Thank you for your reviews. As English is not my mothertongue, don't hesitate to correct me in the future.
I don't own the original work. This is just for fun and to appease my perverted mind. Enjoy!
02 - The point of no return
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The trip between the alley and the unknown destination didn't last long. Midoriya quickly found himself on the floor of a kind of empty bar. The walls were covered by red bricks and the furniture surprised Izuku with its far from old appearance. The place smelled new, mixed with subtle fragrances of alcohol. A jukebox was standing in a corner, turned off and more dusty than it looked. It was the first time in his life that he was seeing one.
The most chocking detail for Izuku was the tattered poster displayed on the brick wall on which he could very well glimpse the name of All Might.
Who was insane enough to commit such a horrible act?!
A TV black screen were put on a surface behind the bar. Another one was hooked up on the wall not far from what appeared to be the front door. Something flashed in Izuku's mind as he automatically set a mental plan to reach it before the worse happens. Because despite the current silence and the cozy atmosphere of this place Izuku could feel the danger floating everywhere around him.
He stood up as soon as the villain appeared through the mysterious portal right behind him. The boy glared at the man, momentarily forgetting the dangerous aura emanating from the blue haired villain. "Where am I?"
"This is your new home." A shock passed through Izuku's widened eyes.
"My new…? Y-You're joking."
"Do I seem to be joking." No he didn't. It was more than obvious.
He remembered the man talked about welcoming Izuku to his family but Midoriya didn't think the villain would literally bring him in his hideout. Wait, was that a hideout? Or did he bring Izuku here on an impulse until he find the right place to put him in? Where was he anyway, still in Japan? Which ward? Was that his quirk just now? If he could teleport people with that incredible power it meant he could be anywhere in the world. Or does this quirk have a certain limit? If only he could study it in his room back at the orphanage—
"Stop that."
Izuku blinked. "Huh?"
"Your mumbling. That's creepy."
Shit. He did it again. Izuku frowned but ceased his loud rumination before angering the villain even more. Seriously, he was the one who should complain after being kidnapped without any valid reason! Not the other way round!
"Shigaraki. What is this."
He jumped when another presence came out of nowhere to his left. A second man appeared behind the bar, dressed in a very elegant suit with a tie and had five metal plates going from around his collarbone to just below his yellow eyes. His whole body was covered by the same black mist in which he has been shoved without his consent. So the teleportation portals was the doing of this freaky villain keeping company to Izuku's abductor. Great.
"I brought a new pet. I thought he'd be useful for my perpetual boredom, what do you think?"
Midoriya pointed a finger at the second nameless villain, "You! What do you think you're doing?! This is a crime you know! Bring me back home right at this instant before I scream for help!"
"Look Kurogiri, isn't he adorable."
The man named Kurogiri sighed heavily. The childishness of his boss's favorite protégé was once again emerging and as always, he knew he was going to give in to Shigaraki's whims. He eyed the boy for a moment as Midoriya sent him a furious glare. Kurogiri could see some fear behind those precious irises, however the teen kept his firm expression despite the slight shaking of his body.
Kurogiri found that admirable. But still too risky. Keeping an unknown boy without background check would be dangerous for the League. "What will the others think about this? There is no way they're going to accept a kid just because you say so."
Shigaraki sat on one of the red couches a few feet away from Izuku still standing like a statue. He spread his elbows against the backrest, looking up at the ceiling.
"Everything's gonna be fine."
"They will kill him."
"They won't if these idiots don't want their throat to disintegrate. No one touches what's mine."
"Who's yours?!"
"Shigaraki…"
"Shut up," Shigaraki growls, "I'm keeping him. Period."
Izuku went to retort against that crazy bastard but chose to keep silent, eyeing the front door ten meters away from his position.
"He's a vampire," the blue-haired man announced out of the blue. "A vampire with a quirk. The rarest gem of the rarest specie."
Kurogiri perked up at this information. His split yellow eyes widened, his hands almost dropping the glasses he was currently wiping. Izuku frowned in confusion.
