Izuku rolled over on whatever he was laying on and groaned as he slowly woke up.
Goddamn, that was one hell of a hangover.
Keeping his eyes closed, Izuku took several minutes to gather the strength. His memories of the previous night were pretty foggy, but he could recall bits and pieces in between the painful pulses in his brain. He had gone out and gotten drunk as planned...then what?
Furrowing his brow in concentration, Izuku did his best to remember what had happened after he had left the bar.
There were brief moments of clarity and the hungover Izuku pieced together that someone had tried to mug him. Blindly patting his pockets, he confirmed that his wallet had gone absent without leave. But what happened after that?
The last bit was hazy, but Izuku knew it involved Miruko somehow.
Either way he was not in a good mood.
Rolling over and extending his arm towards his nightstand drawer, the green-haired man let out a surprised yelp as he encountered nothing but empty air and fell onto the hard floor.
Groaning in pain, Izuku cracked open an eye to see how he had managed to fall out of bed. However, instead of being met with the sight of his cramped apartment, all he could see were the metal legs of a couch and fake wood floor.
Quickly sitting up, Izuku ignored the pounding in his skull and took in his surroundings.
Apparently he had fallen from the single couch in the spacious room. There was also a nice kitchen area off to the side and a large high-tech TV on the wall in front of the couch. Besides a few closed doors, the thing that surprised Izuku the most was the wall of crystal clear windows providing a scenic view of the city.
Why did everything look so familiar?
Slowly standing up, Izuku curiously looked around as he wondered how he ended up in such an expensive penthouse.
Hearing a door open, Izuku turned around and felt his stomach drop as he finally realized just where he was.
"Well you look like shit." Miruko snickered as she walked over to the kitchen.
The rabbit hero was wearing a pair of nylon workout shorts and a simple white tank top as she wiped a drop of sweat from her forehead and began rummaging around in the large refrigerator.
For once Izuku was at a loss for words.
A veritable tidal wave of various emotions ran through his head as he tried to get his dry mouth to work.
Goddamn hangover!
The entire time he was standing like a slack-jawed simpleton, Izuku's eyes had been locked onto Miruko.
It was finally dawning on him just how beautiful she was.
Her long snow white hair framed a gorgeous face that most models would kill to have, and her rabbit ears oddly complemented her features. Miruko's tanned skin almost seemed to glow in the morning sunlight filtering through the penthouse windows, and Izuku felt a blush rising in his cheeks as he tried to ignore just how perky the woman's body was. Miruko's sculpted legs only added to her visual appeal, and Izuku almost slapped himself when he realized he was contemplating what her thighs felt like.
The thing that stood out most to Izuku was Miruko's metal arm. The chrome appendage was a stark contrast to the tanned skin that surrounded it, and Izuku wondered if she had purposefully wanted it that way.
Biting the inside of his cheek to force his brain away from the distracting thoughts, Izuku looked away just as Miruko closed the refrigerator door and turned around with a bag of baby carrots in hand.
"You must have one helluva hangover if you are being that quiet." Miruko said with a chuckle. "I mean normally by now we would be screaming at each other."
As Miruko leaned against the kitchen counter and popped a small carrot in her mouth, Izuku rolled his eyes and tried to ignore the fact that the sunlight felt like it was sending needles into his brain.
"I'm not in the mood Miruko." Izuku grumbled. "Why am I here?"
"Ya don't remember last night?" Miruko said as she chewed on her carrot.
Rubbing his eyes with the palms of his hands, Izuku shook his head. "It's all kinda blurry. I left the bar, then I got mugged...I think. After that the only thing I remember clearly was that you showed up at some point." He mumbled.
Miruko finished chewing her carrot and gave Izuku a mischievous grin. "Oh so you don't remember coming home with me? I mean after all we did I am kinda disappointed you don't remember any of it, stud."
Well that nearly made Izuku pass out from shock. Had he really slept with Miruko of all people?!
As Izuku struggled to keep himself standing upright Miruko burst out in a fit of laughter.
"Oh my god your face!" She squealed with glee as she nearly doubled over laughing. "Fucking christ that expression was hilarious!"
As his heart started beating again, Izuku glared at the wheezing Miruko. "Not funny." He grumbled.
