Chapter 28: Trapped, Trapped, Trapped

Name: Luna Aizawa

Quirk: ?

Appearance: ?

Warning: Language and Adult Themes

Specific Warnings: Panic Attacks, Language

There were several times when Luna awoke from her daze. Every time, everything was blurry and muffled, her body protesting the action of being awake through the burning she felt in her body, almost as if lightning was constantly being fired through her veins. Usually she'd be able to go under and pass out relatively quickly, but other times, she had to endure it through gritted teeth as she listened to the warbling of the people near her, their questions nothing more than meaningless babbling. Her eyes were barely functioning, giving her vague shapes and colors, but that was about it.

Another, less pleasant detail that Luna always noticed was that she was somehow bound. Every one of her movements was restrained and limited, her hearing giving her the slightest indication of being bound by something metallic, based on the clanging and ringing she heard when she moved her arms. Honestly, Luna would've endured more pain if it meant she had some sort of mobility, but she could understand the idea behind restraining her. If she was among enemies, then they obviously wouldn't want her to have any autonomy. If she was among allies, then they likely bound her as a safety precaution, both for her and for them. That didn't make her any less angry, though.

And it wasn't just her sight and hearing that was limited; all of her senses were, even her sixth sense she attributed to being part cat. When before she could vaguely feel it, now, there was just … empty space. Her touch felt numbed, to the point where she couldn't even tell what most things were. Her taste buds, when she was awake enough to eat, told her the same story of bland food with no flavors. Her nose, once keen enough to smell emotions, now only gave her one clue: ammonia. That was it; she couldn't tell if she even knew the people that sometimes visited her, which was both upsetting and embarrassing. Never before had Luna felt so helpless, and she hated every second of it.

Her mind, once full, was now glaringly empty. The space that Apophis and Bast once took were glaringly bleak, making her thoughts jumbled and chaotic. It was almost as if her brain forgot to function before she even learned of Bast. She called out to them, sometimes, but there was nothing in response. It was unclear if her shouts were obscured by her rampaging mind, or if there was no one to receive them in the first place. The thought of being alone in her own mind terrified her, and the absence of her usual collectedness gave way to extreme mood swings, something that even Luna noticed, and had gotten her sedated more than once. The feeling of a needle being stabbed into her always made her panic, her unpredictable flailing having hit a few people before, and based by the noise they made, hurt quite a bit.

The time in-between her half-roused state varied. Sometimes, it was filled with dreams she didn't quite understand. Luna knew dreams were just that, dreams, and weren't supposed to always make sense, but this was ridiculous. Everything was so warped in her sleep that she couldn't even recognize anything, causing her to, once again, lash out. Other times, there was nothing to be seen or heard. It was just Luna and the void, almost as if she was stuck in a sensory deprivation tank. A part of her mind would always drift to a quote she once heard, but never quite understood the context of, "stare into the abyss, and the abyss stares back at you." Something about not becoming the thing you wish to destroy? Luna didn't know, nor did she really care as to the lore of it at the moment. What she did care about, though, were the familiar yellow eyes that stared at Luna. Unable to vocalize or communicate in any way, she was forced to watch the yellow, slitted eyes, unwavering and unchanging. And that usually brought her to another thought; to her knowledge, every time she saw Apophis in the various memoryscapes he and Bast had created, his eyes were always yellow, but when Luna had transformed into him, she was told Apophis's eyes were a vibrant violet. She didn't know why that was, and to her alarm, she didn't particularly care, either.

She'd noticed that. She'd noticed her lack of curiosity in regard to most things, something that probably should have startled her, considering how curious of an individual she was, but now, she was left with a sense of … bitterness? It made no sense, but it was like she'd just accepted it at an unknown time. So, either she didn't remember, or she … didn't care … This was starting to become concerning.

0-0-0-0-0-0

It was perhaps the eight or ninth time that Luna woke up, when she realized her eyes actually worked. Well, they could see. The only problem was that they were functioning at a much lower level than they originally did. In fact, everything was. She felt like her hearing also suffered a similar fate, but she had no real way of testing it.