"Eh? I-I'm not a vampire, that's my quirk." It was Shigaraki's turn to frown. The villain sighed in irritation. He violently hit the table in front of him with his foot, making Izuku jump at the impact.
"Are you not even aware of your true nature? You're a vampire, brat."
"I-I'm not! Vampires are myths, everybody knows that."
"You drink blood."
"Because of my quirk!"
"Oh, so did you like it because of your quirk too?"
"I didn't-" Izuku stopped and reevaluated the question. It's true the liquid's smell made him eager to drink the substance even before actually tasting it but… To think he would gladly suck blood without an ounce of hesitation, then feel light and refresh after drinking it… No. Nonono, no way. He couldn't be-
He wasn't-
"I knew it," Shigaraki smirked. He sat up straight and looked at Izuku like a predator staring at its prey. A vicious thrill ran through Izuku's spine and he gulped, faced by the burning intensity making his veins freeze.
"...vampires don't exist."
"They do. Although no one cares enough for them to be a part of the society. What everybody fails to mention to young brats like you is that the percentage of every type of person is actually incorrect."
"...Eh?"
"What Shigaraki says is true, boy," Kurogiri continued. "Vampires exist. However their kind is so rare that only few people can confirm their existence."
"Exactly," declared the other villain like he was simply teaching biology to a middle school student. "The real numbers are 78% of people with a quirk, 19% without one and then... 3% of vampires. Finally, out of these three percent only 1% have a quirk while the last 2 percent are quirkless. Vampires generally are just strong beings having a creepy blood kink—"
Izuku blushed furiously.
"—but some of them have quirks in addition to this extra strength. Just like you."
Midoriya's mind was on fire. He'd laugh at this revelation if it wasn't for the fact that he was trapped inside a weird bar with two dangerous villain who just committed a kidnapping.
"This is insane…" Izuku whispered as his brain was collecting all this shocking informations.
"Don't worry Pet-"
"Don't call me that!"
"-We'll help you adapt to your new environment as well as your freshly found out specie. Although I don't know much about bloodsuckers but whatever. Sensei surely knows more about your kind. We're going to have a lot of fun~" Midoriya tensed. He glared at Shigaraki before once again briefly looking at the door. He had to run. Something was wrong with that man's head and Izuku was absolutely sure he wasn't going to leave this place without going crazy himself. Or alive. Obviously.
"Speaking of Sensei, you should ask him about the boy." Kurogiri was not convinced about keeping an intruder within their hideout. A young one on top of it, having probably friends and a family waiting for him to come home very soon. As interesting as his quirk and nature might be there was no certainty that the League was out of trouble.
"Yeah. I planned to see Sensei after some playtime with my new Pet."
Izuku raised an eyebrow, a slight hope in the chest. If that Sensei-guy was their boss, there was a chance they could bring the crazy one to his senses once and for all. He didn't care if he had to be stunned or half dead if it meant he could be out of here as soon as possible.
Izuku's eyes lingered on the door again.
"Do you want me to call him?"
"No need for that. I'm already listening."
That low, frigid tone instantly immobilized Izuku as if his body had completely turned into ice. The raw power emerging just from the mysterious voice sent a hundred chills up and down his spine. He was completely paralyzed, almost forgetting how to breath as he saw Shigaraki turn towards the screen.
"Sensei," he greeted, "since when were you listening?"
"From the moment you revealed the boy's identity as a vampire."
Who was this? How come their voice alone triggered the ripple of dread coursing through his body?!
"He can be useful. Perhaps not now but he will later, this pet could be used as a lab rat to study his kind and quirk. Ha, I don't really care about all that anyway. I just want to toy with him in the end."
Izuku badly wanted to retort but couldn't even raise a finger at this moment, the only sign of his frustration being his gritted teeth.
"...Do you know anything about this young man or did you take the kid without checking his background? What do you know about his family? Friends? Everything?"
Finally a glimpse of intelligence! Shigaraki kept silence for a minute, then, "… I admit I might have rushed things a little bit."
'No kidding!' Izuku mentally screamed but said nothing.
