Word Count: 11,083
The difference in Kyouka and Denki's demeanors was palpable the next morning.
Not that Kirishima was surprised, of course; he'd heard their every word in the wee hours before dawn (not to mention all their crying). But the sheer near-180-degree flip their attitudes had was definitely something to behold; it was almost as if they'd known Kyouka to be a girl the entire time.
Up ahead, Kyouka snorted and play-shoved Denki, who simply grinned and made some quip right back at her.
There was a little twinge of sadness that pinched at Kirishima's chest as he watched and smiled from behind. He was happy for them, of course. He just found himself…
…missing someone.
(It was Bakugou, of course. He had no problem admitting this, but to focus his thoughts on himself and how he was feeling didn't feel right. Best not to indulge them with names.)
Kirishima blinked twice, a sudden realization falling into his head. Aww, man! Was he the third wheel now? This was gonna suck if he was and they didn't find Momo fast. (He didn't want to start feeling lonely— this was a practically barren mountainside, after all! One of the loneliest places in the world.)
He flicked Riot's reins and trotted to catch up with his friends. "Have you guys found any leads?"
Kyouka and Denki's mirthful expressions sombered, and they shook their heads sorrowfully.
"Honestly, bro, we're probably so far behind her," Denki said. "Where we took that break to rest, she might have just kept going. She was pretty emotional, I could tell, and I'm guessing it would be hard for her to sleep like that." He sighed. "For all we know, she could be halfway home by now."
"Nah," Kirishima automatically replied. "We're pretty far from where the Yaoyorozus live. If I remember correctly, they were given land far from the the borders to keep them safe so that even if we got invaded again her father would never have to encounter an enemy again. It was a reward from the emperor after the last major border wars for being such a pivotal member of the army."
His friends stared at him, their eyes bugging out slightly from, what he lately realized, the most specific information on Momo that she had never told them.
He nervously scratched the back of his neck. "I guess I was the only one told about the aftermath border wars, huh."
"Dude!" Denki exclaimed. "How do you know all that stuff? I don't even know that much about what's going on now in this war, and it turns out you just have this? Heap of knowledge stored in your brain? That you never bothered to share with us?"
"Momo never once mentioned anything about her family history to me." Kyouka picked up where Denki had left off. "And now you're just spouting the origin of her family's property? That's crazy."
"Must be a military family thing," Kirishima said sheepishly, and actually, that was fair. Every crazy bastard who did something even remotely epic and/or stupid got passed through the generations as tall tales and wild adventures. Friends kept in touch with friends once the battles were through and the men sent home; someone as well-known even among the peasantry for gallantry in battle as the elder Yaoyorozu was going to have his post-war business spread everywhere by all his old army mates, and that included where, when, and why he settled down.
"But anyway, now that it's day, I'd guess that…" Kirishima trailed off as he focused his attention on the sky and their surroundings. The layer of fresh snow made things both easier and harder— easier in the fact that they could visibly track her down (if they found her trail); harder in the fact that they were far from prepared to deal with the stuff. (He'd noticed Kyouka in particular shivering as she laughed, and he worried for her. Denki, on the other hand, seemed to be well-adjusted to the snow and simply had rosier cheeks than usual, thought maybe that wasn't so much a product of the cold.) "I'd guess that we're heading too far up the mountain. It gets so cold and barren up here, and you could easily get snowburn from the lack of shade."
Kyouka cocked her head at Kirishima, but if she had any questions, she put them away for the time being.
.
.
.
The air wasn't quite so cold anymore, but the dryness of it still scraped at Kiri's throat. Further from the peak, the snow was rapidly melting in the harsh, white light of the sun. Kirishima's mind was filled with haze; all the sameness— the same motion to the same result— was leaving the last hour or so (time had ceased to have any meaning once they started seriously searching) was blending all that had happened within it into a singular, mushy blur. (He wondered if this was how Denki felt most of the time.)
Conversation had long since dried up. Once their focuses settled, Kyouka didn't seem to want it, and Kirishima sensed that talking would be a distraction anyway. The only sounds that played in their ears now were the wet crunch-crunch of slush and grit beneath their horses' feet. And even that, Kirishima was beginning to tune out.
Somewhere inside, though, he held on. To that fleeting remnant of consciousness swirling in the back of his mind, to the hope that Momo was still out there. She was, he was sure— nearby, perhaps, even— he believed that she was. So did Kyouka and Denki.
Together.
Together, they'd bring her home.
.
.
.
The first cry of recognition was not his, but had they really expected anything else? This was Kyouka's mission at heart; of course she'd spot Momo again first, listless and hollow and so, so alone it seemed. He and Denki were just along for the ride.
Consciousness came back to him in much the same way he could describe falling asleep: slowly, then all at once. Reverse-falling, he thought, the first one he had with sharp awareness in quite a while.
"Momo!" Kyouka screamed, jumping off her horse and staggering through the last, sad remnants of slush and snow that remained.
The hollow, nearly lifeless-looking, figure turned to look at them. Their horse's reins slipped from their grasp as Kyouka threw her arms around them in a joyous, relieved hug.
Kirishima furrowed his eyebrows, stopping Riot in her tracks with a gentle tug on the reins. On paper, that sure looked like Yaoyorozu, with the black hair and grey, catlike eyes, but there was something missing from her soul. The spirit, the fire, the spark of life, whatever you wanted to call it, it was gone.
Kiri flicked his gaze over at Denki, and they briefly shared a look as Kyouka chastised Momo in the background. Was this just a product of her getting kicked out? Or was there something more?
Luckily for the boys, Kyo finally noticed that Momo's mind didn't seem to be of this realm anymore. She waved her hand in front of Momo's eyes, her brow furrowing in concern, and said, "Hey, Yaomomo, are you all right?"
At last, a little something seemed to return to the other girl as she finally realized her friends were really, truly there with her. She shook her head out, regaining herself and gathering her thoughts as it appeared, but the words that spilt from her lips shocked the souls out of everyone else:
"Shigaraki's still out there." The clouds lurking behind her eyes cleared up, and they darkened ever so slightly. "I saw him. This war isn't over."
If you wanted, you could have knocked Kirishima over with a feather right then.
The days were hard to keep track of when nothing much happened in them. Not that Shoto particularly wanted to do anything as of late, but their arrival at the captial felt like a slap in the face compared to how much time he thought had passed since the mountain. How long had it been? He hadn't any idea whether it had been two days or two weeks.
However long it had been, time had made him numb as well. Entering the city felt like nothing much to do.