Her body, where previously it felt like she was on fire, now merely felt like it had been dipped in a low-grade acid; sure, it stung, but nowhere as badly as it had before. Something that she was quite happy about, she did not like having the feeling of being electrocuted across her entire body. It was then, however, that she noticed her surroundings. Almost everything was a blinding white, the only outliers being the metal of the hospital bed, as well as … Luna's mouth suddenly went dry when she noticed two very important things. One, she was cuffed to her bed. And two. There was a needle in her. THERE WAS A NEEDLE IN HER!

With a cry, Luna jerked her hands to the needle that was inserted into the inside of her elbow, but she couldn't reach it, which merely compounded her feelings of anger and panic. Like a negative feedback loop, her emotions fueled her erratic, jerky actions, which then heightened her emotional state. The door to her room slammed open, and in strode several medical personnel, carrying … MORE FUCKING NEEDLES?!

"Get away from me!" Luna spat, causing the people to pause uncertainly.

"Nadeau-san, do you know where you are?" One of the masked figures spoke, a female by the sounds of it.

"How am I supposed to know where I am?! I could be in the middle of the Canadian forests for all I know!"

"Miss, I can assure you that you are still in Japan. Currently, you are located in the University of Tokyo Hospital."

Luna hissed when she noticed one of them try to edge closer to her.

"Great, fantastic, thank you for the information. Now, are you going uncuff me?! I'm not a criminal!"

"We know that Miss, but you were prone to thrashing about in your delirious state, so we had to do that for everyone's safety. You managed to break a nurse's nose once in your hazy panic."

Luna merely glowered at them, not giving them an answer, before a familiar figure strode in front of them.

"Okay, what is this, kindergarten? Move, people." Another woman snapped, revealing it to be Volkova, of all people. "Glad to see you again, little cat."

"Vol – What are you doing here?"

"Treating you, what else? You terrified most of the doctors here, so they had to call me in."

"But … your work?"

"Silly girl, this is my work. Ryukyu game me leave for your care." She sighed, stepping close to the bed before slipping a key into the cuffs, unchaining Luna. "You worried us, you know."

Luna scoffed, rubbing her wrists where the cuffs once sat. "Yes, well, it wasn't exactly my idea to be kidnapped and tortured. I'll let you all know next time I plan on it."

Luna's sass earned her a light cuff over the head, though Luna noticed that Volkova had intentionally clipped the side that still had her … wait, since when was she missing an ear?!

"Ah, you noticed. You are missing an ear. That Toga girl that teamed up with your boom boom boy regretfully said she cut it off."

"I – what? Since when was Toga on our side? And … I don't …"

"That's normal. You will be filled in later, but for now you need rest."

"I don't need rest. I hate it there."

Volkova didn't immediately answer Luna's grumbles, merely giving her a look of understanding.

"Your dreams, they either scare you or you see nothing, yes?" Luna eyed the woman in surprise. "It's common, after something traumatic. I can give you something for now, but not always. You will need to learn to cope with your nightmares. Honestly, I would rather not. It's hard to stop once you start. Damn benzodiazepines."

Luna sat quietly, eyeing the catheter that was feeding her all sorts of nutrients. She still had half a mind to rip it out, but … she trusted Volkova. If she wasn't trying to pull it out, there was no need to. Still, her newly developed, irrational fear of them didn't like that answer.

"No needles." Luna said quietly.

Volkova gave her a look of understanding. "No needles. For now, sleep."

Volkova hesitated before patting Luna's head a few times, making her way out while shooing the others away. Luna watched uncertainly as the door closed, and some sort of locking mechanism was distantly heard.

Because that's not concerning at all.

She sighed, laying down with her back to the wall. This was going to take a while.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Volkova sighed tiredly as she entered the observation room. What Luna either failed to pick up on or never mentioned was that one of the walls actually was a one-way viewing window, except the window on the other side looked and felt like a wall. Illusion Quirks were useful that way. Several employees were sitting and monitoring Luna, who looked like she'd rather be doing anything else but be left alone with her thoughts. Volkova understood, but she needed rest. Being unconscious doesn't count since it technically didn't rest the body. Well, in her case, at least.

"How is she?" Eraserhead asked, standing stiff with his arms crossed. Volkova took a second to answer, observing the man. Perhaps he wasn't the most presentable on any given day, but he at least made sure he looked somewhat decent. These days, however, it looked like he walked through a hurricane. His dark hair, usually, somewhat tamed, now flared and flickered angrily, like he was using his Quirk. The purple bruises under his eyes and the rumpled clothing told her a story of someone who didn't, and wasn't going to, sleep.

