Off To the Races

by Green Kneesocks

Kageyama Hana and her husband, Ichimaro, loved their daughter, they really did, but they could not take care of her. Not when they had a son to worry about. Giving her up was the best thing for everyone. Suzuki Touichirou especially. Fem!Mob Mob raised in Claw AU. Chapter 663 has been rewritten!

1000. Happy 14th Birthday, Mob

Mob felt better than she had in a while.

She opened her eyes and was greeted by darkness…but she was ok with that. She didn't really mind it, dark or light it didn't matter, what mattered is who she was with. She could see Serizawa's aura, feel it beside him, feel the rest of him beside her too. She was sticky, sweaty, and kind of sore but all of it was in a good way. A warm way. Also kind of slimy, but warm. Happy too…she was so happy.

Everything was going to be ok.

"Good morning." Said Mob as she yawned and stretched. She felt her skin peeling away from his. It felt weird, kind of like pulling a piece of tape off but it was one entire side of her body. Her hand brushed his hair. He was so fuzzy…how had she not noticed how fuzzy he was? She loved that about him. She loved everything about him.

She loved him.

"Seri-Katsuya? Are you awake?" asked Mob. She couldn't tell by his aura. It was very still, the stillest she had ever seen it before. She wondered if he was alright. She didn't know why he wouldn't be, he loved her and she loved him and that was what you did when you loved someone, but his aura didn't feel ok. It felt kind of…distant? Like it was trying to leave him. She reached out and tried to touch his aura with hers.

It pulled back for a second before meeting hers.

"Are you sleeping?" asked Mob, not realizing how stupid that question was until she asked it. Of course he wasn't going to be able to answer if he was asleep. Besides, it was early…or maybe late? The room was pitch black. She looked up and turned the lights on with her powers. The room was quickly filled with that really bright, white light everywhere in the Seventh Division had. There was a harshness to it that she didn't like, a harshness that didn't fit the room at all, the atmosphere of it. She had never been the best at reading the atmosphere but right now she knew exactly what it was.

Love and loving and just…perfect!

"I guess that was a dumb question…sorry." Said Mob as she sat up. The cold air hit her skin making her shiver. She pulled the blanket up over her chest. It was weird how comfortable she could be around someone when she was like this. Probably because they had just done all the things. It wasn't like they had just met or anything…wow. She never would have thought that he would have loved her like this when they'd just met and now…and now they were together and they had done…all of that…

Wow.

"It…it wasn't a dumb question, Miss Suzuki. You could never ask a dumb question." Said Serizawa quietly. He didn't open his eyes. If he opened his eyes then he would have seen her and if he saw her than all of this would have been real and…and he didn't want it to be real. He didn't want it to be anything, not really, but if he had a choice he was going to keep his eyes closed and pretend that the whole thing had been pretend until he had to confront reality.

He would, however, talk to her because she didn't deserve to feel bad about herself. She was Miss Suzuki.

"Me asking if you were asleep or not was kind of a dumb question, though. I mean if you were asleep then there's no way you could have answered me." said Mob

"I wasn't asleep, Miss Suzuki, I just…was thinking…and even if I had been I would have woken up to answer you." said Serizawa

"You can call me Mob, you know, I told you that before." Said Mob as she turned to face him. He still had his eyes closed. Maybe he was still tired. It was early…or late? She didn't know. She didn't know if it mattered. Dad probably wasn't going to try and do anything until nightfall, that was when most people were home, and he wanted to reach the masses as fast as possible. She didn't get it…and part of her didn't care. A big part of her couldn't think past the fact that Serizawa loved her. Not only did he love her but they actually did all the things, they actually made love, which was…wow!

Well the whole thing had been pretty boring, and over fast, and also his nails were too long but emotionally it had been wow.

"I know, Miss Suzuki, I mean Mob…sorry. Miss Suzuki just feels more…more normal." Said Serizawa. Miss Suzuki was who she was before she had made him…before they had done all of that. All of those things that he didn't want to think about. He hadn't pictured it like that, he hadn't pictured it like anything since he knew his chances of ever meeting a girl let alone having one fall in love with him were slim to none, but…but on the odd times he had pictured it he hadn't pictured anyone like Miss Suzuki.

He had pictured someone who loved him but not…not someone like her…and he hated himself for it.

"You can still call me by my family name if you want. I know you're not used to being on a given name basis with people." Sighed Mob. It felt weird, hearing him call her by her given name, it was like it put some kind of a distance between them…but she didn't want there to be any distance between them. She wanted to be near him. She laid back down and put her head on his chest.

He tensed. His aura pushed against hers.

"Katsuya?" asked Mob

"You can call me by my given name if you want, I already told you that you could, but even if I hadn't I wouldn't have stopped you. You can call me whatever you want to call me. I don't care." Said Serizawa. She could call him whatever she wanted to call him, she could do to him whatever she wanted to do to him, he didn't care just so long as he had her in his life. He told himself this over and over again in his mind as she put her head right there on his bare chest, right above his heart. He wondered if she could hear it, if it was telling her how he really felt, if she was going to lift her head and tell him that she never wanted to see him again…

The thought makes his heart stop.

"That's not it." Said Mob as she felt his aura start to grow and glow. She reached out with her powers and tried to absorb what he was giving off. She rolled over and put a leg over his. Something was definitely bothering him…but what? She didn't know what could have been on his mind. It had been good for him, he wouldn't have gotten done otherwise, so what was it?

"What is it, then? Did I…did I do something wrong?" asked Serizawa quietly as she wrapped one of her legs around his. More of her skin against his. He wanted to tear his off. He wasn't supposed to touch her like this! He wasn't supposed to be like this with her at all! The whole thing just felt so…so…it felt like he needed a bath.

A bath…yes. A bath would have made everything better. That was all he needed, a good bath.

"No, not at all! I was just worried about you…about how you're feeling." Said Mob as her hand found his. She felt his whole body stiffen again. She didn't know what he could have been scared of. It wasn't like anything had gone wrong or…or maybe this wasn't about her. She felt an aura brush up against hers…

Right. Dad was in the next apartment, wasn't he.

She forced her aura to stay calm. She hadn't really thought too hard about that. Serizawa was probably embarrassed about the fact that Dad was right there and…and how thick were these walls? Or did that not matter since he was even better at sensing auras than she was? Or had he not even known what had been going on with her aura…she was going to go with that one.

For her own sanity she was going to go with the last one.

"I feel…I feel…" said Serizawa. He felt sticky. He felt her leg against his. He felt sweaty. He felt his back hurting where she had dug her nails into him. He felt a sort of sliminess where she was pressed against him….he felt like he didn't want to think about what that was…he felt like he didn't want to think about any of this….

He felt like taking a bath.

"I feel like taking a bath...sorry, Miss Suzuki." Said Serizawa

"Is that it?" asked Mob

"Um…yes? I mean I feel like getting dressed afterwards too." Said Serizawa. If she said that he could get dressed then that meant that she didn't want to do it again. If she said no then that meant that he'd have to do that with her again…he hoped that she said he could take a bath. He didn't know if he could do it again…

He was going to have to eventually, though…

"You can take bath if you want. I was just…just kind of worried about you. About how you're feeling. Your aura is just being all…all weird." Said Mob

"That's because of…of what happened." Said Serizawa

"I get it. It was kind of weird for me too…but also Teru had been kind of mean to me and then Shimazaki had just been…that whole thing had been weird. I wasn't mean to you, was I? Or weird." Said Mob

"This whole thing-" said Serizawa. He had been about to tell her that the whole thing had been really weird but he didn't. He caught himself right before he ruined everything. He couldn't tell her how he felt. It didn't feel right, having to keep things from her. She used to be the person he could talk to about anything. There was no way he could tell her how he felt, it would have hurt her. She had shared herself with him and he couldn't just take that from her and tell her that it had felt weird and gross and he never wanted to do it with her again as long as he lived.

No. Of course not.

"-was really…different. That's all, I've just never done anything like that before and…and I didn't know how it would feel." Said Serizawa. There, that was good. He hadn't lied at all. Different was a word that fit. Kissing her was different, touching her was different, actually sharing himself with her had been different…really different. He had been inside of her and he had been inside of himself, too…it was weird…

Different was a much nicer word than weird.

"I know how you feel. It's like…like you were inside of me and I was inside of me." said Mob

"Exactly!" said Serizawa. She understood and…and wait, if she understood then why had she done that with him? Why had she…because she loved him, that was why, and when you loved someone you shared yourself with them. Like Mom had told him when he had been little. When two people loved each other very much they did something very special, shared their bodies with each other, and then…and then a baby was born…

A baby….

"Katsuya? Are you ok? You were really…it felt like happy…but now you look scared. Is it because my Dad is so close? Because I know he's not going to hurt, I can promise-" said Mob

"I'm not afraid of your dad, I'm afraid of being a dad!" said Serizawa as he sat up. The blanket fell from the both of them. He looked away. He wasn't supposed to see her like that…at least it had been dark…but what had happened was the least of his problems! He couldn't be anyone's Dad! He couldn't even take care of himself!

"Oh…right." Said Mob as she sat up. She hadn't been thinking of that and….and the thought is scary, now that there's a chance that it could happen. That she could have a baby and…and she didn't know how to she was going to deal with that. She knew how to take care of Mukai but…but making another person was just…just…

A lot.

"But that's…that's ok." Said Mob. It was a lot but she had been handling a lot for her entire life. Her powers, taking care of Sho, that time Dad gave her Mukai to take care of, all the times he'd asked her to take care of Claw for him…she'd been dealing with a lot for her entire life and she couldn't be scared. She could deal with…if it was even happening…

She felt Dad's aura against hers.

"We can deal with that when we come to it. We have a lot of other things to worry about today so let's just worry about those things first, ok?" asked Mob. Today was going to be the day. Unless Dad hadn't been serious about wanting to do this on her birthday…hey! Today was her birthday. She was fourteen now.

She'd been fourteen since yesterday. It somehow didn't feel that special.

"But…but how can we worry about anything else?" asked Serizawa. A person…what was more important than a person!? Well, taking over the world, but…but those people hadn't come from him!

"We just don't think about it until we have to, alright?" asked Mob as she took his hand in hers. He pulled away.

"Alright…um…can I take my bath now?" asked Serizawa quickly. This was too much. He needed to…to think. This room was too big. It was too big and too bright and…and too crowded, too.

He needed to be alone. He needed to be away from her.

"Sure. I'll wait here for you." said Mob as she reached out with her powers and picked up a shirt from off the ground…oh, it was his, well that was alright. It fit, and like a short dress, too. She pulled it over her head. One moment she was looking at him and the next he was across the room.

She hadn't known that he was so into taking baths.

"Goodbye Miss…Miss Suzuki." Said Serizawa before he opened the door and practically threw himself through it. He shut it behind him much too loudly. He winced, that had probably woken up the whole building…all of his friends. How was he supposed to be around his friends today? Or anyone? Everything was too big and too bright…he needed to get out of here. He felt the hallway stretch on in front of him, just on and on, so he grabbed the wall for support. He felt it shake. His fingertips left imprints, deep ones, ones that he knew she would notice. She would notice and then she would ask and then…and then…

And then he ran to the bathroom.

He slammed the door behind himself and turned off the lights. He turned, put his back to the door, and then sank to the floor. He could see his aura now. Purple. So much of it, all that he could see, no matter where he looked purple was all that he could see…he pulled his shirt over his head and hid like a turtle. It helped a little. He didn't know what else he could do. There was no way to make the world any smaller than this. There was no way to…to do anything about this. He was…he didn't have anywhere else to go.

He was trapped.

He couldn't go outside, it was too big, and he couldn't stay in here either. He couldn't move. If he went outside then it would be too big but if he stayed here then…then it would be too small. For once in his life a place was too small for him. He wanted to go, he needed to go, but he had no idea where he even could have gone. Back home? No. Mom didn't need him in her life. She was finally free of her cursed, useless, dangerous son. She didn't need him coming home and destroying her life. He had done enough of that by being born. Besides, she was so far away, he didn't think that he could have gone back even if he had been comfortable being a burden on her again.

He couldn't go anywhere without Miss Suzuki.

So he was stuck with her…he hated himself for even thinking like that. Miss Suzuki loved him. She had saved him in every way a person could be saved and this was how he repaid her? He needed to stop it. She had shared herself with him because she loved him, she had let him into her life because she loved him, she had trusted him with everything because she loved him. He was just being ungrateful. He was just being a burden again, he was as much of a burden onto her as he had been onto Mom…maybe that was just who he was, a burden…

He didn't know why Miss Suzuki loved him…it wasn't like there was much to love.

He got up. He needed a bath. He needed to bathe, clear his head, and then get back to her. He pulled his shirt down…he smelled like her. He could still smell her on him…maybe it was the shirt. He pulled it off and tossed it into the darkness. He could still smell her on him. He could taste her, too, and feel her…memories, that was all…memories that he needed to…to get rid of…but they were supposed to be good memories! This was what he should have wanted! He should have been grateful for what he had instead of being a burden onto Miss Suzuki and everyone else and-

-and whoever was knocking on the door.

"Serizawa? Are you alright in there?" asked Fukuda as he knocked on the door. He didn't know why he asked questions that he already knew the answers to. Of course he wasn't alright. Had Fukuda been alright when he'd been in Serizawa's place? When he'd been, probably in the bath, trying to scrub away the memory of Touichirou. Touching him, kissing him, being inside of him…

No. There was no way in hell Serizawa was alright right now.

"No…but don't tell Miss Suzuki! Please!" said Serizawa, stepping away from the door. He didn't want to be near anyone right now…but also he didn't want to be alone…it made no sense!

"Don't worry, I won't tell her anything." Said Fukuda

"Do you promise?" asked Serizawa

"Of course. Why would I tell her anything? I don't even like her…like talking to her." said Fukuda

"Oh…I don't know why you wouldn't. She always has the most interesting things to say." Said Serizawa, wiping his eyes. He felt better. Talking about her was good, it reminded him of the good parts of her, the best parts of being with her. The way she loved talking about the life she'd led, the way she'd tell him about things he had never even dreamed of, the way she listened when he told her the few stories he'd saved up from his life…she always listened…she was always there for him…

He tried to remember that version of her. The best version of her.

"Yeah, I'm sure she does…" said Fukuda. Well that was fast. Too fast…no, he knew Serizawa and he knew what it was like to be in Serizawa's place. He didn't feel that way about her, he couldn't, that was just Stockholm syndrome kicking in…the poor guy. He hadn't asked for this.

"Do you want me to get rid of her for you?" asked Fukuda. The last thing he wanted to do was talk to Shigeko now. Not when he knew, and had gotten a front row seat so to speak, about her more intimate escapades. Touichirou had, when Fukuda had been in much the same boat Serizawa was now, had the good sense to wait until everyone was gone before making his move on Fukuda. Shigeko knew how expansive her aura was and, also, she knew she hadn't been alone!

He should have just bunked with Higashio and Ootsuki.

"Get rid of her?" asked Serizawa. The thought of someone getting rid of her, the thought of her not being in his life, even after all of this the thought of it…it was terrifying. He needed her. He needed her and…and she needed him. He got up and turned the lights on. He had promised her that he'd be back after his bath so…so he needed to take that bath already. She was waiting and sad and lonely and…and maybe she wanted to…again…with him…

His eyes darted to the light switch. He wanted to turn it off. He didn't. He couldn't. Not when there was a chance that she might have needed him.

