Disclaimer: I don't own My Hero Academia; that belongs to Horikoshi. Nor do I own Pokémon; that's GameFreak/Nintendo. I am also not someone who worked on the Fangame Pokémon Reborn. I also have not written and do not own any songs that appear in this fic or work as the title of each of my chapters.

A/N: Started a Nuzlocke challenge with my brother recently and it's started affecting my dreams. Don't know if I should call them nightmares just yet. Found out in Pokemon Reborn you can put in a code that will make it run as a Nuzlocke instead of having to impose the rules yourself but even the game (developers) tells you to never do this. Probably because it's impossible.

Oh, I finished the Elite 4 and defeated the 'Champion' (twice - in a row - because I was on the Lin route and also the game wasn't satisfied with you defeating the main villain once). Kiefer aka Mega Mawile was the definite MVP and I love him even more for that. Calamity pulled her weight too and my Walrein Phocidae used Toxic to great effect since while she couldn't do much damage herself, she could always tank a hit.

Also, heal spamming is the true beneficiary, but now I'm broke. :'(

Warning: Sexual harassment, offscreen domestic abuse, past childhood abuse, nudity, offscreen killing and glossed over eunach-fication (aka, someone gets their dick cut off but I've tried to not make it graphic). All of this is from the first section.


Chapter 7: I've been cold, I've been merciless

Flames washed over her. They were hot, and actually hurt but it didn't kill her as it would have to the person standing in front of her.

The flames died down, she looked back over her shoulder and gingerly touched her hair. "You know," she said, patting out the few strands that had caught fire. Her hair was definitely dry now. "I didn't expect this type of greeting from you."

The saved person stepped back, and Dabi snorted at her. "Well, I can't say I expected you to pop out of the ground like this. Do you usually go around naked?"

Saori scowled at him. "I was in the fucking shower, shit stick. Is it common for you to burn innocent people to a crisp?"

"That bastard is hardly innocent." He returned, he gestured at the said bastard. "I'm hardly going to try killing people near you for no good reason."

She slammed her foot to the ground and the concrete fractured and resealed under and around the slowly retreating bastard's feet. She glared at him, and he froze. Her attention returned to Dabi. A raised eyebrow was all the prompting he needed.

"Fucking seriously- fine. I noticed behaviour that was… too familiar for my tastes. Check his phone, I guarantee this guy's been threatening his wife." Dabi told her. He was being genuine in his belief. But fuck if the proof had to be so hard for her.

She turned to the man. "Get your phone out." She glared over a Dabi, "I'm not patting him down while I'm like this."

"Yeah, that's reasonable. I'll promise not to kill him if you let me grab it off him." He said, walking over.

"Please do, I can smell it." She gagged at the smell coming from the man. She did not want to think about his reaction to his situation at all. Ever.

Dabi ripped the phone out of the aroused man's hands and kicked the man down. The bastard let out a small scream as he couldn't move his feet or ankles to save himself. "Right, where are your dirty little secrets, bastard." It took a bit, but Dabi seemed to have found what he was looking for. "Here it is."

Dabi held the phone out to her. She groaned to herself. "I'm illiterate. Just read it to me. I'll be able to tell if you lie."

He hummed at the reveal. "That's not a problem you see people having much these days. How old are you? I expected you would have got an education at some point. You don't sound like an idiot."

She crossed her arms; the scent of arousal grew stronger. Her teeth ached, throbbing in time with her growing headache, wanting to dig into flesh. The growl that came from her throat could not be avoided. Dabi sighed in annoyance.

"Fuck it. Put this on already. We're getting nowhere with this." The long jacket was thrown on her head, and she jolted in surprise. The jacket smelt of burnt meat and ashes. Its size meant it would get wrecked when she tried to take it off later, but she still put it on. The bastard had dared to let out a disappointed sound.

"I do hope you're right about him, Dabi, because I really want to chop his crappy dick off and shove it down his fucking throat." She huffed. "Thanks for the jacket. Now read."

Dabi rolled his eyes at her, but he complied, reading out things quickly, disgust filled his voice with every word. She knew how people could structure their words to manipulate people, prevent them from answering truthfully or putting words they were expected to say in their mouths. The outright abuse and threats in some of the messages were almost a relief to hear.

"Give me a minute." She said, turning. The cold air made her shiver. "Make that two, I need to get dressed."

