Chapter 25
"Thank you for coming. I am glad that you could be released early from the hospital." she smiled.
Tanya found great irony in the fact that she was still wearing bandages underneath her uniform. Hopefully the rest of 1-A wouldn't also find their way to the hospital over the course of the remaining school year.
"Good morning, Miss Argent. Thank you for having me." the boy on the chair across her answered stiffly.
"So Iida... I wanted to speak to you in private today. Do you know why?"
"I imagine this is about my deplorable behaviour during the internship week. If so I assume full responsibility and-"
Before he could launch into the tirade he had probably rehearsed to himself over and over on the way to her office Tanya interrupted him.
"Alright, alright. Not so hasty there. The principal told me that you already met with Mr. Tsuragamae, the chief of police, and you probably discussed that point with him, correct?"
Iida silently nodded, obviously put off balance.
"Good. You know what you did, I know what you did. There is no need to discuss it further at the moment. Technically I was responsible for you during the time you got hurt, even if only indirectly as Mr. Aizawa had not been reinstated at that time. That is why I want to apologize to you for not being there for you when you clearly needed help in your life."
"No! No, that was completely my fault! You don't have to apologize for anything." he sputtered.
"Indeed… But I want to. I likely couldn't have helped you much to find your way back to rationality so soon after your brother got injured and following the attack on my life I was in a rather sorry state as well. Nonetheless, I should have known that humans prefer emotions over logic."
What greater foolishness was there but war? A few empty words could wipe cities off the map; destroy what a dozen generations painstakingly built up and for what? If the Great War brought the world anything worthwhile then she had certainly missed it.
"It's in our nature to act stupid at the worst of times. The sports festival distracted me so much that I lost sight of the lives of my students and I did not think of the consequences that could result from that. I let my own problems blind me when I should have at least asked you if you wanted to talk with me about your brother. And for that I am sorry."
Being an ideal hero went beyond clocking in during patrol hour and generally uplifting the public spirit. It was a full time commitment to protect those under one's care. Not an easy job, but then again, a worker who never attempted to surpass expectations was not a good investment in the first place.
The tall, bespectacled boy stared at her weirdly. No matter.
Leaning forward over her folded hands she asked him seriously: "With that out of the way, let me ask you a simple question: What kind of hero do you want to be?"
His confusion at her sudden shift in demeanour was surprisingly entertaining. Was this how Nedzu always felt?
"Someone who can carry the Iida name and legacy proudly. A true defender of justice."
"That's a good answer for PR, however is that really your true motivation? The approval of your family?"
At his incensed look she elaborated.
"It might seem obvious, but it is anything but. Just like any other job there are countless reasons for becoming a pro hero and all of them are equally valid. To the person saved it matters little if their saviour did it for money, fame or out of genuine empathy. Results are the only thing that is relevant for success, regardless of your or my own personal preferences. In that aspect Stain was wrong."
At the mention of the criminal who nearly killed him Iida's face scrunched up in disgust or perhaps phantom pain. Argent continued with her lesson unperturbed.
"From what little I know about him, he values resolve more than anything, yet how could society function if its protectors were only allowed to be the bravest and most caring, most amazing people in existence? I'd wager such a force would be far too small to accomplish anything of note. Even two or three All Might's are not enough to be there for everyone."
"Are you saying... that it doesn't matter why we do this so long as we are successful?" he asked sceptically.
"No, but also yes. Look at it this way... We all can theoretically be 'pro heroes', but we can't all be actual heroes like in the storybooks or the adverts."
"B-but how can you even call yourself a hero if you are not even willing to try to be a real one! Uh, no offence, Miss Argent."
"Exactly."
She let heavy silence descend over the room as she fixed him intently with her gaze. This was his moment of self reflection. Strictly speaking, it was unnecessary for her to lay the groundwork for Hound Dog's therapy today, but the studious and serious teen required a bit of help to get back on track. He had already heard harsh words from the chief of police and undoubtedly his parents therefore she tried a more 'carrot like' approach in contrast to their 'stick'.
"It depends on what you believe in. To what standard do you hold others and to what yourself? It's all on you." Tanya finally spoke.
Breathing deeply, she let her eyes sweep over the mostly empty office to give him some space to relax.
"You are not suspended and aside from a weekly visit to the school counsellor you will not receive any additional punishment. Not like you should see these sessions as punishments anyway. Multiple of your classmates go to them as well. Alas, I want you to really think about what a true hero represents in your free time. Neither I nor Mr. Aizawa will grade you on that, but it is still an important task."
"Understood, Miss Argent! I am going to do so with the utmost care! I am most thankful for your mercy. To be allowed into UA after my grievous failure is very generous of you! I will not disappoint you again!"
As she wasn't class 1-A's official homeroom teacher Tanya had no actual say over expulsions, but she did not correct him. A bit of fear in her students was important to properly motivate them.
