Leinei folds her arms under her chest, holding her elbows as she stands behind Dabi's chair at the crescent table. She took in each face sitting there, how no other Advisers were stationed behind their Lieutenants. Her stomach twists with anxiety as ReDestro glances at her, then whispers something to Skeptic, with Geten leaning over to add something. The feeling of being watched and scrutinized was obvious to her, causing her to be a little self conscious as she unfolds her arms and insteads clasps her hands behind her back.
"Dabi, need I remind you this is a Lieutenants' meeting?" Trumpet speaks up, voicing what the others were thinking. The scarred man shrugs his shoulders, slouching a little in his chair but sitting up once addressed. He glances over at Leinei standing behind him, before looking at the men seated across the table from him, Toga, Spinner, Twice and Compress. "Your guard dog doesn't need to be here, especially since she hasn't-"
"Oh I know she hasn't earned your trust yet," he says, his voice dull and irritated. "But she's committed."
"Didn't she threaten three of the Black Regiment's recruits?" Skeptic points out as Leinei looks away at the mention of her first encounter with Zori and his friends. "We are meant to work as one, not a divided end."
"Hey, hey, that's my buddy's sister you're talking about," Twice speaks up, standing and slamming his hands on the table before realizing how loud he was and apologizing. "But seriously, if Dabi says she's good for her word, and the fact she's Hawks' lil sister doesn't sway ya, what will? And those kids asked her to train 'em. Come on, she was just doing what she thought best. That's why you made her an Adviser didn't ya?"
Is…he actually defending me?
Why..why would he defend me? Hell, I was one of the reasons he was almost arrested. And here he is defending me like we're friends.
"If Hawks and Dabi trust her, then so do I," Twice finishes, pointing at himself with his thumb, his voice matter of fact. "They're my buddies and I trust them and their judgment. If Dabi thinks she should be here then-"
"That's enough, Twice. We all understand how strongly you feel about the subject," ReDestro says, holding up a hand to stop his little speech. The masked man sits down, slumping down with his arms crossed over his chest but seemingly happy with himself. "If you all say she's trustworthy, then she can stay. So long as what we speak of here, doesn't leave the room," he adds, looking pointedly at the lavender haired girl. She nods once, her shoulders relaxing as the man smiles in return. "Then let us begin! Skeptic, how fares our recruitment for our wonderful cause?"
"We have a steady stream of new followers for our cause, many being between the ages of nineteen and twenty-six. It seems that our younger Lieutenants-" he nods at Spinner and Toga. "-are very popular with that crowd, and inspire them. It also seems that having the Number Two Hero's younger sister amongst our ranks helps our cause as well."
"Wonderful. And what of Shigaraki's condition at Jaku?"
"Shig is working with the doctor to fully combine his abilities with those of All for One," Spinner speaks up, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed over his chest. His eyes don't leave Leinei, who was paying close attention despite looking straight ahead at the wall behind Skeptic's chair. "They got a decent timeline, and he's supposed to go in some kind of goo at the beginning of the year to finish it off. He used a buncha scientific phrases and crap, so I didn't understand it all, but that's the long and short of it."
"Sounds wonderful. The Supreme Commander will be unstoppable at this rate," ReDestro chuckles, leaning forward with his elbows on the desk and his chin resting on his interlaced fingers. He tilts his head as he narrows his eyes at the quiet girl behind Dabi. "You've been with us for almost a month now, haven't you, girl?"
"Yes sir," she responds, her voice monotonous.
"And being Hawks' little sister, tell me. How do you feel about our endeavors? Your sister was Elementia, wasn't she?" Leinei's hands tighten around each other, her nails cutting into her skin and drawing blood. Compress stiffens upon hearing Reina's hero name. "She died fighting our friends here, and yet you stand there as a good little dog. I'm sure you have your own feelings on the matter. What would your poor sister say?"
"If I may speak candidly?"
"Of course. We appreciate the truth here. We don't simply sweep it under the rug like the heroes do."
"I want to kill Dabi and Compress," she says, her voice firm. Everyone sits a little straighter, Toga leaning back and looking over her shoulder at Leinei with her eyes turned into slits. "To avenge my sister, I want their blood spilled, and I want to be the one to do it. Of course, I don't plan on doing it today or tomorrow, that would be stupid. As a secondary mission, your goals and ideology make a lot of sense, and I want to see what you do once you achieve them. Regulation has stifled our growth and stagnated technology and thinking because we all believe that someone else will do it for us. And as for what my sister would say…" Forgive me, Reina. Know that I don't believe this. "She was an idiot for following the path of a hero so blindly. It's what killed her."
"And yet you still blame Compress and Dabi for her death?"
"The path set her down the dark road to her death, but they're the ones who dealt the final blow."