"I am not going to soften the blow, Eraserhead." Volkova warned.

"I don't want you to, Vrachetka. You're brutally honest, I can respect that."

Volkova scowled. "Don't call me that. You know I don't like it."

Aizawa smirked softly. "It is the name you chose." The smirk fell. "Well?"

Volkova took a deep breath. "Well, she is terrified by needles now, so … something happened with them. She was trying to rip the catheter out of her arm; I think I managed to convince her not to, think being the key word. Also, a question. Did she always sleep with her back to the wall?"

Aizawa looked furious but kept the emotion from his voice. "Not towards the later months."

"Then she is doing it on purpose. She does not want to be exposed, hence -"

Volkova was interrupted by a screeching of metal on tile flooring, turning to watch as Luna dragged everything away from the center of the room into the corner farthest from the door. Thankfully, most of the equipment requiring the usage of an outlet had been equipped with extension cords, so nothing was turned off. Though, they did have emergency batteries in them, in case of power outages or the like.

"- that." Volkova grimaced. "I do not know much about what is going on in her head, probably should get that checked out soon. Not with the pop star, though. She is too unpredictable right now. Considering the fact that she almost seemed to snap her answers to me, I do not think it is a stretch that she will try to attack Nakata."

Aizawa, uncharacteristically, looked very troubled by the news. A hand was running through his unkempt hair while his eyes were focused on the ground, thinking. It wasn't a stretch to assume the news were kind of overwhelming, even if he preferred it that way. He straightened up after a few moments and a deep, troubled breath of his own.

"Thank you for doing this." Aizawa went to bow but was stopped.

"Do not thank me." The sudden severity to it was jarring, her eyes now glaring at the man before she cursed. "Prosti." * She quickly stalked out of the room, hands clenched tightly.

Aizawa sighed, deciding to call and let Ichika know that Luna was up, for better or for worse. When he left the room, two of his oldest friends were waiting for him, Hizashi and Nemuri.

"Yo. What's with the doc?" Hizashi asked, his usually boisterous voice now much more subdued, partly because he was in a hospital and partly because he knew that Shouta wasn't willing to tolerate it right now.

"Don't know." Aizawa grunted, heading outside to call his wife. His friends trailed after him.

"How's Luna-chan doing?" Nemuri asked. "Finally awake? I assume so because of how many people panicked and ran inside."

"She did. Nearly ripped the iv line from her arm hence your noticed panic."

"Not surprising. They probably kept pumping her with enough narcotics to kill a small whale. She did say the last time they gave her too little, right?"

"Yeah. Said they gave her enough to knock out a grown man for a day, but her liver metabolized it in an hour or so."

"You think they did what they sought out to do?" Hizashi asked, hands stuffed into his pockets. "I mean, they were gone for, what, a few days?"

"Few days too many." Nemuri grumbled. "Still don't understand why Nezu didn't want All Might to go with you and Vlad."

Aizawa, of course, knew, but he didn't say anything. Thankfully, Hizashi answered that one.

"Naw, that would've been too sus. All Might disappearing for a week? He's a teacher, sure, but he's also the number one hero in Japan."

"Please never use that word ever again." Aizawa sighed. "You sound younger than my students."

"That's what I'm going for!" Hizashi beamed.

"So. Question." Nemuri asked, her hands clasped behind her head as she walked. "What's with the Toga chick?"

"Don't know. Don't care." Aizawa answered coldly.

"Aw, come on Azi, she helped save your kid!" Hizashi protested.

"She also cut up two of them at the camp. I don't trust her."

Aizawa ended the conversation by dialing his wife. He wasn't willing to talk about Toga yet, regardless of what Apophis and Luna promised her.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Luna awoke with a jolt, staring blearily at the nurse who was standing near her arm with the catheter. The nurse, letting out an unprofessional squeak at the sudden movement, cleared her throat.

"A-Ah, Aizawa-san, I need to change the nutrient b-bags. I hope you don't mind." The nurse timidly asked. It suited her, though, based on the small horns and … was that a deer's tail as well? Luna narrowed her eyes at that train of thought.