Collecting herself, Miruko put the bag of carrots on the kitchen counter and gave Izuku a cheeky smile. "Oh c'mon man don't be such a downer, that look on your face was priceless."
Popping another baby carrot in her mouth, the girl shrugged in answer to Izuku's original question. "I was on my way home when I saw you getting held up. I was gonna swoop in and save your drunk ass but you busted out some kinda secret move and made the punk run away. I jumped down and started talking to you, well more like you screaming at me, then you went and fell over and bonked your head on the ground. I couldn't just leave you passed out in the street so I did you a favor and dragged you back here."
Izuku sighed tiredly and nodded as he pulled out his smartphone. "Well considering my luck that sounds about right. Thanks for taking care of me I guess."
As Izuku inspected his phone for any damage he missed Miruko blinking in surprise.
"Oh yeah, uhh...no problem." She said quietly.
After calling his supervisor and making up an excuse about being sick, Izuku put his phone back in his pocket and trudged over to the apartment door. "Well I gotta get going, sorry if I made a mess anywhere."
"Sure...stay saf-" Miruko said, but was cut off as Izuku closed the door.
Stumbling to the elevator, Izuku groaned in pain as he prepared himself for the walk back to his apartment.
"Goddamn hangover…" He muttered to himself as the elevator doors closed.
Rumi frowned as her apartment door closed.
Well that had gone better than she had thought it would.
Somehow it turns out Midoriya is actually almost likeable when he is not yelling or grumbling. Who would have thought it would take a good old fashioned hangover to bring out the softy inside the government agent?
Picking up the bag of small carrots, Rumi absentmindedly munched on her snack as she walked back to her bedroom.
When she had brought Midoriya back to her apartment, Rumi had simply dumped him on the couch and then gone to her room to take a bath. While she was in the tub of hot bubbly water Rumi could not help but keep wondering if the cute jackass was going to walk in on her like a scene in a teenage anime. Fortunately that never happened, and after changing into her pajamas she had gone back to check on Midoriya one last time before going to bed.
As she had been standing over the passed out government agent, Rumi had caught herself slowly reaching out to run a hand through the man's curly hair. As tempting as it had been to mess with the slumbering man, Rumi had mentally chastised herself and went to bed.
After waking up early and seeing that Midoriya was still asleep, Rumi had decided to get in a quick workout to burn off some (nervous) energy. It wasn't like she had been afraid that Midoriya would attack her, but for some reason seeing the man with such a peaceful look on his face made her feel a little guilty about how she had been treating him.
Now that he was gone she could finally relax and go back to her normal routine.
Back in her bedroom, Rumi quickly changed into her hero outfit and made her way out onto her penthouse balcony. Taking in a deep breath of the fresh morning air, Rumi decided to clear her mind the best way she knew how.
By kicking some criminal ass.
Leaping out to a nearby rooftop, Rumi grinned eagerly as she began her patrol.
A few days had passed since Izuku had left Miruko's penthouse in the throes of a vicious hangover. After spending a day in bed and drinking what felt like several gallons of water, the government agent had returned to work refreshed and immediately got down to business with his new logistics and analysis team.
Upon meeting his team, Izuku had been surprised to see that he was not only the senior agent by rank but also by age. The oldest of the bunch was a twenty-four year old girl with curly hair and the youngest was a nineteen year old boy who barely met the workplace attire requirements. The two other members of the team were both twenty-two, a young man and girl respectively.
Apparently Izuku's supervisor had not been lying when he had mentioned that the team needed some guidance. The frazzled older girl was soft-spoken and ignored by the rest of her team, the teenager was a top-tier slacker, and the twenty-two year old pair spent more time bickering with each other than they did working.
The first few days had been interesting. At first Izuku's directions had been largely ignored, but after a few days of strict rule making he had his new team (mostly) under control.
Currently Izuku was standing behind the teenager named Saito's desk and watching him compile a large amount of data into usable formats. It was clear why Saito had been recruited, as the teen was a near prodigy when it came to data analysis, but only when he actually decided to work.
"Good work Saito." Izuku said encouragingly. "Keep working like that and I will see about convincing your supervisor to let you wear casual clothes to work."
