Chapter 20: In-between Midnight
"Towards midnight the rain ceased and the clouds drifted away, so that the sky was scattered once more with the incredible lamp of stars." -William Golding
Ochako
'How did she get in here?'
It has to be her from the blackout, the one behind the Second Year's murder and now she has returned to see them specifically.
Her gaze moves from her to Izuku and her grin manages to widen, blood dripping down onto her teeth matching her flushed cheeks.
"You're both so cute!" She mouths in delight and her stomach tilts as if capsizing in a storm, bile singing the back of her tongue.
'No, calm down.' Ochako reminds herself quickly.
The books, their pens, even the table could be turned into a weapon.
She twists her attention away from her approach, biting at her lip until she feels her own skin begin to tear and bleed. Izuku pauses noting her change in behavior and stomping down butterflies at the reminder of their near kiss, she grabs his hand quickly and moves them to stand.
"We need to go. Now." She orders.
Izuku pauses, features shifting between puzzlement and concern until he then senses her too looming in the shadows and verdant eyes glow.
'Don't move.' Infliction activates.
Sure enough her legs freeze into place as soon as she tries to take a step forward and her grisly smile slips for a moment, glancing to her legs.
"Oh, I never thought you would use that quirk of yours on me!" Toga laughs, waving it off.
It's only temporary, quirks like Infliction don't ever last as long as the user wants.
At their silence she continues on, flicking away remnants of dried blood still splattered against her face. "Don't act like you two forgot me already? Your best friend; Himiko Toga?!"
"You're from the blackout; the killer." Izuku points out instead, blocking Ochako's full view of her.
"The one in the same!" Toga chirps out in return, giving something of a curtsy that he at least remembered her handiwork from that day. And now she's bearing witness to this protective side of him to the one he loves.
'Will he protect her even at his dying breath?' She briefly wonders, the mixing of their bloods pooling together as one final act of love.
"You know, if you don't want me to come to you, I can just make you have to move towards me." Toga beams, pressing a hand against the nearest bookshelf casually. Within her palm she catches the glint of metal, the flashing red light resting on top of it.
A bomb.
Not a second later does a gleeful laugh bubble up from her, launching a knife their way at being temporarily distracted by the device. The table, she has create some type of barrier to stop her from getting closer.
'Crush her right hand.' Izuku commands just as Toga leaps forward with her syringe. Her grin turns into a warped mix of a smile and frown when the pain kicks in though if anything golden eyes sparkle in pleasure, movements becoming faster than before.
"Best friends hurt repeatedly hurt each other from time to time, this is no different to that! Even lovers can cause each other pain and forgive and forget at the end of the day, indulge again in the taste of each other when no one is seemingly looking." Toga purrs.
'I can use One For All to power up my fist, once she's distracted by Ochako's attack I can leap in.' Izuku decides, but then the speed at which Toga moves isn't feasible with how fast she leaps around even with bones crushed and muscles torn.
"We aren't your friends!" Ochako retorts, releasing a barrage of books to collapse around her.
Someone like Toga who only gains connections to people by drinking their blood could never gain friends in the traditional sense, no, not when this world they live in can't handle a quirk like hers or her need to use it...
Except for a villain.
And it is only when Izuku uses Infliction to break her right foot as well does she start to slow and Ochako uses the moment to ensure her path is obstructed further from them by floating and toppling over every nearby bookcase and table still standing.
The alarm flares off and with a sigh, the realization changes in her expression that she can either retreat or get caught by the faculty.
Cameras have already captured her, though the blood that clings to her on top of her ability to disguise herself could slow the process of identifying.
Brown eyes meet her sunny yellow, cheeks still lingering with a redness from the exertion and thrill of the fight.
"I had a lot of fun today, even though it was short! We'll see each other again at the training grounds I'm sure." She beams before her face is shrouded by the mix of smog and fallen shelves.
'The training grounds, they already know where it's located?' Her heart jolts in panic, a light groan to her side breaking the thought away for now.
"Are you alright?" She whispers urgently to Izuku, his eyes shut at the migraine surely coming from using Infliction so rapidly in a short span of time.
