Chapter 18
The next morning after a long but disturbed sleep, Kaiya heard someone knocking at the facility door. She creaked open the door to find Aizawa waiting patiently for her with a brown bag in his hand. "Sir?"
"I'm assuming you haven't had breakfast yet?" He asked, holding up the bag. Sweet pastry and coffee smells reached Kaiya's nose as she let her teacher in.
"I don't normally eat until lunch." Kaiya mumbled, escorting her teacher towards the mats.
They settled on one of the mats and nestled into their breakfast, Kaiya eagerly devouring her pastry. "I'm sorry I don't have more; I wasn't sure what you'd like." Aizawa told her, smirking at the crumbs formulating on Kaiya's chin. He sipped his coffee as Kaiya mumbled her thanks through the food.
"This is the freshest breakfast I've had in a long time. Thank you sir." Aizawa waved off her thanks and took notice of the room around him. "How did you know I was here?"
"I've followed you a few times since school started; wanted to make sure you were somewhat safe." Aizawa told her, seeing her dodge her eyes from him. "Kaiya, yesterday shook a lot of us. These villains are on a mission and we can't figure out what it is." Kaiya nodded her head and sipped on the juice in her hand and waited for her teacher to speak again. "You said something yesterday that concerned me. You thought it would be you?"
"That's why you're here." Kaiya stated, finally looking up at Aizawa. "Dabi said if it were up to him, he'd bring me along with them too." Kaiya explained, picking at her fingernails.
"They targeted Bakugou because they thought he would make a good villain from his tenacity at the sports festival. Now, we all know him better than that. You are the same way; you are not a villain."
"But I have more of a reason to be one! To be targeted! I've hurt people!" Kaiya argued, getting to her feet. "Look at what I did to myself, in the wrong hands I could easily be Dabi or Shigaraki or even Stain!" She screamed, pointing at her burn mark.
"Enough!" Aizawa ordered her, rising to his feet. Kaiya's chest rose heavily as her inner fears bubbled to the surface, pooling in her eyes. Aizawa took a moment to calm himself and sighed heavily. "You...are not a bad person Kaiya." She shook her head and pushed her palms into her eyes to stop the tears. "You are a good person, one of the best I've known. You will go on to great things, just like Bakugou when we get him back."
"Dabi said...he would rather have taken me...he knew me." Kaiya whispered, replaying the horrifying opinion from the blue fire wielding man. "You told me you knew what happened to my parents." Aizawa froze at Kaiya's words and corrected her.
"We have a theory. There's multiple stories circulating about them."
"I want to know. Dabi...knew me." Kaiya repeated, looking up to Aizawa with red rimmed eyes. "Please." Aizawa sighed heavily and nodded his agreement.
"We think...they were in cahoots with a different version of the League of Villains. That may be where Dabi knew your name from. Then with the sports festival and seeing your Quirk, Dabi connected the two." Kaiya nodded, understanding the connection but still not liking it. "Your parents got really involved, possibly not on their own wishes. That environment wasn't a place for an innocent baby."
"That's why they gave me up." Kaiya whispered, clutching onto her ring. "What happened to them?"
"Unfortunately, we think that they are dead. Why or how, we don't know either." Aizawa told her, seeing more tears stream down her face. "Kaiya, this is not a reflection on you. You have…"
"Villain blood in my veins." Kaiya stated, turning away from Aizawa. "I should have been their target, not Bakugou."
"No. I will not stand here and listen to you talk so low about yourself anymore." Aizawa growled, forcing Kaiya to look at him. "You have survived alone for a decade, taught yourself everything you know until you came here. You are a survivor." Kaiya cried harder at Aizawa's words and hung her head until he gripped her face to look at him. "I saw you doubting yourself at the sports festival and the exam with Todoroki. But if your fight with Stain and against Dabi the other day proves anything...is that can do anything. You are home now. Your friends, your teachers, me...we are all here for you. Despite all these obstacles you still have the strength to fight for your friends, to smile every day through the pain and you are strong. Do you hear me?" He asked her, searching Kaiya's eyes for an answer.
"Yes sir." She croaked out as Aizawa pulled her in for a hug.
"I will not hear another negative thing about yourself come out of you, do you understand me?" He told her, feeling Kaiya nod against his chest. "Good. Now rest up. I'll see you soon. Okay?" Kaiya nodded again and brushed her eyes dry.
"Thank you sir." She managed to say, waving her goodbye to the teacher.
