20/09/2022
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The Emperor's Dragon
Emergence 9 - Senpai
Yakuni leaned back as he waited. There wasn't anything else to do in the cell but wait until the cops decided he could get a phone call. Or they could finally get around to checking his records, find out that he was quirkless and then release him.
He'd thought he'd been reasonably stealthy going after a genetic sample from Ryukyu but he obviously hadn't been as stealthy as he thought. Even so, he had the sample. That was important. It was in a virtual pocket. That's what he called pockets he made that were not reliant on his clothing. It was just as well since the virtual pocket accompanied him and when he'd been arrested, he'd had to give up his clothes.
Apparently Ryukyu had noticed him and reported him to the police which was odd, considering she was a hero but it was better than her taking him in. He'd tried telling the officers he was just looking for some charity. That was normal for the quirkless but they hadn't bothered to listen and so he was now in a cell, waiting for due process.
Oh well… at least he'd gotten fed but he did think it was taking a bit long… And if he'd been a few years younger, he probably wouldn't be here. At 22 he counted as an adult, so that meant the adult system.
"They're distracted kid," someone said.
"Huh?" Yakuni said, looking over to the speaker. The man was in the cell across from his.
"The Bizzies," the man said. He had several fangs jutting out of his mouth and claws on his hands. He looked sort of wolf-like though he didn't appear to have fur covering him. "So we're all gonna be waiting a while."
"What's happening?" Yakuni asked.
"Some big shot is appealing their sentence and since he's a former Jjapsae, they're shittin' themselves making sure everything's in order."
It took him a moment to translate the sentence. A former cop was appealing his sentence and those Police officers who were here, were making sure that nothing went wrong. He sighed. "Oh well, I can wait," he dismissed the matter. The boss had been clear that this particular mission would take as long as it took.
Yakuni thought back to Dragon's father's words. I do not care if you are captured, so long as you have the sample. It was like the man knew this would happen. Maybe, once he got back, he could ask for some tips on how to do better in future.
The wolf-like guy across the way laughed. "Not your first rodeo huh?" he said.
"No, this is new," Yakuni admitted. "But at least I get fed here," he added. There was no reason not to play up the fact he was quirkless.
The wolf guy frowned, obviously not understanding.
Yakuni sighed. "Quirkless," he explained.
His admission elicited a soft exclamation and an odd look. It was almost pitying but not quite.
"So what are you here for?" Yakuni asked before the wolf guy could say anything further. The quirkless didn't need pity, they just needed the smallest opportunity and to be treated as human. Actually that last one would be good enough, because if they were being treated as human then they'd be given the opportunities.
Before the guy could answer, one of the doors at the far end of the block clanged open. Wolf guy looked. "Oh my god, it's him," he whispered.
"Who?"
"That's the cop," he replied.
Yakuni looked. He wasn't sure what he was expecting but seeing someone in prison brown, with chained hands and feet who was shuffling along was not it. There was nothing particularly special about the man, though he did exude an air of dignity that no one else here possessed. Yakuni recognised it, sort of. Dragon's Dad kind of felt the same. This was a man who knew who he was and what he would do. This man might be a prisoner but that didn't change anything. There were four police officers with him, all standing a strictly correct distance from him. They led him down the corridor and picked out a cell next to the wolf guy.
The man said nothing as he walked into it and waited for the door to be closed. Then he pushed his hands forward. One of the cops carefully approached and took off the cuffs, before they then took off the feet chain. It looked like one of the officers would say something but as soon as the chains were off the man turned away and went to sit on the bed. He obviously wasn't interested in talking to his former colleagues.
They said nothing and walked away and the door clanged shut again. There was silence in the holding cells for a few moments before the newcomer snorted and then turned around to lie on the bed. He seemed completely at ease. "Anyone got a book?" he asked nonchalantly.
There was no response and the man sighed audibly. "Typical," he muttered and Yakuni watched as he rolled over and appeared to go to sleep. He obviously didn't but that was the impression.
"So who's that?" Yakuni asked. It was obvious the man wasn't going to talk.
The wolf guy just looked at him as if he couldn't believe he'd asked. A couple of the others in holding also just stared. "I suppose the case was a couple of years back," wolf guy said as if that explained everything.
"And?"
"There's not much to tell," wolf guy told him. "He's convicted of helping some villain but the thing is he said nothing. All through the trial. All through questioning. On the witness stand. He's said nothing to anyone about the case. So no one knows anything."
"Nothing?" Yakuni had a hard time believing that.
"To anyone," wolf guy said.
"So… why is he here?"
"I told you kid, he's appealing the sentence, and for that, ya gotta appear in court. Not that it's gonna do anything," the wolf guy snorted.
"Why not?"