"But worry not Pet, we have all the time to know about each other."
That seemed to free Izuku from his shock. The green-haired teen snapped at Shigaraki, ignoring the man's devious smirk, "In your dreams, you idiot! I'd rather die than know anything about a prick like you."
A low chuckle was heard behind the screen devoid of image except for the 'sound only' displayed in pink characters. "All we need is an identity. We'll be able to gather a lot of data with that alone. Tell me your name boy."
Izuku said nothing for a second. That man was going to check his background, which could lead them to comply with the messy blue-haired villain still disgustingly smirking at him. He clenched his fists and glared at the screen as if facing the mysterious 'Sensei'.
"I won't tell you." Izuku's emerald orbs gleamed with fury, "You'll see, you villain. The heroes will come to save me once everyone notices my disappearance. You will have nowhere to hide and all of you are going to suffer the consequences of your crimes!"
A deadly pause reigned over the whole bar. Shigaraki's red eyes on him seemed to remotely pierce his very soul. Kurogiri on the other hands, looked like he was keeping himself from sighing. Izuku had every reason to believe that might be one of his habits, probably dealing with such an immature co-worker everyday of his life. And no, Midoriya was absolutely not pitying him.
Suddenly, a devilish laugh echoed through the screen and filled the whole place while the other three stood still, unsure about what to do.
"Heroes?"
Shigaraki clicked his tongue, "Aaah~ right. I remember he was blurting a lot of bullshit about those good-for-nothing bastards too. His eyes were disgustingly glittering when he stood up for them earlier. Almost like a sickening prepubescent schoolgirl in love. Still makes me want to retch."
"And yet, you brought him here as your pet."
"I want to see him break little by little, watching his so-called heroes from afar while he realizes he's never going to become one. I want to see him cry and struggle until he gives up hope all by himself. Until his pathetic dream becomes his worst nightmare."
Izuku wanted to snarl at Shigaraki for even imagining himself broken and desperate in front of people he admired. He was certainly not going to let him do as he pleased.
"How wicked."
Izuku thought he heard a smirk behind the Boss's tone. He tensed when the voice focused its attention on him again. "Listen, boy. The choice is all yours. You can decide to not cooperate and remain silent for as long as you wish, but know that the consequences of your resistance will be your responsibility."
"...What do you mean?" Izuku asked, afraid of the answer. He already knows deep down what they were going to say.
"Simple. Do as we say and everything's going to be fine. Disobey and once we know who you are and every person you are acquainted with… We will butcher them right before your eyes."
It wasn't a joke. That was a real threat from a real villain who had the absolute capacity to put his words into practice whenever he wished.
"H-How would you know—"
"We have our way kid. It really doesn't matter if I don't have your answer. We will find all your informations later, that's for sure. However know that we absolutely hate to waste our time. We can do it the easy way or the hard way, the choice is yours."
With a dreadful weight painfully sinking in the hollow of his chest, Izuku thought about the kids in his orphanage. He was not particularly close with them, not even since the day of his arrival. Like he's excepted from the beginning, Izuku has quickly been set aside by the children as soon as they heard he was quirkless. Like his classmates. Like Kacchan. Like everyone else except his deceased mother.
But some of them remained indifferent with him. A little girl used to ask him to read her a story sometimes during bedtime. A boy two or three years younger often offered his help to wash the dishes when it was Izuku's chores day. Another one became his game partner while playing tag (heroes version.) The matron, Shiaki, liked to collect All Might's posters every time she had the opportunity to go to the mall, impatient to see the stars shining through Izuku's bright green eyes whenever the boy clutches the picture of the American-like hero he admired from the bottom of his heart.
They weren't his family and yet, Izuku couldn't think of them otherwise.
Midoriya wanted to cry. Did he really have a choice?
He gritted his teeth. Of course he didn't. He wanted to be a hero, they already knew that. That Sensei guy has been smart enough to make use of the primordial weakness behind heroic ethics. That damn bastard—
"M-Midoriya Izu-Izuku…"
"Mmh?"
He wanted to cry.