"Send her back to her apartment, I mean." Said Fukuda. He was flattered, a little, that Serizawa actually thought that he could have gotten rid of her in a more permanent way…not that he would have. He wanted her gone, not dead, he didn't think that he could ever have wanted her dead. Not when he could still picture her as a little girl in her school uniform begging him to stay over for dinner…to stay and play with her for a little while longer…

Sun rise, sun set.

"I would…if she wants to go, I mean. Not because I want her to go…and I don't!" said Serizawa before he turned the taps on. He should have scrubbed down before he got in the tub, he was just going to end up making the water dirty this way, but he didn't have time. He didn't know what he was rushing for but he knew that he didn't have time to waste anymore. For every moment he spent in that small, dark, nearly perfect room it would be another moment that he'd have to fight to get out…so he got in the tub and set out to do what he had said he was going to do.

Though maybe he should have taken his pants off first.

"Duly noted." Said Fukuda before he turned away and let Serizawa pull himself together. Poor guy. Hopefully Shigeko finished with him soon. There would be plenty of other men for her once she took over the world…once she stole it from Touichirou…oh God. He hadn't thought that part through.

A world ruled by Shigeko.

She was, in so many ways, just an immature kid. Even now she was thinking with her hormones and not her brain. She wanted to sleep with someone so she chose the most vulnerable person she could find, someone who couldn't say no, and she hadn't even thought about his feelings. How it was never just sex. How being inside of someone made it just a little bit difficult to keep up a working relationship. How if something had been going on just fine for three goddamned decades then maybe the best course of action was to leave well enough alone. Maybe instead of being selfish and thinking with her-

-calm aura time.

"Shigeko?" asked Fukuda as he knocked gingerly on the door. He knew she was in there, he knew that she knew he was out there, and he also knew that this was insanely awkward for the both of them. He knocked again, even more softly that time, and was prepared to walk away. She wasn't responding but…but then, to his horror, he head shuffling.

Then footsteps.

"Yes?" asked Mob as she opened the door. She knew that Fukuda didn't like her, she knew that he knew that she didn't like him, and they both knew that if he was talking to her voluntarily then it meant that something had gone wrong or right or…important! Something had gone important.

Something had better have been important.

"Shigeko." Said Fukuda. He didn't know where to look. Her hair was a bird's nest, she wearing what he was sure was Serizawa's t-shirt, and probably nothing under it if the temperature in the room was anything to go off of…he needed to look up. He needed to look up and meet her eyes and not…this was Shigeko. He had held her as a toddler, he'd bathed and dressed her, and he did NOT want to come to terms with the fact that she'd finally hit puberty and that he really needed to turn the heat up in there or…or turn it down so she put some actual clothes on!

Up there. Her eyes were up there.

"What is it? What happened?" asked Mob as she crossed her arms. She didn't like how Fukuda was looking at her. He made her feel naked

"Serizawa is…uh…taking a bath." Said Fukuda

"I know that already. Is something happening with Dad? With the plan? With-" said Mob

"He'll be a while, that's all." Said Fukuda

"I know that taking baths takes time, Fukuda." Said Mob. She officially didn't know why he was talking to her…it was mean but it was true. He was looking everywhere but at her, now, and his aura was jumping around. She knew that something must have been wrong with him, and she knew that she should have asked what it was, but that would have required talking to him for longer than necessary and doing that…well, doing that would have been too much.

She'd spent enough time talking to him as it was. He was starting to put her in a bad mood.

"So maybe you might want to go back to your own apartment and…um…feed Sho?" asked Fukuda

"Sho!" said Mob. She had totally forgotten about him! He needed her to feed him and…and no he didn't, he could heat up his own poptart or just eat it raw but…but it would have been nice to eat with him…but then she would have had to be away from Serizawa

"Yeah, he usually gets up around this time so….so that's a thing you could do…and maybe, if you're going to go out, put something on. It's kind of chilly in here." Said Fukuda. There was a part of him, maybe, that still cared enough about her to save her the embarrassment of walking down the hallway looking like…that. The whole division was well aware of what she had been up to, of course, but they didn't need visual confirmation. They also didn't need to see just how much growing up she had done…he certainly didn't!

"I'm not cold." Said Mob

"You may not be but…but other people may not get that impression when they look at you." said Fukuda, making a vague sort of motion towards her general torso area, taking great care not to look as creepy as she felt. She really needed to put a bra on or a jacket or…or something! Something to cover those up before she embarrassed herself anymore so than she already had!

"What do you…oh!" said Mob as she crossed her arms even more tightly across her chest. She was…he didn't need to look at her like that and…and…and…

And she had to get out of here!

"Alright then. You…go take care of that then." Said Fukuda as Shigeko shoved him to the side with her powers and ran away. He tried to take a step forward and…yes. That was painful. He popped his spine back into place. Not broken, he'd never broken his spine before and he didn't want to try it now, but some things were definitely out of alignment. He may have been asking for that one. As Touichirou had said many times before, it was dangerous ground criticizing a woman's clothing…or lack thereof in this case.

A woman.

Shigeko was…a young woman was the polite word for it. Not a child, young and immature, but not a child anymore. That protectiveness that had passed over him, one that he hadn't felt in so long, wasn't needed anymore. She didn't need him and hadn't needed him for years. She had moved past him…him and most everyone else. She was a lot like a slightly older version of Touichirou. At fourteen he'd been clingy as hell but somewhere around their twenties, once he'd met Masami, he'd decided that Fukuda was yesterday's news…

Things should have stayed that way.

But they couldn't and they wouldn't. Things were the way they were and he had to just roll with the punches. He didn't even know why he was worried about Shigeko of all people, not when he was going to take on Touichirou, not when he was going to stop him from taking on the entire world…it was reckless, it was dangerous, and it was downright stupid.

But he'd promised Sho.

So he was going to make good on that promise but first he needed to get ready for the day…and he had no idea how long Serizawa was going to stay in the shower for. He knew Hatori and his hiding habits well. Serizawa had lived an even worse life than Hatori, and Hatori had been adopted by the man who'd made him an orphan in the first place! Serizawa could have been in there for hours…

Fukuda ran a hand through what little hair he had. He needed a shower.

He had people to see, things to coordinate, things to undermine, and at some point he was going to have to betray his former best friend. No way he was going to even attempt that much aggravation without starting his day properly. That meant a shower, a shave, and about fifteen minutes to look in the bathroom mirror and try to figure out how his life had gone this wrong.

That is if he ever got access to the bathroom.

He could feel Serizawa's aura, raw and trembling, all the way from the hall. He needed to shower, he wasn't just going to get dressed without bathing, but he also needed use of all of his limb today. He could and had reattached limbs, he just hated doing that, and this was not the day to be out of commission while his nerves spent the day reconnecting. No, there was no way in hell he was bothering Serizawa while he had his well deserved mental breakdown.

Which left him one option.

One which he didn't much want to take but one which he had no choice but to take. If he had been thinking he would have snuck off to Sho's apartment while Shigeko was sleeping. Sho, even if he could be a little high strung sometimes, and even if there had been times when he'd said horrible things to Fukuda, wouldn't have turned him away in his hour of need. Neither would Shigeko, if he thought about it, but the more distance he put between the two of them the better. So he really only had one option when he really thought about it.

He never thought he would have said it but, yes, thank God for Touichirou.

Or rather thank God for Hatori. The greasy little weirdo would act as a good buffer between him and Suzuki. Yes, this was a good idea, he reassured himself of this as he gathered up some day clothes. As much as Touichirou had made things awkward between them, it was his fault for starting all of this in the first place, he never would have done anything while Hatori was around. If the details of his personal life got around he would have been ruined.

And Fukuda, too, which was why he kept his mouth shut about certain transgressions.

"Get in, get out, get on with your life." muttered Fukuda as he closed his apartment door softly. No need to freak Serizawa out. He didn't know if he wanted to be alone or with someone, Fukuda had oscillated between the two after…certain events…and Serizawa wasn't nearly as emotionally mature. No need to worry him or about him, he couldn't get pulled into this now, not with everything that was happening…

He couldn't believe that this was happening.

He sighed and knocked on Touichirou's door. This was happening and he couldn't help but feel like he was making a big mistake, or about to, or in the aftermath of one. Or maybe all of the above. Sho wanted this and he wanted this for Sho. He would have moved mountains for him. Masami would have wanted that…she would have been happy, or at least not…not angry with him…

He didn't know how Masami would have felt. He hadn't seen her in years and she hadn't exactly left a forwarding address.

"I know you're in there." Said Fukuda as he knocked again. It was going to be awkward, especially after what had happened between them, but he was prepared to pretend that nothing at all had happened if Touichirou was, and he probably was, either that or he was hiding from Fukuda. He debated skipping that day's shower, it wasn't like one day would kill him, and…and he wasn't going to destroy Claw, take on Touichirou, and destroy the thing that he had wasted his life building without at least scrubbing down.

If he was going to die, or at least get maimed, today he was going to do it without stinking to high hell.

"I can hear TV and see your auras…and the door's unlocked." Said Fukuda. He decided to pull a Sho and just let himself in. Any awkwardness that he faced in there couldn't have been worse than what had passed between them in Touichirou's office…or at any other point in their relationship that he would have preferred to forget…that he knew Touichirou would have had enough tact not to bring up.

At least not in front of Hatori.

Fukuda stepped through into the apartment and slid his shoes off, letting them rest near Touichirou's loafers and away from Hatori's beat up sneakers. He could hear voices, both human and from the TV, and he couldn't help but feel a bit like…like he was intruding upon something.

He kept going.

"So if we use, like, a thousand drones we can lift the tower and-hey! Fukuda's here!" said Hatori, jumping to his feet and sending the drone in his lap crashing to the ground. He felt something tugging at him...it was Suzuki trying to bring him back down to the couch.

He sat back down. He had no reason to be afraid of Fukuda.

"I'm aware. Now, what were you saying?" asked Suzuki, making it a point not to look at Tadashi. This was the most important day of his life. He had a speech to make, final preparations to prepare, and Nozomu's ideas to entertain. He simply didn't have time for Tadashi, that was all.

Nothing had passed between them and nothing ever would.

"If we used, like, a thousand drones we could lift the tower into the sky and it would be really cool. It might even stop the JSDF from fucking with us." Said Hatori, taking a hint and not even looking in Fukuda's direction. He didn't know what had happened and he didn't want to know. Something had gone on between Suzuki and Fukuda, something that he kind of figured out already but didn't need confirmation on, something that had nothing to do with him…so he just decided to stay out of it.

Whatever had happened was probably really private and really gross so, yeah, for once he was minding his own damn business.

"We'd need more than a thousand. These are toys at best…and even a thousand real helicopters wouldn't be able to lift the Cultural Tower." Said Suzuki, feeling Fukuda's eyes and aura on him. He so hoped that this wasn't another social call. He hoped that something had gone right, or gone wrong, or caught fire or exploded or…or something. Anything but…but the reason Tadashi had tried to last corner him.

Hell, he would have even taken some more of Shigeko's antics above dealing with Tadashi and the unwanted emotions he bore for the man.

"Well we can…uh…we can do something with them. We have to, these things are cool." Said Hatori. He felt Fukuda's aura on him…the paper cut on his finger knitted it's self shut. He heard Fukuda getting closer…his tooth felt weird. He tongued it…huh. That weird spot that hurt when he touched it with his tongue went away…and that sore in his mouth was gone, too.

He scooted closer to Suzuki. He doubted that Fukuda had done that out of the goodness of his heart.

"I agree. These things are very interesting and could prove useful. The cameras alone could provide us with so many means of spying upon, looking in on, our people." Said Suzuki as he watched the various papercuts of Hatori's hands vanish. Tadashi's doing. He felt the ache in his own back begin to dissipate, not vanish though, but he knew that Tadashi had his limitations. He couldn't change what nature had done, which he assumed was wear down the cartilage in his spine due to a lifetime of sitting and hunching, but this was…enjoyable. Thoughtful, as was Tadashi's nature. He had always been very thoughtful when it came to him.

He was a bit like a woman in that regard.

"Like why everyone's been so distant lately." Said Hatori. It wasn't that he liked his friends that much. Shimazaki was an asshole, Minegishi had it going on but they could also be kind of a jerk, Serizawa was ok but the thing with Mob was too weird, he got the feeling that Sho didn't really like him all that much, Shibata was alright but he was always around the others, and Tsuchiya had it going on too but in a milfy sort of way which she took too far when she actually tried to mom him. He may not have liked all of his friends but he did notice when they were avoiding him.

Even Mob was avoiding him and, yeah, she was being really weird but still! She was Mob…this whole thing was weird….

"Everyone is doing their part in the preparations as you are. There will be plenty of time to socializing once we're finished achieving our goals…and also we are not wasting these things on socializing. If you wish to speak to someone do it in person or over the phone." Said Suzuki

"We could spy on people with them, though, and race them…uh…and, attach saws and have them fight each other-" said Hatori

"No saws. The Awakened would only maim themselves." Said Suzuki. Fukuda was hovering nearer to them, now, so near that he could hear him breathing. That he could hear the hum of his aura, feel it, touch it, maybe even taste it…no. Too many senses. He swallowed and focused on the conversation at hand.

He didn't dare risk telling Tadashi to leave. He knew that he wouldn't be able to control himself as soon as he opened his mouth.

"We could try attaching guns to them and-" said Hatori

"Again, the Awakened cannot be trusted with such things, and anyway this is not a videogame." Said Suzuki

"No but weapons would be nice." said Hatori

"We have powers, we don't need weapons, and anyway a gun is a coward's weapon." Said Suzuki

"We don't all have cool powers, though, and anyway what about that guy with the katana? A katana is a weapon." Said Hatori

"It's a cursed katana so it doesn't count. I'm assuming that you want some kind of a weapon so you can better defend yourself. I will not be providing you with one or allowing you to procure one. That would be like giving Sho a weapon, or Mukai, or one of the Awakened." Said Suzuki

"I'm not going to hurt myself, I just don't want to get shot by the JSDF." Said Hatori

"As I would let any harm come to you, Nozomu. I don't know where I'd be without you." said Suzuki

"I still don't want to get shot by the JSDF so can I just have a cursed katana or a cursed dagger or a cursed-" said Hatori

"Did you plan on broadcasting your speech from the top of the Cultural Tower?" asked Fukuda, finally cutting in. He didn't want to be ignored. Well he did, kind of, or maybe he just didn't want things to become more awkward between him and Suzuki. There was a weird sort of pain he felt, though, being ignored. A hollow sort of feeling like he had just finished vomiting up the contents of his stomach and now he was weirdly both sick and hungry at the same time.

He tried to heal himself. It didn't work.

"I…what?" asked Suzuki as a half formed memory came to the forefront of his consciousness. He could recall, vaguely, making such a plan years ago…but he had never expected Tadashi to hold him to it. He couldn't even believe that Tadashi had remembered…

"When we were kids you told me that you wanted to make the tower yours so, when we took over the world, you were going to climb to the top of it and have me tape your message to the world. Remembered, back when your Dad got that new camera?" asked Fukuda. Hatori was giving him a look now like he was going to be sick…and he didn't want to think about how much Hatori knew or didn't know or thought he knew. He focused on Suzuki.

"I…recall, yes, but I had never thought that you would have held me to it…or recalled it yourself. Your memory isn't nearly as remarkable as mine." Said Suzuki

"I have a good memory for things when it comes to us." Said Fukuda. Maybe he was still planning on trying to get Touichirou on his side, maybe he just didn't want to be on the outs, or maybe the machinations of his mind were an enigma even to himself. He didn't know.