Wait … would that be considered racist? But deer aren't a race … bagh, stupid.

The nurse paled at Luna's narrowed eyes. "U-Um, Aizawa-san?"

"You try to insert another needle in me and I'm going to stick you with it. Got it?" she finally snapped.

The nurse let out an adorable 'eep' and nodded vigorously, hands shaking as she did indeed change the bags. The shaking exposed one of the bags. Luna's eyes widened as she read the kanji. 'Fentanyl'.

They want to sedate me. They want to knock me out. They want to – to –

A rush of memories flooded back into her of her time as a prisoner. Her father used Fentanyl, amongst other drugs. He gloated about it while Luna was held under the hypnosis of Egypt-Chan. One of the few times she was lucid enough to comprehend what was going on. And now, her doctors wanted to use it to. But what if they weren't really doctors? What if they worked with him? Had he given them orders? Revenge? She knew he saw Apophis at some point. And so, she did the only thing she could: defend herself. She ripped the catheter out of her arm with a hiss of pain escaping her lips before she leapt at the woman, tackling her.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Luna roared.

"H-HELP!" the woman yelped.

Immediately, several people rushed into the room, stuttering upon the sight of Luna holding the woman in front of her, Luna's teeth bared as she hissed at them. The woman, whimpering, wasn't able to move, as Luna's hands had suddenly developed talons, which were held at her throat. Her eyes, once amber, were now an acidic yellow, a hint of purple coloring her pale face.

"What are you people playing at, huh?! Trying to sedate me?!"

"Someone get Eraserhead in here!"

One of the people rushed out while the other huddled uncertainly. It wasn't for a few moments until Eraserhead burst into the room, eyes narrowed. Luna glared back.

"Luna. Let her go."

"She tried to sedate me! She wanted to knock me out! Volkova lied!"

"Did she ever specify that she wouldn't use sedatives?"

Luna's scowl faltered. Her lack of attention let the woman rip out of her arms, her talons drawing some blood as she scrambled away. Luna looked at her hand with a mixture of feelings written on her face, watching the blood drip slowly onto the floor.

"They want to sedate me." Luna said blankly.

"Yes, I think that's what your medication is for."

"I don't want to lose him."

"You won't."

She looked up at Aizawa in suspicion. "How do you know? What if someone …"

"What if an earthquake were to happen at this exact second and collapsed the entire building?"

The entire staff who has swarmed into the room were now watching the conversation bounce back and forth like a tennis ball.

"I can't control earthquakes. I can control if I lose him or not."

"You can't keep him safe forever, and neither can he keep you safe. He did, and now he's –"

"HE'S NOT GONE!" The shout halted Aizawa, pausing as he watched hot tears spilled down her face. She began breathing at a rapid pace, heaving breaths loud and concerning. "He's n-not gone! He didn't l-leave me like she – n-neither … both -" She collapsed to her knees, her arms wrapping around her torso. Aizawa shot forward.

"Luna. Deep breaths Luna. Focus on the ground. The lack of heat. Five seconds for a breath in. Five seconds for a breath out."

Luna half sobbed half gasped as she tried to follow his instructions, hating the way she shrunk away from his touch. She trusted him, she did she try to run like she ran from her father? She hated this, this … whatever this was! Why was she so weak and emotional? Why was –

"Stop it." Aizawa's voice growled in her ear. "Relax and stop thinking whatever you are thinking."

Luna let out a whimper, but she tried. She tried her hardest to not think those thoughts, but it was hard. A few still managed to slip through her concentration, bringing more wetness to the corner of her eyes, but eventually, she managed to stop hyperventilating. Eventually, she just curled up and cried. Aizawa held her close after making sure she wouldn't be set off by his touch.

Hizashi and Nemuri were watching through the door that was left open, twin frowns on their faces. Sure, Luna was one of their students, perhaps one of their best, but they never really got to know her that well. These past few months had left them busy to the point of not visiting once since the new school year, which they felt guilty about. Luna herself was pretty quiet, though she did warm up to them slightly. Despite the change, Luna never was one of the more sociable students. Yes, most of the time she knew the answers to the questions they asked, but … she never had put herself out there. It was then, they decided, to try to get to know the girl closer. After all, she wasn't Bakugo; she wouldn't tear them a new one for trying.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Luna felt nervous, for some ungodly reason. Aizawa, having spent very little time sleeping, needed to go home and rest, so he called his wife, Ichika, to stay with Luna. The excited voice of Ichika, usually enough to make Luna smile, did little to settle her nerves, and she hated it. It was Ichika, for gods' sakes. It's not like it was going to be a supervillain in disguise.

