraging, "Well, we all have our strengths, my friend, and while you could likely field some people to handle this task, my quirk and my experience as an instructor to gifted individuals gives me an edge with this sort of thing. I shall consider this part of the process my personal contribution to your efforts, as I think it is the best way I can help."

All-Might bowed even more deeply this time, "Thank you very much! I feel relieved to know that it is in your hands, sensei."

The little mouse waved a paw at him, "Well, we both have work to do. Go out there and show the world what a powerful blue-collar hero you are now that you truly understand the hardships of the working man, my friend!"

Smiling, Toshinori nodded at him, setting off with newfound purpose in his step. He hadn't really been looking at this challenge the right way, clearly, and his determination to be victorious was now greater than ever. He was going to be the strongest manager there ever was!

Later that evening, All-Might found himself facing an even bigger hurdle than the mountain of paperwork back at his office. Across from his sat Shimura Tenko, his arms folded over his chest and an irritated expression on the youth's face. The man formerly known as Shigaraki Tomura gestured widely in annoyance.

"What the hell is this?! I'm a grown man, and you all said I could live my life more or less freely here, so what's up with the parental controls on the gaming machine?!"

Toshinori really shouldn't have to explain it, because he was certain that Tenko could guess as much, but he did so anyways, sighing in exasperation because it was far from the first time an issue like this had come up recently, "Too much time playing games will negatively affect the other activities your councilors have set up for your day to day."

"If it helps, you can consider it part of the regime anyone can expect when they become an inmate, like your enforced sleep curfew. You don't really argue when I tell it it's time for lights out, so clearly you understand that you won't have total independence in such choices until you have proven that you are ready to be released."

Tenko huffed, "But it only lets me play for two hours, and then it won't let me on for another two hours! That's some Nazi bullshit! How am I going to binge on the weekends?! Those stuffy eggheads don't have any studies or gym classes or clean-up detail assigned to the weekends!"

All-Might nodded, tapping his chin thoughtfully, "You have a good point; I should talk to your therapists about getting together itinerary for some meaningful weekend activities!"

Shimura gasped in horror; obviously that had not been what he was after at all, "No!" He picked up a pillow from the couch and threw it angrily at Toshinori, "I want to be able to really immerse myself in some mind-numbing entertainment so I can forget about you and those assholes, you fuckwit!"

Deflecting the fluffy projectile easily, Toshinori frowned at Tenko, "Easy there; a pillow isn't a deadly weapon, but you've been warned about throwing things, and I won't tolerate you being this rude, young man!"

Immediately deflated by All-Might's tone of voice and intimidating presence, which the blonde-headed ex-hero seemed to be able to turn on like a light switch, Tenko shrank into the couch, frowning miserably as he stared at the floor, "...Sorry."

Taking a deep breath, Toshinori evened out his face and voice to something more pleasant, "I'll ask whomever draws up the planner to include some of what you asked for. I understand wanting to escape a little from time to time... a good friend of mine used to do that with a book on occasion."

Tenko looked surprised for a moment, then warmed Toshi's heart by actually smiling a little, "...Thanks."

If there was ever a time for Toshinori to suggest his plan for Tenko, it was now, so after rubbing at his blonde hair nervously for a moment, All-Might finally ventured, "Since you have mentioned the studies that the committee has had you doing during your trips to the U.A. library, I think we should perhaps explore means of expanding on your education..."

The small smile that Tenko had been wearing sharply dropped down into a frown as Tenko gave him a wary look, "I only do that crap because I'm made too; I'm not really looking to do more of it. What the hell am I going to do with an education, anyways? With a rap sheet listing me as both a felon and a villain no one is ever going to put my resume anywhere other than the garbage. I'm not really interested in being an overqualified garbage man or burger flipper."

Trying to keep the conversation optimistic, Toshinori smiled as he nodded, "I'm glad to see that you have already thought ahead to what you might do for employment, that means you taking graduating from your rehabilitation program seriously, well done! While you are correct about your record limiting your options, please trust that we won't abandon you once you leave this initiative; we plan to help you as long as you need us!"

Clearing his throat in the face of Tenko's doubtful, scrutinizing look, Toshinori continued, "I'm not so much offering you more work as giving you options that might make study easier or perhaps even more enjoyable for you. They say that different people learn better with different mediums, but so far, the only learning opportunity you have is to peruse written content in the library."

Tenko was still frowning, but he had lifted an eyebrow slightly, and Toshinori could tell that his interest was as least slightly piqued. The ex-hero went on, "You do seem like you might have tendencies towards more introverted practices, but maybe that is only because you have been forced to study alone ever since All-for-One took you in."

"Seeing that you have proven more that social enough to gather friends for your League, perhaps oratory learning could be a useful and appealing new venue for you. You might find that you soak up learning in a way that is less tedious or perhaps even fun! At the very least, it would represent a change of pace to see what a class environment is like, right?"