When Shoto heard the hoofsteps catching up to him from behind, he assumed it was Katsuki, as he was the only person left in the army who seemed willing to approach him. Had there always been this gap? Shoto had forgotten how most of the soldiers viewed him— untouchable, unreachable; a level above them that must be treated with utmost reverence.
He had forgotten what it was like to be alone.
Yet, the voice, while all-too familiar, did not belong to Katsuki.
"Shoto."
His breath caught in his throat, and a jolt of recognition ran through him. His heart skipped a beat, his stomach flipped itself inside out, and he could never admit it (not even to himself), but he knew inside that he had missed this feeling, even if it had only been gone for a short while.
"Shoto."
The voice was higher than the version he had in his head, but that made sense, for as much as he didn't want to believe it, Shoto knew as well as the back of his own hand that that was Yaoyorozu's voice.
He turned to look at the source, and truly, what else had he been expecting? That perhaps someone else had learned his name and at this late time planned on befriending him? Of course not.
Of course not.
It only ever could have been Yaoyorozu there, sitting upon her horse and boring into his soul with her steely grey eyes. (There was a fire behind them he had never seen before; if this was her true nature, he—)
"Shoto," she said with urgency in her voice, furrowing her brow as if growing frustrated with his stupid staring. "We're in danger."
He blinked twice, the words initially meaning nothing until he realized he had to give them meaning. "We?"
Yes, nevermind the fact that he said he never wanted to see her again. (He had said that, right? Even if he hadn't, at this point it felt like he had.) Nevermind this apparent danger she knew of. He was just going to question his involvement in the situation.
Like an asshole.
Nice move, asshole.
"You, me— most everyone within this city is in immediate danger. And so will the rest of the country if we don't act fast," she replied without missing a beat. "Shigaraki's alive, Shoto, and he's bound to be after the emperor. I don't know where he is right now, but while we're here, while we have the upper hand, we should take necessary precautions just in case. Nip whatever he has up his sleeve in the bud."
Shoto paused again, chewing the inside of his cheek. He longed to sink into the idle, chattering crowds that surrounded the train of soldiers parading through the capital streets, hoped it would perhaps give him a break from this sudden, rushing return of emotion.
He knew he was unable, and to run away from something as simple as love (if that's what it even was) was the coward's way out. (Though to call love simple, was it really true?)
"That's ridiculous," he found himself saying, his voice half empty. "You probably saw Shigaraki die better than any of us. How could he have possibly survived your avalanche?"
"We only saw Kurogiri die."
Maybe she had a point there, but if he had to choose between believing her words and believing that the war was over, life had worn on him enough as of late to make him choose the latter option.
She probably saw it on his face as her own darkened. "You trusted Haku," Yaoyorozu said, the hurt clear as day in her eyes and voice, "so why is Momo any different?"
Shoto swallowed thickly. His tongue felt like lead, too heavy to coherently respond, and the short-circuiting of his brain was not helping it at all. "I—" he began, but Yaoyorozu had already given him one last unreadable glance and rode away.
Shoto fought the urge to put a hand over his chest, for it ached deeply now just to watch her go. Something about the way she looked at him, the way her dark eyes shone in the soft lantern light, the way she left thinking he judged her for being a woman, all of it left him feeling hollow. (Maybe eating would help; he couldn't recall what and when he last ate.)
Katsuki clip-clopped up to him and scowled. "God, what the fuck're you doing now?"
Shoto chewed his lip and fought the urge to reach into his pocket and finger Yaoyorozu's dog tag. He could hear Yaoyorozu talk to someone, barely audible and fading fast with their growing distance.
"He wouldn't listen. Let's go, guys."
Shoto swallowed yet again, this time the bitter pill of regret. "Just thinking."
Katsuki narrowed his eyes. (As if he would be able to understand, if he could even figure out what was going on in Shoto's mind.) "Cut the crap, Hapa. Something just happened, so spit it out."
Shoto really didn't want to, but the hollow feeling in his chest weighed on him in a different way, almost the opposite way, than the crushing regret of just now. The other half of his heart had given up, watching Yaoyorozu turn and leave of her own accord, leaving behind mere apathy.
"Shigaraki is still alive, according to Yaoyorozu just now," he said, his words feeling a little careless.
As if it make up for his lack of emotion, Katsuki's own temper flared. "And what? You're not going to do anything about it? Just because she's a girl doesn't mean she doesn't have a brain in her skull. Think she's just seeing ghosts now that you know she's a girl? Give her some fucking credit."
Shoto clenched his jaw and swallowed all the thoughts he wished to voice. He was right, she was right, I just can't handle myself right now, I don't understand, I don't understand why, why, why. She was right and why don't I listen to her? Asshole.
Katsuki must have taken his inner chidings as stubborn, biased refusal, and he pointedly rolled his eyes. "Dumbass," he muttered under his breath, though suspiciously loud enough for Shoto to catch without any trouble. "I'm going to get Hawks to take action if you don't."
Ah. Hawks. He would undoubtedly comply with a laugh of amusement. He went with most anything. It was as if the world was his oyster and their actions nothing but the pearl at the center: amusing to look at, maybe admire, but ultimately useless.
Shoto swallowed his words again; Katsuki was just trying to provoke him. It wasn't as if he himself disbelieved Yaoyorozu and wanted to actively prevent Katsuki from taking action based off her words, but c'mon. He was bluffing, right? The most he'd do would rally their little squadron of soldiers they'd raised themselves and keep a closer eye on the crowd. He wouldn't actually go to Hawks and—
Shoto blinked when he realized with surprise that Katsuki was gone.
Hawks could be a… character at times, Dabi had noticed. He found the other man's actions were often puzzling, even for someone as free-roaming and capricious as himself.
Well, he supposed there was no harm in believing Katsuki's claim. They wouldn't have to cover a truly huge area, and they did have a small army still following them around. It was just Hawks's apparent carelessness that rubbed Dabi the wrong way.
Dabit stared at Hawks with baleful eyes as the other man seemingly chirruped his instructions to a few of his squad captains. Shoto was notably absent from the talk, and Dabi wondered if it had something to do with Katsuki being the one to give orders this time. Granted, Shoto hadn't really been functioning as of late, but maybe the idea of one last battle against the enemy ringleader had gotten him up and running for the moment.
Dabi looked off to the side, where he could see Katsuki atop his horse, pushing through the crowds of citizens just here to celebrate the end of their very short war. Trying his best not to blatantly stare at the kid, he strained his peripheries trying to see who the kid was heading towards. Was it that redhead? Probably, but Dabi's instincts at the moment didn't let him even entertain the thought of teasing any of those kids.
"Yeah, you know what?" he said to Hawks, shaking out his head to clear the strain on his eyes. Hawks was probably listening with less than half an ear, but Dabi didn't care. "I'm going to tag along with them. They look like they're going to do the fun and important stuff."