He didn't really want to examine all of that right now.

"I am…aware." Said Suzuki, looking away from Tadashi. He couldn't lose control, not now, not when he needed every molecule of power he had. He so didn't want to collect any from the Awakened, he was powerful but there was something to having an army at your disposal even if most of them were useless. He had to keep control over himself…he had to remember that this was Tadashi, yes, but all of that was over now and….and he wanted for nothing. He had no reason to.

All of his dreams were about to come true.

"So did you come here to mess around with drones with us or what?" asked Hatori. It looked like they were about to start making out. He didn't like the way Fukuda was looking at Suzuki, he really didn't like the way Suzuki was looking at Fukuda, and the less said about their auras the better. Why did everyone he cared about have to be so weird!? Why did-he kept calm. He couldn't lose it, not now, or Suzuki would be pissed at him and now, when they were about to face the world and the JSDF, was not the time to get Suzuki pissed enough to abandon him.

"I came so use your shower, actually. Mine's…in use." Said Fukuda

"Sho is voluntarily bathing?" asked Suzuki incredulously. Miracles did occur…or maybe his son was just growing up, becoming more mature, maybe some day he would even catch up to Shigeko…he turned his mind away from her. She was mature, yes, she was becoming a woman…but he did NOT need to think about that.

"No, Seriawa's…not doing so well right now." said Fukuda as he stepped into what he knew was dangerous ground the moment the words left his mouth.

"Well yeah, I mean who would if Mob-" said Hatori. The mood was effectively dead the second Fukuda mentioned Serizawa, Hatori was just shooting it's corpse in the head so it couldn't come back as a zombie and try to devour him.

"The shower is down the hall and to the left. You may not touch any of my products but you may make liberal use of Hatori's. Don't touch the red towels. That is all." Said Suzuki as he pointed down the hall. No. They were not going to discuss Shigeko and her…the things she did on her own time. He couldn't fault her, if he'd had someone willing to sleep with him at thirteen he wouldn't have done any differently…fourteen. She was fourteen years old now.

Today was her birthday.

"Go." Said Suzuki. Tadashi, thankfully, left. Now if only thoughts of Shigeko were as easy to exorcise. She was…she was older. He didn't know where this sense of melancholy had come from. He had planned this from the start. On her birthday he was giving her the world…and no, he was not making up for the fact that he had no idea what she would have wanted for an actual, physical gift…being too old for dolls now.

Much, much too old for dolls.

"So anyway, if we're climbing to the top of the tower I was thinking-" said Hatori

"What did you get Shigeko for her birthday?" asked Suzuki

"I hacked into Disney and downloaded the most up to date version of the newest Frozen short for her. Why?" asked Hatori

"Does she still like Frozen?" asked Suzuki. She had loved that film since she had been able to talk. She knew the words to every scene, every short, even the stage play. She had always had an affinity for the white haired queen, Elsa, even though Anna was really the more compelling character. Why she chose to go up the mountain and get her sister to return to her post he would never understand…with Elsa gone and without heirs the kingdom would have reverted to her…Shigeko had tried to explain something about the power of love to him so many times…maybe if she explained it again he would have finally understood…

If she wasn't too old, now, to explain it to him again.

"I think so, I mean she's Mob. Frozen is her main joy in life." said Hatori

"Intoxication." Said Suzuki simply. She loved getting intoxicated. Never in his life would he know why. He had tried it before. He never made good choices while intoxicated…and that was even if he managed to keep his powers under control. Another thing he could add to the long list of things he didn't understand, and never would understand, about his daughter. How she could have been so different from him…well, she wasn't actually his to begin win.

A thought as reassuring as it was painful

"Uh…yeah, that too-" said Hatori, his eyes darting around the room for a hiding place. He couldn't stop them. He just really didn't want to have this conversation about Mob!

"And men." Said Suzuki, his aura darting towards the purple he could see seeping through the wall. Serizawa was well and truly shaken, he could feel it, and…and that was a good thing. He may not have enjoyed this new part of Shigeko's life but at least Serizawa got nothing out of this. It was the best that he could hope for. When she had been young he had always imagined her husband as a nonentity, some man she would meet in her twenties who would provide him with grandchildren, some man he could reassign to some far off part of Claw so he couldn't try and steal Shigeko from him. He was going to have to amend those plans now, Shigeko being so much younger than he had imagined and the man she chose being so…Serizawa, but it wasn't the worst thing that could have happened.

No, the worst thing that could have happened was currently teleporting around the building doing God only knew what.

"Gross!" shouted Hatori, covering his eyes and shaking his head. He may not have been able to run and hide but this was the next best thing!

"Yes, it is." Said Suzuki, using his powers to pull Hatori's hands away from his eyes. Honestly. He didn't have to be such a child about this. If anyone should have been acting like a child it should have been Suzuki, but he wasn't going to because he was forty seven years old. No. He was going to keep his emotions to himself as usual.

"I don't want to think about that! Sorry, but I don't! It was weird enough when she was into me but at least she never came onto me! I mean if I had to sleep with-" said Hatori

"Finish that sentence and I will pull out your tongue." Said Suzuki. His stomach was churning. He could hear the water running. Tadashi was busy…not that it mattered but…and now the two were married in mind. Wonderful. He weighed dealing with these sickening thoughts against the violation of having a telepath invade his mind to remove them…the sickening thoughts won.

"Would you seriously?" asked Hatori

"Try me." said Suzuki

"But Fukuda could grow it back, right?" asked Hatori

"We never tried to grow back body parts, though I know that he can reattach limbs." Said Suzuki. Hatori gulped and shook his head.

"I'm good…but can we talk about something else? Someone else? Anything else?" asked Hatori

"No, we cannot. It's Shigeko's birthday and…and she's occupying my thoughts." Said Suzuki

"Do you want to go and, uh, join her party or something?" asked Hatori. He assumed, anyway, that she had a breakfast party coming to her. Shibata was around and he always threw the best breakfast parties….and the only breakfast parties. Every year he threw one for everyone but Shimazaki…of course Mob was getting one.

One that Hatori hadn't been invited to.

"I…would prefer not to for obvious reasons…but do not let that stop yourself from enjoying in the celebration of my daughter's birth." Said Suzuki. He was going to make it a worldwide holiday once he took power for himself, the day Shigeko had been born. She deserved it. Even with all the headache she had caused him she deserved it…and maybe turning her birthday into a holiday would be the thing to convince her that he didn't hate her, that he could never hate her, and that he had never hated her…

It better have. He was giving her the world after all. There was nothing he could give her beyond that.

"They didn't invite me." said Hatori

"And?" asked Suzuki

"And…they didn't invite me? I can't just go if I'm not invited…if Mob's pissed off at me for something." said Hatori. He knew that Sho didn't like the fact that he'd joined the family and Mob…he knew that she had been really weird lately. Maybe this was one of those things that he just needed to leave alone…or hide from. Preferably somewhere small and dark.

"Yes you can. I know my daughter. There are very few things in existence that give her more joy than spending time with her friends and family." Said Suzuki

"Then why don't you go? I mean aside from the thing with Serizawa?" asked Hatori. He felt Suzuki's aura on his. It burned. He would have pulled back if he could but he already carried his aura so close to his body…he picked up a drone and held onto it. He focused on it and saw through the camera. It was weird, looking through his mind's eye, or maybe it was just the face Suzuki was making…he wasn't actually going to pull out Hatori's tongue…right?

Right?

"Uh…you're not going to rip out my tongue for real…right?" asked Hatori

"No, I thought against it. Too much work for Tadashi." Said Suzuki. Hatori gasped and held a drone in front of his face. Suzuki didn't even try and pretend to understand Hatori right now, his first adopted child was already giving him enough to ruminate on.

"I can't believe you seriously thought about ripping my tongue out." Said Hatori

"I can't believe you honestly challenged me on that…though there is a sense of pride, there." Said Suzuki

"Because I challenged you?" asked Hatori

"Yes. As aggravating as it is to have your children challenge you there is something to watching them become adults…your sons, anyway." Said Suzuki. He had seen firsthand what happened when a man had no will of his own. That man was Serizawa Katsuya and while his pliability made him a good match for Shigeko it would have made him a terrible son. No son of his would ever be so spineless…and it was nice to know that no son of his was.

One of Sho's only good qualities had rubbed off on Nozomu…though it was usually the older brother who rubbed off on the younger brother and not the other way around.

"Thanks." Said Hatori, putting the drone down. He felt weirdly…good. Well of course he did, Touichirou was proud of him, which would have been the highest praise even if he hadn't been adopted by him.

"Now go and spend time with your sister…and tell me how the party goes. As much of a headache as she has been to me these past few years her happiness is still something which I have invested a lot of time and money in." said Suzuki

"Yeah…yeah! I can do that. Even if I'm not invited I can go!" said Hatori, the same nervous feeling that usually sent him running to the bathroom or the closet now sending him jumping to his feet. Mob hadn't invited him but it wasn't like he had never been invited before so this was ok…and anyway he was her brother!

Not by blood but still!

He had known her for years so, of course, he was invited to her party. He got his shoes on and practically ran down the hall. That shaky nervous feeling carried him the whole way, giving him the energy to move this time instead of hide, energy which he used well. The walk down the hall to Shibata's apartment wasn't far at all. All he had to do was walk a little, go through the door, kick his shoes and then eat some pancakes-

-alone.

"You're not Shigeko!" said Mukai as she threw a pancake at Hatori. Who did he think he was, coming into the kitchen without Shigeko!? This was her party, she was supposed to be here, that was the rule! She was fourteen now, Mama had helped her count the pancakes, and that was a lot so…so she needed to start eating!

Especially so the rest of them could eat!

"And neither are you…any of you. Where's Mob?" asked Hatori. A plate of pancakes, the less than perfect ones, was put down in an empty spot. He sat down beside Mukai…and scooted away from her as soon as sticky little hands started to grab for his sweater.

"I'm going to make ants get you." said Mukai

"No you aren't, not leave him alone or there won't be any pancakes for you at all this morning." Said Tsuchiya as she wiped her daughter's sticky hands. She knew that a party hadn't been a good idea, not with everything that was happening today, but it was their tradition and…and it was good for the kids to have some stability in their lives even if it was just stacks of pancakes.

"Please no, someone has to eat these pancakes." Said Shibata

"Where is everyone?" asked Hatori as a can of soda was opened and put in front of him. He flipped it around and checked the caffeine content…no way was this going to keep him going for the rest of the day.

"Sho went somewhere this morning, I think he's in the woods again and…well, I don't know or care where Shimazaki went-" said Shibata

"Don't say his name." said Tsuchiya

"Shimazaki! Shimazaki! Shima-" said Mukai before a forkful of pancake was shoved into her mouth. She pushed the fork away. Mama knew that she wasn't a baby so why did she do that?!

"-and Minegishi went to go get Mob. They've been gone a while and…yeah, I mean I think I know what they're talking about…" said Shibata, looking down at the stack of fourteen pancakes. It was tall, and this was by his standards, maybe too tall. Maybe fourteen was too many pancakes. Maybe she couldn't eat them all. Maybe she didn't even want them all. He had been doing this for the kids since they had been kids but they weren't kids anymore, they were teenagers, and…and maybe they were too grownup for this now.

Or maybe they just thought that they were.

"We all know what they're talking about." Said Tsuchiya as she fed Mukai. Mukai wasn't having it, of course, but it was best to keep her occupied right now. Besides, if she didn't eat now then her lunch would be late and her entire schedule would be thrown off. Tsuchiya didn't care about reporting for duty, she had a legion of Awakened soldiers to coordinate, as soon as it hit the fan she was leaving with Mukai, the confusion would be the perfect cover to get her child out of here.

She may not have been able to save all the kids but she could at least save hers.

"But let's not talk about that." Said Shibata as he watched the tower of pancakes begin to lean to the side. This was the last party, wasn't it? Once this was over then…then this was it. Their last party with him. He was getting out of here…he was getting Mukai out of him. She just needed him more, her and Tsuchiya, and he…he had been put on bodyguard duty years ago. He was supposed to protect the Suzuki kids and…and that was what he was going to do.

He was going to protect the last Suzuki kid that needed his protection…what protection he was able to give.

"Fine by me…God, I can't wait for this to be over." Said Hatori as he leaned back. His chair groaned…maybe that was why Shibata and Tsuchiya looked so tense all of a sudden.

"Breakfast isn't over until your plate is clean." Said Mukai

"I know, I know, but I didn't mean breakfast, I mean everything happening today…it's so weird. Suzuki's been planning this for his entire life but even he's stressed out. I don't know why, it's not like the JSDF can touch him." said Hatori as he cut into his pancakes with his fork. Again, more tense looks…he didn't know where these were coming from…well, aside from the fact that they were taking on the entire country and then the world…yeah.

Ok, yeah, it was a lot. Even Shibata had a right to be tense right now.

"Don't get freaked out, though, he's got a good plan and then we can finally rest. No more moving around, no more secret plans, no more hiding…it's going to be so great. The first thing I'm doing when this is all over is sleeping in." said Hatori

"But don't you…don't you do that already?" asked Shibata with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"Not for a while, not as long as I wanted to. Being Suzuki is tough, no wonder he's so high strung, but Fukuda doesn't help…that guy is so weird and, I don't know, weirdly desperate-wait. No, forget that last part." Said Hatori. Right, right, right, Suzuki had trusted him with all of this personal stuff. Not only would he probably wind up ripping Hatori's tongue out if he said anything but, also, he wouldn't want him as a son anymore if we went around telling the world about his bisexual crush on Fukuda.

"What's Fukuda doing that's so weird?" asked Tsuchiya as Hatori stuffed his face and spoke with his mouth full. She tried her best to stay calm. Fukuda was…not one of her favorite people but she had figured that he would have had some sense. Enough sense not to mess with the President right now. They had a plan! There had been a whole meeting about the plan and now he was just…she didn't understand that man and never would even if she lived forever. How could he have jeopardized-

-or sabotaged them.

"Just trying to hang out with us, that's all…yeah! I never knew he was so into drones, pass the syrup please." Said Hatori as he pulled at the collar of his t-shirt. Everyone was looking at him now, even Mukai, which was…no way did she need to know that about their Dad! He wasn't even comfortable knowing!

"I never knew that about him either. So is that all they talked about or-" said Tsuchiya

"They talked about when they were kids, too, pass the syrup." Said Hatori

"There's no pancakes left. Nope. Not a single one." Said Mukai as she pointed to Hatori's plate. He was so silly sometimes.

"Here, have some more pancakes and tell us about your morning. Get it out, it's not good to hold this kind of stuff inside." Said Shibata. Tsuchiya had been signaling him with her eyes. He knew that he needed to keep Hatori talking. If Fukuda was turning traitor, if he had ever been on their side to begin with, then this was going to be a real problem…a real traitor hole of a problem….

"I'm stuffed, couldn't eat another bite but…uh…Mob! She's probably starving after the night she had so I'll just go get her!" said Hatori as he got up from the table, his stool falling to the ground behind him. Either he had the perfect excuse to leave or he was about to get kicked out for being gross, he gladly would have taken either. He had to get out of there before he let something slip…and then Suzuki slipped his powers into Hatori's mouth and pulled his tongue out or, worse, slipped up and said that Hatori wasn't his so anymore and then he'd be back where he started…or worse. He might have even gotten kicked out of Claw…

He wasn't going back to the orphanage! He wasn't…wait, no, he wasn't fifteen anymore.