A little taken aback, Tenko's mouth dropped open, "You want me to attend classes...? Like, with other students? Here?!"

Seeing Tenko had realized what he was suggesting meant, Toshinori smiled at him, "Well... where else? We just so happen to be sitting in a High School, and there is no place more fit for you to finish your general education."

Tenko was stunned. It wasn't the hero class, but if he joined the general class in U.A., he would definitely be mingling with heroes, maybe even some of the ones he had fought in the past. Wasn't he too old for High School? His head spun that Toshinori treated all of this like it was no big deal. He licked his lips, glancing around his room. What did he want?

.*.

Todoroki Toya let out a long, drawn-out sigh. Adjusting. Everything was about adjusting now. He was told when he had been released from the hospital that he would be allowed to return to his family home. That was another shock to go along with the complete recovery of every affliction he had ever suffered via Kai Chisaki.

The doctors had told him that he now had perfect teeth, and his skin was smooth and new like that of a newborn child. He'd been stunned speechless from the moment after he'd realized that his crippling scars were gone, the ones that had forever marked the dark turn in his life that he had thought he could never come back from.

After that, he'd mutely listened to the medical professionals fawn over his charts. Apparently, he was now the heathiest person alive according to every doctor in the hospital. Clearly Kai Chisaki was a perfectionist. His lungs drew in full, heady breaths of air, and he no longer got out of breath just by trying to breathe deeply.

His eyesight was better than he ever remembered it being, and he thought his hearing might have gotten better too, though that had a down side as suddenly the city noises were blaring and rather uncomfortable. He could feel his heart pounding steady and strong in his chest, and there was an indescribable feeling of vitality in his veins.

And all of this had been gifted to him by that yakuza whom he and his friends had mutilated, stolen from and left for dead on the highway... It all felt too surreal to be his reality, and all of this was only one part of adjusting.

Toya glanced down the long table his family commonly used for meals, watching as Fuyumi and Natsuo chatted amicably about her wavering college choices. Across from them sat Shoto, whom ate quietly, observing his siblings, which included him. The young man with the curious mix of red and white hair wasn't being obvious about it, but Toya was aware he was being watched.

They would have to keep a tight surveillance over him; the family home wasn't the most secure place to send a criminal like Toya, except in that the people whom had spoken to him briefly about a 'rehabilitation program' had placed him here under house arrest, since there was a wealth of ice quirk users available should he try to escape or have another episode.

His powers had not run amok ever since that last time at the hospital when his mom had stopped the advent of another tragedy. He had a feeling that her presence alone was enough to calm him from allowing those rampant and unstable feelings to take control as they had before.

On the other side of the table sat his mother and father, both eating quietly, which they often did since both of them tended not to speak much in general, both being very reserved people. There was a peace between them and throughout the family as a whole that he would need to be adjusting to as well. Even Natsuo had buried the hatchet with their father.

That man was just sitting there, eating with and sometimes speaking with them as if they had been a perfectly normal family all this time. Toya sat frozen in his seat, absently taking hold of his utensils and digging into the food when his mother voiced concern over his obvious shellshock. His gaze kept returning to Enji.

From what he was hearing, Endeavor wasn't originally going to stay with the rest of the family, and had even made arrangements to live in another house so that the rest could find peace without him. However, when Toya had come home, Enji was around constantly, to the point where Natsuo sometimes complained about all the calls they got for the missing hero.

Having the estranged father meshing back into a suddenly restored family along with the estranged mother, and mostly just being there himself after all of that time... he just couldn't convince himself of the reality of such a situation. His eyes and ears couldn't relate what he was seeing with what he knew about his own life.

As he watched his hands, unscarred and healthy bringing food that smelled like and tasted like his mother's cooking to his mouth, he only dimly felt the tears in his eyes. The table had gone quiet, and his face flushed as he realized he had been crying for some reason. His tear ducts had been damaged for a long time, perhaps they were oversensitive now they were healed?

Before he could say anything about the embarrassing leak as he glanced over at Shoto whom was watching him quietly, Fuyumi and Rei had practically charged across the room to hug him from both sides as he became aware that Natsuo was giving him a worried look. The oddest reaction was his father, though.

Todoroki Enji's face was a solid rock of stoic control even when the man faced life threatening situations. He was known for keeping his expression neutral no matter what in front of family as much as strangers, so seeing the look of open concern on his face now made Toya feel like he was falling even further into the Twilight Zone.

He closed his eyes as a he slowly chewed the bit of soba still in his mouth, swallowing the food and letting out a small sigh. The act of shutting his eyes squeezed a few more tears free, but he wasn't focusing so much on how humiliating it was that he was randomly crying in front of all these people anymore.

All he could think was that it tasted just like his mother's cooking, exactly as he remembered it. If this was a dream, then it was the most complex dream he had ever had. If it was a dream, he started to wonder if he actually wanted to wake up. It tasted so very, very good.