Coco: Hey, guys, sorry for the long wait. I know it's been awhile since my last update, but I finally have one. And I know last chapter I said I was going to jump into a chapter with Ayumi, but as a lovely reader pointed out, it was day 3 not day 2 where they were confronted by the Hero Killer, so this chapter is more focused on Ayano and her family. Like, mostly her father and sisters, so we can get a better feel of their characters and set up some stuff for future chapters.
I hope you like it and the new BnHA story I will be posting not long after posting this chapter. I know I mentioned it a long time and ago and even did a poll to see who you all might want to pair my new OC with. Todoroki had won the poll, but I feel like Kirishima would be the best choice in the end for my new OC. So, be looking out for that today as well.
As the second day dawned for the students doing their internships, Ayano yawned as she walked behind Mirio. It was still early, but the teen, who had been asked to come in for a whole day of interning, had come in and woke her in the spare room she had been given for the week to pull her out on morning patrol. She was told by Nighteye, who had ordered Mirio to wake her, that the early morning is when some criminals might try one last heist or crime before the streets become crowded and before too many heroes were about. So, here they were, patrolling the streets for any sign of criminal activity.
"Lemillion," Ayano called out to Mirio using his hero name.
The older teen hummed in reply to show he was listening as his eyes kept looking around at their surroundings vigilantly.
"Have you been working with Sir long?" Ayano asked the blonde.
She hadn't really had the time yesterday to ask him earlier as they had gone on patrol near the end of the day when criminal activity picked up. Meaning they had been a bit busy and Ayano had wanted to take in as much as possible during her first patrol. But right now, they weren't in such a rush, which meant she could take some time to get to know her fellow hero-in-training a bit better.
"Hmm, it's been almost a year now, actually." Mirio replied. "Sir reached out to me not long after the Sports Festival my second year at U.A. You might not have seen it, but I definitely didn't do well. Though thanks to Sir's guidance I've been able to learn and grow so much! So, make sure to pay close attention to Sir's teachings while you're here, Ayonic."
Ayano nodded her head as she planned to do just that. She wanted to grow as much as possible during her time at the Nighteye Agency. Not to mention, Sir seemed to know some pretty interesting things about her family that she was a bit curious about.
"Who knows, if you impress Sir enough during your internship, he might invite you back when you're offered your first work studies." Mirio added.
His words caught Ayano's attention. She had been meaning to ask about that. She knew she was under Nighteye's care because of the internship program offered at U.A. This made her wonder how Mirio was able to work with Nighteye as she thought internships were only offered to first years.
"These work studies…are they like the internship?" Ayano asked curiously.
"I suppose you could say that." Mirio replied. "Though they're much more serious. As an intern, you're still seen as a student, which means you won't be exposed to anything too serious. But work studies though the are still basically internships…well, you're no longer seen as a student but as a pro-hero. In other words, you stand on the same ground as the pro who agrees to take you on. It's a whole new ball game that not everyone has a chance to participate in."
Ayano nodded in understanding. So, that's why Mirio was allowed to take her out on patrol without a pro-hero's supervision. Though still a student, Mirio has earned his place amongst the pro-heroes to be trusted enough for such tasks. He even mentioned not everyone having a chance for work studies. Meaning, if she wanted to reach his level, she had to make herself strong enough to be considered for these work studies.
"Lemillion-senpai," Ayano addressed her senior once more. "Do…do you think that even after the internship that you could help me with my training?"
Mirio stopped in his tracks while turning to look at Ayano with a bit of surprise on his face.
"I need to improve myself as much as possible," Ayano said. "I have people…people very important to me that I have to keep up with. I want to stay at their sides, so I can't afford to fall behind…so would you please help me become a better hero?"
She knew she was asking a lot. The two barely knew each other, and she was asking such a favor from him. She knew the chances of him agreeing were slim, but when the boy smiled, she felt surprised.
"Of course!" He said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "I was planning on it anyway. I mean, Sir has taken a liking to you, Ishida. So, don't you worry, I'll help you and I know Sir will too."
Ayano felt herself smile at the older teen's words as a weight seemed to lift off her chest. She finally felt as if she was truly moving in the right direction. Coming to Sir seemed like the right decision in the end, and one she doesn't think she'll regret—no matter, what the man might be hiding about her family.
"So, she picked to go to Nighteye's agency," Giichi said as he walked down the streets with All Might, who was once again in his weaker form. "So what?"
All Might frowned at his old friend as the white-haired man truly seemed unbothered by the news.
"Aren't you worried about what Nighteye might tell her?" All Might questioned.
"No," Giichi replied bluntly. "If Nighteye decides to tell Ayano about her future, I won't be able to stop him. Whether she had went to his agency or not, he would have met her in some form or fashion anyway."