Wait, but isn't that – Nope. Nuuh, not going there.

And so, Luna sat in her bed, this time without any iv line inside of her arm. She'd get all the nutrients she missed out by eating, thank you very much. There was no way she was subjecting herself to another needle. Aizawa sat with her, a nice deterrent of nerves. Well, a part of the nerves, at least. Luna jumped as the door was slammed open, Ichika striding over with tears in her eyes.

"Luna! How are you feeling? Are you okay? Do you need anything? Is there anything I can do? What do you want, darling?" Ichika bombarded Luna with questions, making the girl feel a bit uneasy. Aizawa interrupted the stream of questions with a fake cough, making Ichika stop and giggle nervously. "Oh, sorry. Can I, um …?"

Aizawa must have told her about how she had flinched away from him during her panic attack, which Luna was both annoyed at and grateful for. She hesitantly reached out and grabbed Ichika by the arm, and when her skin didn't crawl at the contact, she fully embraced the woman, who in turn hugged her gently.

"I'm sorry you weren't able to sleep well." Luna apologized softly.

"Oh, baby, it's not your fault at all! Don't apologize." Ichika cooed, stroking Luna's back softly while putting her chin on Luna's head. They sat like that for who knows how long. Luna didn't even realize Aizawa had left the room, merely that, according to Ichika, he left without warning. Perhaps he was that tired, and that honestly made a part of Luna even guiltier; she was only bringing added stress and worry to their lives, something they really didn't need more of, considering that her class was a magnet for everything terrible. Seriously, there wasn't a single month where something didn't happen.

"Luna, Recovery Girl came to see you. Would it be okay for her to use her Quirk on you?" Ichika murmured after a bit.

Luna hesitated, which Ichika noted, but she hesitantly nodded after a moment of contemplation. She wasn't going to refuse anything her two guardians suggested, not after everything she put them through.

The door opened once again, much softer this time, as what appeared to be a security guard opened the door for Recovery Girl, who nodded her thanks and shuffled into the room. Luna tried her best to withhold her unease with Recovery Girl, but the old woman must have still felt it regardless, for she stopped about a meter away from her.

"Hello, Luna-chan. I'm glad to see you're awake, this time. I've visited you here before, but you were always asleep or delirious from pain. Does anything hurt in particular?" the kindly elder asked.

"N-No, not really. It's not as bad as it was before, at least. It stings, but … it'll pass. I think." Luna replied, a part of her disliking what she guessed would happen next.

"Hmm, that's good to hear. I'll just help you along if you don't mind?"

Luna shook her head, but her apprehension must have been pretty visible since Ichika squeezed her shoulder comfortingly.

"Don't worry, Luna dear. Chiyo would never do something to hurt you." Ichika whispered.

With that, Recovery Girl gently kissed Luna's hand, which Luna definitely did not like, based on the goosebumps that appeared in the area and across her arm in general. Though she felt better, she felt infinitely more drained, much worse than when she had used Recovery Girl's services before. Luna was so tired that she nearly passed out on Ichika's side, but the woman carefully tucked Luna away under the covers, letting the girl rest. It was to her slight dismay, however, when she noticed Luna rotate to face the door. Not a few moments after, Luna fell into a deep sleep.

"She still does that?" Ichika murmured in sadness.

"It's not your fault, dear. It's a common phenomenon when someone doesn't trust their surroundings very much." Recovery Girl assured her, turning to leave.

"But I feel like I'm letting her down in some way. Like I should be able to help her get past it." Ichika stood up to follow, giving Luna a last look before turning to leave as well.

"Ichika, it took a few months to get used to your house, and that was before this whole incident. Now? With the plans for the dorms likely becoming a reality, it'll be hard for her to adjust."

"I suppose you're right, Chiyo. It's just … I wish this all never happened to her, you know? She doesn't deserve it."

"It's always to the best of us that the worst events happen to. That's the curse of being truly good, I'm afraid."

