It had only been a few days since (H/n) disappeared, but honestly, it felt much longer. The stress of it all was really starting to get to me. I'm getting too damn old for this. The most frustrating part about it was they had just vanished: they hadn't been found amongst the rubble of the building that went up in flames, and no one had seen them fly out, either. To make matters worse, their tracker was no longer relaying. That was going to be problematic. We had to find them, but with no leads, and every hero in the country looking for them, there wasn't much more we could do. During the nomu attack… I know I saw them run into that building. We could start there. Damn, that was a hectic day. Takakage and I were having lunch when I got the call. If I recall, it was actually quite lovely outside, given the circumstances.

"It's Hawks again." I said to him as I stared down at my vibrating phone. The two of us were seated outside at a local cafe enjoying some much-needed time off. Takakage huffed with a smile.

"Probably calling to give another update on (H/n)." He noted.

Hawks had been calling me nearly every other day to sing (H/n)'s praises. Of course, I was over the moon to hear how well they were adjusting, but his constant calls were getting to be a bit much. I nodded and let out a deep sigh as I tapped the 'Decline' button on the screen. It would be rude to take a call now, and I could always return it later.

"You're probably right. I'm grateful for his help, but I don't need to be updated so frequently. Hell, I don't even give Baker reports this often." I mentioned with a chuckle. Hawks had been using his own heroic influence to get (H/n)'s name out there. I was glad to see they had at least one friend here. Lord knows they weren't thought of very fondly back home.

"Perhaps he's just trying to make them look good." Takakage proposed, taking a sip of his coffee. "I mean you aren't exactly the type to be easily impressed. I think he's just trying to play it up for their sake." That made sense.

"It's my own fault, I think. I did mention the possibility of (H/n)'s stay being permanent." I admitted, choosing to stare at my food rather than at his face. His moment of stunned silence conveyed what he thought well enough, but he spoke up anyway.

"Oh Henry, you didn't…" Takakage said in a repremandative tone. He leaned in closer from across the table and lowered his voice. "Can you do that? I mean, is there any way for that to even be a possibility?"

All I could do was shrug. In truth, I had no idea. It wasn't my call. That kid would've been a hero the second they turned eighteen, if I had any say in it.

"I don't know. I think the most I could do is…" I was pulled away once again by the ringing of my cell phone. I flipped it over: 'Hawks again?' I couldn't help but laugh.

"This boy just won't let up!" I said, declining his call a second time. I'd be sure to call him back just as soon as we were finished.

"It's nice that he's keeping a good eye on them for you." My friend said with a sigh. I hoped he wasn't becoming annoyed. Takakage always respected my work, but I still didn't want it to interfere with personal time.

I nodded halfheartedly. "I suppose. I do hope he's not hovering, though. I've been trying to give (H/n) as much freedom as possible while we've been here, and I don't want them thinking I'm using Hawks to do my dirty work." Honestly, (H/n) had no reason to like me. Shit, I was surprised they were even giving me the daily reports I needed; still, I was grateful to have everything in order. Less bitching from Baker when I sent (H/n)'s weekly report over.

"Your 'dirty work?'" Takakage laughed. "Don't give yourself so much credit, Henry. I've got a-"

BUZZ-BUZZ-BUZZ-BUZZ

I snatched my phone off of the table a final time. What was with this boy? I shook my head and exhaled in annoyance. "Alright, I'm gonna have to talk to him. This is borderline harassment." I tapped the "accept call" button and quickly brought the phone to my face.

"Hawks, listen, I-"

"CAPTAIN STILLER!" Hawk's ear-piercing shout made me nearly jump out of my skin. I yanked the phone away from my ear to keep from being deafened by his yelling. Before I could get another word out, he went on.

"I think (H/n) is in trouble. We just got a call for backup to their location, but the line went dead. The city is crawling with nomus, I need their location ASAP."

His voice was barely comprehensible through the winds slamming into the mic. Was he flying? It didn't matter. He could get to (H/n) much faster than I could right now.

"What?! Are you serious? I'll send their location to you right away and meet you there as soon as I can."

I quickly pulled my phone away from my ear to open (H/n)'s tracking software and sent it out to Hawks. I stood out of my seat abruptly before my eyes shifted up again to Takakage. His attention was on his phone as well.

"Itoshi, I'm sorry- I have to…"

"It's alright, I heard from here. Go. Take my car, I'll notify the commission." He jumped up immediately, and chucked his car keys in my direction.

I smiled at him gratefully before running off. "Thank you. We'll reschedule!"