"Fine." Izuku tacks on a smile for her, he can see the outline of Aizawa-sensei coming. Good, at least both he and Ochako were safe despite this shooting pain wrapping around his head like a vice.
"Liar." Ochako murmurs back softly, helping him up properly before finding herself leaning on him as well when a spike of nausea curls at her stomach.
More concerned than having used Infliction again when he should be limiting it is new knowledge, a knowing that seeps in that they are being targeted by more than one member of the League of Villains.
Somewhere beneath the scatters of wood chippings and dust are all their study notes and textbooks.
Finals are still next week.
-X-
Izuku
'When was the last time they argued?' Izuku wonders, turning over in his bed away from the noise. Normally Mom is in bed by 10:00 pm latest, but his clock ticks past 11:15 pm and this conversation seems far from over.
It's been hours since another incident, this time in U.A.'s library, so similar to the other library incident months ago before he even got into U.A.
"Himiko Toga. That is the name of the villain who attacked you. Her curiosity with you and Young Uraraka could stem from a multitude of reasons, but the best reasoning we can conclude right now is a want to taste your blood, to experience your quirks for herself." All Might explains.
While he's sure he could've done far worse damage to her, not even Infliction's actions fazed her truly.
"And is there anything I can do to stop her, prevent Ochako and I or-" All Might holds up a hand before he can say anything else.
"No, let us handle this situation. You focus on your exams Young Midoriya."
"Dear, he's fine! He handled the situation appropriately and that All Might fellow assured us they already have put a name to the face and identified her as one of the members of the League of Villains." Hisashi begins.
"I don't understand how you can be so calm about this! The fact that she made it through their supposed top of the line security twice now specifically looking for our son is concerning! At this rate I'm not even sure those dorms they poured so much money into will be protection enough!" Inko cries back.
The brokenness in her voice makes him wince, maybe he should just bite the bullet and join them...
Hisashi's response is cut off by a sharp cough, laughing it off at Inko's questioning if he's okay.
Izuku listens as the faucet runs most likely pouring himself a glass of water, picturing his Dad waving off Mom's concerns despite the noticeable pallor of his skin, dark eyes sunken in from combined work and a battery of tests day in and day out.
"If it will help you feel better Dear I'll talk to him one on one in the morning. It was a matter of emergency so he had to use Infliction today, but I don't want to put too much stress on him with his End of Term exams coming up. He'll be under even better protection once those dorms are up and running after their finals so that all the students can have a better eye kept on them. You still support him in his dream to be a hero, right?"
A long pauses follows and goosebumps prick his skin, grip on his bedsheets tightening to the point of tearing.
"...Yes, I still do." Inko whispers, voice carrying down the hall.
His hold on his sheets loosens, the room feels warm again though the dullness of his headache lingers.
"Now, I have a long day ahead tomorrow and I'm sure you're exhausted as well." Hisashi remarks.
The familiar patter of their footsteps follow, voices becoming too low for him to hear as they head in the direction of their bedroom.
Just like that the household is still and dark again, only the occasional whirl of cars driving by filling the silence. Exhausted as he feels, his mind is awake and alert replaying the day's events with the wondering of what he could've done differently, should've done differently. Toga is and remains a dangerous wild card, unlike Shigaraki though her end goals don't seem to be power or truly destruction related. Maybe this is all just fun to her?
Sleep overtakes him before he can think of any proper solution.
Come morning a text from Ochako greets him, the first positive news he's heard in hours.
'Felt better after getting some sleep! How about you?' He reads over breakfast. Dad is already half-way out the door taking his own breakfast to go resting the packaged mix of eggs and toast in one hand with his suitcase in the other. He sends him a half-smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes, he probably got even less sleep than him.
'Genetic testing on top of a complete blood count and complete metabolic panel, I hope Dad isn't woozy before midday.' He frowns. He can see why Mom packed additional water bottles into his bag to keep hydrated.
"Alright, I should see you all in time for dinner! Izuku, don't end up on the news again!" Hisashi orders lightly before truly heading out.
"Finish eating dear, you aren't going to be able to focus on any practice questions on an empty stomach." Inko mentions once he's gone, gesturing to his own eggs beginning to grow cold.
