Chapter 19: S'Mores Break
Sometimes, Kurogiri wished his life had worked out differently and he wasn't stuck playing babysitter for a bunch of crazy adults.
At least when Sensei had been around there'd been an ultimate voice of authority that everyone listened to. Without him, making Shigaraki do anything productive was a challenge. The first day, Kurogiri didn't even try. He let Shigaraki throw his tantrum, decaying almost everything in one of their safe houses. He'd pushed everyone else out, both for their protection and to preserve Shigaraki's dignity.
If Shigaraki wanted to be a real leader, they couldn't have their underlings questioning him.
Shigaraki wore himself out eventually, finding a calmer headspace later that night to start planning. Kurogiri allowed the rest of the League back in. They had to sit on the floor because none of the chairs had survived, and Dabi made some pointed comments about that.
"So what are we going to do next? Can I stab someone this time?" Toga asked.
"How much blood did you get from those brats?" Shigaraki asked.
"Just one," Toga said. "She was so cute!"
They'd have one chance to slip Toga into the class then, so they'd have to be careful when and where they used it. That would all depend on the direction of their new plan.
"There are rumors that All Might is announcing his retirement tomorrow," Spinner said. "That was what you wanted, wasn't it?"
Kurogiri glanced at Shigaraki. Indeed, Shigaraki's main goal had always been to take All Might out of the picture. That was more or less happening now, at the cost of Sensei.
Shigaraki scratched at his neck. Bandages were already wrapped the scratched skin, and he was quickly fraying what was there. "It's not enough," Shigaraki said.
"We need to take down all of hero society," Compress said. "Expose them for the shams they really are."
"Are we going after Endeavor next? Since he'll be the new number one?" Dabi pressed.
Dabi had made it no secret that his main purpose here was to kill Endeavor. He'd never explained why, but it was obvious the reason was personal.
"You want to take down that powerhouse?" Twice asked.
"We're taking all of them down," Shigaraki stated. "Endeavor isn't nearly as strong a symbol as All Might."
"How can we get near him, though? He can blast us away without even looking," Spinner said.
"This might be a good time to seek out Dragon's contact in the Yakuza," Kurogiri suggested. "The one supposedly creating the quirk erasing bullets."
Dabi laughed. "Oh, please let me shoot that bastard with a quirk erasing bullet! I want to see the look on his face when he realizes he's powerless!"
Everyone gave him a nervous look. Normally, Dabi was laid back and collected. This outburst sounded more like something Toga would say.
Kurogiri was becoming very interested in whatever grudge Dabi had against Endeavor.
"Yeah, okay. We'll follow up on that guy, see if it's worth our time," Shigaraki said. "Kurogiri, do you still have that article prepped about Dragon's brat?"
"I do."
"Get it ready. Let's keep the world distracted while we work."
No one could see Kurogiri's grin, but he knew the mists around his face twisted in a facsimile of a real one.
They weren't really focusing their efforts on hero schools, but it would shake society to the core if the same day they lose their beloved Symbol of Peace they also lose their trust in the institution that created him and so many others.
Xx
His father was busy, so Shouto spent the morning reading through his favorite conspiracy blogs. They were the type of blogs his father hated, because half of them didn't have real sources and completely made up their facts, while the other half were pure nonsense anyway.
Naturally, Shouto loved them for all of these reasons.
The new post was easy to find. It was the first thing he saw on the home page. He still stared at it uncomprehendingly for several minutes, because he'd never expected to see one of his classmates on a conspiracy blog of all things.
But the thumbnail was definitely a picture of Sasaki in all his freckled glory, the same one from the sports festival that the media had been using. Did any other pictures of him exist? They'd had to use something on his school ID, hadn't they? Or was that part of the conspiracy?
He clicked on the post and lost himself in the rabbit hole.
There was a surprising amount of evidence linking Sasaki to this Izuku Midoriya, and, in turn, to the villain Dragon, real name Hisashi Midoriya.
While he hadn't known Sasaki's real name before, he didn't doubt that this article was right. He was impressed that some conspiracy theorist was able to get this much information together.
Impressed, and concerned. Already, this post was the most popular on the site, with more shares than any other post. Actual news sites like JNN were sharing it, too, which meant this was going to be all over the place by tonight.
Did Sasaki know already?
He texted Sasaki about it, and wasn't all too surprised when he didn't get a response. No answer was just as damning, though, because the only reason Sasaki wouldn't answer was if it was true.