He was twenty three, no orphanage for him, but he didn't really like the idea of being homeless or dying in a traitor hole. So he got up, ran away, and practically broke down the door to his apartment. It had been a well placed kick all things considered, the door had been thrown opened and he'd managed to run through it. The only thing on his mind had been somewhere small where he could decompress, somewhere safe where he could think without worrying about slipping up, somewhere quiet where he could get his breathing under control. He had been so single minded that he had even forgotten to take off his shoes…

Maybe he should have.

"I-I-I-" stuttered Hatori as his brain struggled to take in what he was seeing. Suzuki on the couch and Fukuda…also on the couch…and Suzuki was in his pajamas still and Fukuda…was not…he was not wearing pajamas…he was not wearing anything at all….

Nothing besides his birthday suit.

"Get the hell out!" shouted Fukuda. He had been so close! He had been so close and now this kid had just let himself in and ruined everything and-

-and he was on his back.

"Touichirou! What the fuck?!" said Fukuda as the ceiling swam into view. That had been hard. He sat up and touched the back of his head. It was tender and…and there was blood on his fingers. Blood on the rug, too, which…Touichirou had pushed him that hard onto carpeting….

What the fuck!?

"What the…no! I did not give you permission, Tadashi! You-you take…no!" said Suzuki as he wiped his mouth. That had NOT been his idea! He had not given Tadashi permission to kiss him and therefore this did NOT count as adultery and therefore Shiori did not have ground to dissolve their relationship and…and…and…

And he needed to calm down. He tried to force his emotions out, to exorcise them, but they were just so stubborn!

"You were into it! And, anyway, it's not like you never-" said Fukuda as he got up. He caught sight of Hatori stammering in the corner and…and he was too angry to feel self-conscious! He didn't have any reason to…to…he didn't need to feel this way! Suzuki was not going to cast him aside like this! He wasn't going to…he wasn't going…he hadn't wasted his life!

He hadn't.

"Get out." Said Suzuki as he kept his eyes trained on his knees. He stared at the pattern, the tiny space invaders…the core cannon…the ufo…he kept his eyes trained there. If he looked up he would lose control. He knew it. Everything rode on him. He couldn't lose control, not now, not when he was so close he could taste it….he hadn't wasted his life!

He hadn't. This was going to happen.

"You're kicking me out after all these years? You're just going to cast me aside after everything? Do you have any idea what you're doing? I'm the only person even slightly on your side, here, Touichirou, and…and I'm not going to waste what's left of my life on someone who-" said Fukuda, his mouth getting away from him. He just…he didn't even know what he wanted anymore. He didn't want Suzuki to win but…but he didn't want Shigeko to win, either. He wanted to…he wanted Sho to win, yes, and this was the best way. If he stayed on Suzuki's good side then maybe he could…could…he would be there to extend influence! Yes! Enough influence to get Sho installed as heir and…and Shigeko and all of her friends had proven themselves traitors and…and if he had to put his own body on the line to secure Sho's future then he would!

"Get the fuck out!" shouted Suzuki. He was proud of the fact that he only tore up the carpet. A line of carpet, parted down to the flooring beneath, was laid out in front of him…a line of broken carpet leading to a line of torn wallpaper and a cracked television...there was a sickening groan as the television split into two pieces and then came crashing down onto the floor.

But the building still stood and he still had most of his power. Good.

"You can't-" said Fukuda

"Tadashi…if you have any sense of self preservation left you're going to get the hell out of my sight. I'll deal with you later." Said Suzuki. He kept his eyes trained on his knees…his pajama pants had ripped as well. He could always get new pants, he would get new pants, and…and he would get a new best friend too while he was at it. The one he had…he'd ruined. He'd made too much of a mess there. Things…things were not supposed to be this way.

They were supposed to rule together.

He felt Tadashi walking away, his aura hyper fixated on his. Tadashi's aura brought him close to Hatori's…Hatori who was trying to leave. Suzuki reached out and telekinetically pulled Hatori across the room and down onto the sofa beside him. The stuttering…he hated the stuttering…but he hated his own emotions more. As badly as he wanted to exorcise Hatori's stuttering his own emotions posed a much greater threat to Claw's wellbeing.

So he would exorcise those right now.

"I-I-I-I-" said Hatori as he tried to make words. Words that fit. Words that would get him out of here. Words that would save him from whatever fate Suzuki had planned for him. Hatori knew what Suzuki did to people who betrayed him, and stole from him, and talked during meetings. He didn't even want to think about what he was planning on doing to someone who had seen him making out with another guy! Kill him, break him into a million pieces, blind him-

-actually that last one may not have been such a bad idea. Then maybe he'd forget the sight of Fukuda's naked….everything.

"You are going to sit here while I exorcise my emotions." Said Suzuki

"I-I-I-I'm going to what?" asked Hatori

"Shiori…has taught me that there is some value in exorcising the emotions which plague me…despite the fact that it reeks of weakness…but I can trust you not to even think of passing judgment upon me, can I not?" asked Suzuki

"Y-Yes! You can trust me! I'm-I'm your son and-" said Hatori

"I trust you more than my son or either of my daughters." Said Suzuki

"Thanks…uh…you're not going to hurt me, right?" asked Hatori

"No, you are not the one who did anything wrong and…and the person I should harm is Tadashi, and I want to, but I cannot bring myself to murder or even maim him." said Suzuki

"That sucks-" said Hatori

"I should, I've had men killed for less, but he is…he is not like other men. There is something to having a shared history with someone, a lifetime of…of formative experiences. One which is not easily described and…and one which breeds weakness within you…the sort that escapes your notice until much later in your life…" said Suzuki

"Uh-" said Hatori

"I cannot believe I not only allowed myself to be weak but…but that I let my guard down and…and I cannot believe he took advantage of that fact. Never in my life have I every thought of Tadashi as being someone capable of such a feat and…and I do not know how I am supposed to proceed moving forward. He is such an integral part of the plan and…and yes, despite what he has said there are many others on my side considering that Claw is over-" said Suzuki

"Like me." said Hatori

"-do not interrupt or I may very well accidentally kill you." said Suzuki as he felt his powers swell nearly out of his grasp.

"Sorry!" said Hatori quickly as Suzuki rubbed his forehead and sighed.

"Again you are…never mind. Just listen and don't interrupt…now where was I? Yes. Tadashi and his…newfound…I don't even know what to refer it as. Madness? Boldness? Or…or something else….something that I should have foreseen…something that I know I am the cause of…" said Suzuki. He looked up and made eye contact with Hatori. He was still paying rapt attention…he was such a good son…and right now Suzuki needed to be a good father. The kind he had always been…tried to be.

"Never act on strong emotional or sexual feelings unless you are completely prepared to follow them through to their conclusion." Said Suzuki

"That's…um…probably never going to happen for me since I don't know anyone that well." Said Hatori. He wanted to look away but couldn't. Suzuki was making eye contact with him now, a lot of it, more than he was comfortable with…he tried to look away but Suzuki was holding him in place with telekinesis.

The traitor hole was looking better and better by the moment.

"That's true, you haven't been alive for a long enough period of time to be in my predicament, but one day you'll be my age and you need to know this. The emotions you have for someone, romantic and sexual, are not the sort of things to be trifled with. You…you will think that you're alleviating them when in reality you're exacerbating them…both within yourself and within the person you're with in whatever capacity you've been with them in." said Suzuki

"Uh….ok…but that's never going to happen for me so can we please be-" said Hatori. He didn't need to hear anymore, he got the message. Suzuki and Fukuda had fucked a few times and then Fukuda caught feelings and Hatori had walked in on them about to go at it again. Good. Now that he was up to speed he could go to the bathroom now and pour bleach in his ears until he'd gotten all of this out of his brain.

"It can, that's the point, and I don't want to see you in my position. It's a disturbing thing when the person you've dedicated your life to forces you to…convinces you to…to…" said Suzuki. It was that last bit of information that he couldn't exorcise no matter how much he tried. Hatori was listening to him, eager younger ears ready to hear the wisdom he was about to bestow, but…but he could not. Telling Hatori would have made it more real than it was already and…and it was already entirely too real…

But also easily exorcised.

As soon as he'd exorcised the worst of it, taken the edge off of what he had been feeling, a sudden crash and a scream came through the wall. Then a burst of aural energy. Green, dark green, and then purple…there should not have been three auras next door and, certainly, there should not have been screaming. Especially not from Serizawa…

And he'd just gotten his own emotions exorcised, too.

"Stay here, do not try to intervene no matter what you hear." Said Suzuki as he got up. He looked a mess, he felt a mess, but there was no time to get changed. There was no time to clean up in any way, not when the entire building was in real danger of coming down over their heads. Serizawa was screaming…Tadashi was screaming…and Minegishi had, seemingly, lost their mind…

And it wasn't even noon yet.

He didn't even both putting his shoes on as he opened his door and went to investigate. Thankfully Tadashi was right next door. He swallowed whatever he was feeling, exorcised it through sheer force of will, and forced his way through Tadashi's door…which had been barricaded shut with a series of thorny, green vines.

They were only plants.

Plants imbued with Minegishi's energy but plants nonetheless. To a lesser esper they would have been deadly but to him they were no more difficult to remove than weeds from Shiori's garden…Shiori…somehow she would need to be informed. He did not keep secrets from her, he couldn't, because if he did then she would keep secrets from him and then…and then he would wake up one morning and find her and her things gone….

Power was nothing without control…and he was going to exercise it all.

He cut his way through the jungle of Tadashi's apartment to reveal…well, it wasn't like it was anything that he hadn't seen before, and only several minutes ago at that, but still. The sight of a nude and cowering Tadashi did not help in the exorcism of his…whatever this cocktail of emotions was he was feeling for the moron he'd spent the past thirty four years calling his best friend.

The cowering, weak, vulnerable, insufferable, beautiful moron….

"What is going on in here?" asked Suzuki, gaining control over his emotions hopefully once and for all. Minegishi's aura pushed at his…he batted it away. Hostile intent, much of it, though he hoped for Minegishi's sake that none of that was directed at him.

"They're trying to kill me!" said Fukuda as he felt his skin knit it's self back together. Minegishi was still glaring down at him. They hadn't even glanced in Suzuki's direction. They weren't backing down. The potted plant in their hand began to grow…but Suzuki was right there! They were going to get it if they kept this up! Didn't they care?

No. It didn't look like they did.

"No, they aren't." said Suzuki as he broke Minegishi's plant apart. The one in the pot in the hands, the vines on the walls, the gigantic Venus flytrap that they'd…now that was an off putting plant…he kept his wits about him. Tadashi had…Fukuda had clearly done something to deserve this. He liked to think that he knew a thing or two about women at this point in his life. They only overrode their natural nurturing instincts when something had gone very wrong and Minegishi was the most nurturing woman…or…they were very nurturing.

They had taken care of Shigeko for the past six years after all.

"Yes, they are." Said Minegishi as their plant…who may or may not have had a name…was broken apart and then ground down into a slurry. They were covered in it, sticky plant slurry, as were the walls and floors. There was a gasp, a scream, and then the sound of footsteps…damn it. With Serizawa on their side they might have been able to take Fukuda, to hit the limits on his healing powers, and then to maybe show him some of what he'd made Mob feel.

It wasn't like he didn't deserve it.

"No, you aren't." said Suzuki as he used his powers to hold Minegishi back. Their aura reached out and tried to…he was going to assume that their aura had lashed out at his out of instinct and not out of some calculated attempt on his life. This was Shigeko's closest friend. He wasn't going to harm them…unless he was forced to. But they were intelligent enough to know not to force his hand. They glared at him and reached out. The plant matter they were splattered with gave a collective twitch, sprouted a few paltry leaves, and then wilted anemically…but the power infused within it was still there…

And now it wasn't.

"I am. I'm going to make him pay for what he said to Mob…he gets away with…with everything…" said Minegishi as their head began to swim. This was…this was what happened when you got to drinking this early in the morning. But it wasn't like they didn't have a good excuse. Mob had been a wreck all morning…and on her birthday, too, and the day when they had so much planned and…and things they would have rather not thought about.

Things that nobody had the right to comment on.

"See? They're trying to kill me-" said Fukuda

"They can't." said Suzuki simply

"You won't always be here." Said Fukuda as he tried to shield himself from view. This was turning out to be the most awkward morning of his life. It wasn't anything that Suzuki hadn't seen before but Minegishi…well they had, of course, but not HIS.

"That's true, and I don't want to either, but there is no way that they're going to be able to kill you. Maim you, perhaps, and cause you pain as well…but they won't be able to murder you. If I haven't been able to kill you all these years then they won't." said Suzuki

"Maybe you haven't had the right motivation." Said Minegishi. They felt his aura on theirs. He was looking them in the eye, right in the eye, and…and his eyes were really blue. They were staring back into his…they broke first.

"…President Suzuki." Said Minegishi, looking away. They didn't want to fight him, not now. They didn't have a chance now…and there was still a chance that Mob could do the smart thing and call this whole thing off…or at least say that she was too self-conscious now to be seen by the entire world.

"Minegishi. Explain. Now." said Suzuki

"Fukuda took it upon himself to comment on Mob's body-" said Minegishi

"I did no such thing!" said Fukuda

"Really? You didn't oh so helpfully point out the fact that she wasn't wearing a bra?" asked Minegishi

"…not in so many words." Said Fukuda

"But you did say something? Something that you had no right to say to her?" asked Minegishi. They wondered if there was some way to kill him. Cutting him in half, maybe, or shoving seeds down his throat and draining the life out of him…to maybe something with poison…

At this point he was more of a hinderance than help. They could always frame it to Mob as trying to help…since he was such a danger to her plans…

"She was walking around in nothing but an oversized t-shirt, what was I supposed to do?!" asked Fukuda

"Maybe not comment on a fourteen year old girl's breasts. I would have thought that you had learned your lesson-" said Minegishi

"Both of you, enough." Said Suzuki as he tried to rub his headache away. He wasn't going to mediate this, he was going to stop it, and then he was going to get on with his day. There was too much happening today to be putting up with petty fights, Tadashi trying to rekindle what never should have been kindled in the first place, and now Tadashi commenting on Shigeko's clothing choices…or lack thereof.

"But she-" said Fukuda

"I said enough. Minegishi, as you were. Fukuda, get dressed and get to work…and pass on the message that I am not to be disturbed unless it has something to do with the plan. Understood?" asked Suzuki, looking at each of them. His aura met theirs'. There was hostility there…hostility that they needed to redirect to the people who were going to try and stop them, not at each other, and certainly not at Shigeko…Shigeko who really needed to make sure that she was fully dressed but…but he knew that it was very dangerous ground criticizing a woman's clothing so he would hold his tongue on this subject.

"But they-" said Fukuda

"What did I just say?" asked Suzuki. Tadashi's gaze fell to the floor.

"Understood." Said Fukuda. He knew when to step back and this was that time. This whole morning had been one error after another, one mistake after another, one stupid and impulsive…ok, he was going to have to regroup and then…and then he'd figure out what to do. How to secure Sho's future…or how to get him the hell out of here…

Permanently.

"Minegishi?" asked Suzuki

"I understand, President Suzuki." Said Minegishi before they left. They hadn't been dismissed but it didn't matter. After today nothing would matter. Either they would be dead or Suzuki would be dead…and they weren't hoping to die today. Mob never thought things through….they managed to keep their face still and neutral until they left the apartment. Plant slurry was seeping into their clothes. They could feel it. It was responding…sort of. Dead-ish. They flicked some off of their arm. It hit the wall…and began to burrow in…this could have been interesting.