0-0-0-0-0-0

Aizawa stared into the hospital room, his scowl truly unhidden as he watched the slow rising and falling of the man's chest. Truly, it was a wonder that Aizawa even referred to him as a man and not a monster, considering all he'd done. There was absolutely no way Aizawa could ever come to think of the man as Luna's father, not after everything that happened. When he'd first gotten note that Luna was going to be in his homeroom class, there was a note to be suspicious. It was assumed that Nadeau was the shadowy leader of the Phantom Cloak, but there hadn't been any proof to confirm it. Now? The exact moment they do? He's fallen into a coma, the lucky bastard.

It wasn't fair, but the world wasn't fair. Seldomly did Aizawa have to remind himself of that fact, because it was irrational to assume everyone would operate on the same principles of ethics and morals, and yet … this was one of the few times Aizawa truly lamented the state of humanity. People were fickle, weak, and irrational as a base, oftentimes doing what was in their best interest instead of in the best interest of others. Stain was one such person who grew fed up with these people who went on to become heroes for personal gain and look how that turned out. Dozens injured, many killed.

As for the Phantom Cloak? It was gone, if not completely, then well on its way to be destroyed. There were merely a few branches in other countries that needed to be rooted out, the deepest ones located in North America, where the organization had started out. After that … Nadeau was done. Aizawa had recently received a report on the man; truly what had happened to drive the beacon of hope for Canada to become such a rotten villain was appalling, yes, but Nadeau had blown it out of the water with his actions.

House Hawk Enterprises, the leading hero organization in Canada, had been the ones to compile the report fully, a favor the for the girl of the fallen hero, perhaps as a way to truly get rid of the debt Canada had to Nadeau, perhaps out of pity, or perhaps as a thank you to Luna and Apophis for finally managing to capture the slippery canine. Aizawa wasn't exactly sure, but he thanked the organization regardless, because it was a means of closure for his ward, though he wouldn't be giving it to her until she was declared mentally stable, and that might not have been for a long while.

"Hello Aizawa-sama!" chirped a female voice to his left, which caused him to turn with annoyance clearly displayed in his eyes.

Another source of irritation was Himiko Toga, who was also located in the same hospital Luna and Nadeau were. She was currently spending her time here in the psych ward, being assessed. It was clear that she wasn't sound of mind, so Aizawa assumed she would be rehabilitated here for some time as well. While Aizawa was happy that another criminal had been taken off the streets, he was decidedly less so when he learned that Luna and Toga were supposed to have group therapy sessions later on, alongside Egypt-Chan.

"Hello, Toga. To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" Aizawa drawled.

"Oh, the staff wanted me to walk around a bit, and this is my usually path."

"You've been allowed to walk freely for how long?"

"Only a day, but I decided this will be my new path. How're Apep and Luna-chan doing?"

"Apophis has yet to make an appearance, while Luna is on the recovery."

Toga drooped at the news. "Nothing yet, huh?"

Aizawa grimaced internally as he felt a bit of pity worm its way into his heart. He didn't know the entirety of what Apophis promised the little psycho, but he knew that Apophis wanted to help her with her mental issues. Her history that Aizawa came to learn was a bit tragic. All her life, she had been told that she was different, weird, scary even. That her Quirk was that of a villain's, and that she had no hope for using it normally, so she was taught to hide it. She was taught to be 'normal', to repress her urges, and there were hints of abuse littered throughout her narrative, though when asked, Toga deflected.

"He should be back soon, at least." Aizawa grumbled, turning away. "He doesn't seem like a liar."

"I guess, but he could've just used me like -" she paused, scowling. "Never mind. I'm gonna go, the doctors might call the cops on me thinking I ran away."

The terrible attempt at humor was visible to both of them, but Toga walked away regardless. Perhaps she was aware of the unease with which Aizawa had to accept her presence. If so, she was pretty aware for someone not in control of her actions. It wasn't to say that Aizawa thought she was faking all of it, though. He'd been around her enough times to see that she indeed did have a lot of problems in her head, maybe as a result of how she was raised, or the nature of her Quirk in general. He thought he remembered a few articles stating that blood Quirks tended to have users who were a bit more unstable than the rest, but he was unsure about that.