As Aizawa ventured back to his apartment, his mind buzzed with the inner fears Kaiya had buried. He knew she was harboring some resentment for her abandonment which made her doubt her skills at times; but he never believed she'd think she was villain prey. "Poor girl." He would work harder to keep an eye on her emotional state more as well as her skills to become a hero; one being more important than the other.
A few days had passed by, and Kaiya saw Todoroki leaning on the front entrance of the hospital waiting for her. He had called her the night before to inform her that he and Kirishima had formulated a plan to get Bakugou back. "Good morning." She waved, stifling a yawn.
"It's good to see you." He said. "Didn't sleep much either?" He asked, noting her yawn. Kaiya fought the urge to combust and tell him all about what Aizawa had told her the other day but she cleared her throat and straightened herself. His eyes met Kaiya's and it was as if he read her mind as he stepped to her and pulled her in for a hug; this time Kaiya melted into it. "I think we both needed that." He whispered.
"Thank you." Kaiya whispered back, feeling the warmth he gave off. Someone cleared their throat behind them and they turned to see Kirishima behind them, looking embarrassed. "I hear you two have a plan?" Kaiya asked him, putting more distance between Todoroki and herself.
"I think you'll like it." Kirishima smiled.
The trio walked into Midoriya's room with the rest of the students after the two boys went over their plan with Kaiya. Everyone was excited that he was awake and brought him a melon as a gift.
"Did everyone come to visit?" Midoriya asked, scanning the room.
"No, Jirou is still unconscious and Yayarouzo just woke up after suffering a large head injury." Iida told him sadly.
"And Bakuguo is still missing." Todoroki told him, getting a chide from Mina.
"I was so close to being able to save him." Midoriya cried. "I needed to save him. I had to. My body wouldn't move. Since I failed, now he's gone." He was echoing Kaiya's own issues and she fought the urge to cry.
"All right. Then let's go get him." Kirishima interjected, earning a gasp from the students. "I was here yesterday, as was Todorki. We were on our way to see you, but we saw All Might and the cops talking to Yayarouzo. She had attached a tracking device to Nomu before she passed out. She has a receiver that tracks the device."
"That means that you will have Yayarouzo make another receiver for you doesn't it?" Iida asked, his voice hosting an accusatory tone.
"What if it does?" Todoroki asked him, seeing the visible irritation from Iida.
"We should listen to what All Might said and leave this to the professionals!" Iida snapped loudly.
"Maybe! But all I know is that at camp, I couldn't do anything. I heard that my friend was targeted and I just stood by helplessly! If I stand by now how am I supposed to call myself a hero or a man?" Kirishima snapped back.
"Dude calm down, we're in a hospital. There's a better time and place for this dude." Kaminari shushed him.
"Yeah and what Iida said is true." Tsu pointed out calmly. "Let's leave this to the heroes."
"Listen to me for a minute. I know what you're saying is right. But come on Midoriya, he's still within your reach." Midoriya stared back at Kirishima, unsure of how to react. "Kaiya?" He asked the girl, getting her attention. "We can save Bakugou."
"You don't have to convince me. I had him in my reach and let him go. It haunts me. I know what you have planned, I'm down for it." Kaiya shrugged her shoulders sadly.
"If you're doing this to make yourselves feel better, that's selfish! As class representative..." Iida snapped at them before Kaiya's voice cut him down.
"Enough." She told him, holding her palm up to silence him. "I have my own reasons for wanting Bakugou back. If I was in the same position...I'd hope someone would rescue me." Her voice was strong as her eyes met Iida's in defiance. "This is about more than school. This is someone's life we are talking about. You don't have to sign off on this. We have decided. Meet us tomorrow if you want to help. If not, stay out of our way." Kaiya said, turning to leave the room.
"I think the vice rep has spoken." Shoji mumbled as Kaiya left the room, Iida grinding his teeth in frustration at her tone.
Outside the hospital on a bench, Kaiya sat with her head in her hands. Kirishima approached her carefully and sat by her. "We can do this..can't we?" She asked him.
"We have to try. I'd like to think he'd do the same for one of us." Kirishima answered her, gazing up into the sky. "I wish I had been there." Kaiya nodded her head, the memory of Bakugou's eyes phasing out through the portal as her hands reached to nothing.
"It was...awful." Kaiya whispered. Kirishima gasped and stammered over his words apologizing for misspeaking. "No it's okay Kiri, I wish you were there too. We needed all the help we could get."
"Let's get him back then." Todoroki piped up from behind the pair. Kaiya and Kirishima nodded in agreement.