I don't think I'd ever driven so fast in my life. I didn't even have a license to drive in Japan, but screw it. It couldn't have been that much different if I was going to disregard traffic laws anyway. It seemed I'd gotten there just in time. I was able to protect (H/n) from… whatever those monsters were. Their safety didn't last very long, though. Damn kid went and threw a bunch of water onto a gas fire- how could I have forgotten to teach them basic fire safety? Watching them become engulfed was horrifying, but given their aversion to fire, I can only imagine the terror they felt. Through the bright flames and dark smoke, I know I saw them run into that building. Why would they rush into a burning building like that without assessing its structural integrity? Had they seen someone inside? I really wasn't sure. Only a couple of minutes later, an explosion came from the side of the building, and the whole damn thing came down. With all of the dust, I couldn't see if (H/n) made it out, and, like I said, we never found them in the rubble, either.

I grew more anxious as the days passed. I had every hero I could get in contact with out looking for them, but nobody had had any luck. Hawks… that poor boy was losing sleep over the whole situation. I was in no position to judge. I wasn't fairing much better. He'd stopped calling me; instead, his updates came every couple of hours. All of his messages read the same: "Not yet." I wished he'd stop. I could feel myself fall further into despair with each hopeless message I received from him. I needed to find them- my report was due soon, and I wouldn't be able to keep lying to Baker for much longer.

"Their watch has apparently short-circuited, so I only have this much. Apologies, sir." That's what I told him. He's sending a replacement. I'm not sure what I expected. It's not like he would just forget about it and let the damn kid be free. I suppose this is the best case scenario, though. I could stall for a little longer while the new watch was being shipped.

I sat on the couch in Takakage's living room with my head buried in my hands. I suppose Itoshi was used to seeing me like this by now. With my options being so limited, there wasn't much more I could do besides sulk. I must've looked so pathetic. Even so, he sat with me whenever I got like this. He placed his hand on my back and rubbed soothing circles.

"We'll find them, Henry. Wherever they've gone, I'm sure they're okay." He reassured. I wished more than anything I could believe that. I interlocked my fingers and ran my hands over my head and neck. For once, I was grateful for the hair loss- if I had any, I'd be pulling it out by now.

"I shouldn't be worried about that." I began with a tiny smile. "I know better than anyone that they're more than capable of handling themself."

Takakage nodded knowingly. "Henry, I hate to be a pessimist, but… do you think it's possible that they just ran off on their own?" It was a valid question. Shit, that's exactly what I'd do in their situation. I huffed.

"I wouldn't blame them if they did. These past few years have been hell for them. Just… so unfair, I… I can't keep stalling forever." I couldn't bring myself to look at him. This man entrusted (H/n) to my care when they were still so young. I couldn't help but feel I had let him down. He sighed as if he were going to say something, but stopped short. There was a tense silence between us for a long while. I suppose he was just letting me gather my thoughts. From my pocket, my phone began to buzz. I could practically feel the new flow of adrenaline course through me as I snatched the device from my pants. The name on the screen surprised me:

"It's Endeavor." I said allowed. For a brief moment, I felt a glimmer of hope. I answered as quickly as I could.

"Captain Stiller." I spoke as calmly as I could into the phone. This was Japan's new number one, after all; the least I could do was not sound like a blubbering idiot. I can only imagine what Itoshi must have seen though. I didn't even attempt to conceal my excited expressions during the call.

"What? You did?! Where?"

"What, what is it?" Itoshi questioned eagerly.

"Are you serious? Yes, yes, of course. Send me the address, I'll be there immediately. Thank you so much!" I quickly hung up the phone and practically leapt from my seat.

"What happened? Did they find (H/n)?" Takakage questioned.

It was only a chance, sure, but I couldn't wipe the stupid grin off my face. "Endeavor saw them. We have to go."

It wasn't at all what I expected. The property was crawling with police and firefighters when we arrived, and the air was filled with the suffocating scent of burned wood and plastic. Takakage and I flashed our credentials to the officers outside the front gate before passing through to the main building. The door was wide open. Through the threshold, I saw Endeavor- out of uniform- speaking to a policeman. Upon noticing us, he politely excused himself to come over. I could hear my heart pounding away in my ears the closer he got. Damn, this guy was intimidating.

"Are they still here?" I asked with a hope that almost felt futile. Endeavor bore an expression that crossed both sadness and frustration. He shook his head.

"No. Come on, this way, I'll explain while we walk." He led us down a hallway to our left and continued speaking.

"There wasn't much activity in the streets, so I arrived home early today. I have to say I wasn't expecting to find two strangers in my house."

"Two? They were with someone?" I asked. Endeavor nodded. It was eerily intriguing. As far as I knew, (H/n) hadn't had contact with anyone besides other heroes and civilians on the street. Who on earth could they have been with?