"My name. Midoriya Izuku. You have what you wanted, now leave me and everyone else alone."
He could almost see them smiling through the screen and Izuku had to do his best to not throw himself at it and smash the black TV into pieces. Shigaraki snickered and slowly stood up from the couch.
"There~ it wasn't so complicated. Nice to meet you Izu-chan. Name's Shigaraki Tomura but you can call me Master instead."
"Shut up! And don't call me that!"
"Ah?"
"Only my friends can call me by my first name." Even if he might never see them anymore.
"It's alright. We're friends now."
Izuku's eyes widened in outrage and anger. "We're not!"
Who was he kidding?! The man was insane. Hell, all of them were insane and Izuku had enough. The door was straight in his line of sight, all he had to do was stampede to the exit and run into the street to call for help. He could do it. They were only two -three with the mysterious Sensei behind the screen- and they certainly couldn't be as fast as his special dash.
Whenever he raced with his friends at the orphanage Izuku always was in the lead for the first ten seconds before running out of stamina and ending up last at the end. Yet, ten seconds was all he needed.
So, he ran.
His legs plunged towards the exit, suddenly boosted with a short burst of energy as Izuku made his way to the metallic front door. He had to get out. People could help him outside and once he reaches a police station they could take him home and arrest these anti-hero psychos.
His outstretched arm almost reached the handle when the same mass of dark fog made an appearance just before his horrified expression. Izuku did not have time to step back. His speed pushed him right through Kurogiri's gate. One moment Izuku was running towards the door and the second after he found himself back in the middle of the room, before crashing into Shigaraki's waiting arms.
He couldn't even gasp as Izuku was abruptly grabbed by the hair and pinned against the table in front of which Shigaraki was sitting one second earlier. His head hit the surface of the table with a smack while his left arm was immediately lifted behind his back. The hand firmly grabbing his hair tightened its hold, making Izuku let out a grunt of pain.
"Argh..! Stop- let go!" He struggled in vain.
"Did you really think you could fool us? I saw you glance at the exit several times since your arrival here. You were totally predictable," Kurogiri said in a calm manner as if scolding a brat who just stole the toy of another kid.
"And did you really think I would just stay still and let you do as you please?!" Izuku retorted, getting a laugh from his abductor.
"Yes, that's exactly how you're excepted to behave Izu-chan. All you have to do is listen and sit when you're told to."
If a glare could kill Izuku would have been free a long time ago. For the first time since his official diagnosis ten years ago, Midoriya felt horribly powerless. Restrained by his kidnapper and completely unable to move, the teen tried to keep his expression fierce and unafraid cause the slightest display of weakness would lead to his downfall.
He succeeded to move his head despite the uncomfortable position, so that he could look at the villain's amused crimson eyes. His determination was all he had left. What would Kacchan do in a case like this? Surely not lower his head and calmly accept the situation. No, Kacchan would talk back, spit, struggle until there is not an ounce of energy left in him. Oh, yes. There was a term his former best friend used to say whenever someone, something or even life became a hindrance to his lordly person…
"Fuck you." He spat, not longer minding his manners since none of them deigned to listen to him anyway.
He couldn't escape? Fine. But he was not going to stay obedient while they were about to enjoy torturing a middle school teenager. He won't let himself succumb to their villainy. He will fight back until he no longer can.
Another chuckle was heard next to Kurogiri who was standing behind the bar.
"I see. You did well Tomura, that boy is indeed interesting. Such liveliness… It would be lovely to have a bit of young vitality within the League. I guess it can always help to boost the group's spirit."
"That means I can keep him?" The invisible excitation in Shigaraki's voice made Izuku shiver.
"I don't see why not. Just don't do anything too rash with Midoriya-kun. Try to get along with him, in the meantime I will gather every info I can get about our young newcomer. Kurogiri, I'm counting on you to maintain order in the League during my absence, as usual."
"...Understood."
There is a slight buzz on the screen and then the connection was cut, leaving the TV completely dark this time. Izuku stayed pinned on the table, Shigaraki's height shadowing the teen as the villain bent down to his ear, "I knew Sensei would understand. Because of you my days won't be boring anymore, Pet."