Suddenly Izuku's phone began vibrating in his pocket. Pulling out his device, he was confused to see that the caller was Miss Sasaki, Miruko's agent.
"Excuse me for a second Saito, I need to take this call." Izuku said.
As he walked away Izuku heard Saito mumble something under his breath about "normies", but decided to ignore it.
Stepping out into a quiet hallway, Izuku answered the call and put on his best professional voice.
"Hello Miss Sasaki, I think you accidentally called my number instead of Miruko's new liaison."
There was an irritated sigh as Miss Sasaki answered. "Midoriya I called you on purpose, I need your help and this new liaison is not helpful in any way." She paused before speaking with a concerned tone. "Rumi...I mean Miruko, is missing."
Arching an eyebrow curiously, Izuku leaned against the hallway wall as he spoke. "Are you sure she is not simply out doing her usual hero duties? No offense, but she seems like the type to not inform anyone of her plans."
"I am sure." Miss Sasaki said firmly. "We were supposed to meet at her apartment yesterday morning and she was not there. I know she might appear to be very carefree, but she has never missed a meeting before. Not to mention I have tried calling her a dozen times and not even gotten a text back. Something has happened to her."
Frowning, Izuku tried to think of a scenario where Miruko could have been captured or killed. As much as he did not like to admit it Miruko was the number five pro-hero for a reason. She was a near peerless fighter and impossibly resilient. After all this was the woman who tied off the bleeding stump of her severed arm with her own hair and still kept fighting.
"Okay, say I believe your claim." Izuku said evenly. "Why call me? Aren't there other pro-heroes or organizations who would be a better choice?"
Izuku could practically hear Miruko's agent gritting her teeth in irritation. "Because she is a goddamn pain in the ass who does not work well with others! You of all people should know that. Even if I did try calling someone like Endeavor or Edgeshot I would just get referred to someone else!"
Izuku heard the steel leave Miss Sasaki's voice as she spoke softly and pleadingly. "Please don't make me beg Midoriya. Rumi is...she is like a daughter to me. I already nearly lost her once and I will be damned if I let it happen again. Please…"
Sighing heavily Izuku cursed silently as his brain immediately conjured images of his own mother worriedly waiting for him at home whenever he had gotten beaten up at school.
"Alright I will help." He said reassuringly. "I will call you as soon as I have any information, you have my word."
Izuku was not sure if he heard the older woman mutter a prayer of thanks, but he did hear the relief in her voice.
"Thank you Midoriya." She said quietly before hanging up.
Putting his phone back in his pocket, Izuku walked back into the logistics room where his team was working. Spotting the two rivals named Ikeda and Mori quietly arguing with each other as they worked, Izuku walked over and gently bopped their heads to get their attention.
"If you two have enough time to talk to each other you won't mind if I have some extra work for you right?" He said sternly to the two young adults.
The two rivals groaned in frustration but did not object, having learned quickly that Izuku was not someone who went easy on his subordinates.
"Good." Izuku said. "Whoever can find Miruko's last known location gets an extra fifteen minute break and bragging rights."
The young man and woman both gave Izuku confused looks, but the prospect of a challenge to prove their skills deterred them from asking any more questions.
As the two began feverishly working at their desks Izuku grinned with a hint of satisfaction and went back over to Saito. The lazy teen having taken the opportunity to take a nap at his desk.
Nearly an hour later, Izuku heard a small cheer of victory from the girl named Mori and immediately walked over to inspect the results.
Ikeda sat slumped over on his keyboard dejectedly as Mori smiled cockily and gestured at her screen for Izuku to inspect.
"Got it boss!" She said excitedly. "Took awhile but I tracked her last known location to the edge of the city near the ghetto. She went down a backstreet two days ago and has not left since. By the way why are you having us stalk Miruko?" Mori said cheekily.
Frowning, Izuku simply stayed silent and gently pushed Mori out of the way so he could use her computer. Being in the Ministry of Defense had its perks, one of them being almost unlimited access to all standard traffic cameras and publicly owned security devices. Finding a street camera with a partial view of the backstreet, Izuku rewound the footage until Miruko appeared on the screen.