"Sure. Do whatever your little roast heart desires," Hawks called back, sparing the briefest of moments before decisively nodding at his captains as dismissal.
His gut was telling him something wild was about to go down, and the eldest Todoroki son trusted his gut.
He set after them.
It had been ages since Kyouka had worn a dress. She had no idea where Momo had gotten them on such short notice, but then again, this was the capital. What lay in its streets and crowds were a complete mystery to Kyo.
"You ready?" Momo called over her shoulder.
Kyouka finished knotting her sash, stretched, and turned to face her friend. "Yeah, just about. Haven't worn one of these in ages."
"Feels weirdly light, huh?" Momo agreed, walking toward her with the grace of a practiced lily gait, then reaching out and adjusting a few of the details on Kyouka's dress.
"Yeah, to be honest," Kyouka said. She cracked her knuckles as Momo stepped away. "But it's all right. If not for these slippers, I'd say it's all the better to kick ass in, but I think we can manage together." She extended a fist to her friend, half smirking and half grinning out of a tumultuous mix of sheer excitement and deep-rooted fear.
Momo blinked at it, then fist-bumped with a slight smile of her own. "Let's meet with the boys."
.
.
.
"Okay, gu— girls," Momo said, hastily correcting herself as Kiri and Denki came within earshot. (Kyouka had to hold in a snicker.) "We got this. Just stick close to Kyo and I, tread lightly, and they'll let us most anywhere."
"Gooot it," Denki sang in a surprisingly convincing falsetto, whipping out a fan and fluttering what tiny eyelashes he had at Kyouka in an attempt to make her giggle. (It worked.)
"What, something in your eye, Chargedolt?" she teased, to which he began wiggling his eyebrows and striking progressively more ridiculous poses. Kyouka barked with actual laughter this time, but when Momo gave the both of them a reprimanding look, they sobered up. This was a serious mission at the end of the day, as ridiculous as the means were.
Momo took a deep breath and patted her cheeks to calm down. She was nervous, so nervous about the plan, but they had no other choice. The fate of their country rested in the four of their hands. Which made for a total of eight hands. Eighty fingers.
Wait, what the hell was she thinking?! Now was not the time to be getting distracted!
(She almost wished to puke, if that was what it took to relieve her nerves and clear her mind.)
"What's up, ya dumb fucks."
Momo jumped, startled at the sudden voice behind her, and her brain frazzled for a second at the shock of seeing the scarred Dabi grinning haughtily down at her. Bakugou, scowling as he always did, came up from behind him a few seconds later.
He wiped a bit of imaginary dirt from the corner of his mouth and tried to look at the people before him. Or, well, before Dabi, but who gave a shit he was Katsuki Bakugou. He pushed the young man away so that he could better observe them all.
Peony looked both strange and normal dressed as a girl. Strangely normal, he supposed. Whatever the fuck. His purple-haired friend looked bizarrely comfortable in women's clothes— Katsuki realized right then that he had been stupid to assume there had only been one woman in the army's ranks.
Chargedolt was making eyes at Peony's buddy, surprise-surprise. And wearing feminine clothes, too, but if anything that seemed to be part of the plan. Katsuki would have rolled his eyes at the ridiculousness of it, but he was also keenly aware of Dabi right next to him. It was hard to forget all his teasing, all of it all too fresh in his mind, especially with that one person so nearby. (Stupid Dabi, planting his stupid words in his mind.)
Kirishima didn't know why Bakugou seemed to avoid looking at him. Was he imagining things? Was he mad at him for abandoning the army? It was an offense punishable by Kiri-had-forgotten-what (probably death), but technically, they had come back to aid in what could reasonably be foreseen as the most important battle in the war. Maybe Katsuki didn't recognize him in girls' clothing.
Yeah, that made sense.
"Everyone got that?" Dabi asked, cutting through Kirishima's internal monologue.
"Yes," Kiri automatically replied. No, he said inside.
Dabi snorted to himself. "I knew you were off on your own somewhere. I haven't explained anything yet."
Kirishima's face turned as red as his hair, but at least that one quip was all.
Dabi stood up straight and looked at the heap of feckless kids before him. God, was he really going to do the responsible thing and take them all under his wing? He thought of himself as a weird uncle at best, though in reality, he was more likely to be an annoying older cousin.
But, fuck it. What better way to stick it to his dad than by guiding a pack of dumb and easily-influenced children to certain victory? The only problem was that, uhhhhh…
Dabi fucking sucked at strategy.
The Yaoyorozu kid fidgeted with her sleeves. Probably felt stupid now that whatever they'd been doing stalled.
"You," Dabi said, pointing at her. Yaoyorozu flinched and looked up at him with wide, terrified eyes. "The smart one."
"My name is Momo," she said, and Dabi knew that. He'd heard stuff around. He just didn't care right now.
"Yeah, okay, whatever. You had a plan, right?" Dabi asked, but didn't bother to wait for an answer he already knew. "Of course you do; otherwise you all wouldn't be all dressed up in women's clothing. God help those women you probably mugged—"
"We did not—"
"—but they don't matter right now. Not in the grand scheme of this plan I'm sure you have." Dabi crossed his arms and cocked an eyebrow at her expectantly.
"Well, um," Momo struggled for words. Most of it had relied on all of them making stuff up as they went along, to get out of the random scrapes they were sure to stumble upon inside the palace. The rest of it… "We're missing someone."
"Really? Who?" Dabi immediately asked, probably channeling his inner Aizawa right now if everything Shoto had told her was true.
"Shoto," she said, reluctant to admit it but too stubborn to show it. "I planned to have him be the one to kill Shigaraki."
"Oh? And what makes him the only one for this job?"
Momo's mind flashed back to the moment she killed Toga and involuntarily shuddered. (This must have disturbed Uraraka, for she could for a moment feel the dragon shifting within the folds of her tunic.)
"Nothing, I guess," Momo lied, wondering if she could pull enough bravery out of herself to take on the role herself.
"Cool; you can have his job it looks like."
Ha ha ha oh shit. (Just what was Dabi up to? (Was he even planning anything?))
She now had to be the one who ensured Shigaraki's end.
Wonderful.
Peony gulped. "All right," she said, and with every passing second, Katsuki's patience trickled away. She was visibly nervous (Did she think she was able to hide it? Because if so, he'd already seen better acting from her.) and, oh, to hell with it all.
