BNHA: Dual Fates
Chapter 48: A strange proposal
A/N: Sorry for taking so loooong, I've so many issues and stress here at home so it dwindled my motivation to write... So, I'm sorry if this chapter is a little off, maybe? But I did make sure to make it a bit longer for more story content.~ 3
It was morning, Kamihara has already eaten breakfast and so had Uviel, so now as mentioned before they were heading to the hospital in hopes of seeing how Hatsume was doing. Down the street and past other civilians that wandered the path, whose sapphire hues glanced at her future father on occasion. The awkwardness was too hard to hide, for he continued to blink continuously between the path and the ninja next to her. "I hope she's alright... I wonder what villain jumped her. Damn, she must be in pain right now," A sigh was hard to prevent, the awkward moment she felt had faded the minute she thought about Hatsume and the ambush.
"She is, without a doubt. However, I do doubt she'd be able to give us enough detail of who the villain was. She mentioned to Thirteen, that it was a thin, slender man in a body suit and she could only see his eyes and hands," Answered the hero, as he moved his gaze down in thought.
"Did she ever describe his eyes? What do they look like?" This time, her curiosity lit up her eyes after she looked at the man and asked.
"All she told her, was that his pupils looked like a very long plus-sign. All of the ends of the plus-sign stretched in both of his eyes and they seemed almost robotic considering how heartless they looked," the hero explained as he watched the girl's face scrunch ever so slightly with worry.
"Nothing else? Weird... Most villains wouldn't be blunt or stupid as to go in alone without any strategy. Yet he escaped somehow, did she say how he escaped?" Uviel questioned again and looked at the houses they passed, on their way to the hospital.
"No, she hasn't gotten that far," From behind, after the ninja answered, he could hear the faint sounds from Kage as the robot followed behind them closely.
"Well, once we see her- I bet she'll tell us," not long after the cybergirl's disappointed words did she groan and give the giant sphere, known as Kage, a peek. She could feel her own laziness kick in and since the large robot was basically her pet, a smirk curled up one side of her lips with an idea. "Kage... Can you give me a ride, please?" as if on cue, upon her words, the machine halted and lowered himself.
"Of course," Cheerily he replied and watched as she jumped on top. Interest shone in Edgeshot's eyes at the sight of a free ride from the robot and curiosity began to grow.
"Is Kage able to hover with you on top? Considering you're bones are more than likely made of metal due to your cybernetics, I'd assume you're a little heavier than most," hesitant, he knew mentioning a girl's weight is almost like walking across thin ice, but his curiosity became too unbearable despite his keen sense of control over his emotions.
"Are you calling me fat...? Kage can move just fine with me on him," A ting of anger caused one of her blue hues to twitch at his comment and when she crisscrossed her legs, a distant voice grabbed both of their attention.
A voice that made Uviel's face turn completely red and curl her legs up close to her chest, to try to hide. "Uviel!" Kirishima, in all of his handsome and gleeful glory, came running in her direction with a wave of his hand."Hey, Uviel, good morning!" Cheerfully he greeted, he too blushed at the sight of a crimson cybergirl and couldn't help but practically coo over yesterday's events.
His lips on hers, her lips on his, her beautiful eyes and their closeness. Everything in that moment, he felt his heart flutter when they confessed and couldn't stop thinking about her birthday party. He could tell she felt the same way, pondering on yesterday's events and knowing that they were together now.
Hesitant, his feet walked closer and her tiny hand was soon gripped into his strong one. A soft kiss, subtle and sweet, she watched him plant his lips onto the top which caused her to smile in an attempt to hide. Manly, I must be ma- before he could even finish his monologue, he couldn't help but hear a whisper that she believed was quiet enough not to be heard.
"Manly.~" muffled, whispered, Uviel spoke to herself with a faint giggle and did her best to hide her face within her hood. Yes, her hoodie returned, for the slight chill in the air was unbearable and needed to be covered from it.
Gaah! She thinks I'm manly! His heart throbbed, and his cheeks lit up, but he swiftly whirled around to hide his stupid grin and mentally fist-pumped triumphantly.