"Go ahead, I'll make sure he doesn't go anywhere." He replied. Fire licked off his fingers. She ran and dug her way back into the showers at the centre. Her clothes were still laying there, her tantos hidden within the folds. After a very short rinse under cold water for the minor burns on her back, she got dressed. Then she left the place and returned to the scene of the potential crime.

The bastard, now equipped with a few new fresh burns, let out another disappointed sound. "Aww, did you have to cover up, baby? If you're going to kill me, you could at least give a man a nice view to die too."

The urge to cut his dick off and try to suffocate him with it returned with a vengeance. A part of her tried to tell her not to, that killing him wasn't worth it, but even that was tainted with a sadistic inclined righteous fury to make him suffer. He was screaming in agony a second later, and a second after that he was cut off as he was gagged.

"I'm going to go plunge my hand into a tub full of boiling water. Feel free to come over after you get rid of the body." She told Dabi. "If you could bring mind bleach, it would be appreciated, but I've already been informed that shit doesn't exist, so I guess it doesn't really matter. See you maybe."

As the abuser was converted to ashes, she got a small desire to return, but it was buried easily and quickly. A part of her was curious about how her Stepdad would have reacted to her actions. He dated her Mum even after she went and got a bunch of bastards like that dick killed. She doubted it was normal pre-dating practice, but she couldn't exactly ask Endo that.

Although really, it was partially because she had gotten his past abusers killed that he dated her, wasn't it? Nothing like love to drive you to kill forty-three rapists and abusers for the first person to ever make you laugh.

Would they be mad she left a man to die because he made her uncomfortable? The guilt wasn't drowned out, even as a distorted reassurance wrapped her in a hug. Fucking hell.


Winter was a few days away, and instead of going out and stealing, buying, and finding enough blankets, pillows, and mattresses to insulate and convert her place into a warm den, she was following a woman who stunk of blood and moved as if her body wasn't her own.

Now, women could often smell of blood, especially around that time which even she loathes, but this wasn't that sort of blood. It didn't carry that same uterus-y smell. This was blood from the active bloodstream. This wasn't the first or second time she had smelled this person, and now she was curious.

Just another thing that she'd use to procrastinate on asking Dabi to move in for the winter. Follow a stranger who's most likely a murderer.

She stopped and considered that. Saori was aware she had an appearance that drew attention. If she stalked her 'prey' for too long, she'd get noticed. Maybe she could bait them instead? They stopped and listened to her play the cello back in the shopping centre.

In a minute, she'd returned home, picked up the cello, and entered a small park in the likely path of the bloody curiosity. She repressed the urge to laugh at the nickname. She'd be keeping that one.

There wasn't anyone in the park, the air smelled of soon-rain and the coldness from a covered sun wasn't welcoming enough for people to go to parks. But she was free to begin playing the cello.

She made the cello sing and then let her voice join in.

"Close enough to start a war
All that I have is on the floor
God only knows what we're fighting for
All that I say, you always say more

I can't keep up with your turning tables
Under your thumb, I can't breathe"

The few people out in this weather that could hear her all at least looked over. Some of those actually came to investigate. The bloody curiosity wasn't in hearing range yet though. She picked up the volume.

"So, I won't let you close enough to hurt me
No, I won't ask you, you to just desert me
I can't give you the heart you think you gave me
It's time to say goodbye to turning tables
To turning tables"

The investigators entered the park, some more people followed the crowd. The bloody curiosity was still just out of range. Next chorus then.

"Under haunted skies, I see you, ooh
Where love is lost, your ghost is found
I braved a hundred storms to leave you
As hard as you try, no I will never be knocked down

I can't keep up with your turning tables
Under your thumb, I can't breathe"

The case she left open had some currency thrown into it. The bloody curiosity stuttered in their step, and curiosity filled them instead. Now to draw them in.

"So, I won't let you close enough to hurt me
No, I won't ask you, you to just desert me
I can't give you the heart you think you gave me
It's time to say goodbye to turning tables
Turning tables"

They skipped over; hidden in the small crowd she had drawn. Time to test out her growing skill in picking out a person in a crowd.

"Next time I'll be braver
I'll be my own saviour
When the thunder calls for me
Next time I'll be braver
I'll be my own saviour
Standing on my own two feet"

Okay, somewhere to the right. They had arrived more recently so they're most likely in the back.