"Remember, our failures shape us as much as our victories. I am no different in that regard. We all have something we aspire to become and something we eagerly leave behind and I believe that is what separates the good people from the bad ones. They try to get better. They don't languish in their mistakes; they work on their problems and attempt to overcome them!"
Once again she was paraphrasing from an interview she had given earlier that year. Inspirational quotes were basically unprinted money, pushing clout and merchandise in droves when delivered just right to an audience desperate for hope. Nonetheless, despite their commercial use it wasn't as if she did not believe what she said in principle. Tanya's own change across multiple lives was undeniable.
"Of course, Miss Argent! I thank you for your uplifting words!"
Standing up from her cushy chair she glanced at her clock and opened the door for him.
"Come then, let me show you to your new room and then you can go to Recovery Girl and let her check up on you just in case. You can join the next English lesson afterwards."
Maybe they all could learn from their past together.
~[#҈#]~
Tsutsumi Kaina sat at the small desk in her cell, a luxury the administrators of Tartarus thought she should be infinitely grateful for. Why, they even allowed her a pen and papers, despite how the former could potentially be used as a weapon. Because she could definitely attempt a prison break with a flimsy, plastic, ballpoint pen, so it showed just how much they appreciated her good behaviour. She could be restrained in a straight jacket and a chair after all, not even allowed to move like so many other inmates.
What assholes.
She shook her head, refocusing on the task at hand. To her side sat a newspaper one of the guards had given her, the contents of which being what sparked her most recent attempt at what she had tried to do countless times before. Just thinking about what she had read and the panic that gripped her as she looked at those black and white photos, made a lump form in her throat.
Did it make her a terrible person because upon finding out that the girl had almost died, her fear went first to how she almost lost her chance to tell her? Of course it did. Degurechaff had fought for her life, nearly died, and all Kaina had worried about was her own guilty conscience. She squeezed her eyes shut and breathed deep through her nose, then looked back down at the page, blank save for the recipient's name written in the corner.
She put the pen to paper once more and tried to think of how she should start…
'Hey, I know we barely spoke when we were both still employed by the Commission, but I killed-'
'Liking the hero life? The Commission treating you well? Of course not, and it's my fault because-'
'It was quick, if that makes it better. Your dad didn't know what was coming, and your mom-'
Kain clenched her jaw, the pen flexing under her grip as she remembered that day. The car driving down the deserted road, her vantage point from atop a hill so far away she could barely make out the headlights as they twisted and turned down the winding path until she turned on her scouter's night vision…
Then she could see their faces, the two immigrants who ran a front, claiming to be a repair shop while laundering money for lowlifes. The Commission had told her it was more than that, though. That when a low ranking hero had come to them to save money on repairs for his support equipment, that they purposely sabotaged the work and got the man killed. That they were also creating and maintaining equipment for villains to use and getting innocent people killed as a result.
All the things a young, naive heroine needed to be told to fill her with enough righteous fury to not ask questions until long after the deed was done. Like the fact that the hero in question had been stabbed in the back and bled out in a gutter without even getting a chance to fight back, his support equipment never coming into play. Or how those immigrants had never wanted to be made the tools of a criminal's enterprise, their desire to create a better life for their daughter being used to lure them in, and how they had been trying to get out ever since.
She wouldn't have even bothered to discover any of this if not for the fact that she recognized the little blonde girl being ruthlessly trained by Commissions harshest minders as the spitting image of the woman she had seen through the windshield that night right before her face was obscured by spider web cracks and blood.
Unbidden, her mind wondered, in those seconds between her husband's death and the car driving headlong into sturdy oak tree, the gas floored by a leaden foot and ensuring the woman's demise in the high speed crash, if the mother had thought of her little girl and worried of what would become of her. Considering that it was their refusal to allow little Tanya to be trained in the first place that signed their death warrants, Kaina doubted the couple would find solace in the fact that their daughter was now one of the highest ranking heroes in Japan.
Kaina shook her head and tried to centre her scattered thoughts back to the letter, but upon looking down at her hands, all she could see was the blood dripping off of them. A gasp escaped her lips as the pen clattered to the floor, and she heard the faint beep of vital sensors as they picked up on her accelerated heart rate and breathing. Almost by instinct, Kaina began her long practised exercises, the skills of a sniper to slow their heart and breathing so as to steady their aim. It's all that kept the guards from coming to check in on her, and yet, even as her body's response calmed, the source of her stress remained.
The red on her hands; the blood of all her victims. For years, she lied to herself, convincing her frayed conscience that it was for the greater good. That they were criminals, terrorists, false heroes. That the Commission was right and that the people needed to believe in the veneer of peace and order her actions helped paint and maintain. Society would collapse if civilians knew just how fragile it all was.
Then she had seen that little girl with hollow, exhausted eyes, being subjected to training far beyond what any child her age should have had to endure, and it all crumbled away. The Hero Public Safety Commission was a criminal organization in all but name, and she had been their top hit woman, ending lives and tearing apart families just to protect the assets of those higher up.
Sometimes she wondered if – had she never taken that job over a decade ago and never killed the Degurechaffs – she would have kept on doing it? Endlessly trapped in a circle of violence?