"...I don't get it. I won't be of any use for you, you don't even know me. Please just let me go. I won't tell anything about you once I'm outside I promise—"
"I don't care. You stay here until I tell you otherwise."
"You're insane! People don't kidnap others just for fun damn it! I don't want this… I don't want this! Let me go!"
"What you want does not matter, brat," Kurogiri interrupted, "you are now under the League's responsibility. Therefore, you will follow our wishes or the result of your disobedience will have serious implications in the future."
"You won't get away with this! I won't become your little pet you heard me?!"
"Aaah so loud," Shigaraki sighed. He took out his phone and typed something, having momentarily released Izuku's emerald curls. "We've got to make some arrangements for the brat, Kurogiri. Do you think we can put some blanket around here?"
"I'm not a dog you bastard!"
"We can arrange a small space for the boy, but how do you intend to hold him in place?"
"I took care of everything. Magne's coming with some items I requested just now." He put his phone back in his jean pocket. "Hey, Pet. I'm going to release you for now, will you stay still or do you prefer being restrained the hard way?"
Izuku spat. "Like hell I'll stay still! Hurry and let me go so that I can finally kick your ass, you villain!"
Kurogiri sighed, so did Shigaraki. The blue-haired man then lifted the corner of his chapped lips and shrugged, "So the hard way, it is."
Midoriya frowned. "What are you—"
He didn't get to finish as a sharp pain hit him on the back of his neck and black spot instantly filled his vision. Izuku didn't have the time to realize what had just happened and quickly fell into nothingness.
A buzzing noise slowly pulled Izuku from his deep slumber. Everything seemed echoing for a moment, until the smooth humming starts to become more and more clearer.
"...told me… the store… you…!"
The buzzing sounds started to forms coherent words and the boy noticed there is more than one voice. He tried to open his eyes but they were so heavy he felt like he had a pair of rocks instead of eyelids. He stirred a little, hoping to stimulate his body in order to shake off the feeling of tiredness.
"Oh my… He.. up…-how gorgeous... looks!"
"Back off Ma... You-... scare him."
Another voice arose next to the previous one, more distinct and consistent. Izuku succeeded to crack his eyes open. The world was all blurry and wavering at first but seconds later everything became perfectly clear. The teen nearly scream when find a huge pair of lips cooing only centimeters away from his face. He started and almost fell off the couch but managed to catch himself before hitting the ground.
Wait… the couch? Since when—
"See? I told you you would scare him."
"How rude! I was just admiring his beautiful sleepy face. Look at those marvelous freckles!"
Now that he was fully conscious, Izuku became more aware of his surroundings including the newcomers standing right in front of him. The one with the big lips had shoulder-length hair with a reddish magenta color. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglasses but Izuku could perfectly imagine them small and lively.
The second stranger had a reptile-like appearance with big green for skin and a face shaped like that of a lizard. He was like a human sized reptile. Was that his quirk? Mutant types were the most surprising. Izuku has always found intriguing the way people could merge with anything and everything just because of the natural mechanism of their quirk.
But now wasn't the moment to take interest of a stranger's quirk. Especially when he was still within Villain's lair and—
Wait a minute. He was with Shigaraki when he lost consciousness. Images exploded into his mind, Izuku remembering what happened before his black-out. Kurogiri, the voice on the screen, the escape attempt that totally failed and then-
The blow. Shigaraki's hit him. That bastard has knocked him out! That meant these two were his accomplices. He shot them a glare.
"Who are you?"
He grimaced when he heard his voice croak like a creaking door. The huge one seemed to find it cute, given the way his eyes automatically sparkled at him.
"So precious! Oh my. Boss was right to take him. I can't stop looking at his beauty. I want to hug him already!"
"Please don't." Izuku and the other said simultaneously.
The reptile then focused on him, observing him up and down before finally answering his question, "I am Iguchi Shūichi, also known as Spinner in the underground. Big Sis here is Magne. Please, refer to her as a She or your ears will bleed all day from her endless scolding."