"I won't let you close enough to hurt me
No, I won't ask you, you to just desert me
I can't give you the heart you think you gave me
It's time to say goodbye to turning tables
To turning tables
Turning tables, yeah
Turn, no, oh no, no."

There was applause and more money either thrown or dropped in the case. The currency was not what she expected to get. She had left the case open in case it did start to rain. The cello cost a good chunk of her finances and she did not want to damage the instrument, at all.

A few piped up, asking for another song. She deliberately looked up at the sky. The scent of soon-rain had grown stronger, and she wasn't completely sure it would hold out for an entire extra song. Even though she actually did want to do another, she shouldn't. A few agreed with her assessment, thanking her and leaving the park, some threw just a little bit more money in as they left. Some that were in the back came forward to do it too, including the bloody curiosity.

"Sorry, maybe a different day?" She smiled, apologetic. Then she added under her breath loud enough to be heard. "Assuming I can remember where this park is though."

They took the low-hanging bait, thankfully. She wasn't actually sure how to make the bloody curiosity talk to her.

"Well, maybe the mall where you got this cello will be easier to remember?" The bloody curiosity spoke up. "Sorry, I was there when you played in the shop. You have a very pretty voice, although you didn't sing then." They lit up and clapped their hands, whoever they really were, they were young. "That way, when it wants to rain, you won't have to stop, and we can hear you play more!"

There was agreement from the crowd. She bowed her head, freshly cut strands brushed her ears and off the back of her neck. Dabi did a good job of it, although her hair grows too slow to really need a regular haircut so there weren't many past experiences to compare it to.

"I'll be sure to try it. Thank you." She smelled the air again. "Okay, the rain is going to be here any minute now. I may see you again, I guess." They all left, and she had a way to find and maybe talk to the bloody curiosity again. Along with a small pile of money that she's not able to count. She really needed to invite Dabi to stay, didn't she? Asking Endo for help with it was not something she was completely willing to ask for just yet.

Saori didn't actually put much stock in pride, but sometimes it liked to rear its ugly fucking head.


Her cello was returned home, Dabi was stinking up the same bathroom he used before with the scent of that piss chemical she heard Phocidae once say was in hair dye. She left the building again straight away, even though it was raining. She doesn't want to stick around when that scent was at its strongest.

The money in the cello case was dumped with the rest of her cash and she picked up her credit card – or was it a debit card? Savings card? What did Endo call it again? – before she left. She could at least get some food while she was out. A part of her craved pork but she wasn't actually interested in getting some. Meat, in general, was good though. The rain made it easier to get around, fewer people and more sound to echolocate off with, but it was a lot harder to find food. The water literally drowned out the smells.

She huffed to herself but didn't turn back home. Eventually, luck gave her a break as a person entered a food place and the chatter of people and the smell of chicken came out into the street. She barely restrained herself from running over full pelt, although what she did would still be a speedy run to another person.

She was soaked and it was almost winter. If Dabi was here, she'd have made him set her on fire already. Maybe she was going about her winter preparations all wrong. Maybe she should just find a volcano and dig her way into it. Japan had those, right? Although it'd smell of ash, crap.

The rain stopped hitting her and she shook as much water off of herself as she could before entering. Wonderful heat blasted her and she didn't even mind having to take her robe off to squeeze it dry just outside the door.

The wonderful person who entered and alerted her to the place was cheerfully greeting a friend of theirs. The few other people here, about three payers and four workers, seemed to be very interested in the two. She ignored them and looked over at the counter. She swore mentally as she realised that she didn't know what was available to buy.

A familiar voice was her saviour and ordered a truly large and diverse amount of food from the sole person there. Were two people really going to eat that much? Saori then remembered her non-poisonous (non-venomous?) siblings' appetites and changed her mind. If they were anything like them, they definitely wouldn't have enough.

She did like the sound of a few things they said. Ordering all the things she's interested in would be too much for her alone to eat. Although she guessed she could get Dabi food too.

When she went to order her food, the person was still focused on the person who'd already ordered. She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, they jolted and finally paid attention to her. Finally letting her order. "Your number is 443, we'll call it out when your food is ready."

"Thank you." She said, forcing herself not to react to that number, and stood back to wait. Her robe was still lightly dripping and damp, so she refrained from holding it against herself. Her shirt and Dabi's slightly ripped and torn jacket that she still hadn't returned were dry and she didn't want to change that.