However, there was one thing that came to his attention. His grin soon fell at the thought of a missing Haru, he remembered that she was supposed to be around them ninety percent of the time now. "Um, where's Yukimura? I thought she was supposed to be with you guys," questioned the darker redhead, as he watched the cybergirl's face return to its normal color.
"Har-Har? She might already be at the hospital, we were already heading that way," Deep down, UV-Ray could feel something wrong just by the mention of her best friend's name. It was odd, but, it was a gut feeling that told her to hurry and so- she tapped at Kage. "Come on, let's hurry. Hop onto Kage, he'll fly us to the hospital faster than we can run!" With haste and panicked eyes, she offered him a spot.
A couple of seconds later, they were both flying swiftly above the houses with Eijiro holding onto her waistline, albeit red-faced. Kamihara was able to keep up rather easily and followed them from the sides, leaping from one building to another.
There in the distance, was the hospital and her impatience began to get worse the more she thought about what her boyfriend said. It took them little time at all for them to reach the doors and sprint their way inside, poor Kage, as usual, had to remain outside.
Worry on their faces and heavy breaths escaping, excluding Edgeshot, they all ran through the halls; eventually tailing her idol hero so he could show her to Hatsume's room. Up a staircase and turning a corner, Hatsume's door practically flew open with a couple of frantic, panting students. "Har-Ha-" before Saito could finish calling for her friend's name, in front of her stood Hitoshi and Kyoshi.
They were both in the same room with Hatsume who lay in the bed and Thirteen, a teacher from U.A. "Saito, Kirishima?" Shinso blinked and glanced between the three of them when they stepped inside. "Edgeshot," He needed to show respect to the pro hero who stood being the two, so with a simple but quick bow, he greeted him.
"Hey, did Haru come by yet? You said you were going to stick to her like glue, basically, so is she here?" Worriedly blinking, Uviel questioned the violet-haired boy and watched him shake his head.
"No, I figured she was just a bit late so I didn't think too much of it. I'll go look for her, you stay here, Thirteen has some questions for you," Concerned and seriousness replaced the relaxed feel he once had, as his eyes narrowed at the situation. His steps quickly jogged across the room and past the three who entered, he didn't even give her a chance to speak.
All they heard from Wani, soon after, was an irritated grumble and the stomps of his heavy feet before he too left the room. "So she wasn't here after all... I knew it, I knew my damn gut was telling me she wasn't and I didn't listen," mumbled angrily, the lighter redhead tightened her fingers and made an attempt to smack herself against her own head if it weren't for Kiri's hand grasping hers.
"Don't worry, nothing bad will happen. Everything will be okay," a sweet smile curled up his lips and exposed that toothy grin of his that she loved so much. His fingers on hers, instantly she felt her heart race and recalled his lips on hers. The thought alone caused her to bite her own lips and lick them subconsciously, she had to avert her attention to hide her red face during so.
~~~Haru~~
A heavy thud echoed when a drink fell into a slot of a vending machine. Outside the brunette stood, contently smiling when she bent over to pick the can up and opened it. With a satisfying hiss from the fizz escaping the tap, her lips pressed against the drink and gave it a long slurp.
"Hahaaa! Nothing says refreshing than an ice-cold drink!" She felt so good today, she felt like her old self even more and with another slurp she moaned at the taste. "Man, I don't know of any restaurants that have this drink. I'm glad there's an automated voice that tells you which drink is which, haha I just got it lucky hitting the right button for it.~" cooing, her blind hues lit up with victory after her faint smirk broadened.
"Oh, right- Almost forgot, I have to meet up with UV-Ray," Just then, when she was about to bolt in a specific direction, an image of Hitoshi flashed for a moment in her head. A pause, halting in her step, Har-Har felt her heart sink with guilt for she also forgot to meet up with Shinso. "Well, who do I hang out with? Hitoshi or UV-Ray?" This time she pouted and stood there to ponder, with a fold of her arms.
"Hey... It's that girl. The one who killed heroes before and charged at some U.A students! Wait, isn't she friends with that cybergirl?" A whispered female voice questioned in the far distance behind her, where most people wouldn't be able to hear, and stood on the other side of the road.