It didn't stop him from waiting anxiously to hear back from him, and he tried to distract himself with the news.
He was successful, but in all the wrong ways, when he saw a live broadcast for All Might's retirement speech.
Endeavor was already home, sulking in the gym.
Shouto grabbed Fuyumi and fled to the mall for the rest of the day, hiding out near the food court behind the map. Fuyumi texted Natsuo and he met them there for lunch, which was mostly eaten in awkward silence.
They watched the recording of the speech on Natsuo's phone.
It was…disconcerting, to see All Might in this form. He looked so frail, like he was the one who needed to be protected. Shouto didn't like it. All Might was…All Might. This wasn't supposed to happen.
Fuyumi cried, and Natsuo kept tightening his grip on his phone.
Shouto didn't know how to visibly react. He was too practiced hiding all his thoughts and feelings, but that didn't mean his mind matched his blank face. His thoughts were a storm, and he was almost angry when All Might apologized, of all things.
He was sorry he couldn't do more to protect them going forward. Sorry that the best he could do was help mentor the upcoming generation of heroes. Sorry that he let everybody down.
"He never let us down," Shouto stated. The man couldn't let anybody down if he tried.
Natsuo and Fuyumi glanced at him.
"He's always saved us," Shouto went on. "Even in Kamino, when he didn't have his full power, he did everything he could to win. He never let us down." His classmates were alive because of him.
Natsuo threw an arm around him. "Yeah, All Might is the best. Guess you'll have to protect him now, huh?"
Shouto nodded. It was the least he could do for All Might, after everything the hero had done for his class.
Xx
Ashido: @Sasaki SASAKI GET IN HERE I HAVE QUESTIONS
Yaoyorozu: Is this about that article going around?
Ashido: YES
Ashido: IT MAKES TOO MUCH SENSE
Sero: You saw it too???
Kirishima: What article?
Yaoyorozu: I'm not sure it's a good idea to pester him about this
Iida: Yaoyorozu is right, we shouldn't violate Sasaki's privacy like this
Kirishima: Now I'm slightly concerned
Kirishima: What's going on?
Ashido: READ THIS
Iida: Ashido! I am appalled that you would spread rumors like this
Hagakure: have you met her
Kirishima: Holy crow is this true??
Ashido: THAT'S WHAT I'M TRYING TO FIND OUT
Ashido: @Sasaki
Kaminari: @Bakugou might know, too
Uraraka: If this is true, he had a really good reason for not telling us.
Ashido: I know that!! I'm not mad! I just want to know if it's true!
Sero: That would mean his one fight the other night was actually against his dad, wouldn't it?
Kaminari: oh man that's brutal
Iida: Everyone please. I'm sure this is a very distressing article for Sasaki, he doesn't need us hounding him about it
Sero: But it would only be distressing if it were true, right
Sero: otherwise it's just a big joke
Kaminari: the fact he hasn't answered yet is suspicious
Uraraka: He's probably just busy. He WAS kidnapped this week, you know
Kaminari: yeah, by his DAD
Yaoyorozu: We don't know that for sure
Yaoyorozu: Don't jump to conclusions.
Jiro: Especially with a sketchy source like this
Jiro: it's from a conspiracy blog, and nothing is accurately sourced
Yaoyorozu: Thank you Jiro! We have to be cautious when it comes to the media
Kaminari: Yeah I understand all that, but those photos are pretty convincing
Uraraka: The green hair does look a lot more natural on him…
Asui: He could have dyed his hair for any number of reasons
Kaminari: True, but the missing persons report? Remember after the USJ when he said he moved away in middle school?
Iida: Kaminari!
Kaminari: You can't tell me you're not curious!
Ashido: @Sasaki @Bakugou ONE OF YOU GET IN HERE
Yaoyorozu: They're probably busy
Bakugou: Some of us have a life
Ashido: BLASTY
Ashido: SPILL THE TEA
Bakugou: You're all annoying and should mind your own fucking business
Ashido: not that tea
Bakugou: Like I said. Mind your own business
Sero: You know the more you avoid the question, the more I believe that article is right…
Bakugou: Believe whatever the fuck you want
Kirishima: Maybe we should lay off, guys.
Kirishima: If it's something we need to know they'll tell us
Ashido: But that's no fun .
Bakugou: I'm leaving
Ashido: Noooo Blasty!