"Hey guys." A low voice sounded from behind them. Misa walked over with a stern look on her face, an aura of anger pulsating from her. "I'm coming with you tomorrow. You can use my stealth skills so you aren't found out easily. I can convince Momo to make another tracker."
"You hate Bakugou. Why would you help?" Todoroki asked simply. Misa winced at the harsh question but took a deep breath before answering.
"Hate is a strong word." The trio regarded Misa's choice carefully before accepting her help.
"We need all the strength we can get." Kirishima said.
Later that night, Kaiya stood outside the hospital with Kirishima and Todoroki. "Think she'll show?" She asked them.
"I hope so, the plan falls apart without her." Kirishima said. Eventually, they saw Midoriya exiting the hospital with Misa in tow, their faces determined.
"Yayarouzo is too weak to help. I have the tracker we need to find Bakugou."
"I'm coming too." Another voice sounded from behind the group. They turned and saw Iida looking solemnly at them. "Why did it have to be you three? Did you learn nothing from Hosu?" Midoriya approached him carefully but was met with a punch to the face.
"Does he not realize Midoriya just got out of hospital?" Kaiya winced, asking Todoroki who just rolled his eyes.
"We got into so much trouble for that and yet here we go again!" Iida shouted before Kaiya pushed him back from Midoriya.
"I really don't appreciate you yelling at us and trust me when I tell you, I am in no mood for it. Like I said earlier, either get on board or get out of the way." Kaiya snapped.
"I am coming, only to keep an eye on you all. If I see anything get out of hand, I will stop this." He said to Kaiya, anger in his eyes. She almost snapped back at her fellow class representative, but thought better of it.
"Let's go." Kirishima told them.
They were all sitting on the train going over the plan, but Kaiya was too locked in her brain to pay attention to it so Todoroki nudged her while he was nibbling on his food. "What is it?" She had been replaying what Aizawa had said to her the other day and how it related to her parents and the current situation.
"I guess I should tell you something Aizawa told me at camp." Kaiya sighed to him but she got the others' attention too. "I should tell you all something about me actually." So she told them her story and then what Aizawa said about her parents, helping them understand why she was so determined to save Bakugou. Gasps came from Kirishima and Misa and shocked looks came from Midoriya and Iida as the story came to an end. "I am sorry for not being open about this, but I couldn't find a way to talk about it. That's why I am so angry about Bakugou; not just for letting him go but for the simple fact that it could have easily been me in that position."
"You aren't a villain Kaiya. You never will be!" Misa smiled, squeezing Kaiya's knee. "Aizawa was right in telling you the truth."
"Yeah, I am so sorry for what's happened to you and your parents, but you aren't them!" Kirishima looked sad at her, but still gave her a smile. "Neither you or Bakugou are villain material."
"What makes a villain, a villain? Bad decisions and a stroke of bad luck amongst other things. I am the perfect combination for being one." Kaiya pointed out. "But I won't be one of course; it just struck me when Bakugou got taken, that I could become one...and what one of them said to me." Kaiya explained quietly.
"Then we get Bakugou back. We are heroes. You included." Misa said. Kaiya smiled at her and didn't realize that Todoroki had his hand on Kaiya's. She smiled at him and she saw a blush creep on his cheeks.
"Are you okay?" She asked him. When he nodded and gave her a small smile, she felt a tension lift off of her shoulders.
"Stop carrying the weight of the world on you. You'll eventually break." Todoroki whispered to her, causing her to shiver. Kaiya nodded and felt Todoroki squeeze her hand before letting go.
They arrived in the city and realized they all needed to blend in. They all bought different outfits and looked nothing like they usually did. Kaiya's outfit made her look like a mix of Aizawa and Snipe with the black cowboy hat and leather clothes. "I wish I could afford therapy after this." She mumbled. She then started giggling as Todoroki stepped out of the dressing room with his outfit. "I didn't think black hair would suit you...but damn." She whispered, seeing his less than pleased facial expression. "Oh come on, it's funny. You look like Midnight." She nudged him.
"I hate shopping." He mumbled, noting Iida, Midoriya and Kirishima exiting the store in their outfits. "I wish I could unsee all of this."
They walked through the town until the tracker took them to a warehouse. "This is it, I think." Kirishima said. Misa and Kaiya shared a look as they edged closer to analyze the warehouse.
"The vegetation near the door is unruly. They didn't enter from here." Misa whispered, but before Kaiya could respond, a hard body smacked into her.
"Hey there, pretty girls, looking for a good time?" The stench of alcohol filled Kaiya's nostrils as the drunk draped his arm over her shoulders.