"For fuck's sake, if none of you are going to at least enter the damn palace, then I might as well fuck off and get everything done myself," he snapped, cracking his knuckles out of sheer irritation. (Someone, he could feel their stare, was glancing quickly between himself and Peony. If he had to guess, it was Hairbrain, but this was one of those times when he wasn't going to check if he was right.)
"And how are you planning on getting in?" that one chick retorted. (Man, Katsuki was going to need an actual nickname for her aside from Peony's Buddy at this rate.)
"I'onno. Crash through the window. Don't see you guys having any better ideas," he snapped right back. "What were you going to do, tramp in there looking like concubines? What're you going to do if they treat you like concubines then, huh?"
"Well, obviously not anymore now that you and Dabi are here," Peony said, almost blithe-sounding.
Katsuki snorted. "And what part are we supposed to have in this?"
Peony smiled. (Katsuki didn't like the look of that…)
"Bait."
Shoto was getting fidgety now. He'd had entirely too much to think about what Katsuki had said (all of three minutes, at least), and now he'd begun to regret brushing Yaoyorozu off.
(That last look of hers was already starting to haunt him…)
He glanced up and around. Well, Aizawa wasn't around. Who knew where he was at the moment. His soldiers were well-trained; he could trust them to remain placid as he slipped away.
He took in a breath, tightened the reins in preparation, and he let both go. He set his eyes on the front doors, on the tiny people in colorful clothing around the front of the palace, dipping and bobbing around, yet seemingly never entering.
Was it too late to join Yaoyorozu?
(He really wanted to.)
He took in a breath, tightened the reins, and he let both go.
Dabi flicked his eyes lazily around the halls. If I were that handsy little tart, where would I hide?
He glanced behind himself at the train of kids padding silently behind him. Yaoyorozu looked up at him, and they locked eyes for a moment. Dabi nodded at her to go do whatever the fuck she had planned before he and Kitty crashed the party. Immediately, she pulled her friends out, and they dispersed to god-knew-where. Dabi was now alone.
If I were that handsy little tart, where would I hide?
Knowing Shigaraki, he'd probably holed himself up in one of the resting chambers. Was it the emperor's? Fuck if Dabi knew. (But also fuck if Shigaraki knew because Dabi sure as shit knew he Didn't.) All he knew was that old Handsy-Hands had an affinity for soft things and also for holing himself up where no one would ever be able to find him because he lived in fear of even the dirt.
Dabi closed his eyes and exhaled through his nose, silencing the irritation seemingly bubbled out of nowhere. Okay. Where did he enter? Probably the roof somehow. No one knows how, no one knows why, I'm just going to assume that he got in through the roof. Knowing him and knowing proper building strategy, that should leave him somewhere in the middle of the upper levels of the building…
Katsuki had no idea why he was following these fuckwits around.
Well, he wasn't so much following them around anymore; Peony had split them off so they could fan out and close in on old Handsy-Hands Shigaraki, but now that Katsuki had had some time to zone out and think some thoughts for himself, he was noticing, a-ha, a kind of important hole in the plan.
This hole, of course, being that no one had bothered to take into consideration that the emperor may or may not still be inside the palace and, by extension, may or may not still be in danger of dying.
Wow, oh wow, was he surrounded by idiots.
He cracked his neck. Well, there was no one around to stop him but himself, but he sure as shit wasn't going to stop him, so obviously that meant now he had full reign of himself.
And he was going to go out and make sure that little mouse-man-thing was a-okay and not getting fucked over by someone overlooking a very important detail.
He cracked his knuckles and took actual careful notice of where he was. (If he got lost, he needed to be able to return here at the very least.)
And he began to run.
He threw open the doors that he could, took a mad glance around— usually, the rooms were empty, save for a servant, but once or twice he stumbled upon some other official, or a concubine, or hell if he knew or cared. He just told them to get out, and that was the end of it. He didn't think much of it. He zoned out for this job in the same way he had when Peony had given him a different one. What was it again? He didn't even bother trying to remember what her plan was.
"Bakugou?"
Katsuki blinked, apparently face-to-face with one of the only people who called him as an equal. "Shitty Hair?" he grunted, the autopilot wearing off with this new interaction.
Kirishima took a step forward, worry lining his face as he cocked his head. Furrowing his brow, he said, "Dude, what are you doing? Where are you going? That's not part of the plan—"
"Peony forgot to take into consideration that the emperor is probably still in this shithole and like fuck I'm going to trust that char-broiled chicken to not burn this place to the ground," Katsuki cut in roughly. He didn't have time for this. He had to keep moving, to brush off the redhead like it was nothing (which it should have been but wasn't for some reason). His hand left the door he hadn't realized he'd been holding onto so tightly and turned around.
Faster than he could have ever expected, Hairbrain rushed forward and grabbed onto his arm. (Which shouldn't have stopped him so fully but did anyway.) "I'm coming with you," he said. His tone left no room for argument.
But Katsuki was nothing if not argumentative.
He twisted around to focus one cherry-red eye's glare on Kirishima (who should have been afraid of him but wasn't somehow). "You're what now," he said, flatly. Blatantly.
A challenge.
Now those, Kirishima liked to take.
Kiri had to actively keep a grin from making its way onto his face. This was a dead serious situation. Any of them could end up, well, dead, if something went badly enough. But he wasn't that afraid anymore, not right now, not when challenging Bakugou. Katsuki was nice, he was familiar, and he knew deep down inside that Katsuki wasn't going to push him away; he didn't want to, he wasn't like that.
"I'm coming with you," he repeated, and oohhh wow it was hard to keep from smiling. Keep yourself together, Kiri. He's not going to take you seriously if you act like you think it's all a game. "You're obviously going to need someone watching your back."
There it was. The one card Kirishima had always held over Katsuki: his defensive habits. Something Katsuki would need badly if he was to get the emperor escorted out of the palace unscathed.
Katsuki drew in a breath and had to keep himself grinning. He turned to face Hairbrain, all the way, for real now, and looked him over. (Don't smile, don't smile, don't smile.) "I always did like your guts, Kirishima."
That made Kirishima break out into a grin of his own.
(Don't smile, or else you may die with it plastered all over your stupid, shitty, little face.)
"You're actually a really nice person, aren't you, Katsuki?" he asked, feeling emboldened by the atmosphere they'd developed.
Oh, but then Bakugou turned away and started walking. (Well, they did have a job to do.) "No," he answered, plain and flat and matter-of-fact. "I'm really not."
Kirishima trotted to catch up with him, feeling not even the slightest bit of guilt at abandoning his position (and leaving now two sections of the palace open, but if the impressions Dabi had given them of Shigaraki were accurate, they didn't need to worry about him moving around anyway). "Sure you are. If you were mean, then you wouldn't even be thinking about the emperor right now; you'd just be concerned with saving your own skin." There was a quick moment of silence, but Eijirou filled it with his babbling soon enough. "You also wouldn't let me call you by your name if you weren't nice. It'd be all 'sir' this, 'captain' that. I rather like your name better, you know. Katsuki."