"Dude, you're right- It is her. I was there at the time, remember? I mean I get it, who would want to be friends with a robot? Apparently, not even a villain like her would want to, so she just tried to attack her and the other U.A students! How is she even allowed in the school to begin with? After that stunt?" A schoolboy whisper-yelled back and took out his phone.
Mischievousness shone on his face as he grinned and was about to take a photo of Haru, however... Both he and the girl next to him jumped at the sound of the drink, she had, hitting the ground with a clunk, and watched it roll away from her feet.
"Shit... Do you think she heard us?!" the girl, whose eyes were filled with fear, peeked at him from the side and inched closer to his arm.
Very slowly he lowered his phone, he could hear his own heart beating rapidly in his ears. Gradually the brunette turned and glared daggers at them from over her shoulder, they could instantly feel the tinge of fear from those blind eyes somehow staring directly at them. "N- No way... No way, she's blind! How can she be staring at us like that?!" Now the girl cowered behind him more and held onto the fabric of his shirt, deep in her mind she regretted so much as mentioning the girl across from them.
A shadow veiled over the Har-Har's face as those blind hues pierced through her long bangs and sent shivers down their spines. Within a moment, she vanished without so much as a stir from the surrounding leaves, behind them with a sinister grin she stood and gradually pulled out her dagger.
A swift kick with her foot to the guy's face sent him soaring across the street and onto the other side, followed by a non-lethal graze from her dagger to the girl's neck. The student squeaked in fear before sprinting towards the boy and holding the small cut with her hand. Haru could smell their fear and the iron from her wound, to her this was payback for talking bad about her and her friend.
"Heheheh, what's wrong? What happened to all that talk? Why are you so afraid of a blind girl, huh?~" Those whispers in her mind returned, as she watched them make an attempt to flee.
Kill, kill them... KILL THEM! The voice echoed with sinister desire and pushed her to keep going. Although, despite its will moving her, her feet felt like led when Haru halted in her steps. From side to side, she shook her head and refused to listen to that voice. They made fun of you and your friend... They were going to spread rumors! Kill them, kill them! It repeated, however, the brunette didn't want anything to do with it.
"No... No, no! Stop!" Screaming to no one in particular, the fear of herself rose once more and she backed up into a dark alleyway to hide; unaware that the students ran away.
Curled up, arms around the sides of her head as she rocked back and forth, her limbs shook from the ever-growing devastation. "I'm not alone, I'm not alone in this- I'm not alone, I'm not alone, I'm strong, I can fight this... I don't want to kill them, I don't want to kill them, I don't want to kill them!" Tears cascaded down her tan cheeks in the shadows, quivering and trying to reassure herself. "Leave me alone... Leave me alone, leave me alo-" At that moment, a quiet, cold voice reached her ears and made her head perk up an inch.
"Still fighting it, are you?" Subtle, careless steps and the smell, she knew it was the same man at the League of villains. She watched his misty-colored silhouette kneel down to her height and inch his face closer to hers, both forearms on his knees. "Why fight something that's supposed to be there? You were doing good before, now you're back to this," Disappointment could be heard in his voice, as his red eyes viewed devastated blind ones. The hood over his head kept the sides of his face from being seen and his hair dangled past like a curtain.
"Listen... It's very stupid but it makes sense in a way. Your old man confronted me before, asking if I wanted to be a marriage candidate. He wanted to marry you off to a villain and had many already selected as a candidate. However, since he's dead I don't want to worry or think about that any more... That was, until just now," His hand lifted with all seriousness written on his face, in an attempt to touch her dumbstruck face.
"He wanted to use marriage as a means to keep you on the path of villains and to prolong his family's work. So, I thought about it for some time... If I marry you, then you'd focus on being more of a villain, now won't you?" Questioning the girl, his eyes trailed from hers, down to her lips and her soft, tan skin that he seemed to find rather nice. He recalled the moments in their hideout, where he felt her skin by grasping her chin; as well as other situations, it tempted him.
She remained silent, she was still willing the urge to kill, away, and doing so made it difficult to really answer him. Those whispers continued to hound her mind like a swarm of bees and listening to him, made it hard to concentrate on her own thoughts. What- Marriage?! Panicked, devastated, afraid, confusion, all filled her head as she sat there frozen.