They didn't have time for this.

They could still feel Mob's aura. She was…she wasn't going to explode…but she was going to be upset. She had been upset all morning. Fucking Fukuda…they were on the same side, or at least they should have been. They were all on Mob's side…or maybe just the side that was against Suzuki…Minegishi didn't want to be on anyone's side! They wanted…they wanted…they wanted things to be normal again!

Whatever passed for normal for them.

Maybe there could talk Mob out of this whole thing. She was fickle. She was only fourteen. Maybe she had moved on and now she had some new project and she had come to her senses. There was no point in challenging Suzuki, not when he was so much more powerful than everyone but Mob, and Mob…she was younger. They could feel her aura but there were rumors going around that Suzuki could do things that no one had ever seen before. Other rumors said that he had everyone's powers and he just chose not to use them. They tried not to listen to rumors…

But maybe there was a kernel of truth to it.

"Damn it…" said Minegishi as they pushed their apartment door opened, a smear of plant matter all over the front. Housekeeping could deal with that or whatever they were called here…or maybe this whole base would end up exploding before the day was over.

They wouldn't have put it past Mob to lose control.

"Mob, I'm back…but I guess you know that already." Said Minegishi as they kicked off their shoes and left them beside Mob's. She was still here, either that or she was walking around barefoot…and that would have made about as much sense as anything else around here.

"Fukuda didn't apologize but I know he's sorry. I made him sorry." Said Minegishi as they made their way to their bedroom. Mob was probably still hanging out in there. There was something nice or…or comforting about the fact that she still came to them when something had gone wrong in her life. She still comprehended the fact that Minegishi only had her best interests at heart, that they were smarter than her, and that maybe she needed to start listening to them instead of going off and doing whatever she wanted to do-

-there was no point in getting mad, not at Mob.

"I don't think that he'll be saying anything else to you, about the way you dress or anything else." Said Minegishi as they pushed their bedroom door opened. Mob was sitting on their bed and wearing….they sighed. Whatever. Borrowing their clothes without asking was the least of their worries.

"I know, I put clothes on." Said Mob as she looked up from her phone. She had a lot of messages wishing her a happy birthday, mostly from people she had never met before, and a few from people she just kind of knew…none from her friends but she always celebrated with them…she had to celebrate with them. She just…she was dressed and they were waiting for her…

So why couldn't she get up?

"Yeah, my clothes." Said Minegishi as they sat down beside Mob. She was…actually filling their clothes out well. The last time she had done this she had been swimming in their clothes. Their t-shirt had fit her like a dress and she'd had to cuff their pants multiple times. She was in their t-shirt and their jeans…and their bra, probably, considering their top drawer had been left opened…not the weirdest thing that she had ever done. Not the weirdest thing that had ever happened between them…so many weird things.

They'd been together a long time, hadn't they?

"Sorry. I just…I didn't want to go back home in case Sho was awake and then he would have seen that I was upset and then he and Fukuda would have fought and then…and then the whole plan would have fallen apart and…and then Dad would have won." Said Mob softly as she put her phone down in her lap. It rested on her leg. She didn't know how Minegishi could have worn these day in and day out. Pants were so itchy and tight and they made your legs feel like they were trapped. She tried bending her knees. The feel of pants on all sides was just so…weird.

But it was better than the clothes she'd been wearing.

"Maybe he should." Said Minegishi

"What?!" asked Mob, turning to face them. The stacks of books around the room came crashing down. The lights flickered. Minegishi didn't seem bothered at all, they just put their arm around her shoulder.

"Maybe we should just…just let the baby have his bottle." Said Minegishi

"Now I really don't get it." Said Mob

"He's hellbent on taking over, or at least taking on, the world so why not just let him do what he's going to do? Going against him is incredibly dangerous-" said Minegishi

"That's why I'm going to fight him, not you. I know that you're not strong enough." Said Mob

"Mob….do you know why I tried to kill Fukuda just now?" asked Minegishi

"I knew that you were going off to fight him but I didn't know that you were going to kill him…please don't kill him or anyone. It's not nice." said Mob

"I did what I had to do. I tried to kill him because he hurt you." said Minegishi

"He didn't hurt me, just my feelings, and…and I hadn't realized how-" said Mob

"He shouldn't have been looking in the first place, Mob, he needs to learn to keep his eyes above the collarbone…and I had to do what I did because hurting your feelings is still hurting you. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, I can't, just like I can't save you when you're hellbent on doing something incredibly dangerous and…and stupid." Said Minegishi

"Stopping Dad isn't stupid! We have to stop him…I have to stop him. I have the power to stop him and…and without my powers I'm not anything without them so…so this is something that I have to do. For the world because….because he's going to hurt a lot of people and he's already hurt so many people…and I don't want anyone to get hurt. This is something that I have to do." Said Mob

"Something that you're doing for the world or for yourself?" asked Minegishi

"….I'm not sure…" said Mob. She hadn't ever thought about it, not that much, not like…not like that. She had always thought that it was something that she needed to do and she hadn't thought about the why of it. She wanted to help people, she had a responsibility to make sure nobody got hurt, because she had these powers…but maybe she was just thinking like this because she wanted there to be a reason for her to have her powers to just…just to be….

Just to have been born.

"Whatever the reason you know that I'll always be right there with you, since there's nothing I can do to stop you, but you need to think this thing through." Said Minegishi. This was it, the eleventh hour…actually the nineth, and in the morning too, but still. The window of time they could use to convince Mob to give this whole thing up was closing rapidly.

"I already thought it through. I'm going to stop Dad and then I'll be in charge of Claw and…" said Mob. She hadn't thought must past being in charge. Keeping everything under control. Keeping the awakened from hurting themselves or each other. Making sure that everyone got along…all the meetings she'd have to sit through…it would be like being Dad but all the time and for the entire world, too. She…she didn't know exactly what would happen in the future but she knew that she couldn't let Dad hurt anyone else.

"You're going to risk your own life….just….know that I'll be here even though…" said Minegishi

"Even though what?" asked Mob

"Even though I think that this whole thing is going to turn out to be a massive mistake." Said Minegishi. They weren't going to sugarcoat it for Mob. She needed to hear it…and now they were the one who wasn't thinking things through. This was Mob. She didn't think, she acted, and then everyone else…well everyone else would have to be there to pick up the pieces.

"Think…you think that I'm making a mistake? But I…I know that this is something that I have to do and I can't do it without you…without any of you." said Mob

"We, or at least I, will always be right there with you…even if we, or in this case I, would also prefer to make it to my own birthday." Said Minegishi

"It's not your birthday yet but we can celebrate yours early if you want to, or we can have half birthdays, or unbirthdays. When I'm in charge we can celebrate whatever we want." Said Mob. That was…that was good. When she ran the world she could make every day a birthday, or a holiday, or an unbirthday. That would have been so great, she would have made so many people happy, and…and making people happy was the thing that mattered most in the world. There were so many things to be unhappy about in the world and so little to be happy about.

"We can already do whatever we want. Pretty much whatever we want, anyway." Said Minegishi

"I know but…but pretty much isn't everything." Said Mob

"How about we just celebrate your birthday for now, huh? Come on, I think Shibata already started on your pancake cake…finished it a while ago." Said Minegishi as they glanced at their phone. Those pancakes were probably ice cold…wonderful. Just wonderful.

"I know, you told me before and…and who else is going to be there?" asked Mob. She hoped that it wasn't Dad…he never came but still, he could be weird sometimes. Fukuda would have been worse but he never came to anything, even Sho's birthday parties and he loved Sho…though he had been following Serizawa around a lot lately or maybe it was the other way around…she felt around with her aura. Serizawa and Fukuda were together…but not together with Shibata and Tsuchiya and Mukai…and Hatori was with Dad…

Where was Sho?

"Everyone? I don't know, I'm not everyone's keeper. I don't even know where Ryou went." Said Minegishi. They knew he had to kidnap the Prime Minster but that wasn't supposed to be until later. He was in Seasoning City giving some talk at the Workforce Commission or something, they didn't care about politics. What they did care about was Ryou just vanishing…well, it was kind of his thing.

"He's…around, he'd teleporting a lot, though, and…and not with Sho or I would have been able to feel him." said Mob

"Don't tell me he's missing…just what we need…" muttered Minegishi. Someone had to put a bell around that kid or something. This wasn't the time to be stressing Mob out like this. She had enough shit to deal with as it was.

"He's…hang on." Said Mob as she expanded her aura, her perceptions, out even farther. Past the walls of the building, past the ceilings, down the stairs, through the people, through the woods…the plants were kind of lonely feeling there…lonely because Sho wasn't there. She pushed past even further. She had never tried to see this far away before with her aura. It wasn't hard once she knew what she was looking at…who she was looking at.

There.

"Don't tell me he ran away or something." said Minegishi

"He didn't run away, he's just really far away and…and I have to go and get him before he does something." said Mob as she stood up. She knew Sho. He had come back yesterday but he had made up his mind today.

"You don't think he'd be stupid enough to try something on his own, do you?" asked Minegishi. They certainly thought that Sho was stupid enough to try something but they didn't know him as well as Mob did. Maybe he had hidden depths or something. Maybe he even had a sense of self preservation.

"He probably did, or he's going off to see his…to see someone. Or no one. I don't know for sure but I'm going to find out so…so….um…ok. Happy birthday!" said Mob quickly as she left. She had almost told Minegishi about Sho's secret boyfriend and…and ok, they knew, but they didn't know that he was near and more importantly Hatori didn't know. She could feel his aura hanging around now that she really focused. She didn't know if he was in her phone or just passing through it…she knew better than to risk it.

She took her battery out just to be safe.

She knew that today was important and lots of people would need to talk to her about lots of things, many of them important, but she had someone more important to worry about. She couldn't imagine anyone more important than Sho, maybe Mukai, or maybe….yes, it was a tie but Mukai never made her worry about the same things that Sho did so…so maybe it wasn't a tie?

It would have been so much easier to think if she hadn't been wearing pants.

With every step she took she could feel them constricting around her knees, rubbing against her legs, and the waistband was digging into her waist…how did Minegishi wear these things? These were even worse than leggings and tights. She didn't have time to change, though, not when Sho was in danger. Sho was up to something…something big. He had come home yesterday but was leaving today…that wasn't part of the plan. Maybe he was going to protect his boyfriend, maybe he was just running away, or maybe he was just playing out in the mountains. She didn't know but she was going to find out.

And then she was going to change.

"Hi, hi, good morning, hi, hello…" said Mob to everyone she passed. People were stopping to say hi to her, which wasn't new, but a lot of them were in blue…totally in blue. Red and black were the colors the Awakened had to wear. It looked like they had dyed these blue themselves. The color was streaky, uneven, and…was that paint?

Some of them had painted their uniforms. Alright then.

"You look nice, and so do you, and you…and you…all of you…" said Mob as she walked through the halls more slowly than she would have wanted to. She would have run but then that would have been suspicious. So she walked slowly, being stopped every so often by an Awakened, all of them in blue. The ribbons were normal but painting themselves was…a lot. She wasn't going to stop them, though, if they wanted to wear blue then they could. She wasn't bossy like that. When she was in charge the second thing she would do, before declaring unbirthdays to be holidays, would be to get rid of uniforms. Not only for the Awakened but for the entire world. She'd worn one in the dreamworld…it hadn't been nice at all….

She wasn't there anymore.

"Thank you, thank you, yes it is my birthday but it's your unbirthday too, yes that's a thing, yes…" said Mob as she slowed her steps even more. They were telling her happy birthday and trying to hand her things. Cards they had made, drawings they had done, dolls…a lot of Frozen dolls. Some of which she already had, some of which were new…Elsa had a purple dress now? All of them were too young for her. She was too old for dolls…she didn't have time for dolls…and as much as it hurt her she didn't have time for them.

All of them.

"Guys? You're crowding me…" said Mob. They were all talking to her at once now. She could see the entrance, or exit in her case, and she just had to keep walking…but there were so many of them…and what was worse was that they were attracting all kinds of attention. Attention that she knew she didn't need right now.

"Um…how about you give those presents to my little sister? She loves dolls." Said Mob. Someone said something about her being the most generous person ever to live. She didn't know if she agreed with that, she could be kind of selfish sometimes, but she wasn't going to argue. She just had to get out of here before they started crowding her again. She had to find Sho and…and even right now she was being selfish.

Was this for Sho or for her?

She had practically run away from Minegishi, because she was worried about Sho, but wanting to leave…she just wanted to get away from them. Was that selfish of her? She felt selfish. She felt…she didn't know how she felt. Cold, kind of, since she had grabbed Minegishi's inside hoodie before she left…kind of tired…still a little happy…still kind of naked, too, even though she was dressed…of course Fukuda had ruined the whole thing for her. She had been happy and then, of course, he had ruined it and…and she didn't know why she had expected anything else.

Even on her side he was a jerk.

When she took over the world she was going to fire him…no, that was mean. She pulled her hoodie close as she walked. She didn't like being out in the cold, it bothered her, and as well as Fukuda healed she knew that it would have bothered him, too. At least after she found Sho she knew that she'd have a place to go back to. If she fired Fukuda then he wouldn't have had anywhere to go. He'd lived in Claw for his entire life…most people had now that she thought about it. Everyone she knew was an orphan, everyone but Tsuchiya, and…and if there was no more Claw they'd have nowhere to go. If Dad lost, not to her but to the government, she'd have more people to worry about than just Fukuda. All of the Awakened would have been homeless…all of her friends…and yes, Fukuda too even though he was a jerk…

What was the opposite of firing someone?

The wind whipped her hair into her face. She hadn't braided it that morning. The wind scattered it everywhere. She felt around Minegishi's pockets…and of course they didn't have a hair thing. Their hair was short again. This was annoying but nothing that she couldn't deal with…not having what you needed was annoying. If she couldn't make sure that she had what she needed for herself then…then how was she supposed to take care of all of Claw? There were so many people and…and she wasn't Dad, she wasn't going to hold onto the world through force and soldiers and hitting people…but she'd have to find something for those people to do.

She couldn't just fire them.

That would have been cruel. Not even mean, no, even worse than that. So she had to find something for everyone to do. Not just her espers, not even the Awakened, but all the espers in the world…they would all want to join claw once she took over. Dad had said that once he took over the world all the espers in it would have no choice but to join Claw. It was either join Claw or join each other in a traitor hole, he had said, and Mob had no intention of digging any more traitor holes…actually, she'd fill them in. There, that was something for them to do!

For now.

There were billions of people in the world and that meant millions of espers and…and Awakened, too. She supposed that some people would want to awaken, most of the ones she had met had been volunteers, and they had gone through with it even though they knew how it was done…like Sho had. She was going to have to figure out how to awaken people without hurting them…maybe that was something to put the thousands and thousands of people in Claw on. That was…a plan, not a good one since that was really more of the scientists' area, but at least she had some idea…she just needed to have better ones, and soon, because all of this was going to be hers…

She had to find Sho first.

She could feel him…walking was taking too long. She was wearing pants so she might as well have taken advantage of that fact and flown herself to where her little brother was. The one good thing about pants. She was sure that people had noticed her and…and she'd think up some excuse later. Right now she needed to find Sho before he did something that he was going to regret. She knew that love was a force that was powerful and strange, and she knew that people made bad choices when they were mad or scared or stressed, and most of all she knew her little brother. He was safest with her. He needed to stay by her side…once this was over he could be with his boyfriend.