"It's nice seeing you again. Thanks for the tip a month back, you helped me save a man." The familiar voice piped up next to her. She jolted out of her thoughts and turned to them. Damn, even the doorstep of winter was really dulling her senses and dragging out her energy. "I didn't get your name back then; it'd be nice to know who I'm thanking, and I'd like to greet you whenever I see you."

Saori blinked at them and pulled up the memory. "Oh right, that was you. Thanks for believing me when I told you that, and for the defence against those kids, I guess." She shrugged it off and nodded at the hero. "I'm Kaida Saori. She/Her."

They stared at her in silence for a bit. "You didn't recognise me? I thought I'd be pretty recognisable." There was a rustling of feathery wings.

She shrugged. "I know you're a hero if that's what you're asking. My brain is fuzzy from the winter and the cold, so I'm going to be an idiot with slow memory for the next few months. Sorry."

Their companion snickered, in on a joke she wasn't. The other payers stared at her in silence, bewildered at her. Come on, she could hardly be expected to remember a random hero when it's cold.

The hero read the confused expression she wasn't aware she was making. "I get that feeling. You look pretty tired too. I'm Hawks, He/Him."

Suddenly she knows why the universe was laughing at her when she met this Hero in the park. He was the hero she thought to herself she'd have to avoid after that meeting, wasn't he? The group she fought for Endo were certainly more afraid of him than the other heroes.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Hawks." Saori said.

"Number 443." A voice called out. Her smaller order finished before the Hero. She twitched at the number and barely stuttered a breath.

"That's me. Maybe I'll see you again. Bye, Hawks." She said, stepping up to take her order. The pounding rain outside was not really something she wanted to go back into, but this wasn't just her food.

The door opened just before she reached it. Hawks wasn't close enough to open it with his hands, but she still blinked at him.

"Looked like you could use a hand, Kaida-san. I hope you get some rest; you look like you need it." The voice was soothing and empathetic. She couldn't help but let out a small, tired smile. "And don't go catching a cold from this weather, okay?"

She snorted at that. "When I get home, I'm going to jump onto a fire. I can hardly catch a cold after doing that." He laughed too and she left. He knew her now, avoiding him would bring too much attention. Guess she won't have to worry about the avoiding part then. Although she didn't want to draw his attention in the first place.

As soon as she was out of the line of sight of the food place, she sprinted across the ground. Running into the raindrops instead of them hitting her. Enhanced immune system or not, she really didn't want to catch a cold.

Dabi's in her room, picking through her cash when she returned. "Do you even know how to read money? This mess doesn't seem very organised." He sounded smug, challenging. She rolled her eyes at him and dumped some food on his lap. "Oi, what's this?"

"Food. Eat." She told him and began eating her portion. "Don't like it, don't care. You can buy your own dinner next time."

He snorted at her but began eating. "Oh yeah? With what money. I don't know if you've realised but being homeless and jobless doesn't leave much of a paycheck."

She gestured to the bag of money. "Use that then. You're right, I don't know how to read money. It's not going to get any use from me."

He paused at that but kept eating. "Huh, thanks then I guess. Though I guess the catch is I've got to buy you dinner too?"

She nodded. "I'm keeping my credit card thingy though. I'm not giving you all of my hard-earned money."

"Oh please, you stole all that money off criminals. They're hardly a match against you." Dabi snorted.

"Not true, I earned money singing and playing my cello earlier. People just threw it in the case for some reason. That's hardly stolen if it was given." She retorted back at him.

"Fuck that. I don't believe you." He challenged.

She swallowed her chicken wing - crunched bone shards and all - and sang the first chorus of a song. It left Dabi blinking, flabbergasted, and she couldn't help but laugh at the reaction.

"I'll be good, I'll be good
And I'll love the world like I should
Yeah, I'll be good, I'll be good
For all of the times
That I never could."


Coming up next: You'll always haunt me

Finishing the main story of Pokemon Reborn made me change only one thing really, and that is that one person is dead and another is alive. Aside from that, episode 19 is dark but it gives me an opportunity to see how Project Reborn could have ended.

Although I do have to replay the entire game because they changed some earlier stuff. Thank you Ace~!

At least I know to definitely get a Mega Mawile. Sucker Punch is really good, and Huge Power means there weren't many opponents that couldn't be OHKO'ed by one of his moves.