~~~Hitoshi~~~
Heavy feet and lighter ones, sprinted down the street side by side. Kyoshi's boots thudded against the surface and with his long strides, he was ahead of the boy by a few inches.
"Hey, kid! Do you know where she usually goes early this morning?!" Through a grumbled, irritated voice, he asked and didn't even spare a glance down at Shinso.
"Not really, but let's keep looking! She has to be close by, she's usually never too far from Saito," With a risen voice, he answered the muscular Crock and peeked up at his tall height from his peripherals. "I know this because they're very tight friends and they stick together like glue," this time, he saw the big man's natural grin, broaden to indicate a smirk and couldn't help but hear his confident chuckle.
"Heheh, well let's see who finds her first then. Whoever finds her first, will get to give her a kiss on the cheek!" Wani felt as though he'd win in the sudden competition, the race to find the brunette, he knew his long strides would get him farther than the boy.
All Shinso could do was click his tongue and groan irritably, as he watched the Crock leap high into the air. Show off... for a moment his thoughts echoed and kept his eyes on the green beast who landed on the rooftop nearby.
So he did the best he could, as he ran, he calmed his mind and tried to listen for any signs of where the girl was. Left and right, he turned, racing down the paths as Kyoshi leaped from roof to roof. However, the second he heard a faint voice saying 'Leave me alo-', his feet halted and stood there to focus as to where it came from.
He looked all around him, which took a few minutes, then saw the brunette curled up against the wall with a man clad in a hoodie crouched before her. Behind him he heard a heavy thud from Kyoshi and the steps he took to walk up to him, it was hard to not notice the bellowing crocodile growl; he knew the Crock could see them too. "You found her, huh? Lucky bastard... And look, it's that jerk that tried to invite me to the League," A tight clench of his strong fists made a crunch echo into the boy's ears, for he hated how persistent Shigaraki was and it boiled his blood to no end.
Regardless, they eavesdropped to hear their conversation and what they heard was rather shocking. "You're interesting... You intrigue me and I want to help you. What better way than an arranged marriage that will tie you to a villain, hm?" Closer and closer, he looked into those fear-struck eyes. Shigaraki hoped that his method of approach would work and felt that it'd help aid him in his goal of getting rid of All Might. If I can keep her focused on her true self, to accept herself, she won't hesitate to follow along with the plan Muni made. She'll kill without hesitance and destroy the school from the inside out, to lure out All Might... I won't mind an arranged marriage with her if it meant progress. Despite his monologue, deep down he could feel his blackened heart faintly throb at their close proximity and could smell her lovely scent.
"Hey! The hell are you doing?!" Roared Wani's voice as he stomped his way over to them and gazed upon the shady villain with unfaltering anger.
"Careful, Kyoshi... I wouldn't provoke him too much, he might kill her," Hitoshi quietly spoke to the Crock, as his hand on his forearm tugged him back and gained the Crock's attention. Despite the tall man not glancing at the boy, he stood there near him with a dagger-piercing glare.
Red eyes watched the two after Haru's head perked up, an unintentional gasp escaped, and after she peeked to the side through her bangs- There stood the men who seemed to be glued to her, that never wants to let her be by herself. The second her nose picked up Shinso's smell, small tears trickled down her tan cheeks.
She couldn't hide the fact that she was afraid. With her inner villain practically pounding her head and whispering to kill, Shigaraki pressuring her with weird marriage, and the craving her dark side gave her to murder was too overwhelming for her to put up a front.
Hitoshi saw the fear in her eyes, as though mentally pleading for his help, which only made him angrier. "I'm not here to play with you guys today... I just wanted to tell your friend something," simply put, rather irritated, he turned and walked further into the alley from where he came.
Now she was by herself in the shadows, still gazing upon the two, for she had not moved an inch after staring at them and began to hear the whispers become louder. It was harder to hear them now, muffled by the constant words of her dark side, and could barely sense them inch closer.
"Yukimura? We're here now, calm down," A hesitant step forward, Shinso could see clearly, the devastation and took cautionary measures. "Yukimura, you don't look so good," a softer tone, sympathetic, this time he walked a bit faster and soon crouched in front of her where Shigaraki once sat.