"Uh… okay?"
"Boss didn't pull any punches," Magne sighed tragically, "you were unconscious for three long hours."
"WHAT?"
Izuku jumped on the couch and was about to get on his feet when a rattling sound arose around his neck as he finally realized the strange, cold pressure wrapped around his throat.
He stopped. Izuku blinked but did not dare to look down yet, feeling the bile slowly ascend the depths of his throat. No way.
He brought his shaking hands up until the tips of his fingers reached the metallic band encircling the base of his neck. His face went pale instantly. Izuku forgot how to breath for a moment, not believing for a second that kind of thing was happening to him. No way.
Nowaynowaynowaynoway—
His petrified eyes followed the line of the chain from his neck to what seemed to be a large hook fixed into the wall. It wasn't there earlier. They probably installed it during the time he was knocked unconscious.
His shock was instantly replaced by a sharp, burning anger. "What. Is. This," he hissed.
Confused, Magne replied, "Uh, a collar?"
"What the hell. Is this thing- doing around my neck." Magne clapped her hands together.
"Boss asked me to buy this for you! Said he found a stray in the street and took it home so I complied to his request without asking any questions. But who would've thought it was such a cute young man who caught the eye of our Boss?!"
"WHERE IS HE!"
"Out," Spinner answered, "Doing some business with Kurogiri. He'll return soon."
"Take this thing off me!"
"We can't," Magne said, "Boss's the only one who can remove it."
"I don't care who can remove it or not! I don't want it ON ME!"
"And we told you we can't, even if we wanted to. So stop making a fuss and stay still before Kurogiri and Shigaraki-san get back."
Unwilling to listen any of their orders, Midoriya whirled around and pulled on the chain, putting all his strength in attempt to extract the metallic strings from the wall.
"So stubborn…" the lizard sighed.
"So cute…" Magne gasped as she clasped her hands under her chin.
Izuku's non-existent muscles got tired sooner than he thought. As the hook has not moved an inch he was inconveniently propelled back and out of the sofa. He hit the ground with a thud, Spinner and Magne watching Izuku's exhausted form on the floor, strangely fascinated.
He growled, panting.
"Ninja Turtle... Magne- something... if you do not release me now… I'll scream…. till your brain bleeds through your ears."
"Ninja Turtle…?"
"It's Magne! Just Magne! And call me Onee-san!"
"...Fuck." Midoriya passed an arm over his face. He was still in that damn bar, collared and unable to escape. It's been three hours since he was abducted. Shiaki was probably worried stiff now. Did she call the police? Are they investigating the case? Were they going to come here and save him?
Probably not.
Hey, who's going to care for a pathetic quirkless orphan after all. It wasn't like he- ...Oh. Crap. He was already having pessimistic thoughts. No no no. Doing that would just complete that Shigaraki-bastard's plan. He couldn't succumb to despair. Not so soon.
Sighing, he removed his arm off his face and watched as their eyes were still fixed on him. "What?" he snarled.
"Are you alright honey?"
"'f'course I'm not." He sighed again and rolled over himself in order to adopt a sitting position. "Okay, give me a phone."
"Excuse me?" the reptile asked.
"I left mine in my bedroom. I want to call my family and tell them I'm fine. I don't want them to worry."
"We can't do that." Izuku exploded.
"What can you do then?! I'm supposed to be in my home right now, stressing over the results of UA tests! Not here, bound to a damn wall waiting for my kidnappers to return and ask them to let me go for the hundredth time! I'm just a damn middle-schooler who didn't ask for anything except to be left alone! So give me your phone and let me reassure my family at least!"
"Whoa there, calm down cutie-"
"Shut up! I'm fed up with your bullshit! I will no longer tolerate being chained like a dog as if I was some kind of circus attraction!"
"Wait, did you say UA?!" Spinner exclaimed.
Midoriya ignored him. "Give. Me. Your. Phone."
"You're not in position to ask for anything, boy."
"My name's not boy, Ninja Turtle."
"And mine is not Ninja Turtle! What is that anyway?!"