From what the camera could see, Miruko had landed on the sidewalk and proceeded to dash down the alley and out of sight. Less than a minute later a man wearing a disheveled tracksuit stumbled out of the dark street clutching his clearly broken arm. After that there was no visible activity, which was odd since the only exit from the street was the one entrance, as it was between two large concrete storage buildings. Fast forwarding, Izuku stopped the footage when a windowless van parked near the entrance of the street. Going forward frame by frame, Izuku felt his gut begin to churn uneasily as he stopped on a single still image.
It was hard to see, but after zooming in, Izuku saw two burly men carrying what looked like a limp body with distinctive white rabbit ears.
"Shit…" Izuku whispered to himself, earning the curious gazes of his two subordinates.
"What's happening boss?" Ikeda asked inquisitively as the senior agent stood up and pulled out his phone.
"Find out where that van went." Izuku said harshly. "We have a pro-hero down."
Well that certainly shut the bickering pair up.
Calling his supervisor directly, Izuku tried to keep the anxiety out of his voice as the man answered.
"Midoriya?" The portly man said curiously. "You never call my personal number."
"Sir I have solid intel that Miruko has been captured." Izuku said brusquely. "My team is working on getting a location, but if someone was able to take Miruko down they are very likely a high-level threat."
Izuku heard papers shuffling and a chair being pushed back as his supervisor spoke in a deadly serious voice.
"Understood, I am issuing a level five alert. This is what we have been waiting for."
Rumi groaned as she tried blinking the stars out of her eyes, only to realize her arms had been chained above her head and she was in pitch blackness.
Fuck her leg hurt.
And her arm still itched
"Oh right, I got fucking shot." Rumi thought to herself as she tried to stand up.
She felt so weak.
Just what exactly had those thugs done to her?
As her legs folded under her like wet noodles Rumi thought back to how exactly she ended up being held captive.
She had been out on patrol like usual and had spotted a cluster of suspicious looking individuals in a dark and dirty back street hidden between two large buildings. Upon investigating, Rumi's hunch had been proven correct when the thugs scattered like roaches and pulled out handguns.
At first it had been laughably easy, Rumi dodging bullets and kicking ass like she always did with lowlifes.
But then it all went wrong.
Rumi had felt a bullet lodge itself in her lower leg, which normally was no big deal. She had been shot plenty of times before and would always carry on like normal even with several bullets in her.
This time it was different.
The second the bullet came to a stop in the meat of her leg Rumi had felt all of her overwhelming strength disappear like steam evaporating over a pot of tea. It was such an unnatural feeling that she had paused mid-punch, allowing the thug in front of her to land a clumsy haymaker right on her chin.
It was all downhill from there.
Reeling from the unexpected pain and confusion from the punch, Rumi had been tackled to the ground and then had her head slammed into the concrete. After that it was all a hazy pain-filled blur. She had barely been able to stand up, let alone counter-attack the seemingly endless kicks to her torso and head. All she could do was curl up into a ball and wonder where all her strength had gone.
Then she had woken up here in this cold and dark room.
It was all so disorienting. Her legs felt as weak and wobbly as a newborn fawn, and all she could hear was a muted ringing noise. Not to mention any time she put weight on her injured leg it felt like a red-hot poker was being pressed into her wound.
As she was in the middle of taking stock of her injuries, Rumi heard a lock rattle, the creak of metal doors opening, then a beam of light shine down and nearly blind her.
"Yup, still as fucked up as we left her." A gravelly man's voice said amusedly. "Goddamn those quirk-killing bullets actually are the real deal. And we get Miruko of all people!" The man said in awe.
"Too bad we can't play with her." A nasally woman's voice said creepily. "I always had a thing for girls with darker skin like hers."
Well that certainly made Rumi's skin crawl with revulsion, and did they say quirk killing bullets?!
"Not worth it." The man said. "You try touching her and I bet she will try to bite ya."
Goddamn right she would.
"Either way the boss said he wanted first taste." The gravelly voice stated. "We just gotta keep her chained up for a few more days until he gets here."
The two voices laughed sinisterly as the beam of light turned off and a pair of metal doors slammed back down.
Rumi could only stare into the darkness in disbelief as she slowly began to lose feeling in her arms that were chained up over her head.
Well she was royally fucked.