He sighed, stuffing his hands into his pockets. Finally deciding he should head home and try to get some rest, he turned away from Nadeau's room. Hopefully, he never had to come back here.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Luna sat in her bed, the sheets held tightly in her fists as her lone cat ear was angled backwards. Shoto was supposed to be able to visit her today, and she wasn't sure what to think. A part of her was excited to see another person besides her guardians or a medicinal staff member, but … a part of her was afraid. She wasn't exactly the most stable at the moment, and she was wary of Shoto doing something to inadvertently set her off.

She didn't have much time to worry, however, as Shoto entered her room. He seemed rather calm, all things considered, looking about the room with a muted look of interest. His eyes finally came to rest on Luna, and … nothing in his gaze changed for the worse. The opposite was true, in fact. His eyes lit up with relief as he approached, sitting down at the end of Luna's bed quietly.

"Hello." Shoto began.

"Hi." Luna responded nervously, her ear flicking and rotating rapidly.

They sat in silence for a few moments.

"Seems like everyone I care about is ending up in the hospital, but not the ones I want. Weird, huh?"

Luna choked at the attempt at comedy, not expecting it. She expected some questions about what happened to her, perhaps something about her appearance, but not … that.

Shoto, taking her reaction as a negative one, sighed and drooped slightly.

"Sorry, I thought I'd try to lighten the situation a bit."

"No! I just, um … didn't expect it." Luna responded, her exuberance greatly diminishing as she finished her reassurance.

"Oh." Shoto seemed to perk back up. "Was it any good?"

"Um … I mean, I found it kind of funny, but I don't think everyone would?"

"Why not?" The boy seemed genuinely confused, making Luna's heart melt a bit at his innocent expression.

"I think that classifies as dark humor, and not everyone's … okay with it? I guess?"

"Are you? I mean, it's kind of my bad if you're not …"

"You would not be. And I already told you, I found it funny. Just … don't try to spring it upon someone like Midoriya-kun, okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I can do that."

The two sat in companionable silence for a period of time, with Luna dropping her legs over the side of her bed so as to be able to sit next to Shoto, while the boy himself scooted closer. Unbeknownst to the two teenagers, Ichika was squealing with happiness and taking an infinite number of pictures on the other side of the fake wall.

"I, uh, also have a request. Well, technically it's an invitation." Shoto began awkwardly, his hand reaching up to the back of his neck.

"Oh?"

"Um, my old man wants you and your guardians to come over for a dinner." Luna's mouth went dry at the request, feeling the pit of her stomach drop. "He somehow heard about our situation."

"Oh."

"Not right now, obviously. But … later. Fuyumi said she's probably going to be there, but Natsuo … he doesn't like spending any time he doesn't with the bastard."

"I don't really blame him …"

"I don't either. While I normally would tell you to stay clear, he has a way of getting what he wants, regardless of what everyone else wants."

"I see. Considering the Phantom Cloak probably won't be an issue for much longer, I might be available. It depends on Aizawa-sensei and Ichika though."

Shoto nodded in understanding. "I'll ask him too. I just wanted you to know beforehand."

"Thank you. I'll … I think I want to go."

That's the way they sat for a good while. There wasn't much that happened, in all honesty. At some point the two sat shoulder-to-shoulder, and Todoroki thought he felt something snake around his arm while Luna hesitantly lowered her head onto his shoulder. They both stiffened at the contact, but soon relaxed after realizing that nothing was going to happen.

And it was this time that Luna decided to think a lot. She was honestly kind of disappointed in herself; she thought that Todoroki might do something that might have set her off when she should've known better. Shoto was always a pretty calm and collected individual, only really not thinking when it came to something in his personal life. And it was with a small smile that she realized that she was now a part of that group.

Shoto wasn't the most visually expressive person in the world, but if you paid attention to his eyes, it would be pretty easy that he did convey his emotions through his eyes. His wonderfully warm and unique eyes, eyes that always seemed to know when Luna wanted something. The little sparks of knowing, or the absolutely adorable gaze of his when he was confused always managed to lighten Luna's mood, and it was a wonder that Tokoyami or Tsu never really called her out on it. Though, Luna might've been able to rebut their statements with her own observations of the two. On first glance with the two, a person might've thought that they were just friends, but over the many times she had spent with the two during lunch, she'd always notice small hints of something more. Perhaps the smallest of touches, or the faintest of blushes when they caught each other looking, but the signs were there. Bast always managed to notice.