Wani just stood there, a frown evident, a clenched fist, seeing her in that state made his blood boil more than it had when Shigaraki was near her. To know that Tadami traumatized her to make her like this, to know her dark side torments her, he didn't know what to do. The only thing he wanted to do was hold her or hug her, but he knew they weren't close enough for her to feel comfortable with that and it pained him.
"Yukimura... I'm here," Calm, reassuring, through her ears his muffled voice was a little louder and almost overran the sinister whispers eating at her mind. She could see it, his silhouette right in front of her, and soon, panic filled her mind the moment she felt her eyes turn into those horrifying green slits.
"Get back! Get back! I don't want to kill you! Get back!" tears streamed down her face more when she tried to push further against the wall, with devastation still evident in her eyes.
"They don't affect me as much... You don't have to worry," Gentle, Hitoshi answered with a soft grasp on her face. His hands cupped her wet cheeks and made sure she was looking straight at him. He could definitely feel the fear beginning to rise but unlike most who would run, he wanted to face it and accept those green eyes.
The pounding of his heart very gradually began to ease the longer he stared at those eyes.
"I learned, the weakness to your quirk... Your eyes cast fear, but it's up to those who see your eyes to either run away or face it. I've grown to get used to them over time and I decided... Your eyes aren't scary, they're beautiful and stunning. You are not a monster, you're not a killer, you're just scared of yourself and of hurting others. Your body goes into a state of self-defense, considering what your father put you through, so when your dark side craves to kill it's merely trying to release the tension you refused to let out on your own... You don't need to hide anymore, you don't need to keep fighting it, you don't have to because I-" his lips parted a moment and his purple hues soon averted to ponder on his thoughts.
The whispers... They're fading away? I can hear him talking and what he's saying is... Making my whispers fade? How? Haru's thoughts, full of confusion, echoed as she continued to listen to his wonderful voice. His beautiful colors full of different purple shades, caused her cheeks to redden and her heart to slightly flutter. Never in her life, had she managed to lay her eyes upon something or someone so vibrant and beautiful. He was the first person she ever saw with her snake eyes and it made it difficult to not stare.
"I'm here for you. I understand you, and I won't let go of that promise we made. So, stay next to me at all times, if you don't then I'll come to look for you and make sure you will. Remember, we'll fight our darkness together," a slight smile, reassuring and sweet, he wanted to pull her out of the pit she fell into. He, too, felt his face redden but he figured it was merely from their closeness so he pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
He wasn't expecting a lunge from her, hugging him tightly and crying into the crook of his neck. His astonished eyes moved down to see her clinging, he heard her crying and felt his shirt getting wet. His hand didn't hesitate to hold her head against him to keep her close and not too much longer did Wani's strong hand lay on her shoulder after he came over. More and more crimson spread across his face, however, he was relieved that she didn't notice.
~~~Uviel~~~
"Saito... Hatsume specifically asked for you, so I had you come here instead of school. I wanted to ask you a couple of questions," Thirteen's voice echoed as she fully faced them and watched the cybergirl's blue hues glance between her and a sleeping Hatsume.
"Oh...kay," Uviel was worried for the girl and didn't even notice her own knitted brows, only a gentle clench of Kirishima's fingers around hers eased her mind a little.
"Hatsume mentioned that the villain appeared and radiated intense heat. I wanted to know if you knew anyone who possesses such a quirk." the teacher questioned and sat down on a nearby chair. It was impossible to see her face or know what expression she had.
"No... I don't," Confused, the cybergirl answered and as a few minutes passed, so had their conversation. Even Kirishima had to answer Thirteen's questions, which only set disappointment in the teacher after she sighed.
However, when the doors opened to the room, Hitoshi came in with a supportive hand on Haru's shoulder and Kyoshi awkwardly shifted his feet. "We found her and I have some bad news..." Shinso trailed off before he peeked at Yukimura's dazed face and puffy, blind eyes.
Uviel's and Eijiro's eyes lit up with astonishment when they noticed Haru's expression, she didn't look good at all. Har-Har... Pure concern flooded the cybergirl's face and even Thirteen perked up at the mention of bad news.