All Might supposed Giichi had a point, but All Might was worried. Worried what knowing about the future Nighteye saw for her might do to Ayano. It wasn't something anyone her age should have to carry. Even after hearing it himself, he didn't want to believe such a thing.
"Now, is telling me about Ayano's whereabouts the only reason why you decided to burden me with a visit?" Giichi asked the blonde. "If so, go away."
Giichi had better things to do than deal with All Might following him around all day.
"Actually, I have others reasons for visiting you," All Might informed him.
Giichi frowned in annoyance as he rolled his eyes. Of course, All Might had more things he wished to discuss. He could never just keep things short and simple.
"And those reasons are?" Giichi prompted.
"I was wondering how your talk with Kazane went, and if you have had any luck locating Rina." All Might replied without hesitation.
Giichi's frown deepened at the mention of his other two daughters, and just based on his expression, All Might felt like he already knew things went badly for the white-haired man.
"Well, Kazane actually let me get more than one word about before she slammed the door in my face this time," Giichi said with a shrug.
"The door?" All Might cut in. "So, she's here in Japan?"
Last he heard about little Kazane, she was finishing up her master's degree in child development in Germany.
"Yes, she moved back to Japan once finishing her degree." Giichi said. "She brought home a boy along with her."
He said this last part darkly, and All Might felt amused when he saw his friend's unhappy expression. Though his expression was grumpier than his usually annoyed expressions. It could be perfectly described as the kind of expression a father wore when knowing his daughter is in a relationship with a boy and no matter how nice the guy was, the father was still very displeased.
"You mean, Armin, right?" All Might hummed.
Giichi shot All Might a look, which had the blonde holding up his hands in a defenseless manner.
"You know of this boy?" Giichi questioned.
Giichi technically knew of him before too. He did get an invite to a wedding or something of theirs, but he supposed he just brushed it off when he decided that it'd be best to keep his distance. Still, when seeing the guy, he hadn't been happy.
"Well, out of all your kids, Kazane was the only one to keep in touch with me," All Might said truthfully. "Of course, Ayano never knew me until now—not that she knows my connection to your family—and well, Rina…she never wanted to talk to me again after what happened…"
He had tried to check in on her once after the incident, but when her maternal grandparents said she refused to even come down from her room to see him, he got the hint and left her alone. Which is why he never thought to question why he never heard any news on her throughout the years. If he had just thought to check in, maybe they would know where she was now.
"Yeah, Rina didn't want to talk to me much after that either." Giichi said. "Hence why I sent her to live with Etsudo's parents. And now all three are MIA. Shows how stupid that decision was."
All Might looked at his friend sympathetically. Giichi was clearly beating himself up over his missing daughter and the fact one of them didn't even want to see him. And the fact, he youngest didn't even know who he was.
"I'm sure we'll find Rina," All Might tried to assure him. "And if you want, I can try and talk to Kazane."
"Sure, whatever," Giichi said. "Maybe she'll talk to you. Apparently, you know more about her life than I do anyway. Like, the name of her boyfriend."
"Husband, actually," All Might corrected.
Though he then sweat-dropped at the glare that Giichi sent his way. It was scary enough to make Satan piss his pants—All Might was certain of it. Though despite the glare he was getting, All Might was a bit excited. He hasn't seen Kazane in person for over a decade. It'd be nice to be able to sit down and talk with the girl. If she was in the mood for talking that is. Though she was always a kind soul like her mother, she was also quite the stubborn one.
Not too far away from the duo, in a small cozy apartment, a loud groan of annoyance could be heard from the living room. The owner of said groan was a young woman who appeared to be in her early to mid-twenties. She had long white hair that was pulled back in a messy bun though her bangs seemed unmanageable as they fell into her white-hued eyes. Her skin was pale—almost sickly so—though her figure would suggest she had a healthy body.
She was slumped on the couch in the living room with her arms crossed over her chest as she was practically pouting at the man across from her who was sitting on the coffee table, so to be in front of her. He had an amused look in his blue-eyed gaze. He even let out a chuckle as he ran his fingers through his dark hair thus tussling the once perfectly slicked back locks. He was a built man though not overly slow. But his form did make the woman in front of him seem much smaller than she actually was—even in their seated positions.
"I don't want to talk to him, Armin," The woman practically whined to the brunette before her. "He never tried to reach out until now, so why should I give him the time of day when he couldn't bother for nearly the last ten years to even send me a simple letter?"
He didn't even bother sending a letter to say he wouldn't make it to their wedding.
"Because he's your father and human, Kazane." Armin replied. "All humans make mistakes and when they're people who are close to us, it gives all the more reason to try and forgive. He's obviously trying to make some kind of effort."