"No one's ever said what villain he helped, but All Might himself testified against him. Ain't a judge in the world who'll go against All Might."
Yakuni nodded. That was true. Though… he suspected his boss would go against All Might. And… given the presence of the man, even with his injuries, Yakuni thought he'd have a good chance.
They sat in silence after that. There was nothing more to say and while Yakuni wasn't sure what holding cells were like, he was pretty sure they weren't usually this quiet. He sat on his bed and leaned against the wall, looking up. There really wasn't anything to do and as the time dragged on he suddenly understood why the newcomer had asked if anyone had a book. He'd be adding a book to what he was carrying from now on.
He wasn't exactly sure how much time had passed when there was another clang from the door.
"Tanaihito!" The call came.
"Here," Yakuni said. He knew it was expected.
The officer strode down between the cells and stood in front of his. The man held out a small device and Yakuni recognised it as a phone. "Your call," he said, thrusting the phone forward.
This wasn't exactly how he thought he'd get it but he shrugged and pushed off from the bed, to take the phone. He wondered who he should call and what he should say. There was no way he was going to call the boss.
Wait, it was simple. He'd call Daruma. Yakuni thought about it for a few more moments. He really just had to say he'd run into some problems. He dialed the number from memory, ignoring the way that literally everyone was listening in while attempting to pretend they weren't. At least the ex-cop appeared to be asleep.
The number rang and Yakuni held the phone to his ear. He had no doubt the call was being recorded.
"Who is this?" Daruma sounded somewhat waspish, but Yakuni was thankful he answered.
"Yakuni," he said. "I've run into a problem," he added before the man said anything too much.
There was a slight pause from the scientist before he asked a quick question. "Official?"
"Police," he confirmed.
"Did you get it?" came the follow up question.
"Yes," Yakuni answered. He felt good about that. Not even being arrested changed that fact. "Can you get me some assistance?" He asked, ignoring the officer. The man was trying to hear but Daruma spoke softly. It probably didn't make a difference on the recording but… he didn't know.
"I'll see what can be organised," the scientist said. "Where are you?"
"Tokyo's Eighth Precinct holding cells," he gave his location, wondering if the boss would pay to have him released or if… well, he had no idea how this would go.
"I'll let them know," Daruma said. "Anything else?"
"No, Sir," he replied.
"Then I'll see you later," the scientist said before he hung up.
Yakuni nodded, even though Ujiko wouldn't see the gesture and he dropped the phone down from his ear, ending the call. He handed it back to the officer. "Thank you," he said. There wasn't any need to be rude. The policeman looked at him sharply, obviously trying to tell if he was being cheeky before he strode off, leaving Yakuni alone.
"You good kid?" the wolf guy asked.
"Yeah, it's fine," Yakuni told him as he settled back against the wall.
"You seem pretty chill for your first rodeo," he commented.
Yakuni shrugged. "I told you, I'm quirkless. This isn't so bad. I've got a bed and food, and meh… I'll be fine."
The wolf guy snorted but accepted it and they settled into silence because there wasn't anything else to do.
-ted-
Yakuni wasn't sure what woke him up but he jolted awake. He lay in the darkness straining his senses to try to figure out why he was awake. He was fully awake too, not how he sometimes woke up in the middle of the night when everything was vague. This time he was alert. He couldn't hear anything abnormal. He could hear the other prisoners breathing but nothing seemed odd with that, so cautiously he opened his eyes.
The corridor between the cells was lit by a very soft, yellow light. It wasn't enough to keep them awake but it was enough that his dark adjusted eyes could see the ever shifting outline of- Yakuni bit his lip before he said the name too loudly.
"Kurogiri," he breathed the name.
That got the attention of the misty man and he turned. His yellow eyes were particularly bright in the gloom. "Mr Tanaihito," came the equally soft reply. "You have a choice to make."
"Choice?"
"I can get you out, or you can see what happens with the system. Sensei feels that you will most likely get a warning."
Yakuni said nothing to that but he sat up in the bed, turning to face Kurogiri as he nodded his understanding. It felt odd to be given a choice. He was expecting to be told what to do but he recognised this was a bit of a test to see what he'd do.
If he went with Kurogiri now, that would cause issues. Beyond the normal problems of the Police losing a prisoner, and him getting on a wanted list for somehow escaping custody, there would be an investigation. If he stayed though then… he didn't know how long it would take and there was a chance that he would get sentenced to something worse than a warning.
What would a quirkless person do?
Immediately his mind gave him the answer. They wouldn't be here… That was the answer that came to him immediately. "I'll stay," he said softly, "but take it," he added, reaching into the pocket he was carrying around with him. He brought out the sample. He'd been lucky and had gotten blood. It was in a sealed bag.