Ashido: Blasty come back
Ashido: :(
Hagakure: I can't wait until we're all in the dorms and we can do this in person
Kaminari: Yooo It's going to be awesome
Jiro: Hey did you guys see All Might's speech?
Uraraka: I've been crying for the last twenty minutes
Kirishima: It was the manliest speech I've ever heard
Sero: I can't believe he actually retired. He's been a hero longer than we've been alive
Ashido: we're in the worst timeline
Ashido: You know this means we'll be the generation that has to watch him die, too
Hagakure: why would you say that T.T
Uraraka: I was already crying Ashido WHY
Iida: It's painful to think about, but she's probably right
Uraraka: You take that back
Ashido: No!
Ashido: No one ever says I'm right don't you dare take it back
Asui: All Might is human just like any of us, he will have to die eventually
Kaminari: That All for One guy didn't! We should demand his secrets
Hagakure: See! Kami gets it!
Iida: I'm not saying it will happen this month, but we should be prepared
Uraraka: Nope. All Might is never allowed to die. I'll fight Death if I have to
Hagakure: I'll help!
Kirishima: Me too! It's up to us to protect him now!
Chat name Class 1A changed to All Might Protection Squad
Bakugou: what the hell are you dumbasses doing now
Xx
The apartment was nice, for a prison cell.
The view of the city was breathtaking. The kitchen was fully stocked. Some might even say it was overstocked. Either way, she wouldn't have to worry about starving any time soon. Her room had a store's worth of fabric and sewing supplies. The TV was huge. The bathtub was large enough to soak in and had jets like some kind of fancy spa.
Really, it was the nicest apartment she'd ever seen. She could almost forget she was a prisoner if it weren't for a few things.
The windows didn't open. The TV had almost any channel you could want, but there was no wifi to access the internet. There was no phone. The only people she saw were Hisashi and Hiroki, both of whom came by often to make sure she didn't need anything.
And dinner. Hisashi came for dinner every night. Not that he made her cook; he typically cooked himself, even if they weren't the greatest meals.
She'd been wary of seeing him again. There had been so many horror stories of Dragon and what he did to people who made him angry, she'd been convinced he would do nothing but hurt her.
He didn't. When she flinched back from him, he respected her space. He didn't demand she sit at the table with him, but he set a place for her and carried on the conversation while she stood in the doorway, ready to bolt to her room. She had a room she could lock from the inside to keep him out, if she wanted.
Not that a wooden door would stop a fire-breather for very long, but it was the thought that counted.
When Hisashi talked, it sounded so much like before. Inko could close her eyes and imagine the last three years had never happened. On the third day, she gingerly sat down at the table with him. His answering smile was the same one that used to make her weak in the knees.
"Udon is still your favorite, right?" Hisashi asked. "I did my best, but you were always superior in the kitchen."
She carefully lifted up some noodles. "You remember?"
"Of course," Hisashi said. "I never wanted to leave. You and Izuku are so important to me, and it breaks my heart that a little disagreement has broken us apart for so long."
That was what he called it? A little disagreement? "You tried to kill him."
"My temper got the better of me. Things were falling apart around me, because Izuku didn't understand what he was doing. I admit I overreacted."
"Are you sure it wasn't you who didn't misunderstand?" Inko asked. "You're a villain, Hisashi."
He waved a hand through the air. "That's just a label. It's thrown about far too casually if you ask me. It's not like I'm trying to take over the country or anything. I do what I have to to survive and protect my own."
"Even if that means hurting our son?" He certainly hadn't held back when he fought Izuku the other night. Izuku's ability to control fire had been the only thing that protected him.
God, that fight…she'd barely breathed watching it, and she crushed poor Mitsuki's hand. Izuku had been a bloody mess, clothes torn and dirty, unable to stand, but still putting up such a strong fight. She'd been absolutely terrified, and a little proud.
Hisashi sighed and lowered his hand, running the other through his hair. "He takes teenage rebellion to a whole new level, doesn't he?"
She could only stare ate him. He'd twisted everything in his mind to make it seem like they could still be a happy family again, as if there was a way to repair what had broken. That was why her prison cell was an entire apartment. It was a mockery of the family Hisashi was trying to put back together.
"Please don't hurt him," Inko whispered.
"I don't want to, believe me," Hisashi said. "But if he's going to threaten my work and the men who work for me, I won't have a choice." He picked up his chopsticks again. "You should eat before it gets cold."
She ate numbly, not tasting anything.