Midoriya paused. He blinked. "Wait… You don't know? The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?"
"Doesn't ring any bell. Is that a hero? A bit too long for an alias don't you think..."
"Oh my god."
"I wanna know that Ninja guy too!" Magne exclaimed like they were going to expose the biggest gossip.
"I'm not going to- It's not… oh god." His head was about to exploded. "What villains do in their spare time when they're not butchering innocent people?"
"We train."
"Shopping."
"We scour weapons."
"Make-up."
"We scheme plans for world domination."
"Hit on hot guys."
Izuku couldn't help it- he facepalmed. Were they actually villains or some lunatic high-schoolers who decided to join a group of criminal just because life was boring? Well, Izuku could not expect anything else since their Boss kidnapped a fifteen years old minor because- he quotes : 'he was bored.'
Anyway. Perhaps giving in their whim will change their mind about letting him escape. We never knew.
He explained, "They are four turtle brothers trained by a rat in the art of ninjutsu. They battle petty criminals, evil overlords, mutated creatures, and alien invaders while attempting to remain hidden from society. So… they're kind of heroes. Heroes of the shadow. Kinda cool, right?"
Spinner seemed shocked at first. A flash of outrage came across his black pupils. "I-I'm a villain damn it! And I'm not a turtle!"
"But you do look like them in appearance though."
"I do not!"
"What is it with the weird cloth on your face anyway? You could be easily mistaken for one of them."
"I. Am. Not. A turtle!"
"Okay Leonardo."
"I'M NOT—"he inhaled deeply. Inhale. Exhale. "No, Never mind. I won't let you provoke me. (too late-) Anyway, what I'm wearing is in tribute to the greatest ex-vigilante villain I came to admire, Stain."
"Ex-vigilante?"
"That's right," Magne said, "He was vaguely known for killing villains he considered as useless trash at the very bottom. But it seems he recently switched target and is now aiming for heroes."
"What? Why!?"
"Apparently, the way they conduct themselves today is not to his liking. He says most of them are not true heroes and do not deserve to live pretending to be one."
"He's right," Spinner nodded in admiration. "Heroes have become weak. They rely on their past achievements while million of people are still suffering everywhere."
"You're wrong…"
Spinner and Magne turned to Izuku, who had his head lowered and eyes hidden behind some dark green curls. His fists were trembling. "You're wrong, heroes are not like that. They're humans too! Nobody can guess or predict an attack if they can't see it with their own eyes. Everyone asks for the impossible whenever heroes are mentioned, but they can't do miracles!"
Izuku raised his head when he finished talking, irises flashing red with anger as he glared at the other two. They continued to stare at each other until Spinner sighed.
"Do you want to be a hero?"
Midoriya clenched his teeth before answering, "I do."
"Why?"
"I always admired their desire to help people. Their strength. Their guts. They live to make us smile in every situation. They symbolize our hopes and security against those who aim to destroy peace."
Flashes of his past replayed in his mind as Izuku remembered the days where he watched All Might save hundred of people during the great incident ten years ago. He remembered his smile while carrying wounded civilians on his back, his flashy big voice announcing his arrival and the promise that everything will be fine.
A smile almost reach his lips as images of the screen back in his youth was still freshly etched in his memory as if it were yesterday.
"Are you aware that not every heroes are as pure as we believe?"
Izuku kept himself from sighing. Nobody was perfect, so why villains were so eager to put heroes at fault whenever they had the slightest opportunity… "You wouldn't understand anyway," he mumbled to himself.
He didn't want to continue the conversation any further. Besides putting some cultural education in the duo villain's stupid brains his main concern right now was to find a way to escape from that place and call for help. He needed to signal his location.
"What?" Spinner raised an eyebrow when Midoriya started to muttering almost inaudibly.
"Never mind. Give me your phone."
"You still haven't given up on that!"
"Of course not, I told you I wanted to reassure my family!" No need to point out he was living in an orphanage.
"We gotta ask Boss for that, sweetie. We can't-"
"I won't wait any longer."