Katsuki pivoted around without even stopping and took a step toward Kirishima. He stared at the redheaded boy for a moment, as if studying him for the first time in a new light, and Eijirou merely blinked back, holding his smile. Katsuki's stare didn't bother him. He probably had a purpose to it.
Bakugou took a step back and started walking again, though not quite so fast as before. "Yeah, well, I like you better when you're yourself…" He stopped dead and turned around yet again, though not quite so abruptly this time. He narrowed his eyes at Eijirou and said, "What the fuck is your name."
Hairbrain looked almost like he wanted to laugh. (Not that Katsuki would have minded seeing that, but— oh, fuck off, Dabi!) Almost made Katsuki regret asking for his name in the first place. Almost.
"Eijirou Kirishima," the boy said, even sticking out his fucking hand as he talked oh what the hell was this, day one of boot camp? What were they, just meeting? Fuck no.
(Katsuki took it anyway.) "I always did like you better when you were yourself, Ei."
Denki poked his head around the corner; he recognized the voices speaking, but the dialogue itself sounded strange coming from their mouths. However, his eyes proved his ears right when he saw them standing there, as clearly Bakugou and Kirishima as any fool could see, chatting in the middle of the hallway about… keeping the emperor safe?
Shit, that sounded important.
Denki stole a glance backward, at Kyo so clearly focused on the actual mission at hand. (Seriously, if all women were as focused on their jobs and as competent as Kyo and Momo seemed to be, then why weren't the allowed to run the country? Denki couldn't fathom being able to have that much power and not fuck up royally.)
Well, she seemed to have everything down pat without him. He focused back on his friends in the hall, talking much quieter now about something Denki couldn't make out. They… probably would appreciate a third set of hands. "Hey guys!" he called, and you know, it was funny how startled they both looked once they realized he was there and approaching.
"What the absolute fuck, Fuzzbrain," Bakugou spat, his hair seemingly puffed up on end like a frightened cat, "are you doing?"
"Tagging along," Denki chirruped, not caring a mite if Mr. Explodey decided to say no. (Kiri would just let him follow along anyway, but Denki knew Bakugou was nicer than all that.)
"Shouldn't you say bye to Kyouka first?" Kirishima chipped in before Bakugou could reject him.
Denki half pivoted right around at that. "Oh, true," he said, trotting up to the corner once more and poking his head around it. "Hey, Kyo! I'm gonna leave you to your thing and join Bakugou."
"Don't die," Kyouka automatically replied, hardly even looking up.
Denki laughed. "Don't you die either," he called, his voice affectionate.
Kyouka rolled her eyes, closed and locked the door in front of her. Turning around, she sent a pointed look at Denki. "There is no way you're going on without me waiting for you in the afterlife first."
"Not unless we make it there together." Denki winked at her, and his face vanished around the corner once more.
Kyouka shook her head, muttering to herself about how he was going to blow himself up at this rate (but not really believing it, of course; she had a smile on her face to disprove that).
Momo looked at her, a little surprised at how easily the two of them had bantered. Just what had happened when they were looking for her? Obviously something that had changed their whole dynamic. (If this hadn't been purposely intended to be the end to the war, she wondered how everyone would be now that almost everyone was out in the open about who they were and how they felt.)
Uraraka wiggled out from the folds of her dress. "The coast is clear now, right?" she asked, bringing Deku out with her.
Momo glanced down at the tiny dragon and nodded. "A distraction would be great pretty soon. We've locked up most of this floor, and I doubt there's anyone left in the immediate area. Shouldn't be too long now before we see Shigaraki for ourselves."
Uraraka jumped to the floor, cricket clinging to her horns like they were the reins to a wild mustang. "I promise we'll be back before you leave the palace," she said as Momo crouched down so they could be a little closer to eye level. "You still have the scale I gave you, right?"
Momo nodded and reached out to briefly rub Ochako's nose. The dragon closed her eyes and purred, then reached out to push Momo's hand away so that she could talk. "That's good," she said, patting the hand. "As long as you have it, I'll find my way back." She paused for a moment, knowing what came next but not fully committed to saying it yet.
"We need to go now," Deku chirped softly, and Ochako knew that, but her reluctance made sense considering the last time the left Momo on her own. It wasn't that Ochako didn't trust her to be alone, it was just that she didn't trust the rest of the world with her baby alone.
She sighed, patted Momo's hand, and said, "Good luck."
She didn't wait to hear or see the girl's response before galloping off. Down the hall and up the stairs, down another hall— all of these were thankfully empty. She slowed down when she passed by an open door, the voice of a very faintly familiar man drifting through.
"Ah, Shigaraki," Dabi said evenly, fighting the temptation to close the door behind him for maximum intimidation points. "Fancy seeing you here."
"Dabi," the crusty, croaky other man breathed. "So you survived. I see, I see. We must escape at once. I've been given orders to murder the emperor from within, but there are just too many people here, Dabi! Too many people, can't do it on my own quite yet."
Dabi swallowed as imperceptibly as he could as Shigaraki approached him with a speed creaky, anxious men shouldn't be having. "Don't worry, sir, I'm here now," he said smoothly. "We'll get you out of here and back to your plotting in no time." (He actively ignored the moment Shigaraki mentioned orders because really? He didn't want to get tangled up in the idea of there being someone else pulling at the strings at the moment.) "I've managed to infiltrate their ranks, but we haven't got much time before they get suspicious, so quick! Follow me."
But Shigaraki snatched his sleeve and, trembling, clutched it for dear life, his bloodshot eyes wide with terror. "But will we get out quickly enough? Will we still be able to kill the emperor? Tell me, Dabi, will we triumph in the end?"
Dabi resisted the urge to gulp, to pry Shigaraki off of him, but the latter had a grip like a vice, and the former had trust and honesty he didn't wish to break. "I can guarantee victory," he said, voice surprisingly level, even to him, "but you will have to trust me. Everything's being set up on the nearby balcony."
Shigaraki twitched— once, twice, then stilled. He loosened his grip, and even Dabi could relax now. Breathing heavily, he took a step back, then turned his wild eyes to the burnt man. Not a word was exchanged between the two, but the distinct trust was unmistakable.
He followed Dabi out the door.
"Your highness!" Eijirou yelled upon bursting into a room, panting and hoping that he was righ this time. (Seeing those actual concubines a few minutes ago, now that had been embarrassing.) Katsuki and Denki squeezed in after him, and at last, their luck paid off: a fuzzy, little creature in yellow robes turned around and smiled at him.