But not now.

"Sho!" said Mob as she spotted him walking down the long road into the city. She touched down next to him. His aura noticed her before his eyes did. She didn't know what to make of his expression. He was happy or maybe sad or even scared…though he could have been excited, too. She didn't know. His face was confusing and his aura wasn't much better.

And hers wasn't much better than his.

"Hey." Said Sho. It was all that he could think to say. He knew why she was here, she was going to try and convince him to come back, to tell him something about how he'd made the right choice last night and he had no reason to change his mind because he'd already made the right choice, and then some stuff about loving him. He sighed. He was ready to hear all of it and he was ready, too, to ignore it.

He had to ignore it if he had any chance of fixing what he'd probably ruined.

"Hi." Said Mob reflexively. It was just what you said when someone said 'hi' to you…or in this case 'hey' and…and she didn't know what to make of that or of this. Sho was looking her up and down and shaking his head…why?

"Why are you dressed like Minegishi?" asked Sho as he got a good look at what Big Sis was wearing. One of those weird shirts Minegishi liked, an exact copy of their jacket, and weirdest of all she was wearing pants. She never wore pants. She hated them for some reason even though skirts were way too breezy and you always had to watch what you did with your legs or you'd end up with everyone looking up your dress. She was dressed so weird…it was kind of funny, actually, but he didn't laugh.

He'd done enough to hurt her as it was.

"Because I didn't have any clothes. Why are you so far out here?" asked Mob as she tugged at her shirt. She wanted her own clothes. She wanted to be home…in her own home. Her normal clothes in her normal home and…and she wanted a normal birthday…but that wasn't what Sho wanted. She was supposed to take care of him and…and he may not have needed her anymore but that didn't mean that she was just going to stop putting him first.

She knew why he was out here but just to be safe she asked.

"Because I have to be with my boyfriend." Said Sho. He braced himself for the lecture that he knew was coming. She was going to tell him that he was being reckless, that he wasn't thinking things through, that he needed to be with her…stuff that he was fully prepared to ignore.

"Oh…I figured that was why you were out here." Said Mob

"Why else would I be out here?" asked Sho

"Nature is pretty, I guess, and it gets kind of stuffy in the Seventh Division since there aren't any windows, just vents, and that's not the same." Said Mob

"Yeah, it's not." Said Sho

"Is this the part where you tell me to come back?" asked Sho

"Yes, so can you? I just think that it's safer if you're with me." said Mob

"I know what else you're going to say. You're going to tell me that you love me, that you want to keep me safe, that I'm making a mistake, and that you'll drag me back if you have to." Said Sho

"That's about right, but not with the dragging. I would never drag you anywhere unless it was life or death and this isn't…it kind of is but not…not right now, I mean." Said mob

"You know I'm not going to come back with you, right?" asked Sho, cutting to the point. She knew that he wasn't going to go back…she had to…but then again she was out here, wasn't she? Maybe she was out here because she needed him. He'd gone through their entire lives needing her and…and maybe it was time that it was the other way around…or maybe he was just making excuses.

"I know. You're going to tell me that you love your boyfriend and that you need to be with him and…and I guess that you think that you made a mistake by coming home even if you didn't…and you'll probably say some mean stuff about yourself too and I'll tell you not to feel like that and then…and then I'll let you go because I love you and I want you to be happy even though what makes you happy isn't always good for you…like the time you ate nothing but poptarts for a week." said Mob

"Yeah, I remember that…my mouth was weirdly itchy by the end of it." Said Sho

"And then you accidentally used my toothbrush." Said Mob

"It wasn't an accident, mine fell on the floor…sorry." Said Sho

"It's ok, that was years ago, I've had at least three toothbrushes since then." Said Mob

"Four. One time I used yours for texturing and I replaced it before you came home." Said Sho

"Oh…well, I forgive you for that too." Said Mob

"You…you always forgive me and you always will, right?" asked Sho

"Of course. That's what you do when you love someone." Said Mob

"No, that's what you do when you love your little brother. Loving someone else is…it's not like that. I fucked up. I…I pulled a Mom. I ran away and…and ok, I left a note, but a note isn't the same as telling him and…and I fucked up, ok?!" said Sho. She didn't get it, that was why she was here. She hadn't woken up that morning knowing that she was Mom's kid. He had thought, before, that being Dad's kid was the worst thing that a person could have been. Having his blood in your veins, his hair on your head, his eyes…eyes that sometimes tried to make you see the world the way he did…he had thought that all of those things were the absolute worst but…but he had been wrong.

Dad couldn't help being the way he was, some people were just born wrong like Fukuda had said, but Mom had chosen to be a dickhole…just like Sho had chosen to be a dickhole. He had made his choice but, unlike Mom, he was going to go back and make things right.

"Ok." Said Mob

"And I'm sorry." Said Sho

"I know you are…but I'm not the one you should say sorry to. People make bad choices when they're mad or scared or stressed-" said Mob

"But throw a little love their way and you'll bring out their best. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. I've watched Frozen as many times as you have." Said Sho

"Nobody's watched Frozen as many times as I have." Said Mob

"Fine, yeah, you're right…are you calling me a fixer upper right now?" asked Sho

"Everyone's a bit of a fixer upper but-" said Mob

"You can fix a fixer upper up with a little but of love. Why don't you go tell Serizawa that and not me? I'm not a fixer up…not as much as him…" said Sho

"I…guess that I should but…but Sho? Can you promise me one thing?" asked Mob

"I know, I know. I'll be careful." Said Sho, rolling his eyes. She was going to go over all the bad things that could happen to him, he knew her, and he knew how much she worried…well, she did have a god reason to worry. This was the day and…and he knew that people would be after him…maybe him leaving was actually putting Ritsu in more danger or…or something…

"No, well yes, but also no. I just need you to promise me that you'll come back…ok? Don't try and fight Dad or anyone stronger than you. Just…just don't give anyone a reason to hurt you." said Mob

"Fine…and don't give Dad a reason to hurt you, either." Said Sho. Dad was dangerous. Being near him was the worst place to be today and…and he should have been the one to do this…but Big Sis was so much stronger than him.

"I….don't know how that's going to work." Said Mob

"Ok, ok, fine. It won't work but just…don't die, ok? And don't get fucked up too badly?" asked Sho

"I won't, I promise…I love you, little brother." Said Mob as she pulled him into a hug. She held him as tightly as she could, her head…lower than his. He was taller than her…he had never been taller than her before. He was growing up. He didn't need her anymore and…and she needed him. She needed him to be with her and…and she didn't want to let go.

She couldn't let go.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I love you too Shigeko." Said Sho as he practically pried her arms off of him. She had been holding onto him like she thought he was going to run away or something…which he kind of was. He was going to fix what he had done wrong and then he was going to come back. If anyone was in danger of not coming back it was her. He knew that this had been his plan, he knew that he really should have been the one to take down Dad, but he also knew that he had given up enough for Dad. He'd given up Mom, if Dad hadn't been such a jerk all the time she wouldn't have run away, and he'd given up Big Sis for a little bit and…and he'd given up on a whole other life…he wasn't going to give up Ritsu, not for Dad. He knew that being near Ritsu put him in danger but being away from him…there was a lot of danger out there right now and he would rather have dealt with the danger he knew about...and he would rather have spent this day by Ritsu's side and not getting his ass kicked by Dad…

He had to go before he changed his mind again. So he did.

"Be…be safe!" said Mob as Sho took off down the road. He didn't turn around, he just waved to her and kept on walking. She watched him walk away, she watched him dip out of view, and she watched even longer just in case…just in case she could see him one more time.

But he was gone.

The road wound out in front of her, down the side of the mountain and to the city below, and somewhere on that road was her little brother…her little brother who she would see again. She just had to wait and…and to get this over with. She should have known that he'd change his mind, she had known him for his entire life, and…and this was something she was just going to have to accept. No matter how much it worried her she was going to have to accept this and…and she was going to have to go back, too, wasn't she?

She had things to do.

So that was what she did. She turned back. She had breakfast to eat, cold pancakes, and presents to open. She was going to have to have a birthday party…the only one she had ever had without Sho…wait. No, there had been others but….but she had always known, even when he was off with Fukuda, that he was going to come back. This felt…it felt different. It felt weird. It felt…it felt like she needed to go running after him.

She didn't.

She knew him and she knew that he wouldn't have appreciated that. So she went back to the Seventh Division, taking care to avoid people this time. She couldn't hide her aura for very long, and she had never tried bending light around her to turn herself invisible, so the next best thing was to go in through the access tunnel. There were Awakened there too but they didn't crowd her. They had enough to do as it was. The ones with big jobs like this were a lot smarter than the others…she wondered why some were smart and some weren't…that was something to put the research team on.

When she was in charge of everyone, that is, not now.

Now she just had to get home and…and it wasn't home, not really. The closest she had ever had to a home, aside from the Castle, was Tokyo and…and she probably wasn't ever going back there. Not with Sho's boyfriend living here. She wasn't going to mess with true love like that. So this was…this was going to be home now…it wasn't that bad. Not once she put some windows in and painted it a different color and found some way to keep the Awakened from suffocating her wherever she went. Things would be better when she was in charge. They wouldn't be normal but they would be…they could be better.

Not normal but something close to it.

Today, though, was going to be her last normal day…at least she wanted it to be. She had been planning on having her normal birthday party just without Sho but when she got to Mukai's apartment, really it was Tsuchiya and Shibata's but if anyone should have been home it should have been Mukai, nobody was there. The dishes were done, there weren't any pancakes at all on the counter let alone a whole pancake cake for her, and the whole apartment just had this weird feeling of…emptiness.

It wasn't normal at all.

"Anyone? I'm here…" said Mob. She could have looked for them with her aura but she didn't want to know, maybe, how alone she would be. How she would have been well and truly…how she would have known the truth. She wanted to hang onto the idea for a little longer, the feeling that this could be normal, the thought that…that this was her last birthday…no. Not that one, that was the one where she and Shimazaki had…ok, the one before that…no, that one hadn't been…one of her good birthdays. Back when she had been little. Like when she had been nine or ten or eleven. Not a recent one…but this was just the way things were going to be now, right? Since her last one had gone so-

Dad's aura.

She hadn't needed to look for it, it had passed over her. A thought, a scary one, but one that her brain thought that she needed to have had. Dad was mad. If he was mad then something had made him mad. If something had made him mad then something had gone wrong…and Mob had been doing a lot of things wrong lately. She had put her friends in danger and…and it wasn't like Shibata, especially, to skip a birthday party. He loved planning parties and cooking and giving her giant sweaters that she never wore because of how big they were…if he was gone then something had gone wrong and…and…

And she didn't waste any time.

At some point she realized that she didn't have any shoes on. That wasn't important right now, even though it was super gross to walk down the hallway with just her, well Minegishi's, socks. She could be grossed out later. Right now she had to go to Dad and…and hopefully talk to him. Not fight him, not yet. She wasn't ready. She didn't want to, too, not when she had woken up feeling so good…she wasn't ready to fight him! She wasn't ready to feel bad! She…she…

She had to do what she had to do, ready or not.

"Dad?" asked Mob as she let herself into his apartment. The door had been locked. That was weird, Dad never locked his doors, he said that anyone stupid enough to intrude upon him deserved what they got. She wondered what he was going to decide that she deserved for messing with the door…or maybe he would be happy that she had used her powers…she didn't know what she wanted.

She wanted everything to be ok. That was enough.

"What have I told you-oh. Shigeko." Said Suzuki as he felt her approach. He heard her footsteps beating against the floor. It matched the beating of his pulse in his skull. He should have sent her away but…but she was good at this sort of thing. She had managed to capture the hearts and minds of the people at the age of only ten after all.

She wasn't ten anymore.

"You may enter." Said Suzuki as he felt her approach him. She was making this awkward, he decided, or maybe the entire situation was. Awkward and…and many other emptions that he didn't want to name right now. He just wanted them gone, exorcised, so he could get on with his work…of course nothing would happen unless he exorcised this splitting headache. Tadashi had always been good for that-

-Tadashi was best left to his own devices for the foreseeable future.

"Hi Dad." Said Mob as she stood beside the couch. Dad was hunched over a notebook. There were broken pencils all over the place and a smashed up laptop in the corner. Something had happened. She felt…oh, there was Hatori, but of course if something had happened Dad wouldn't have hurt him. Dad loved Hatori more than his own son and, also, Hatori hadn't been in on it.

At least she knew that one of her friends was safe.

"Shigeko." Said Suzuki as he erased another terrible line in this speech that simply would not come together. A speech was needed, he was planning on taking over the world after all so the least he could do was address it, and normally they came somewhat easily to him. But this…he had put this off until the end because it had seemed like the sort of thing that would have taken no time at all. He had been planning this for his entire life!

He was not going to fail. Not now. Not at this. Not at anything.

"What…what happened in here?" asked Mob as she looked around. No blood. That was a good sign.

"Nothing. That's the problem." Said Suzuki

"You're mad because nothing happened?" asked Mob. Dad could be kind of hard to understand sometimes. He had been this way for her entire life, she should have been used to it by now, and she should have been better at figuring out what he meant. But right now she didn't have space in her brain to figure out what he'd meant by that aside from the fact that 'nothing' was a lot better than something.

Unless, of course, 'nothing' meant that he had stopped all of her plans before they happened.

"It's more of the fact that nothing is happening right now, Shigeko, that I find upsetting." Said Suzuki

"But there's a lot happening right now. Everyone's getting ready for…for today." Said Mob

"Tonight. People are occupied during the day. I want everyone to witness this, to witness me, and they cannot when they are otherwise engaged. The evening will be the time." Said Suzuki

"Oh…what time in the evening?" asked Mob. She needed a time. If she had a time then she could stop this or…or change Dad's mind or…or something. She knew that it was a long shot, and she knew that she really should have given up, but…but he was her Dad.

As much of a jerk as he was, as terrible as he'd made her feel over the years, and as much pain as he'd caused not only her but the world she still didn't want to hurt him.

"Between the hours of six and eight depending on how preparations go…but that is not your concern. This is." Said Suzuki as he passed her his notepad. She held it in front of herself and then turned it sideways…and upside down. He leaned backwards…oh. Yes, he had gotten frustrated there towards the end. Perhaps the first step would have been to settle on a language.

"You…want me to practice my kanji? And letters? And…and I don't even know what this writing here is." Said Mob

"That's Russian….and you speak Russian. I know for a fact that you speak Russian." Said Suzuki

"I don't know much Russian and I can't read it that well either…is that why you want me to practice?" asked Mob

"No Shigeko, I don't want you to practice, I want you to write a speech for me since this is your area of expertise." Said Suzuki

"I thought that I was fired." Said Mob

"You were removed from your post in Claw but you are still my daughter and, as such, you still have to obey my orders." Said Suzuki

"But…you said that I was an adult now." said Mob. She knew what Dad had said, that she was an adult and she could run her own life, so if she was an adult then why was he still telling her what to do? And why…why did he even want her near him?

Why was he making room for her on the couch?

"No matter how old you get, no matter what stage of life you reach, and no matter what you do with that life you will always be my daughter and therefore always subject to my orders. Now write." Said Suzuki. She was looking at the notepad. He passed her a pencil. She took it in her hand…but her hand wasn't moving.

She wasn't obeying him.