"Honestly, I'm at my wit's end with Izuku." Hisashi shook his head. "You know he's spent the last three years sending cops after me?"
What a shame none of those cops had caught him, Inko thought.
"And he started playing hero in Nurugi, did you know?"
"What do you mean?" Inko asked.
"Catching petty thieves and muggers, that sort of thing."
Her blood ran cold. "Like a vigilante?"
Hisashi nodded. "Exactly. Called himself Ally Cat, of all things."
Her Izuku, a vigilante? That couldn't be possible, he'd been twelve. That was far too young for something so dangerous.
He had to be mistaken. Hisashi just wanted Alley Cat to be Izuku so he could claim he'd known where he was the whole time. Until Inko could confirm with Izuku himself, that was what she'd believe.
"It's true," Hisashi said. "Alley Cat showed up after we split up, and the rumors said he had some kind of fire quirk. Then he disappeared last year, and Izuku started UA. I'll admit I didn't figure it out until after he stopped playing hero, but the timing matches up perfectly."
It did. She didn't want it to, but it did.
"You can ask him yourself when he finally comes by."
"He's coming?" Oh, she hoped Izuku was smart enough to stay away.
"I left him a clue to tell him where my new hideout is. Shouldn't take him more than a few days to put it together."
Her heart seized. Since Hisashi had taken her, it was almost guaranteed that Izuku would come after Hisashi. Assuming he hadn't changed too much in the last three years, and if he was still trying to be a hero she doubted that.
"Anyway, is there anything else you'd like for this place while we wait for him?" Hisashi asked. "You haven't sewn anything yet, is that no longer a hobby for you? Or do you need something for it?"
"I don't sew much these days." She used to sew costumes for Izuku and Katsuki, but there hadn't been much need for that lately.
"Ah, I see. What else do you do?"
She had taken to reading. It was the only thing that could take her mind off things and distract her from all her anxieties. "I read."
"No kidding? What genre do you like?"
"Just general fiction."
"Yeah? If you give me a list of books or authors, I'll have one of the boys pick some up for you tomorrow."
She nodded. She'd need all the escapism she could get. She'd go mad with worry about Izuku otherwise.
Hisashi stayed through the rest of dinner, even cleaning up the dishes, before he headed out. He moved to hug Inko, hesitating several feet away from her.
She still flinched back. She wasn't ready to pretend that much yet.
Hisashi looked disappointed, but he didn't say anything about it. "I'll see you tomorrow. Sleep well, dear." He walked out the door, and Inko watched the lock click into place.
It was a regular apartment door. She could unlock it from her side.
But she was terrified at what he'd do to her or Izuku if he came back and found her gone.
Xx
From the desk of Nedzu, Principal of UA
Regarding the recent article about one of our students, I have to say I'm disappointed in all of these acclaimed news stations that picked up the story without reaching out to our school first. It is no secret that UA takes the reputation of every student very seriously, and we often act as PR managers for those pupils who gain popularity while still training under our staff.
In the case of Ryu Sasaki, I am exceptionally disappointed. Sasaki has been under our protection for some time to hide from his villainous father, and the media's callous disregard for his safety could have led to his location being discovered. Why reporters and news stations didn't first reach out to our staff to confirm this story before posting it everywhere escapes my comprehension, but I hope they see the error of their ways and do not make this same mistake in the future. Such an error in judgement as this could have put the life of our student at risk, and that is unforgivable to us, especially given the events earlier this week.
Because Sasaki's location was already discovered by his villainous father, I will confirm that his real identity is Izuku Midoriya, and I will personally vouch for his place in our institution. Midoriya has already proven himself to me and several other members of the faculty where his intentions lie. UA will not be responding to concerns about Midoriya's parentage.
Further attempts to slander the reputation of any of our students will result in our lawyers' involvement.
Sincerely,
Principal Nedzu
Xx
Izuku was on his laptop when Nedzu's press statement dropped later that night. He'd been watching for it while researching what 'Dragon's Hoard' could possibly mean, and once it appeared he was thoroughly distracted.
The statement made him grin. Really, it was a fancy threat to journalists to watch what they said, and Izuku agreed wholeheartedly with Nedzu. If they found someone using a fake name who had a villainous father, why wouldn't their first thought be that person was in hiding?
The good news was, now that the secret was out, he could stop ignoring his classmates. He eagerly picked up his phone. He'd been planning how to do this all day.
Sasaki changed their name to Midoriya
The chat rioted.