"I checked the rest of the property just to be sure, but there didn't appear to be anyone else." The further down the hall we got, the more pungent the charcoal-like smell became. It took everything in my power to keep my hand away from my nose. Endeavor came to a stop just outside of an open door. My eyes widened in disbelief upon seeing the damage that had been done. The wooden floorboards had been cracked and shattered every which way from one central point. Furniture had been haphazardly strewn about the decimated room, and the wall… Well, there wasn't much of a wall left. The wood that remained was scorched and blackened. Endeavor spoke up again.

"This is where they were. Standing right there." He pointed lazily into the room. "They looked to be struggling with the villain Dabi."

"Dabi?!" A burning and heavy glob formed in my gut. Had they been tracking the villain these past few days? I knew from their internet search history that they'd been conducting their own investigation, but I was more than confident enough in their skills to let them handle it alone. Still, I worried for their safety.

"The first concerning bit of evidence was the splatters of blood on the floor in the training hall. It looked like some kind of fight might have broken out there. Then I followed a trail of it throughout the house. I expect they may have been trying to get away." Endeavor continued.

I was puzzled. "Get away? That doesn't sound like (H/n) at all. They'd leap on any villain in an instant- their quirk and tactical skill wouldn't have allowed Dabi to even get close. I'm sure the blood you found was his."

Endeavor began to solemnly shake his head. "(H/n) was covered in blood when I found them. It was still pouring out of their face- it was definitely theirs. It looked like their arm was burned pretty badly, as well."

Oh god. I could feel the nausea building up in my throat. I didn't want to believe it.

"Where did they go?" I couldn't keep the panic from creeping out through my voice much longer. Screw the tracker- Baker and his shitty reports could wait. If (H/n) was hurt, I needed to get to them as fast as possible. Though I tried to hide it, my breathing became jagged and staggered.

"Dabi launched an attack through the wall. Through all of the smoke, I couldn't see them. By the time the dust had settled enough, they were gone. It must have only been a few seconds; I'm guessing someone with a teleportation quirk got them out."

"Kurogiri?" I wondered aloud.

"But we have him in custody." Takakage informed.

"Someone else, then!" Exasperation leaked through my works. I needed to calm down. The other two men didn't speak for a long moment, so I decided to break the silence.

"We should have the blood tested just to be sure." A flood of possibilities came rushing into my mind- none of them positive. Takakage spoke up beside me.

"That nomu we recovered from the rubble a few days ago. Its venom could temporarily prevent victims from using their quirk- that's what the lab techs said, right?"

I nodded as I tried to hide my blatant concern from showing on my face. "You think they were bitten?"

"I think it's a possibility. You did say you saw them rush into that same building." He said.

"That would explain why they're hurt… if they're hurt." I corrected in an attempt to appear more optimistic. "It could also explain why they came here."

"They were looking for help." Itoshi chimed in. It was a sad conclusion. Endeavor sighed, looking more forlorn.

"I'm sorry. Perhaps if I had arrived earlier, I could have saved them." The Flame Hero's words were saturated with regret. I could tell this incident had greatly affected his pride.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, sir." I assured him. "(H/n) is in my custody. I should have never let them get captured in the first place." A tenseness filled the air almost as soon as the statement had left my mouth. It was the word I'd used: "captured."

"Do you really think that's what happened?" Itoshi spoke very quietly. I wasn't entirely sure. How could I answer any kind of questions when all of the evidence seemed to lead to so many uncertain conclusions. I didn't respond to him, and instead spoke to Endeavor once again.

"Seeing how all of this is my responsibility, I'd be more than happy to pay for any damages caused."

The Flame Hero held up his hand. "There's no need. That's what we have insurance for. Your focus should stay on finding your missing hero."

"Endeavor, sir!" A policeman called out.

"Just a moment." Endeavor responded. "I have to speak with them, but in the meantime, feel free to have a look around. Let them know if you find anything."

"Thank you, sir." Itoshi and I both bowed to him before he walked off. Once he was out of earshot, I leaned in towards my companion and spoke softly.

"The situation is so much worse than I feared." I felt his hand on my shoulder.

"We have leads now. That's something." I knew he was only trying to make me feel better, but the fact of the matter was that (H/n) was still missing. Not only that, but they were hurt, too. Through all of this, another resounding realization pounded painfully against my skull. If we couldn't find them, Baker would have more than questions. Being my superior, and the man who oversaw (H/n)'s trial, and all of their activity, he could essentially decide (H/n)'s fate if he didn't get what he needed. My report was due soon. If he found out they weren't in my care, there would be hell to pay. What's more, he wanted their tracking information. Itoshi suggested I give it to Hawks until we find them.

"After all, they get around at roughly the same speed."

It was a fine idea, but the way the watch functioned wouldn't allow it. It would only turn on once it was locked, and once it was locked, it could only be unlocked with one key- a key I didn't have. It was becoming uncomfortably obvious: for their own safety, and the security of their future, we had to find (H/n) as quickly as possible.