"I thought that you didn't want…want me to be your daughter, I thought that you-" said Mob

"Shigeko." Warned Suzuki

"You always act like you don't like me, even when you say you like me you don't sound like it, and even though you tell me that you do it doesn't feel like you-" said Mob

"Shigeko, I swear to God, if the next words out of your mouth are going to be some nonsense about me hating you-" said Suzuki

"I know that you said that you didn't but sometimes it feels like you do. Sometimes I feel like you do." Said Mob

"I cannot control what you feel, I can only control what you do, now do as I say and write this speech for me so I can get on with my day." Said Suzuki, his head pounding with every word.

"What if I don't?" said Mob. Maybe she wanted him to be mad at her about this. Maybe if he was mad at her about this then he wouldn't be mad at her about the other stuff…and maybe if he was mad at her then they could fight now and…and then this horrible thing wouldn't be hanging over her head anymore.

"You will." Said Suzuki, an edge to his voice that he hoped she could feel. He hoped that one day when she had children they put her through at least half as much stress as she put him through. That would have been fitting…though not likely considering who their father would most likely be…he hadn't thought of the children, his grandchildren. They would be half of that spineless…they would be half of Shigeko, that would be enough, and they would be powerful espers in their own right. He had nothing to fear when it came to his grandchildren.

From Shigeko, anyway, he had no clue what Sho was planning on doing in that regard and he couldn't really bring himself to care.

"What if I want you to write your own speech?" asked Mob

"I don't care what you want." Said Suzuki

"You never did." Said Mob

"That's not true and you know it. I have always put your first, Shigeko, back before you gave me reason to put you second…and then third…but even during those times I always took your and your needs and wants into account." Said Suzuki

"You never did. The only thing you ever cared about was taking over the world. You never cared if I was happy or sad or scared or mad or…or anything!" said Mob

"You emotional state has always been at the back of my mind. We both know what you're capable of if you lose control." Said Suzuki

"I wasn't talking about powers, Dad, I was talking about feelings." Said Mob

"They are one in the same, Shigeko. Your powers and mine rest upon our emotions. We need to control our emotions in order to control our powers. I know that I've told you that on numerous occasions and I know how intelligent you are. The message must have sunk in at this point, Shigeko, and if not then…then I'll tell you again. Because no matter what you do I will always care for you." said Suzuki

"…Dad, please…don't make this any harder than it has to be." Said Mob

"You're the one making this difficult. Just write my speech, Shigeko, and then I will let you get back to doing whatever you have planned for today…plans which I approve of." Said Suzuki

"You don't know what I'm doing today…right?" asked Mob. If he knew the truth then…she needed to calm down. If he knew the truth then he would have hated her and if he had hated her then she would have been dead. Dad killed the people he hated, he had said so himself.

"I know that you have something planned with Serizawa, who I approve of, and I assume it has something to do with this new…ensemble? Is that the correct word…or is it outfit?" asked Suzuki. He knew that it was dangerous ground, criticizing a woman's clothing, but this…well, he didn't think that what he said could have been called criticism. Not when he approved of everything, even the dirty socks and odd shirt. Shigeko had been in such a mood, though, that at this point anything and everything could and would offend her, it seemed.

"My clothes?" asked Mob, looking down. If Dad said anything then…then she didn't think she would be able to be calm. She didn't think that she could keep from losing control. It felt like they had been fighting about her clothes for her entire life…at least Dad hadn't been gross like Fukuda but…but still. They were her clothes. If he didn't like them then it wasn't like he had to say anything. Nobody was forcing him to wear them.

"Yes. Your choice of clothing. I have never seen you in blue jeans before and never known you to wear shirts in that style but I approve…change before you appear before me tonight because we'll be in public, but in private I approve. Just as I approve of whatever else you have planned for your birthday and the rest of your life. I approve of you, I do not hate you, and if you bring the matter up again I will be very upset with you. Now write." Said Suzuki

"But…but why couldn't you have been like this before? Why couldn't you have been nice…not just to me but to the world? If you had been nicer then…then maybe things wouldn't have had to happen this way. Maybe they could have been different, better even, and maybe…maybe nobody could have gotten hurt." Said Mob

"The only thing that hurts right now is this splitting headache and, Shigeko, there is no point in bringing up the past. You tested me, I punished you, you tested me more, I eventually acquiesced and accepted your premature venture into adulthood, and now here we are. We are…in some ways we are equals, when I think about it, and in some ways you are still my subordinate…but if I ask you as an equal to me, not in Claw but in strength and intelligence, to write this for me then will you?" asked Suzuki

"…sure." Said Mob. She couldn't say no to that. She didn't know what else she could have said. Dad was being nice again and…and part of her wanted to say that it was too little, too late, and another part wanted to say that this was just enough. That she had finally fixed this fixer upper up with a little bit of love…or a lot of it. But she hadn't changed him, right?

People didn't really change.

But love was still a force that was powerful and strange. Dad was different but…but only to her. He was still planning on taking over the world, he was still planning on fighting everyone, he was still going to hurt people…and she had to stop him. She had to make sure that nobody else got hurt…that was why she had these powers, right? Because without them she was nothing and…and in order to be something she had to do something so…so she might as well have done good.

She didn't want to be the bad guy.

Even though it would have been easier to be the bad guy. Even though it would have been easier to help him and then, she didn't know, try and get her job back and take more and more power until she was the ruler of the world. It would have been easier but that didn't mean it was going to happen. No, easy things never happened to her. The easy road was never the one she went on…she was going to have to do this the hard way.

She had no other choice.

"But don't read it until…until tonight, ok Dad?" asked Mob as she flipped to a clean page and got to writing. She tried to sound like Dad, she tried her best, but even this early she could see herself starting to come out onto the page. Bleed through, like she had been writing this in her own blood…or maybe her own tears.

She wasn't going to cry. Not in front of Dad. Not now.

"As you wish." Said Suzuki. He was prepared to make any concession at this point just so long as it got done. He tasted ashes. He never should have told her how he felt, true as it was, because now…now she knew. She knew things that up until a few moment ago he hadn't even known about himself…and she could have used them against him…

This was Shigeko. She would do no such thing.

As much trouble as she had caused him over the years he still, and always would, consider her his closest….anything. Family member, associate, subordinate, and now scribe. She was and always would be all things to him. He may not have approved of every aspect of the life she lived but…but what parent did? His own mother and father, when he had unveiled his plans to them, had immediately torn them to shreds. Immediately made him feel so small…feel as thought there was no hope for the future…that he would end up trapped as father was…as all the other normal people were…as if he had no chance of ever being anything…and then he hadn't had any parents at all anymore. He didn't want to be in that position…so he wouldn't be. He would learn from the mistakes of the past.

He would learn to be a better father than Father had ever been.

"Here Dad but don't…but don't read it now, like I said." Said Mob as she handed him a speech. Not a very good one, probably, since she wasn't much of a speech giver herself. Usually she just walked up and talked to everyone without much of a plan. This was…new. She had a plan this time and…and even if the speech wasn't very good at least the ending would distract everyone.

"I heard you the first time, Shigeko, I'm perfectly capable of retaining information." Said Suzuki as he took the folded piece of paper from her and tucked it into his pocket. He so hated reading things in front of people but he had agreed to this and it would do him no good to make things anymore strained between the two of them. Things had already gone bad enough. At some point they had both made mistakes but perhaps now…now things could get better. There may even have been a chance, a slight chance, of things…of things winding up the way he had always imagined them.

The two of them together.

Sho had no interest, thank goodness, in any part of Claw. Shigeko had proven herself to be a terrible leader but she wasn't so old that she couldn't be taught. At least until he had another blood son. It was good, actually, because then Shigeko could go on to teach his next born son how to rule the world. Suzuki knew he wasn't going to live forever, he was already a bit old to be having children as it was, and he knew that he was going to make a lot of people very angry. If something were to happen to him, he may not have been able to be killed in a head on confrontation but he was susceptible to disease and other such things, he needed to know that any subsequent children he had were cared for…and Shigeko had always been good at taking care of his children. Better even than her mother had been.

A lifetime with Shigeko was what he had always wanted and…and he could find it within himself to partially forgive her if it meant that future could happen.

"Alright, sorry. I didn't mean…alright. I'm going to go and get changed now and do…stuff. Important stuff. Bye." Said Mob as she quickly got up, jeans trapping her legs and binding her knees as she tried to move. She couldn't be around Dad, not now, not when he was being nice. Not when she knew she was going to have to…she was going to have to take everything away from him…and so soon…

She had to get out of here.

"Goodbye, Shigeko, and happy birthday." Said Suzuki. Shigeko tensed…wasn't she a bit old to be self-conscious about her age? Women.

"Thanks…uh…you too." Said Mob before she left. She wished she had thought of something better to say but, really, her brain hadn't been working. Dad had remembered her birthday and even said happy birthday without her telling him…it felt almost like it had been before. Back when Dad smothered her. Back when he loved her…back before he had told her that he hated her. The person she was becoming…which of course meant her since she was who she was. She was Mob and…and part of her wanted to agree with him…but she knew how to shut that part of herself up.

She was going to do something good.

She felt like she was being watched the whole way to her apartment. She looked around and expected there to be spiders in the corners and ants on the floor. There weren't. No, she was alone. No Awakened here either since they had their own barracks downstairs. It was just her and the feeling of being watched…the feeling of not being enough. She knew that she was enough, she had her powers now, and with her powers she was someone. Too bad she had wasted them but…but she wasn't going to be doing that anymore. No, no more wasting her powers, no more being that person. No more being Shigeko. She was going to be Mob from now on.

And Mob never wore jeans.

The first thing she did when she got home was take off Minegishi's clothes and fold them. She wasn't them. She had her own clothes. She had…she had the feeling of being watched again. She crossed her arms over her chest as she went through the boxes marked 'My Clothes' looking for something that actually fit her. She had so much stuff…why did she have so many clothes? She knew that she needed to get rid of them but she just…she couldn't.

She'd had some good times in these clothes.

She dug through a box of old Disney t-shirts, blue tulle skirts, and those plastic shoes she used to love. These wouldn't be good for taking over the world…she picked up a shoe…these didn't even fit her anymore. This one was practically worn through…she remembered that day. That was back when Sho and her had outgrown their shoes…huh. It was amazing that her feet had ever been this small. She put them back and closed the box. She should have really put sizes on these boxes. It would have made it easier to find something…anything.

It had been a lot easier before.

When she had been ten, back when Dad had left her in charge for the first time, she had just kind of dressed like him but if he had been a girl. The blue skirt, the blue sweater with the white shirt, even the ribbon around her neck like a tie. Even if she found that outfit again she knew that it never would have fit. She wasn't ten anymore. She was a lot taller and…and she looked a lot older. She was a lot older. She was fourteen today.

All her clothes were younger.

She hadn't gotten new clothes in so long and…and she just settled on something boring. Just a Frozen shirt and a skirt, the normal stuff she wore. She wasn't trying to fill Dad's shoes anymore, she was trying to take his shoes and…and maybe it had nothing to do with shoes at all. Maybe she was just trying to be herself…so maybe that would have been filling her own shoes? Which she did need new ones…she would worry about that late. She would worry about everything later. She didn't want to worry about anything right now!

But she had to.

She still had that pile of folded clothes she had to give back to Minegishi. She had to worry about that. What if these were the clothes they had been planning on wearing today? What if they were sitting in their room in their pajamas just waiting for her to come back? What if they were all alone and clothes-less with only their plants for company, and plants didn't make for good company at all in Mob's experience, and…and they needed her.

What if she needed them?

They needed each other, she decided. They had always needed each other. That was how friendship worked. They were best friends and best friends always needed each other…and also clothes. And also not to borrow things without asking. And also to return the things they borrowed. So Mob had no choice. She left her apartment, passed Shibata and Tsuchiya's empty apartment, and went to Minegishi's less empty apartment. It felt weird, them being on their own, but also…also kind of like it had been before. Way before, back in the beginning, back when it had just been them and also Sho but mostly just them.

Back when she had been eight.

But she wasn't eight anymore. She let herself in carefully. They might have been asleep. They slept a lot when something was on their mind, more than they usually slept which was a lot as it was, and they were grumpy when they got woken up. Mob…she didn't want them to be grumpy and…and if they were asleep then she would just return their clothes and…and then be on her own. Or maybe just hang out with them until they woke up…yeah. That was a better plan.

It was important to…to keep her friends safe. Yes, that was it.

She followed their aura through their plants until she got to their room. Their light was on. That was a good sign. She knocked on the door as she let herself in. She knew how they liked their privacy, even if they were just reading, they were just like that. They looked up and closed their book before putting it on the stack next to them. She didn't know if that was their 'just read' or 'planning to read' stack. Either way she was happy to spend time with them even if they were just reading.

She was always happy to spend time with her best friend.

"Mob." Said Minegishi as the prepared themselves for the worst. She was dressed like herself, which was a good sign, but they also knew she had missed her birthday party…and two key members of this ill conceived plan were missing in action. Whatever. They could deal with this. They were going to have to deal with this.

For Mob.

"I brought your clothes back." Said Mob as she put their clothes on their dresser. They had gotten dressed in other clothes so maybe this hadn't been as urgent as she'd thought…but it was still good to return the things that she borrow. They were happy…right?

It was kind of hard to tell with them, sometimes.

"I can see that. Are clothes the only thing you come bearing?" asked Minegishi

"What do you mean?" asked Mob

"I mean, are you the bearer of bad news?" asked Minegishi with a sigh. Maybe something had gone wrong. Maybe it was enough to turn Mob off of this at the final hour. Maybe they could just take on the world, either win or lose, and then get back to their book and live the rest of their live in relative peace and quiet with everybody leaving them alone for once?

And maybe Ryou would teleport back and decide that he was going to live the rest of his life as a model citizen.

"I don't really have any bad news. I mean Sho's…away…but I don't know why I thought he'd stay. Not when he has…other things to do." Said Mob as she eyed their phone. She couldn't feel Hatori's aura but that didn't mean that he couldn't jump in and start listening at any time.

"Sho comes and goes as he pleases, that's not new." Said Minegishi before they reached out and flipped their phone over. At least then Hatori couldn't see them…greasy little weirdo that he was….

"It's not, I know, I just…I miss him. I know that he doesn't need me anymore but I miss him and…and I miss…" said Mob

"Mukai?" asked Minegishi as they patted the side of their bed. Mob got the memo, thankfully, and soon joined them. The bed groaned as she sat down, the mattress dipping and pushing the two of them together, but they didn't mind. If anyone had to cry on them they would rather it have been Mob than any of the others, even Ryou. If they had to hug anyone it might as well have been Mob. They put their arm around her.

Mob was the only one of their friends they hugged.

"I'm not sad about Mukai…well, kind of, but I know that she's really little and she doesn't even know what's going on." Said Mob

"I think that it's less that she doesn't know and more that she doesn't care. She's four, she has her own priorities." Said Minegishi as Mob rested her head on their shoulder.

"I know. She's lucky like that. I bet she doesn't even know that Sho's gone or…or that I'm not around. She's too busy running around and playing and making a mess and stuff." Said Mob

"You could be too, you know." said Minegishi

"I'm too old for that." Said Mob

"I doubt that anyone would stop you from running around or playing divorced princesses or whatever. I doubt that anybody could." said Minegishi

"I know that they couldn't but I just don't…don't want to. It doesn't feel like something I should be doing. There's so much to worry about today and, even if I get through today, there's a lot to worry about tomorrow and then the next day and the next day! And since I don't even know what's going to happen today it's like…like I'm…I'm…" said Mob. Minegishi turned to face them and put their hands on her shoulders. They got really close to her, close enough that she could see their eyelashes, close enough that she could feel them breathing.