"I knew there was a reason I liked you," Geten chuckles as he leans back in his seat.
"I understand your ire all too well, my dear. And your goals are commendable. Hopefully being with us will enlighten you further, but as to the execution of Dabi and Compress-"
"As long as I get to do what I want first, I don't care how I go out," Dabi says, tilting his head back and looking at Leinei out of the corner of his eye. "But just know I won't go quietly either."
"It would be an honor to die by your hand, Apathia," Compress says, placing a hand over his heart and bowing his head. "Truly a magnificent end to my performance, slain by my former lover's jaded sister."
The meeting ended not long later, Leinei following Geten and Dabi out of the room with her arms loose by her sides. Her heart is racing, knocking the breath out of her with each beat. Her fingers are trembling as she stares at the floor, the realization of everything she just said hitting her. She looks up at Dabi's back, seeing his slouched shoulders as Geten breaks off down a different corridor. Everyone else seemingly melted away, leaving the two of them alone.
Dabi stops in front of his bedroom door, turning with his hands in his coat pockets. He tilts his head to study Leinei, who looks at the stretch of wall across from the door. The silence is stifling as she shifts her weight between her feet, the creaking of the floor the only respite from the quiet.
"You meant what you said."
She looks up at him, her fingers curling upwards to her palms. He's leaning against the door now, eyes mostly closed as he stares at her. A small scoff leaves him as she stands straighter, nodding to affirm his suspicion. He pushes off the door and backs her up against the opposite wall. She looks down at the floor as they stand there, her back pressed against the wallpaper, her hands fisted at her sides.
"Do you really think you can kill me, little mouse?" he whispers, lifting one hand to grip her neck, using his thumb to tilt her chin back so she has to look up at him. "With all your supposed love for me, you really think you can kill me?"
"I had love for Touya," she corrects him, watching with satisfaction as his smirk curls down to a snarl. "But as you kept reminding me, Touya died, and you're what took his place."
"Then why did you keep coming, hm? Why did you keep coming back every time I called for you? Don't think I haven't noticed you wearing the little ring I gave you. Did you think that I'd magically turn into him again by just spending time with you? For such a mature person, that's some childish thinking, Leinei."
"Fuck you," she hisses at him, tears pricking her eyes. "Fuck you for coming back, and for rubbing all of this in my face. I mourned you. I blamed myself."
He's quiet for a moment, as if startled by her words. She sniffles as he takes his hand away from her neck, using the heel of her hand to wipe her eyes. He steps even closer to her, to which she responds by trying to push him away, shoving on his chest before he wraps her in his arms. She tries to pull away, trying still to push him off but she eventually gives in, leaning against him as she tries to keep her tears from falling down her cheeks.
"You left me alone, Touchan," she whispers, her voice shaking. "You promised we would be by each other forever and you left."
"I know, Little Mouse, I know," he murmurs, his mask of hatred and anger slipping for just a moment as he places his hand on the back of her head. "But we can be together here forever," he adds, whispering in her ear as she clenches her eyes shut. "You can help me expose the heroes for who they are, expose Endeavor, fix everything they've ruined. Then after that, we can die together. We will never have to be apart from each other again for as long as we exist."
Together…forever. Die together, fix everything together…
Just like we promised to be when we were little…
"Help me, Leinei," he continues to whisper, pleading in the worst way, the way that brings her back to when they were children. For the moment, they were six and twelve again, playing together and making plans for the future. Unscarred by the tragedies that befell them, unmarred by the future that fate had planned for them, they were just children again. Children with hopes, dreams that intertwined to the point they were one and the same.
"I-" She stops herself from agreeing, her voice breaking. Her arms had found their ways around him, holding fast as if he would disappear again. Her dream from all those months ago comes back, the one where he fell away into ash right before her eyes, and she lets out a weak whimper.
"Please," he whispers.
I…I want…
Katsuki's face springs to mind, jarring her away from the myriad of emotions she was drowning under. The warmth she felt with him comes bubbling to the surface, sinking the frozen hatred she felt for Dabi to the deepest depths for just the moment. As if on a loop, Denki's face floats up, then Eijirou's, Mina's, Sero's, Izuku's, Shoto's, every single friend she made at UA reminding her that-
This isn't where I fall.
I promised to come home.
I need to come home.
"No," she says firmly, shaking her head. "I have my goals. You have yours. And they'll never line up the way they did when we were kids." He steps back from her, a chasm seemingly opening between them. She turns on her heel to start walking away, Dabi glaring at her back. "And if you hurt anyone else I love again," she adds, stopping just at the corner to turn down another hallway, "I will make your death as excruciating as I can. What I did to Gorlov will seem like a mercy compared to it."