(Was that seriously the emperor? Well, hell if any of them knew. Clearly, he was just a god comfortable in one of his truer forms.)
"Ah, young Bakugou," he said, completely ignoring the other two young men. (Probably because he didn't know them personally.) "I trust that you have been getting better as of late?"
Katsuki's nostrils flared, irritated. (Eijirou and Denki exchanged confused glances, each mouthed, "what?" at one another.) "Nevermind that, Shigaraki is here in the palace, ready and able to kidnap and kill you at any minute now, so I suggest that we, uhhh—" he paused sarcastically— "get the fuck out of here."
If the emperor on high was in any way fazed by Katsuki's behavior, he didn't show it whatsoever. In fact, he seemed delighted, almost, to see Katsuki talking in such a manner. "Ah, I see! Thank you for telling me, Bakugou; I see these last few weeks have been quite good for you."
Eijirou and Denki exchanged confused glances yet again, but Katsuki paid none of it any mind, so neither did either of them. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. We just need to get you out of here…"
Kyouka glanced over at Momo, noticing in her great concern the look of nauseated unease upon her best friend's face, heard the ragged exhale tainted by nerves that escaped her lungs. She tightened her grip on the door handle, worried herself now. "Hey, Yaomomo," she whispered, and Momo's head whipped in her direction, eyes wide as a deer caught two seconds away from death. She, of course, relaxed when she realized it was not only Kyouka talking, but also that they were completely alone in the hallway.
"You ready for this?" Kyouka asked, her voice feeling strangely listless and hollow in the big, empty hall. Momo merely nodded, her own actions looking as soulless as Kyouka's felt.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Momo said, her hand reaching almost unconsciously to the sword she had forgotten she no longer had, not since she'd been kicked out. Instead, she touched the unfamiliar hilt of a weapon they'd found just around the palace; it was nothing special, but with nothing left that she knew, Momo was feeling more nervous than ever for the final blow of the battle.
Kyouka extended her hand, palm outward, and Momo took it for all of a minute. Kyo gave her a comforting squeeze, then let go. "Good luck," she whispered as she pulled the door open.
A thundering boom! crashed overhead, and Aizawa, ever aware of his surroundings, glanced up to see the last colorful sparks of a firework raining down on the scene. Soon, a second one shot into the sky, screaming before exploding overhead, then another, and another.
"Makes you kind of wonder what they're doing over in the palace," Hawks said cheerfully as he too watched the pretty blossoms in the sky.
"Yes, well, I'm glad I don't have to take part," Aizawa dryly said. "They better not be doing anything stupid right now." Or else I'm disowning all of them.
As if he could read thoughts, Hawks glanced over at Aizawa, a curious expression upon his face, then snorted whilst grinning. "I'm sure they'll do fiiiine. Right? Right."
Hmph. He'd better be right.
Shoto had barely made his way up the stairs before he saw the balcony door close. He caught the eye of Jirou, who had been closing it, and while her eyes seemed to widen briefly, she ultimately just shrugged at him. Tough titties, pretty boy, her voice seemed to ring in his head, which sucked because Shoto didn't like being called a pretty boy, and he didn't even know why that phrase in general would pop into his mind.
Anyway. She didn't seem to want to move. Fuck.
However, there was one more flight of stairs around the corner. Less fuck.
He made a break for it. If the roof was the only way he'd be able to help (if he'd be helping at all, but he didn't want to think about the possibility that he'd just be a nuisance), then he'd be damned before he decided not to go there.
He leapt up the stairs two at a time, pausing only the moment he hauled himself through the hatch onto the roof itself to catch a gasp for breath. Then, one he carefully approached the balcony, focusing only on putting one foot before the other until it became impossible to ignore the dialogue going down below.
"Haven't you seen?" a breathy, throaty voice asked, sounding fervent in a way that made Shoto want to offer them a glass of water. "They think you incapable just because you're a girl. Just tell me now where the emperor is, Dabi told me you knew, and come with me to prove yourself when you slay him."
Shoto tore his eyes away from his feet, couldn't keep himself from looking upon the balcony scene any longer, and lost all of his breath in an instant. It was only Yaoyorozu, slowly backing closer and closer into the railing as Shigaraki steadily approached. Her expression was as close to pure panic and fear as Shoto had ever seen, her hands near trembling as she glanced between the ground beyond the rail and the villain ominously approaching.
"I, personally, will welcome you to our cause with open arms, just as we did with that Toga girl."
That struck a chord within Momo, and instantaneously, she cleaned up. No, she was not like that Toga girl; no, she was not going to kill for the fun of it; and no, she was not going to die. It was as if Shigaraki had spoken magic words spelling out his doom: her gaze fixated on his hideous face, her grip on her sword became like iron, and her breathing became deep and steady and calm. Her brow settled low on her face, her lips fell open to reveal a scowl, and her feet locked into an unshakable position.
A firework shot by them, so close that Shigaraki flinched away in surprise and fear, but Momo was unbreakable. She was a soldier now, through and through, fighting in her final battle. There was no force on earth that could stop her now. Taking the opening the moment it came, she lunged at him with only the deafening roar of her heartbeat rushing through her ears, her sword raised high but coming down on him fast, and then—
Shoto hit the ground the same instant the body hit the floor, masking the sound of his jump. He choked on his own gulp, for some reason fearful that the body was not that of the villain Shigaraki, but the war hero Yaoyorozu.
He stood slowly, chest burning with anticipation and fear, eyes unable to rise from his feet and see the faces of either body, dead or alive, before him until all of a sudden, it felt like something was lifting his chin all on its own and there he saw her.
Yaoyorozu, standing hardly more than a meter away from him, breathing hard from her own exertion and adrenaline as she wiped the blood and sweat off her forehead, tears streaming down her cheeks from god knew what, probably stress and relief, maybe even disbelief— was that what was pouring down Shoto's cheeks now? Was it disbelief?
Or understanding?
Their eyes finally met, through the blur, through the tears, through the fears, as all of it faded away with the rest of the world, and Shoto couldn't hear the dim roar of the crowd that had been in the background for so long, only blood whooshing through his hears. That was cliché, wasn't it? To hear nothing but your own heartbeat when you saw again for the first time in a while the one you loved.
Now it was just the sound of his own breathing, ragged gasps in and unstable sighs out. He wasn't sure if he understood what it meant, to love, but his world at the moment was comprised of nothing more than watching the woman before him lowering her sword and grinning at him, dazed. His heart walloped against his chest.