In rising sunlight old tear stains are more visible, redness to her eyes that can't be fully washed away...
He reaches to grab her hand before she can turn her attention to her own plate, squeezing at it until her eyes finally meet his.
"I promise you I'm not looking to cause trouble or find trouble on purpose Mom." Izuku starts, voice far scratchier than he would like.
Inko intakes a sharp breath, own voice soft and gently commanding.
"I know sweetie, I know. But you can never stop me from worrying about you. Same goes for your Father either despite the act he puts on for you. For us." She sighs.
He rereads Ochako's text again between bites he manages to sink down, smiling just a bit picturing her voice.
Well, at least he knew somebody that seemed all freshened up for the new day ahead!
"Deku, you didn't get any sleep at all; did you?" Ochako questions, having no qualms about lightly poking at bags that sit under his eyes. Izuku grabs her at her hand before she can move to his opposite, reddening when Ochako freezes in alarm.
"Ah, sorry! I can let go if you want, I mean or-"
"No! I mean, this way we're both staying warm and err on the lookout for any suspicious activities nearby!" Ochako recovers quickly, tumbling out the first excuse she can think of.
Between the 3rd and 4th streets they normally pass on the way to school is when Iida typically joins them, though instead of his boisterous presence sandy blond hair and annoyed crimson eyes greet them.
Katsuki.
He scoffs at their behavior, looking about ready set fire to the lamppost he leans against.
"About damn time, you idiots aren't going to waste another second of my morning."
-X-
Katsuki
He's always taken for granted the flickers of confidence Deku exhibits when frustrated or concerned.
All his bullying over the years never stopped him from seeing as a friend and even after cracking at his bones more than once with Infliction out of rage he still attempts to be cordial with him once anger cools.
But now isn't the time for those flares of rage to calm to a simmer, not with what he has to tell him.
"I'm assuming based on the those rumors one of those League of Villains freaks tried to attack you again, right?" Katsuki begins.
Izuku nods slowly, expression moving from wary to serious. "Yes, they didn't try fight with you once more did they Kacchan or-"
"Deku, I can handle any League of Villain asshole that comes my way. I don't need any of your annoying as hell worry or fears regarding that." He cuts him off snidely. Round Face sends him a glare for that remark, eyes narrowing.
"Surely you didn't take this alternate path to school just to throw out your usual insults?" Ochako counters.
Katsuki pauses, Izuku's features darkening as if daring him to say one of his typical vitriol filled responses in return. It would mean though dealing with a throbbing leg or hand throughout the morning periods until around Lunch or even later.
Not fucking worth it.
"Did that bloody woman mention anything about the training grounds?" He asks instead.
Ochako perks up at this, nodding. Surely that meant Toga came to see him then too, but at asking this question Katsuki shakes his head.
"I got a letter sometime in the middle of the night a few days ago that was taped to my window that they will kidnap a student at the Training grounds. I handed it over to one of the faculty members, granted I haven't heard shit if they actually plan to cancel the event or move forward with it to prove they aren't afraid of the League's actions." He explains.
"They won't cancel, not without more information. With all the bad press U.A. has gotten lately, making cancellations or postponing could make them look even weaker in the eyes of the public." Izuku adds in.
Katsuki turns his attention back to him, it's a good point however it doesn't take a way from the fact this will make them all bigger targets.
"It's just a word of warning to think about. They're becoming much bolder now with all these new fucking recruits they're getting." He concludes, turning to go.
"A brat like you shouldn't keep poking their nose into topics that aren't their business, especially when their far and away from ever becoming a Pro Hero." Endeavor sneers.
"Why shouldn't I? It's not like the Pro-Heroes as of late can control the rate at which the League of Villains is growing. At this rate they'll eventually dig into every Pro Hero's weakness; even yours." He bites back.
A burst of brilliant vermilion-orange flames erupt from his hands then, the roar that he knows nothing. He sputters out the flames, but the walls behind him are singed black from the closeness of the heat. He pierces him with one last gaze, frigid blue eyes that most likely want to burn him where he stands before turning to leave the room.
The memory as much as he hates it can still make him wince, cause his whole body to tremble just a bit.