"No, we are good! Thank you though!" Misa squeaked as Kaiya's eyes flashed red. A warm hand wrapped around her arm as Todoroki pulled her towards him while Kirishima stood in front of Misa as a shield.
"We can't stay here." Todoroki mumbled. Kaiya glanced at the stoic face of the Icy Hot teen before clearing her throat. "What?"
"I could have handled that guy. I've handled worse." She told him quietly. Todoroki's eyes winced as they turned into a dark alley behind the warehouse.
"You shouldn't have to. Besides, I saw your eyes flash. I think I saved him more than you." He mumbled, smirking towards a blushing Kaiya.
"I hate these eyes sometimes. They get me into trouble." Before Todoroki could respond, Kirishima nudged the pair and pointed over the wall. "Let's look over the wall." Kaiya offered. "See if we can find anything."
"I have night vision goggles, we can see pretty clearly with them." Kirishima said as he climbed onto Iida's shoulders. Kaiya got onto Todoroki's shoulders easily and peeked over the wall. Kirishima analyzed the area and gasped as he handed Kaiya the goggles to see. Kaiya froze at what she saw and handed Kirishima the goggles back.
"Nomu. Lots' of them. It's as if they are harvesting an army of them." Kaiya explained to the group. Suddenly they saw Mt. Lady appear and crash through the warehouse, causing rubble to fly everywhere. Kaiya threw up a wind barrier to protect the students from the falling debris just in time.
Best Jeanist and Mt Lady stood proud at the destroyed facility, surrounded by other pro heroes. "They must have planned this at the same time as the press conference to throw the villains off." Iida deducted. "See, I told you we should have left this to them." He began to rant but another explosion stopped him mid sentence. A large man erupted from the rubble and attacked Best Jeanist, Orca and Mt Lady, completely immobilizing them.
"What the hell…" Todoroki mumbled, grasping onto Kaiya's arm. She held onto him and Kirishima next to her; fear coursing through all of them.
"My body won't move. Who is that guy.." Kaiya thought to herself, her nails digging into Todoroki's arm. They shared a scared look as they trembled, praying that the villain wouldn't see them. Kaiya peered over the broken wall behind them to see that Bakugou appeared from Kurogiri's smoke. "He's okay." Kaiya whispered to the group.
Midoriya made a move to jump to the rescue but Iida grabbed onto him. "If you move...I swear Midoroya…" Kaiya could hear Iida threaten. All Might had shown up finally and was battling the large man; but the villain had many different Quirks and All Might was clearly struggling.
"He can't go full power. Bakugou may get hurt if he does." Misa pointed out. Kaiya's mind went into overdrive at a plan to get them all out of there alive so All Might could beat the villain; when it all came to her suddenly. Kaiya grasped onto Kirishima and Todoroki next to her to get their attention.
"I have an idea." Iida looked at her with pure anger and she just rebuffed him, knowing this was the only way they'd all get out of here. "Bakugou will listen to you Kiri. With Iida's incipro burst and Midorya's speed, you three can be catapulted through the air and I can control the direction easier with my wind. If Todoroki can create an ice barrier to give us some time and coverage; we can all get out of here without gaining much attention. And more importantly...alive." Kaiya explained quickly. Todoroki nodded his head in agreement and got to work with creating the ice barrier.
"Ready boys?" Kaiya asked, gathering enough wind to direct them through the air. All three nodded and Iida shot his burst and Midoriya lit up with his power. They cleared the ice wall and Kaiya had them in her control until Bakugou grasped onto Kirishima's outreached hand. "Thank god, okay, we should be good. Let's go!" Kaiya called out to Todoroki and Misa.
They ran until they were safely in town again, watching the intense fight with All Might and the villain who was called, All For One on the plaza TV. Todoroki hadn't let go of Kaiya's hand since they started running and she hadn't complained. Fear was still coursing through her, the vision of what All For One did to the Pro Heroes still stuck in her head. All Might was losing his strength quickly but he threw one last powerful smash that destroyed his opponent, shocking the crowd. The dust settled and all anyone could see was a weakened All Might, pointing at the camera.
"It's your turn." He said.
"What is going on?" Kaiya asked Todoroki. "What happened to him?"
"This must be his true form." He mumbled, his eyes glued to the big screen. A hint of sadness was painted on his face as his idol stepped down from his mantle. Kaiya squeezed his hand in comfort, not saying anything. It was a sad day seeing the Number One Hero, the Symbol of Peace; step down after his final win.