He wasn't sure what it meant to love, but maybe that old man Aizawa knew and maybe he was right because he couldn't say for himself, he hardly knew anything as a boy just the age of seventeen.
And they were closing the gap between them before he even knew it, at what point had he even begun walking again? It was as if his body had begun moving without him even thinking about it; whatever felt right, happened.
He stopped himself (bit his tongue to wake him from his dream) just when they became arm's distance. Was— was this okay?
Yaoyorozu— Yaoyorozu was, was, was right there in front him, no longer his soldier, but a fighter all the same. Still the same shining sta— no, not a star; that would be Haku. Haku was no more.
She tilted her head at him, blinked as if she still couldn't think quite straight, and stared at him with the first lantern's glow reflecting in her eyes. As if he were something new, curious; as if she too were seeing him in a new light.
(Was this okay? The attention, the details, the feelings that had become just an ingrained part of him by now?)
((Was this all just because he knew her a girl now? Because yeah she was, but she also just finished up a war for him because he didn't believe her and honestly what asshole wouldn't listen to a soldier they'd trusted just days prior because of one unimportant detail?))
(((He… couldn't quite put name to what he was feeling at the moment. Too much overlap, too much going on, too much adrenaline.)))
He opened his mouth, just a little, enough to take in a sharp breath. There was something he wanted to say, but the crashing, deafening roar of a firework going off nearby took that all away.
(Yaoyorozu jerked her head in the direction of as well.)
The sun had long since set, it seemed, but the sky wasn't quite yet black. Flickers of yellow-red played amongst the stars in the sea of deep blue; lanterns, strung from the palace rooftops, cast everything in a soft, orange glow as showers of otherworldly light rained upon their little balcony scene.
Ah, yes.
The rest of the world still existed.
His gaze was drawn back to Yaoyorozu; his thoughts were half-forgotten, but he wanted to say them all the same.
"Hey." She got to it before him. She turned to look at him (and it was like his face was on fire again, but not in a bad way this time), her eyes soft and gentle and not quite like the enchanted, starry gaze from just a moment ago. She looked relieved, or glad even, as she started to speak and—
Then the door bust open behind them, and a different girl yelped as she tripped over the already-forgotten body still lying warm on the floor.
"Momo!" Kyouka yelled, hopping once or twice to regain her footing. Surely enough time had passed by now, right? She didn't know what just transpired on the balcony with Shigaraki, but if he hadn't been dead by now, Momo would've needed backup at this point anyway. (She didn't know quite where the captain came in, but that wasn't too much of Kyo's concern at the moment.) "Oh my god, are you okay?"
Captain Todoroki stepped aside, and like they say, out of sight, out of mind. If he wasn't going to help in the first place, he didn't matter after the deed was done anyway, no fucks given about his relationship to Momo.
Momo's eyes went from bright to exhausted, but she smiled all the same. "Yeah," she said.
(Dabi took this distraction as his cue to kidnap his brother yet again; no one knew what happened to the emperor, and it was best not to dilly-dally with a corpse nearby.)
(("You did a good job, little bro. You at least came around in the end."))
She didn't know at what point Kyouka had ushered her back inside the palace, or wrapped a cloak around her shoulders again, or even when Uraraka returned with Deku. She didn't know what they had been up to, just that she'd hoped they'd make up a good plan on the fly.
All Momo was aware of, after those few seconds with Shoto on the balcony, was that she was standing on the front steps of the palace, right before Emperor Nezu, and nothing much else. Her mind was a haze, her thoughts a rushing blur.
"Yaoyorozu Momo," the Emperor Nezu said, and Momo's heart skipped a beat at the formal reference. Even when integrating into the army, even when Todoroki and Bakugou got their promotions, no one had used the surname, given name format. "Hero of the land."
Just the little detail that let Momo sink into the fact that this was her reality. She was kneeling (how did that even happen? Like, when?) before the emperor. Who happened to be a tiny, godly, mouse-thing… congratulating her? For her feats of excellence in the war that was now over.
I don't think that's ever going to really sink in, was her first coherent thought.
She bowed her head, resting her forehead on clasped hands. "Your Highness, I am undeserving of your praise. It needs no revealing, for it is already known amongst your armies that I am but a woman." She swallowed thickly. Why, oh why must this have been the first thing she was aware of after all that?
But, it was strange. That terrible looming feeling in her gut earlier, that fear, was gone. All she could feel now was the steady beat of her heart pounding against her chest— faster and stronger than usual, yes, but steady nonetheless. Her head, though, it was still stuck with the cottony buzz of exhilaration as she continued. "Rather than praising me, sir, you should be condemning me instead, for that is what your word declares."
There was a pause, a beat of rest, in the dialogue, as if Emperor Nezu were waiting for her to continue. It felt like an eternity as the last of the twilight faded into the true blackness of the night. The first lanterns of the festival had long been lit and let out; if anything, only stragglers were releasing theirs now. To Momo, it felt like the last few seconds of a dying euphoria as a trickle of cold sweat rolled down her exposed neck.
Then, there was a soft warmth on her shoulder, the gentle padded pat of the emperor's paw upon her. She almost dared not look p to see the look in his eye for fear of what it might hold, but all fear had left her now.
He smiled upon her.
"You're speaking nonsense, my child," he said, the twinkle in his eye stirring something within her again. (The pressures of the last months, weeks, days, hours were being lifted when she hadn't even realized they'd been burdening her.) "The country is lucky to have a woman like you to save it, and that is my true word."
He padded over to the tall, blond man (Present Mic, if she recalled correctly), took something from him, and returned carrying it reverently. She was afraid (Again? So soon? It seems I am a coward after all, she teased herself), but she put her hands out to take it. Emperor Nezu's smile never wavered as he laid the bundle in her outstretched hands. "These are yours. As the hero of our country, my word finds you deserving."
Curious, she tugged at the silk wrappings, but flinched away when something caught the light of a bright lantern flame. Could it be…?
A hilt stuck out the other end, and she pulled it from its bundling to a stomach dropping in shock. (Though really, why was she surprised?)
"Shigaraki's blade," Nezu confirmed, nodding as if he could read her mind. "Take it, along with this—" he pulled a pendant from around his neck and placed it carefully onto hers— "as tokens of gratuity from not only me, but on behalf of all my people as well," he said as he helped her up and turned her around to really take in the crowd gathered at the palace.
Momo's breath caught. She hadn't the time before to realize it when she was just desperate to save everyone, but now…!
It really was easy to feel overwhelmed when a sea of people rippled and bowed before her.
"Thank you," she breathed into the scene, not noticing whether anyone heard her or not.