Kazane just huffed as she slumped farther into the couch, which had her knees bumping against his. She still didn't seem convinced, which had Armin shaking his head. His girl could be stubborn that was for certain. He just worried that her stubbornness could close off the door between her and her father for good.
"Schatz, you know, I lost my father and mother when I was very young," He said as he took her hands into his. "I've lost time I will never be able to get back with them. I just don't want you to someday look around and realize you lost that kind of time too…again."
He added this last part softly, but Kazane heard him loud and clear. Kazane has already lost her mother. She'll never be able to see her smile again…or hear her voice even once more. It was something that had really torn her up for a long time, and there were still times where she'll find herself missing her mother terribly. Wishing she was still around, and while a part of her missed her father as well, she was still upset with him. He never showed any interest in her life until now, and she was pretty sure she knew the reason why he suddenly decided to pop back in her life. And it wasn't because he wanted to make up for lost time.
No, even without having to peek inside her father's mind—something she could never really due as for some reason her father seemed impervious to mind reading—she knew why he had sought her out. And that reason had to deal with her baby sister—Ayano. Things had changed so much after Ayano's birth. Things that tore their family apart, but Kazane didn't blame Ayano. No, how could a newborn know what she was doing? Ayano probably didn't know now. She wondered if her little sister even knew she had siblings. She wondered if the girl was happy and if they family who took her in even told her she was adopted.
There have been times where Kazane has wanted to look into her youngest sister's life, but at the insistence of her father and grandfather—her mother's father before both of their disappearance in her life—she had left things alone. Now—many years later—Kazane didn't know her youngest sister or where the hell her other sister was. And now her father, who never once checked in on any of them it would seem, wanted to talk. It almost made her angry.
Yes, if Kazane blamed anyone for what happened to their family it was him. He was supposed to look out for them. To keep them safe and together—not turn his back on them after they lost their sun, their universe—her mother. But that's what he did, and Kazane wasn't sure if she could forgive him. Though at the same time, she was worried. If he was suddenly reaching out that meant things couldn't be good.
Rina was missing, Ayano didn't even know about the danger that she carried with herself every single day, and here was Kazane…just trying to forget it all and move on with her life. So, she supposed, she wasn't much better than her father. Kazane let out another unhappy groan before she forced herself to her feet. As she went to collect her shoes and jacket, Armin smiled.
"Don't look at me like that." Kazane said. "I'm not going to talk to my father. I'm going out to clear my head."
"Sure, sure," He said as he held up his hands. "Whatever you say, Schatz."
Kazane stuck her tongue out at Armin before she left their apartment to head down to the streets. As she walked, she wondered what her little sisters were doing and if they were happy.
As Nighteye watched Mirio working with Ayano in the training area of his agency, Bubble Girl stood behind him with clipboard in hand.
"Still no sign of her, hmm." He summed up what his sidekick had just told him.
Bubble Girl shook her head, which Nighteye could see in the reflection of the glass window before him.
"No, sir." Bubble Girl said. "Sebone Rina seems to have disappeared. No one has seen her since her and her grandparents' disappearance a few years ago."
Nighteye expected as much. He was always good at covering his tracks, and while Nighteye had no hard evidence, he was nearly 100% certain All for One was involved with Rina's disappearance. There was no telling what kind of lies the villain has spewed or what kind of condition Rina was in after being under the care of All for One for so long.
He highly doubted she was the bubble little four-year-old he had met so many years ago. The girl's quirk was a scary one. While she hadn't developed psionic abilities that took on three forms, like her mother and sisters, her psionic quirk was all the more frightening and in the hands of All for One there was no telling what it was being used for.
"Try checking into the League of Villains," Nighteye told Bubble Girl. "From some information I have heard from an old acquaintance there is a possibility Rina might be affiliated with them."
Bubble Girl's eyes widened at this information. From looking into the girl at Sir's request, she has learned the girl—who was actually not that much younger than her—was the daughter of two once very popular pro-heroes. From photos she had seen the girl had looked to be a rather happy, bubbly child. She just couldn't imagine someone who had once looked so happy gentle, become a villain. Let alone someone affiliated with the League of Villains. Sure, the League wasn't that much of big new yet, but with how Sir treated them, she knew they'd be bad news in the future.
"O—of course, Sir." Bubble Girl said with a nod.
She was then dismissed as Nighteye kept his eyes on the training happening below the observation room he was in. Mirio was trying to help Ayano work more on combat than her actual quirk and while the girl seemed to be struggling, she didn't look as if she'd be giving up anytime soon. Her face held determination as she listened intently to Mirio's every word. It was hard to think such a girl, who seemed so dedicated to becoming a hero, had such a bleak future that could spell disaster for all those around her. Of course, he never once thought Rina could find the path, she was on now either.
Rina looked up in a bored manner from her manga to their guest that Kurogiri had brought them earlier. It would seem as if she would never be able to read anything in peace around here.