It's relatively the same line he's been feeding him despite his catching on to the true extent of All Might's illness that seems to be inching him closer and closer to retirement.
Everyone had their secrets he supposes, from All Might to even the lowest ranking Heroes at the bottom of the Hero Billboard Chart.
But just how bad could Endeavor's secrets be to make his expression become so dark?
-X-
All Might
"I hope you weren't being serious when you said you wanted to pair Izuku Midoriya and Katsuki Bakugo together for the practicums, right? They'll end up fighting each other more than they would you." Yamada remarks.
"You know I wouldn't joke about such a thing! Young Bakugo in particular needs to work on his teamwork skills, the risk of failure should be enough to continue to push him in the right direction!" Toshinori answers with ease.
Well, hopefully it will be just the nudge he needs.
"Actually, I think it might better for them in the long run to not be teamed up. It is too poisonous on both ends with Katsuki's lingering frustrations over the power of Izuku's quirk and Izuku himself having the potential to cause him serious pain if pushed enough." Principal Nezu weighs in as they discuss the final students that need to be paired up.
'I didn't think I was going to be outvoted in this.' He realizes at seeing the nods of his fellow faculty members in agreement with Nezu's assessment.
"What you propose we do instead then?"
"From what I've gathered from Class 1-A's quirks, and this is just an idea mind you would be for Bakugo to be paired with Todoroki another student he has just as much trouble getting along with arguably more so I would say because of how strong his quirk matches to his own physically. In a similar vein, Midoriya shows a heavy reliance on Infliction which with repeated use in a short span of time gives him debilitating headaches that Aizawa can exploit should he attempt to go with that method of attack. He needs to learn to use All for One more than he currently has been if he wants to be able to properly rescue and take on any villains as your successor." Nezu reasons.
He has to admit, those are some good points that he can't simply ignore.
"Though I can see Yagi's point on Midoriya and Bakugo needing to get along better, based on the ordeals they've already had to face separately and collectively with Class 1-A I believe a better scenario can come in the future that will force them into the need to cooperate without the risk of failing hanging over their heads." Ishiyama points out.
The discussion switches over to the training areas where each exercise test will be conducted and strategies to prove they won't be going easy on the students. The compact weights Hatsume created especially for this exercise should be ready for him by the end of today.
"There will be much heavier surveillance on the conduction of these finals than from previous years, let's all keep in mind the lessons we've learned from the past breaches of security at U.A. and make this a smooth event." Nezu finishes.
'It won't be so easy.' Toshinori already knows.
Not when there is a villain who appears to be a teenager just like their current students who can make herself look like any of one of them with just the taste of a few drops of blood.
Her curiosity with Midoriya and Uraraka in particular still evades him, but the information Tsukauchi has dug up for him so far on her family and background history before joining the League makes his stomach churn enough at how foreboding it sounds.
"You're lucky we go so way back to have me looking into this on top of my own work!" Tsukauchi laughs.
That and some coffee with extra cream helped offset how long the night had dragged scouring over old files and paperwork regarding Himiko Toga's background.
The moon rests higher in the sky now than when they first started, sky gaining familiar hues of pinkish-orange. The telltale signs of morning coming.
"Most of her former classmates and even her own family described Toga as an easygoing, bright, and friendly student stunned by her seemingly abrupt decision to stop coming to school. Her mother stated she was coming home later and later each night covered in splotches of blood she tried to hide with quick showers before one night she didn't return home at all." He begins.
"Right, I recall hearing an excerpt of this interview. Her father mentioned she had taken a few clothes and items from the fridge, but left no note of where she was going or planned to do with her life." Toshinori mentions.
It had only been a short blurb at the time of a missing teenager and when the news came to light of things she'd done her parents became reclusive, possibly moving overseas to escape the shame and embarrassment she had brought upon them...
"Yes so she basically fell off the grid for a while until she reappeared again on all the social media and news sites with the other League of Villain members." Tsukauchi reads from the last bits of a report from a few few years ago.
He looks up at him then properly, dark eyes somber and firm. "There's one more thing I managed to dig up that I think you should look at."
He reaches for the manila envelope resting beside him, pulling out photos of grisly images one by one.