He held it out to Kurogiri.
The misty man looked at him for a few moments. "We will monitor," he gave the assurance as he took the sample.
Yakuni smiled. "Thank you," he replied sincerely. It felt nice to know that someone cared.
"Then goodbye for now," Kurogiri said as he vanished with a swirl of darkness.
He remained sitting for a few moments just staring at where Kurogiri had been standing.
"You did good, kid."
Yakuni's eyes shot towards the speaker. He didn't recognise the voice. It wasn't the wolf guy and as he looked through the gloom he realised it was the former cop.
"What?" He whispered.
"You did good," the man repeated.
Yakuni could see his eyes. They seemed to glow in the darkness but that was just because it looked like the man was looking directly at him.
"You didn't put him at risk," the man said.
A couple of things became clear to Yakuni with that statement and he felt himself gasp. "You helped Sensei," he breathed the words.
"I'm like you, kid."
Yakuni was amazed and a bit humbled if he was honest with himself. "So he gave you social acceptance?" he asked.
He heard a small laugh from the man. "Something like that. It's a good way of putting it."
"Why didn't you say something to-" Yakuni didn't finish his question 'cos he didn't want to say the name. He was sure Kurogiri would have taken the man if he knew he was here.
"There's no need," he replied softly. "They know where I am, and I refuse to live as a fugitive."
"But-" He wasn't sure what he wanted to ask.
"You might have a different job kid, but mine was to be in society. If they get me out, then I'll just be a burden, so it's better to just wait for the inevitable." The man sounded completely at peace with the thought of staying in jail.
"The inevitable?" Yakuni asked.
"When Sensei prevails," the man said. He sounded absolutely certain of the inevitability of this statement. "I will be released and the world will know I made the right choice."
Yakuni nodded, not sure if the man could see it. That kind of made sense but at the same time he wanted to ask many more questions. The man was… well he was like him. He wanted to know more about him. Wanted to know how Dragon's Dad had found him and all the other details. He wanted to know what the man had done and- there was just so much he wanted to know now but he already knew he wasn't going to be getting those details.
"Well, I should be getting out of here. Officially, I am not socially acceptable," Yakuni said, instead of asking everything he wanted to know.
"And that's why you did good kid," the man told him. "You'll be out of here as soon as the circus about me is over."
"So why are you appealing?" Yakuni couldn't help but ask.
"I'm not," the man replied. "My lawyer is. I told them no but-" In the darkness, Yakuni couldn't see any gesture but he thought the man had shrugged.
"It's okay," Yakuni reassured him. "Any messages?" he asked.
"No, Sensei knows I'll wait."
"Okay," Yakuni murmured. He was somewhat humbled by the man across the corridor. This was not a man waiting to be rescued, but a man waiting to serve and… he actually understood that. He had promised himself that he wouldn't let Dragon or Dragon's Dad down, that he would do whatever they wanted, and he would. If being imprisoned was part of that then, he'd accept that. He'd probably struggle with the fact that it would feel like he wasn't doing much but he'd accept it.
He hoped he got the chance to talk further with the man but he anticipated that his chances would be limited. "What's your name?" he asked instead.
"Saitsu," came the response.
"Yakuni," he gave his own name in reply.
"Now, get back to sleep kid, though I will say it's nice to know that others see the truth."
"It is," he agreed, already shifting to lie back down. The blanket was cold now but at least the holding cells weren't freezing. Yakuni knew, if Daruma hadn't employed him he'd be used to far less so even this was something to be thankful for. He took a deep breath as he closed his eyes. He hoped one day he'd have the same dignity and surety of purpose Saitsu had but for now, he reminded himself he had done all he could and that Dragon's dad had anticipated this.
All he had to do now was wait. The system would, ironically, reject him again soon enough, but that was okay. He, like Saitsu, had rejected the system already and they'd be there when it was torn down.
It was just a matter of time.
-ted-
Bizzies and Jjapsae are terms for cops. One is from the UK and one I believe is South Korean. While I realise I could have gone with the usual 'Pigs' that's so uncouth and unoriginal. Besides, in this case, the police were just doing their job. Yakuni was stalking Ryukyu!
Saitsu is the former Police Captain who let AFO know a raid was coming, giving him enough time to escape after he was wounded by All Might. He was, as you can see caught because of that but he knew he would be and his loyalty to AFO is stronger than anything else.
Social acceptance here translates to quirk.
Next chapter is the first meeting between Izuku's friends of Hitoshi, Ochaco and Mei :D
My discord is on this code: ZX2R5h2cEm FFN will remove links but you should be able to figure that out.
-ted-
Loved it? Hated it? Found a spelling mistake? Let me know please!