And then they hugged her.

"Mob. No. One day at a time, ok? Just…just take it one day at a time." Said Minegishi as they did the one surefire thing to keep Mob from losing it…and she had clearly been about to lose it. She was fourteen today and, instead of worrying about fourteen year old things, she was worried about whatever the hell was going to happen. She should have been worried about fourteen year old things. Not the weight of the world. Minegishi had…well no, not this bad, but it had felt like they'd had the weight of the world on their shoulders when they had been her age.

It had nearly been too much for them.

"How can I take it one day at a time when so much is happening? Dad says that long term planning is the key to any and all future success." Said Mob

"Your dad also thinks that ketchup is a food group. Maybe he's not the best man to take advice from." Said Minegishi

"I know but…but he's my Dad…" said Mob softly

"And I'm your best friend, who are you going to listen to?" asked Minegishi

"…you…" said Mob. She did like Minegishi better but Dad…he was her Dad. He had been teaching her things for as long as she could remember. She knew that he could say and do some crazy things, and also that he really loved ketchup a lot more than a normal person should have, but he was still…still her Dad. But Minegishi was her best friend and…and they loved her. They had never once told her that they didn't love her. Not when she had stolen from their mint tin, not when she had ignored everything that they had tried to teach her about moderation, and not even when she had…all the things she had done with Shimazaki.

Minegishi had always been by her side…and she was always going to be by theirs. That was how real friendship worked.

"Good, so listen to me. No matter how today or tonight or whatever goes just remember that I'll be there with you, alright? Just like I'm here with you now so…so stop worrying. Stop worrying and…I don't know." said Minegishi. They felt like the world's biggest hypocrite. Mob had every reason to worry. Everyone had every reason to worry. Suzuki could kill them, Suzuki would kill them, and Mob…she may not have been strong enough to take Suzuki. He may have been getting slow in his old age but she was still just a kid and…and…and now they were worried. They needed to shut of their brain before it got any worse.

But they couldn't, not in the way they usually did, not with Mob around.

"I don't know either. If you don't know and I don't know then…then what do we do?" asked Mob. Minegishi's eyes danced around the room, their aura jumped from plant to plant, and she watched them the whole time. Their aura touched hers, she touched theirs back, and their aura…didn't run away. It backed off for a moment before meeting hers and then roaming right past.

Mob looked around the room, too, but she didn't seen anything that interesting.

"We…we…" said Minegishi as they racked their brain for something to do, anything. Their eyes landed on Mob's shirt. If they could they would have just run off to the mountains, built and ice castle, and then slowly starved to death because that movie never did mention what Elsa planned on doing for food. Mob, of course, thought that Elsa could eat snow but that wasn't cannon. Not that Minegishi was going to start that up again. Mentioning Frozen, even in passing, would get Mob going for hours and they'd heard it all before…

But they wouldn't have minded hearing it again.

"We could watch Frozen again." Said Minegishi. Mob's eyes and aura lit up. The room was bathed in pink and blue. They hadn't seen her this excited since…they didn't even know when.

"Do you…do you really want to? I mean I know that, before, you said that you were bored of Frozen because I picked it every single time I won the deciding hat." Said Mob. She did want to see Frozen again, she wanted to see it more than anything else. The first movie, all the shorts, the trailer, the trailers for the shorts, and also the unfinished short that Hatori had sent her…but then again it wasn't finished so it might not have even had an ending…but then again Frozen!

"Yes I want to watch Frozen." Sang Minegishi. They didn't think that it was possible but Mob's smile got even bigger, her eyes even brighter, and her aura…well it kind of burned a little when it touched them.

"But before you said-" said Mob

"I said that I want to watch Frozen. So do you want to watch Frozen…uh…too?" asked Minegishi, the song kind coming apart at the end. She didn't mind. She just…she just really wanted to watch Frozen. She was too old for Frozen, she could hear Minori's voice in her head telling her so…but Minegishi's voice was louder….and they sang.

"Minegishi…let's go and watch Frozen." Sang Mob. Minegishi actually liked Frozen now and…and this was the best birthday ever! She felt good! She felt just as good as she did when she woke up! The good feeling stayed with her while she popped popcorn, it stayed with her while they watched the first Frozen, and then the first short, and then all the other ones, too. It even stayed with her while they watched the beginning of the unfinished short.

But not the end.

Because they never got to the end. Someone knocked on the door and told her that it was time. Some Awakened, she hadn't been paying attention to who, she hadn't been able to. Not when she had to hit the stop button…and not when she decided that it was better to turn off the TV entirely. Not when she had to put her shoes on. Not when she had to hold Minegishi's hand because she was shaking so much. Not when she nearly got lost on her way out of the building because she was so distracted. Not when she nearly froze to death because she had forgotten a jacket. Not when she warmed up in the car.

Not even when the Cultural Tower appeared over the horizon.

She knew she should have been excited. She knew because Dad told her to be. He pointed it out to her and told her that this was exciting and that she should have gotten excited. But she just couldn't. Not when that little spec on the horizon got bigger and bigger and bigger. It was the tallest tower in the entire city, Dad had told her, and that he was going to go to top the top of it and tell the world he was going to be in charge now and other mean stuff like that. Mean stuff that she couldn't get excited for.

Not even a little bit.

She stayed in the car while everyone cleared out the building. She didn't want to hurt anyone, she didn't want to fight anyone, and…and she didn't want it to be today. She didn't want it to be her birthday. She didn't want to be fourteen. She wanted to be thirteen again. She wasn't to be normal again. She wanted…she wanted to go back to the way things had been before all of this…but she couldn't. Not when people needed her.

Not when she could end this.

Once the building was cleared out Minegishi came and got her. Dad wanted her by his side, her and her alone. Not Sho, he hadn't even asked, and not Mukai either because she was just a little kid. Just her. She was smothered again as she walked through the crowd of Awakened, both regular and some soldiers. They all wanted to talk to her, to touch her, maybe even to drag them away. Part of her wanted to let them. Part of her wanted to be anywhere but here…but she couldn't leave, not when Minegishi was hurrying her along and not when…not when she had already made that many plans…

Not when all of her friends were counting on her.

She could feel almost everyone's aura. She could feel Minegishi beside her, Serizawa hiding far away with…Hatori? No, he felt like he was everywhere. Kind of like Shimazaki when he teleported around, though he was in one place now. Far from Dad or…or maybe not. Everyone around her felt like Dad when she focused on them and the Awakened soldiers were the worst of all. It was like being surrounded on all sides by Dad, no matter where she turned there he was, and…and she wanted to run away.

But she didn't.

She wasn't that person. She was a good person, she was Mob, and for once she was going to do something with her life. She wasn't going to just let herself move from one endless day to the next and then the next, one grey day after another. She had powers. She was someone in this world. She was only someone with her powers so she had to do something with them…something good. There was blood on the walls. People had gotten hurt. There were spirits…white blobs, really, flying upwards and disappearing. Spirits on their way to the other side. Spirits she didn't need to exorcise…that was good. Sometimes when people died in horrible ways they got stuck and even turned evil…

She wondered if that was what had happened to the spirit that she had fought.

It had been an esper, once, well a medium but they were pretty much the same thing. Powerful espers left powerful spirits…she wondered what kind of spirit she would leave behind when she died. She didn't think that she would have been able to just go to light like that, no, not when there was still so much to do. She was only fourteen. She hadn't even finished the latest Frozen short yet. She hadn't even…she couldn't think of anything else she hadn't done yet. She'd done so much but that didn't mean that she was ready to go.

She was only fourteen.

Dad was older. She was beside him, now. Close to him. He had more white in his hair than she remembered, mostly towards the back of his head. More wrinkles too in the corners of his eyes. That made sense, he was forty seven, which was pretty old. She wondered if he'd done everything that he'd wanted to do, everything but take over the world, and if when he died…not that she was planning on killing him…she just wanted him to stop. She just wanted everything to stop. She just…she wanted things to be normal…but they were never going to be normal again.

But they could be better.

Dad asked Hatori if all the preparations were complete…and then the next thing she knew she was looking into a camera on a tiny helicopter. Or maybe heliplane was better…she didn't know, these were boy's toys. She had never played with this kind of thing before. Apparently Hatori had…she was going to miss him. The feeling struck her like lightening. She was really going to miss him when this was all over…he wasn't on her side but he was still her friend and if anything happened to him then…then she didn't know what she could do.

She didn't think that she could live with herself if she let anything happen to any of her friends.

"Shigeko, stop being apprehensive, this plan will succeed. Now stop that, we need to show a united front." Said Suzuki as he looked down at Shigeko. She didn't say a word, she hadn't needed to, her aura told him all that he needed to know. She feared that this plan would fail and she was looking to him to keep her safe. Women were always worried like that. Shiori had been the same way. It didn't matter, he'd show them.

He'd show everyone.

"Yes, Dad. The plan's going to work." Said Mob as Dad looked at her. She had to look up to see him, he had to look down to see her, that was because he was the adult and she was the kid and…and she felt more like a kid in that moment than she had in years. She wanted to take Dad and shake him, to tell him that she was only fourteen, to tell him that she didn't want to save the world or fight him. That she just wanted to go home and watch Frozen with him like they had when she had been little. But she didn't say anything, she didn't get the chance to.

Dad reached into his pocket and took out the speech. The one she had written.

He started off talking about how he had taken over the airwaves. That was how he had started before he had crossed everything out. She tried to sound as much like him as she could, in the beginning at least. Though she made sure to keep it to one language. Speaking all the languages at once would have just confused people even though they were broadcasting this to the entire world…well, Hatori was doing the broadcast. She could feel him in her phone, in the walls, in the people around her…he looked tired.

It would be over soon. Dad was getting to the part she'd added in.

"There is no point in opposing us. We will soon rule the world with our psychic powers…" read Suzuki, his eyes darting upwards and downwards far too quickly. He didn't know why Shigeko had told him not to read this until the last minute. This was pretty much what he had written. A bit more cohesive, and all in Japanese, a very serviceable speech. He would never understand her. Even now he could feel how apprehensive she was….a feeling which he couldn't understand. He certainly wasn't apprehensive.

No. He was happy.

"Our first step in this mission is to completely demolish this country…" read Suzuki, nearly losing track of his place. He couldn't help it. All of his dreams were coming true. Today had started off truly terrible but now he was ready to work past that. Even if Tadashi had crossed certain lines and his daughter had…he chose not to think about that. He had to keep his mind on this speech. He had to keep his mind on what was to come. He was going to have to fight the world after this, after all. Everyone else knew it as well as he did. He felt so much hostile intent around him. He would have them channel their efforts elsewhere, outwards, after this. After he was done. After…after he'd gotten everything that he'd ever wanted…

After he was ruler of the world.

"A new world order is about to begin but I will not be ruling you-what the fuck!?" asked Suzuki as his eyes landed on….on what must have been a mistake. He heard someone ask if he was allowed to say that on international television. That was the least of his worries…though he had just embarrassed himself in front of the entire world….but that had all been Shigeko's doing!? He turned to face her, the paper in his hand turning to dust. She was just standing there looking at him…everyone was looking at him…

Shigeko was the only person that mattered right now.

"Shigeko. Explain. Now." said Suzuki through gritted teeth. This wasn't funny. This was the sort of juvenile behavior he would have expected from Sho, and Mukai if she had been able to write more than a few katakana, but not Shigeko! Maybe even Hatori…no, even he knew better than…than to make jokes. That was it. An ill timed and ill conceived joke.

That was all.

"Dad…I can't let you do this." Said Mob. She could see Dad's aura now. Red, everywhere, so much red. Someone gasped, someone screamed, and someone started to pray. She put up a barrier. She knew that he was mad, she knew what was coming, she knew he was going to hit her and…and she didn't want him to! So she put up her barrier-

-which immediately shattered.

"This isn't funny, Shigeko." Said Suzuki as he batted her barrier away like it was the paper she had just humiliated him with. She was going to pay! She was…she was a woman and one did not hit women, Father had been very clear on the subject, one did not hit them even if they deserved it…and she did deserve it…but she had not challenged him, she would never have challenged him. She was…she was Shigeko. She was his….his daughter.

She was Daughter and Daughter…she did not do this to him.

"I'm not being funny! I'm being serious! I'm not going to let you try and take over the world, I'm going to stop you, and there's nothing that you can do to stop me so just…just stop it now before we-" said Shigeko before she felt something sharp across her face. First the sting and then the burn…he had slapped her…

"Enough. This isn't funny…you…you doing this…you're ruining everything and I wont allow it." Said Suzuki. He had hit her….that had been wrong. But she had ruined this for him! She had humiliated him in front of the entire world and…and she had challenged…no, she had just been…been kidding. Joking. Some misplaced adoscent stupidity, that was all. This was…this was just a stumble and…

…and maybe he shouldn't have been doing this live.

"I'm being serious! I'm not going to let you take over the world and…and if you don't stop on your own then I'm going to have to stop you myself!" said Mob. Her face stung, her eyes stung, the tears that she felt escaping down her cheeks didn't help. She didn't want this and…and he didn't want it either. If he had then he would have done more than slap her…..part of him still must have loved her like he had before and…and that meant that part of him had to have known that this was wrong…right? Maybe there was something inside of him that was good, something inside of him that didn't want this, something that she could convince to listen to her-

-another slap.

"Are you challenging me right now, Daughter?" asked Suzuki as he slapped her again. He needed her to submit. Even now he didn't want to harm her in any serious way. He just needed her to stop, that was all, but she was making this difficult. She was acting like Sho! she was acting like…like he had, when Sho had been born, expected him to act. To challenge him for the world. But Sho wasn't here, this was Shigeko, this was his daughter…this was a child that he had acquired. This was someone he had chosen to bring into his life…someone he had thought that he could have trusted.

He had thought wrong.

"Yes I am, Touichirou. I am." Said Mob. She could see her aura now and it was burning as brightly as his was. There were a lot of auras, a lot of talking, and a lot of things started to float. Her hair was floating behind her, the buildings outside were floating downwards, and…and no, they were floating upwards. Her feet weren't touching the ground anymore but…but the room was shaking…the floor was shaking…

She was shaking.

"Hatori…cut the broadcast." Said Suzuki. He could see his aura, feel it, and control it. That was the important part. He could control his aura. He had to control his aura. He had to control his powers. He had to control himself. Power was nothing without control and he…he needed to get ahold of himself. Of his emotions…he had to find a way. He had to exorcise this…all of this. Shigeko. Her betrayal. The way she had humiliated him. The way he had been so close…he was still so close…

He just had one obstacle in his way.

"Dad, we should talk about-" said Mob before there was a hand wrapped around her throat. She couldn't say anything anymore. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't think about anything other than air. How she needed it. How she had to get Dad's hand off of her throat. He was lifting her off the ground. She kicked at him. She scratched at him. She even tried to turn her head and bite him. She tried with her hands, her nails, her feet, her powers…but she didn't really try. If she tried then she would hurt him and…and she didn't want to hurt him.

Black spots swam in her vision.

She started to get sleepy…it didn't feel good. Nothing about this felt good. Today…it had been such a good day, started out at least. She had been happy…of course she had, it was her birthday, and birthdays were the happiest days of the year. When she was in charge she would make every day a birthday party and…and she would make everyone happy…and then she would be someone. Then she would be a good person. That was all she had ever wanted to be, a good person, a good friend…sister…daughter…and she had been for a little while and…and she would be…when she woke up.

Maybe when she woke up she would feel good again.