"And now, I think it is time for you all to begin your journeys home again," Nezu said kindly, gesturing to her army mates just nearby. "Would you and your friends like to stay the night? It is quite late, after all, and as powerful as you may be, you still need rest. Slumber may not be so kind so as to visit you for much longer, you know."
She knew a bit of what she was talking about, but at the same time…
She bit her lip and tightened her grip on the sword, then let go of all the stress in one breath. "Thank you, your highness, your hospitality knows no bounds, but I have been away from home far too long. My parents, they need and miss me dearly, I'm sure. I do not wish to keep them waiting any longer."
Emperor Nezu smiled, unperturbed. "A fine choice, young lady. Go, say your final goodbyes, and be on your way. You have my blessings."
And it was like Momo was walking on air as she approached her friends, standing off to the side. Kirishima, it seemed, had enough time to go back to normal, but Denki and Kyo, they were still dressed as girls. Momo half laughed to herself. It had been a stupid idea for sure, but it felt good to know they trusted her enough. How well it worked, she didn't know. Did it matter now? Not really. But all three off her closest friends fell into a hush as she neared.
Kyouka reached out first and clasped her hand, pulling her close. "You know, I'm really, truly grateful to have met my kindred spirit here," she said, starting out strong but already, her voice wobbled with tears. Momo felt her pain as her own, striking deep within her heart, and the lump in her throat formed instantaneously. "I hope we should meet again in the summers to come."
"And we shall," Momo replied softly. What were a few more tears staining her cheeks anyway? "I promise you, I'll make sure of it."
A rough, calloused hand caught the silken threads of her dress. "I'm sorry I ditched you so many times in favor of hanging out with Katsuki," Kirishima said.
"Katsuki?" she asked, and Mr. Angry Butter Hair grunted a ways away, surprisingly neutral.
"Bakugou," Kiri corrected. "Point is, you were awesome out there, always chivalrous, always trying, always manly. I respect and admire the hell out of you."
Momo laughed and wiped away some of the tears he gave her. It never had felt like enough time for her to get to know anyone other than Jirou and Shoto.
"Honestly, same," Denki admitted, and she turned to face him as he looked sheepishly to the side. "But thank you for always taking care of Kyouka for me, and putting up with our bullshit fighting. Honestly, if all women turned out to be like you and Kyo, I'd gladly let you guys rule the country. Then there'd be no more bullshit fighting between kingdoms, I'm sure."
It was weird how sometimes you wept so hard that you ended up laughing instead.
Momo grinned as she laughed and laughed as she cried as her friends enveloped her in a hug, warm and safe and full of love. "Thank you," she said to them, for there were no other words she knew how to use, no words more powerful than the simple thank you of her heart, and they let her go.
She wiped away her tears, caught her breath, and took two steps away before nearly crashing into Shoto as he approached her.
"Oh! Sorry," she squeaked, only sounding that way because of the phlegm caught in her throat.
"Don't worry about it," Shoto breathed, staring down at her. (You know, had he been anyone else, she'd have said he was uncomfortably close, but with him? It felt okay for some reason."
She clutched the sword of Shigaraki just a little harder as they stared at each other in a moment that felt like it lasted forever. (The tense and awkward kind of forever, too.)
"You, uh…" He looked away for a second before punching her lightly on the shoulder. "You fight good."
She swallowed her disappointment with a smile. "Oh," she said quietly, ignoring the twisting in her gut. "Thank you." She forced herself to loosen her grip on the sword in order to let a bit of her expectations go. She tied it to her waist as she walked passed him, deliberately avoiding his gaze as she did so, and climbed effortlessly onto Iida afterwards. She patted the noble steed on the neck. "Let's go home, guys."
Shoto watched as she rode away, the crowd cheering loudly as she wove her way through them. He felt something pat him on the leg, and, looking down, he found it to be the emperor.
"The flower that blooms in adversity is the most beautiful and rare of them all," he said with a sappy little sigh.
Shoto raised an eyebrow at him. "Your Majesty?"
"I don't know. I think I got it from some legend Present Mic once told me. But let me tell you, kiddo. You don't meet a girl like that every dynasty," Emperor Nezu said, smiling up at Shoto with his signature triangular smile.
"Oh, and would you look at that! You still have the poor girl's sword," Aizawa gruffly chimed in, putting a hand on Shoto's shoulder as he shoved another long, thin bundle into the boy's hands. "You should go return that to her."
"Do it, sir!" Kirishima cheered as he gave Shoto a thumbs up, and Jirou and Denki murmured their agreement with sly grins. (Katsuki just glared at him, as if not making a decision would incur his furious wrath.)
Shoto looked between all the people encouraging him to follow the girl, at a total loss for words.
"Go too far from home, and you will lose your roots," Nezu recited, giving him a little push forward. "Kill too many people, and you will lose yourself. If you die in battle, your life will sink into the ground like rain and vanish without a trace. If at that time, you fall in love with someone, hope will blossom again from the earth, and embrace life with passion!"
Author's Note xx. *dancing like i'm in animal crossing or smth* there it is! the final chapter! it's out holy crap! ! ! now for the epilogue lol.
anyway yeah apologies for the suuuper long absence. tbh i wasn't expecting it either, not reaaally, but i kinda saw this coming when i didn't finish the chapter before daylight savings died bc. lowkey solar powered. cries. a lot happened over the last two months. like uhhh if you've been following my tumblr (which you'll have to pm me for bc that's currently classified info) i almost had a fake boyfriend. lowkey i wanted it to go through bc it would be fun but i ultimately left the choice up to the boy and i'm glad he made the decision he wanted. ^w^
god that was JUST LAST WEEK last week felt like a month tbh. anyway, this chapter was made primarily up of morphing (where the persps change smoothly w/o a line break or announcement) and some semipopping (which is my normal line break thing) and also wow it did take two months to write but it's like 10.8k words (this site is lying to you) which is STILL longer than i expected. i was joking that it'd be like 9k but then. yeah. this.
i shouldn't have merged the last two chapters in my outline hdfknadf but like then if they'd stayed separate there would've been stuff expanded and ahhh i'm honestly kinda excited to catch up on the annotated version of orchid so that i can get to here.
tbh i think this is a really sloppy and not-that-great of a chapter, esp. for a climax and everything. feels kinda disjointed and idk how well the characterization is ahh
also did i mention that my section leader is a weeb now? idk if i did but yeah, that's about all i think i have time for in this suuuper long a/n ahaha. thank you for reading (and being so patient like gosh!), feel free to follow/fave for dat epilogueee, reviews would be great regardless of how old this chapter is (or how long the next update stretch is lol), and as always, have a greaaaat daaaayyy~~~