"This boy...she apparently went to middle school with him." Tsukauchi mutters.
Toshinori clicks his teeth, shaking away the memory.
Though he can't break away the image of the battered and bruised face of the boy, the blood that pooled around his head like a halo staining the grass and cement in scarlet...
A boy who looked eerily before his death like Young Midoriya.
-X-
Izuku & Ochako
"Want to stop here?" Izuku suggests at seeing Ochako stifle another yawn. They still have two days left at the moment and trying to do any more cramming or retaining of information at this point seems pointless.
His own eyes feel heavy, blinking away once more the urge to keep them shut and drift off.
Ochako roams her eyes sleepily roam the last two remaining books they need to cover of Cementoss and Midnight's literature and fine arts respectively, small grin etching her lips when her gaze returns back to his.
"Do I really look that tired?" She asks gently, stretching out her arms and patting at her cheeks.
"Well, you've been using your books more as a pillow than actually reading from them over the past 30 minutes." Izuku remarks in return and he can't help but grin at the blush that crawls up her cheeks checking the sides of her lips and chin quickly in alarm for any drool.
He jolts when his attention turns to his clock only to see it already is 5 minutes left until midnight, meaning they both must've drifted off before he could properly walk Ochako back home. Why hadn't his Mom or Dad knocked to check in on them? But then they had promised they would try not to disturb them and the last check of his Mom poking her head in was hours ago.
'Crap, Ochako's grandparents are going to be so mad!' Izuku clicks his tongue, thinking of what to do. On the one hand they could leave now and be at the apartment at the latest around 12:20 am, though it would mean facing her Gamps in particular's harsh glare over breaking said deal that she would be back in their apartment by 11:00 pm.
Ochako lifts up her phone, wincing at the string of missed calls and texts from Gamps and Gamma alike. The last text sent from Gamps in particular around 30 minutes ago makes her squirm, sighing at how awkward breakfast will be come morning.
'Since we can't reach you by phone or text decided to reach out to Izuku's mom who stated you're still in his room pop quizzing each other and what not. I sincerely hope that is all that you're up to being in his room alone missy! None of that studying each other's anatomy or getting distracted by any non school related subjects! Anyways Gamma here wants me to get to the point so just shoot us a quick text or call when you can sweetie.'
She quickly types out a message she's fine and merely dozed off for a minute (a long minute), pausing before hitting send.
Because doing so will most likely wake them up, trigger him to call her directly and question if he needs to call her a taxi or worse come down and get her himself.
And on top of that there will be the unavoidable questions, questions she has no desire to answer when it's now already almost a new day.
She looks back to Izuku only to see he's already looking at her waiting on her answer and she takes a slow breath in to calm nerves sparking to life once more.
"What do you want to do Ochako?" He questions her softly, hands reaching and intertwining with her own. His face is half lit in the moonlight pouring in from his still open window, cool night air drifting in around them.
It reminds her of how people often view Izuku, either in the darkness of the actions he's done using Infliction or in the light of the good that he's done protecting so many from harm.
"I want to stay here. With you." She replies back warmly, pushing said memories to the back of her mind. In these few minutes that feel as if they are neither yesterday, tomorrow, or today it is easy to forget past behaviors and fears of what lies ahead in the future for them both. Until morning comes proper they can keep such thoughts buried, the stress of school and the League of Villains rising...
"Good, we want the same thing." He smiles and Ochako feels her face and neck burn tenfold, willing herself not to float off.
Izuku breaks apart their hands then, one hand moving up to cup at her cheek before leaning in. She catches the faint scent of ink of their pens and textbooks, of the familiar woodsy aroma that always seems to encompass him before his lips press against hers tentatively.
Ochako leans shyly into him in return, feeling the heat of his skin and racing of his heart matching her own.
They focus on the here and now; just them alone.
-x-
Managed to get another chapter in before the month ends, right in the middle of the night too finished editing! I have been itching to write their kiss scene so I hope I did it justice! Hopefully the next chapters involving the final exams and forest training camp arcs don't take me too long to write out with the changes I want to make. Let me know any thoughts!
Enjoy. Review. Favorite. Follow!