She could justify most of what she had done under orders as the right action for the greater good, but not that. Never that… Maybe that sin merely accelerated what was inevitable. Maybe she'd have killed that bastard chairman regardless. She'd like to believe that she would have, but perhaps it was merely wishful thinking.
With a sigh, she let her hands fall to her side and out of view, staring at the page with a blank expression.
Scrawled with unreadable gibberish and half finished sentences scratched out, it was yet another attempt destined for the waste bin. Gritting her teeth, she set about tearing it to pieces before retreating to her cot.
Another failure to her name and proof of how much of a terrible coward she was. As much as she hated this damned prison, she couldn't deny that she belonged here. It was the perfect place for a villain like her.
~[#҈#]~
Yes, this was the perfect spot, Himiko thought happily. It had been a bit hard to cram herself into the air duct, but her slender physique made it possible. She was sure to pay extra close attention to her figure on top of her usual full body training in order to please her senpai after all. Hopefully her love found slim, slightly muscular girls attractive...
Technically she was supposed to clean some dreary corridors, but honestly that was far too boring. The white mouse-thingy said it was more of a cover up anyway. Why would she waste time listening to that stupid janitor when she could watch her beloved during work instead?!
Himiko had specifically waited until the room was empty before positioning herself. In a disguise of course, because she wasn't stupid. Tanya would be angry with her if by some miracle she got discovered and she needed to kill the bystanders. Not to mention that she also really didn't want to fight the fluffy principal. His beady little eyes made the hair on her neck raise in an instinctive fear response. She did not know why, but there was more to him than met the eye.
At first only a few students trickled into the room until the rest seemed to push through the door all at once. They were annoying, but a few of them were also rather cute so it balanced out in her opinion. For example there was the blonde with large horns and extremely big, blue eyes. Or another one who looked like an adorable human mushroom!
Finally however, her love stepped into the room, instantly alleviating the anticipation of her wait. Seeing her senpai quiet down the classroom without a single spoken word was as exciting as it was expected. No one could be as awesome as Tanya!
"Hello, I am the stand-in for Mr. Kan today as he was unavailable."
Yep! A full dose of laxatives in his coffee would do that to any man without a digestion quirk. Admittedly her plan had been a gamble, but it paid off!
"Please call me Miss Degurechaff or Miss Argent if you cannot pronounce that. I hope we will see each other more in the future. On the topic of today's lesson your teacher has left me with this note that-"
Himiko droned out the pleasant sounds of her beloved's voice in favour of angling her dulled viewing mirror so that she could see her on the podium. From the awkward angle of the ventilation shaft it was hard to see anything.
"- To understand this better please open your textbooks and go to the appropriate chapter."
Damn, her senpai went out of view again to write something on the blackboard!
Okay maybe she hadn't really thought this through. This was not an ideal situation. Perhaps she should have simply impersonated a student and observed from somewhere else but a dusty hole in the wall. She pouted in frustration.
As the lesson progressed Himiko got mollified by Tanya's nearby presence to some extent, yet she couldn't shake the underlying disappointment that she only got glimpses of her to see. Lying flat on her tummy in this claustrophobic environment was also rather uncomfortable.
Suddenly a cool gust of wind licked at her ankles and sent shivers down her lower back. Air started to blow through the vent, driving under her skirt and surprising her through the weird sensation it provided. Crossing her legs Himiko tried to let the breeze pass over her, but that distracted her from the obvious:
Carried by the air currents, tiny dust particles streamed through the ventilation tunnel and directly into her nose.
A tiny twitch quickly developed into a mild urge to sneeze and from there spiralled out of control into an overwhelming itch that seemed to drill into her skull! By stifling her mouth and nose with her hands she managed to suppress most of the sound, but the tiniest squeak escaped her nonetheless.
Did they hear her?
Panicked she checked the students faces for signs of trouble, finding all but one otherwise occupied. The only one looking into her direction was an entirely black-coloured boy whose grey irises moved away from her and up to the ceiling as soon as she focused on him.
Puh! She was in luck. Nobody had discovered her.
Nothing similarly exciting happened for a while aside from the extremely light-absorbing boy excusing himself to go to the toilet and walking dangerously close to her vent.
Himiko was just absentmindedly drawing hearts on her palm with a finger when abruptly her whole world went dark. Muffled sounds were the only sensation reaching her, for neither sight nor touch existed in this terrifying void. She struggled for the briefest moment before everything was bright again and she found herself on the floor of 1-B's classroom, the shadow boy looming over her.
Reflexively she kicked him in his unprotected weak point – right between his legs – and sprung to her knees.
He slumped against the wall with a whimper and she found herself owlishly staring at a crowd of flabbergasted students and one very irritated senpai.
"Uh, hi? I..." Himiko was at a loss for words until a brilliant idea sprung up in her mind like a hungry goldfish out of a bowl.
Pointing at Tanya, she confidently declared: "I'm her assistant!"