"As if you had a choice in the matter-" Ninj- Spinner huffed.
"WHERE IS THAT SHIGABASTARD?!"
"Who're you calling a bastard, damn brat."
His neck nearly snapped when Izuku turned to the left to see the person in question.
"Boss!" "Shigaraki-san," greeted the transvestite and the reptile.
Shigaraki was exiting the black mist at the very opposite of the front door along with Kurogiri, still dressed in black and more artificial -was that artificial?- hands covering parts of his body than last time. But Izuku quickly dropped his observation, his mind roaring in total wrath as it brought him back to the collar's weight.
He gripped the metallic band around his throat while furiously stomping towards Shigaraki, the long chain allowing him to move until only two feet away from the villain.
"YOU!" He halted to prevent the collar from choking him. "WHAT IS THIS?!"
Shigaraki suddenly smirked and filled in the small space between him and the boy. Izuku attempted to hit him with his fist but ended up failing as Shigaraki easily dodged and grip the chain to pull Izuku closer.
Izuku could feel his hot breath on his face as he replied, "That, Pet, is the item that will prove that I'm your owner. Only I am able to remove it so asking anyone else will be useless."
"TAKE IT OFF!"
"Oh, and trying to remove it by yourself won't help either. It's not some collar brought in a simple pet-shop you know."
"Ah?!"
"Exactly!" Magne exclaimed and reached over Izuku to gently place her hands on his shoulders. "I had a hard time finding this little jewel in the black market in such a short time! This is not a simple stuff for decoration!"
"W-What do you mean…" He didn't like the sound of it.
Shigaraki lean closer. Their noses would be touching if it wasn't for the weird hands on the man's face, and Izuku did his best to not spit on his face by impulse. "Try to activate your quirk."
Izuku almost jolted at the idea. Why didn't he just try that when he woke up?! Things could have been a lot easier back then. Having a quirk was still new for him, so even if he got one in the end he hadn't the reflex to use it yet. He forced himself to close his eyes (he absolutely didn't trust the bastard but oh, well)- and try to feel the small spark of energy he got the first time his quirk activated. He put more pressure in his try but—
Nothing.
Not even the comfortable feeling of power coursing through his veins.
"Wha-?! What did you do!"
"This collar prevents whoever wears it from using their quirk."
Izuku's emerald orbs widened at that, and his throat became suddenly heavier as he imagined all the implications concerning the circumstances of what Shigaraki just announced. He was kidnapped, chained and now artificially quirkless again, only three hours after discovering what he thought was a miracle.
"You.. can't be serious."
"Don't worry, we will have all time to analyze you quirk later. For now you just have to be an obedient little Pet and do as you're told and who knows~ maybe I will give it back to you as a reward…"
"SHUT UP! TAKE IT OFF!" he yelled and again tried to remove the collar from his neck, but in vain. Shigaraki only laughed while watching Izuku panic and struggle without success.
"Boss! Boss! You have yet to tell us his name!"
"His name is Pet."
"He said he wants to be a hero," Spinner growled, as did Shigaraki at the mention of that. "Oh yeah, I know. Let him believe that he can if he feels like it. Not like it will happen anyway."
"Fuck you!" Izuku screamed and pushed Shigaraki in the chest, "I'm going to be a fucking hero one day. And neither you nor anyone will stop me! Get ready for the day I'll kick your ass!"
Magne gasped in horror. Never in her life has she heard her Boss being insulted like this. Spinner had his hands on his back, ready to get his swords in case Shigaraki order him to kill the boy. Kurogiri watched in the background without saying a word as if he already knew how it was going to end.
Then, a cruel, bitter sneer resonated in the silent bar, until it transformed into a burst of insane laughter that almost pierced their eardrums. Shigaraki once again grabbed the chain just under the band and pulled.
"Is that a challenge, Izu-chan?"
Izuku nearly choked at the pressure of the villain's grip. "Gh...D-Damn r-right it is..!"
"Very well. Let's see how long you're going to hold on that dream, then. I'm sure we can have a lot of fun until you end up completely broken in our hands."