"Now, I get it," Their guest—the infamous Hero Killer: Stain said as he stared at her, Tomura, and Kurogiri. "You must be the ones who attacked U.A."
"I technically had no part in that," Rina pointed out bluntly. "I was here. Innocently reading and minding my own business."
She could practically hear Tomura roll his eyes at her as she flipped the page of her manga to continue reading.
"Innocently, right." Stain murmured. "I'm sure you had your hand to play in the incident, and now that it's over, you want to recruit me to build up your little group again."
He was certainly the blunt type, wasn't he? Though he wasn't wrong. They did need more numbers if they wanted to complete Tomura's crazy dream. But this time, they wouldn't waste their time with low-level thugs with zero talent.
"Yeah, you'll be great." Tomura said. "You have so much experience."
"And what's your mission?" Stain asked.
He didn't exactly look interested in taking up the offer Tomura was laying out, but at least he asked. That was a start, Rina supposed.
"For now, I really just want to kill All Might." Tomura said nonchalantly as if discussing the weather. "I like to destroy anything that pisses me off."
He then held up a picture of Midoriya Izuku that was taken from the Sports Festival that happened not that long ago.
"Like, this little brat here." Tomura said. "Game over."
Rina sighed. Once again, he let's his personal vendettas get in the way of the big picture. They had more pressing things to worry about that crushing some teenager. And it would see that Stain didn't like Tomura's attitude as the mood quickly shifted in the room.
"I was a fool to think you could offer me anything." Stain snarled. "Turns out you are the type of person I hate most in this world. The goals of your League are of those of a child."
He then reached for two of the blades attached alongside his torso, which had Rina frowning. She had hoped things wouldn't come to this. She snapped her book shut to set it off to the side.
"What's the meaning to killing if you don't have real convictions?" Stain asked Tomura.
He started drawing his weapons, which had Kurogiri immediately preparing for a fight. He moved in front of Rina as it was his duty to insure both hers and Tomura's safety.
"Master, should I step in?" Kurogiri asked.
"Let it happen," All for One said through the monitor behind them. "It's possible this might be the only way he'll learn anything. He must think about the ways he must grow. How he can mature. Only then, will he reach his potential."
Despite his words, Rina's eyes glowed momentarily before returning to normal. And in that split second, everyone seemed to freeze. Rina let out a hum as she wheeled herself around Kurogiri who didn't even react to her movement.
"Finally," She said as she picked up her manga again. "Some peace and quiet. Let me know when you're done, okay, Tomura?"
She glanced over at the light-haired boy who didn't respond. Didn't even twitch as his eyes remained on the Hero Killer. All three men seemed to have just stopped as if suspended in time—unmoving.
"Rina, was that necessary?" All for One questioned from the monitor.
His tone almost sounded as if he was scolding a troublemaking child, but Rina merely smirked.
"Forgive me, Master, but it seemed like the best thing to do." Rina said as she cracked open her book. "This way, Tomura still learns his lesson, and no mess has to be made. Besides, the less noise the better, yes? We don't want people discovering our location."
That and she didn't want to be patching up Tomura again. She wasn't a doctor and it was a hassle to get the blood out of her clothes the last time she tried to help him.
"I'll let them go soon enough." Rina said. "Don't worry, Master. Tomura will be fine."
After all, her mind was connected to Tomura's at all times. If the boy was actually in any danger, she would know instantly, and release the illusion. Because, you see that was what her quirk was all about. Reality Distortion. Rina's quirk allowed her to warp the minds of others to the degree that if she wanted she could keep them for years in a comatose state while they seemingly lived out their lives in trapped in their minds—not evening knowing that in reality, they weren't living at all and that it was all fake.
"Try not to kill him, Tomura," Rina said as she reached out towards the boy to place her hand on his arm. "You know what happens if someone dies inside their head, there's no coming back from that."
She then went back to reading her book as she wanted to find out who the killer was of the gory crime scene left at the beginning of the issue. Though as she read, she kept one hand on Tomura's arm.
'Even if we can't get the Hero Killer's cooperation, things are still moving in the right direction.' Rina thought to herself. 'Soon it will be time to face those brats again, and this time I won't be left out. This time, little Ayano and I will get to meet again after so many years. Oh, how I can't wait.'
Her smirk returned to her face though it was far more twisted and crueler from the one she wore earlier.
'Once he makes your quirk mine, you won't be needed anymore, Ayano,' Rina thought gleefully. 'You'll be a useless husk to be thrown away.'
Coco: And there you have it, folks. Things are starting to pick up and we're starting to learn more as we go. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Next time, we will focus on Ayumi as she helps her classmates fight against Stain. I wonder how the speedster will change the fight, don't you?