And that was when Luna's face fell slightly. Bast … she wasn't gone. Absolutely not. No, she was still there, somewhere. She just needed to be found. Apophis would know where Bast was. He'd find her. And there was absolutely no doubt about that. The door opened up, causing Luna's gaze to rise.

"Luna dear. Todoroki needs to leave soon." Ichika's head poked in, apologetic in nature.

"Oh. Okay." The disappointment in her voice must have been pretty noticeable because Todoroki grabbed her hand and gave it a warm squeeze, likely aided by his Quirk.

"Hey. I'll be back."

Luna nodded, a faint smile on her face as she watched him leave the room. Luna hoped he would be back soon.

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"Luna darling." Ichika spoke up after entering. "You've been scheduled to talk to Nemuri-chan."

Luna tilted her head slightly. "Who?"

"Ah, sorry." Ichika chuckled. "Midnight. She's technically U.A.'s counselor like Hound Dog."

"For what?"

"Well, we need to make sure there aren't any issues left untreated, you know? Just to be safe."

Luna frowned at that. "Do I have to?"

"I'm afraid so, baby girl. Otherwise we'd need to go out and talk to a professional."

Luna shuddered at that. "Okay, but … what will I have to talk about?"

"About what happened. Not everything!" Ichika quickly added the last sentence after seeing Luna's apprehension skyrocket. "About the things you're comfortable with. Hopefully, later on, you'll feel better about what happened."

"Ah … ok."

And the silence between them became more strained, which pained Ichika. She didn't want to force Luna to become uncomfortable, but it was a necessary evil. She knew Azi shared the sentiment, though perhaps he was a bit more vocal regarding the logic and the irrationality of letting the metaphorical wound fester. As a whole he'd probably be a bit gruffer, but that was just how he was.

With a sigh, Ichika got up, tucking Luna under her covers.

"It will be tomorrow, ok? Just to let you know."

"Ok." Luna paused, before speaking again. "Oh, um, Shoto said his father invited us for dinner."

Ichika stiffened. "He what?"

"Not today, or … anytime soon, I think. Shoot just wanted us to know the invitation was there. And that … uh … we should probably go. Something about Endeavor getting what he wants regardless?"

Ichika looked less than pleased but nodded. "I'll let Azi know."

With that, Ichika stalked out of the room clearly looking unhappy with the knowledge that they'd been 'invited' over. And she had a very, very bad feeling about it.

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Hello everyone, welcome back! At the time of writing this, it's still 2022, but I think that this'll be uploaded next year, so! We'll start off with a bit of a recap.

This story is over a year old now, with 27 (uploaded) chapters and almost 200k words, which is absolutely wild. 80 follows, 66 favorites, and 8 reviews is something I was absolutely NOT expecting, so I thank you all for your support! I seriously can't thank you all enough for what you've turned this story into. Honestly, I'm kind of scared on how this'll look at the end of 2023. Again, my biggest thanks for this story and how you guys helped it along. I probably wouldn't have continued this otherwise, which pains me to say.

And so, to the chapter. While nothing explicit happened here and was more fluff than anything, we can see some future issues take hold here. Obviously, Luna is not happy about having to talk to Midnight about what happened, because she'd have to acknowledge that Bast is … well, gone. And she's not going to do that for a bit. Denial is a powerful thing. As for Apophis, he'd kinda dead to the world for now. He'll be back though, have no fear.

I'm sure many of you can guess as to why Endeavor decided to 'invite' the Aizawa household, and … it won't be pretty. Aizawa and Ichika had their worries about this earlier, and now it's going to become a reality. Expect some fluff chapters coming up, because it's been a lot of nonstop action for a while now. Poor Luna and co deserve it, and I'll focus on the relationships between the characters during this time. I know that some of them are a bit iffy since this fic hasn't focused on them a bunch, so we're gonna be having some ol' fashioned deep dives of the friendships.

Anyways, that's it for me! Stay safe out there in the New Year! May all of you experience nothing but happiness and safety! Bananaman out!

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Prosti (pr-ah-stee) – The Russian word for sorry, a shorter version of the formal prostite (pr-ah-stee-tey)