The mall trip continues! Shoto is a bit of a disaster. Nine...has things to say. Izuku has things to say. A lot of things will be said.
It's a day late and shorter than normal but this week was just hell on me. I'm very sorry. I think I've settled on trying to do an alternating release schedule between this and Forged by Friendship for now. Trying to get two stories out weekly is rough for me. I do apologize, but I hope you'll continue to enjoy!
"Oh, that looks so cute!" Mina gushed, pointing at another dress she spotted in the window.
"Mina! We are not here looking for dresses! We are here to prepare for our trip!" Tenya said, chopping his hand in the air and scolding her for the twelfth time.
Ochako just rolled her eyes at her friends…the quartet of her, Tenya, Mina, and Hanta were wandering about, having agreed to go find things like bug spray because no one wanted to deal with the pests while camping. But traveling with Mina, who couldn't stay still or on task if her life depended on it, Tenya who felt it was his sworn duty to curb her enthusiasm, and Hanta who…well, to be honest, he was so chill he was just along for the ride, was a bit of a pain…but she wouldn't have it any other way.
She couldn't help but smile to herself. Spending time with her friends (and new girlfriend?) was something she really did enjoy, even with how eccentric the class was. And no, she was not ignoring her own eccentricities, but at least she hadn't just run off to leer over some…lingerie?! "Mina!" she almost shouted, glaring without heat while her cheeks flushed slightly as Mina posed next to the mannequin with a sultry smile.
"What? Wouldn't I look good in this?" Mina replied, humor in her voice.
"Mina, that is inappropriate!" Tenya replied, steadfastly choosing not to look in her direction or at the mannequin she was posing by.
Hanta tilted his head to the side and hummed, rubbing at his chin. "Honestly Mina, you could do better than that. See, the stitching on the side is rather boring, and shoddy work if I'm being honest. There's already a small tear in the seam. If it can't handle being on the mannequin, it likely wouldn't last long, and with the price tag on that you'd want it to be more than a one night thing. Besides, it doesn't match your skin tone at all, you want something that'd pop against you, and that just wouldn't."
The other three teens turned to look at the calm dark-haired teen next to them, all three blinking in confusion. He met their gazes and shrugged. "What? I like clothes."
Ochako's confusion gave way to giggles as she reached up and patted him on the shoulder. "You should meet Katsuki's mom and dad sometime, they are fashion designers, you'd get along great."
"They are?" Mina gasped, dashing to Ochako's side, wide-eyed.
"Yeah. You gotta be careful around Mitsuki though, if she's in the middle of a new design, she'll drag you along and make you model for her. She did that to me and Himi way too often," Ochako groaned.
"But modeling would be so much fun!" Mina said.
"Mina, you might think so…but you have not been in Mitsuki's clutches before," Ochako replied, rolling her eyes. Ochako paused for a moment, lifting one hand up to her chin in contemplation. "Although, the one time she made Izu and Katsuki model was fun…"
Hanta chuckled. "What'd she make them wear?"
Ochako's expression glazed over slightly as she remembered, a smile crossing her face. "Not sure I could describe it well, but…well, let's just say that Mitsuki knows how to showcase muscles in the best possible way. Oh! I should send Eijiro the pics of Katsuki we took," Ochako snickered to herself as she pulled out her phone, rapidly typing away at it.
"Ochako! That-"
"Is inappropriate, I know," Ochako replied, rolling her eyes goodnaturedly at Tenya.
He pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Actually, I was going to say the wrong time, because we won't get to see Eijiro's reaction if you send them now."
The other three stopped and stared at the uptight bluenette, the taller teen staring at them with a stone cold expression before a small smile crossed his face. "You all are a terrible influence on me, and that is all I will say on the matter."
Hanta snorted, clapping Tenya on the back. "Aww, I knew you loved us!"
"Yes, yes. Come now, we do have something to do after all, we can lollygag afterwards."
"Who the hell says lollygag anymore?!"
Ochako giggled as Mina and Tenya started bickering over word choice, unable to hold back the warm fuzzy feeling in her chest. Yeah. A day at the mall with her friends was great.
Himiko skipped along with Tsuyu, Momo, Denki, and Hitoshi…an eccentric group to be sure, but Tsu and Momo were keeping them mostly on task. What that task was she still wasn't entirely sure of, but it was a task nonetheless! Her nonchalant attitude was removed slightly by a tug on her sleeve, the blonde glancing down to see Tsuyu looking up at her curiously.
"Sup Tsu?" Himiko asked.
"Why were you so insistent we leave Izuku and Shoto alone together?" the greenette said in her familiar blunt fashion.
Himiko's smile faded slightly as her lip twitched. She noticed how Momo was standing closer, listening in curiously, while Hitoshi and Denki had both walked somewhat away from the girls, Denki babbling on about everything he saw while his purple-haired boyfriend watched him with a fond expression he probably didn't realize was even there. Himiko let out a deep breath, figuring it was okay to speak up about this much.
"...I don't think Izuku or Shoto noticed it yet. But there's something there between them. Whether it's romantic or not I dunno, but they do have a bond now. And…well…Shoto has his own problems, which it's not my place to talk about, but Izuku's the best person for him right now, to kinda…I guess, show him what it means to have friends, you know?"
"But, didn't Shoto say he didn't feel that way for anyone in the hospital?" Momo asked softly, her voice low.
Himiko shrugged. "Like I said, I'm not sure if it's romantic at all. But there's something. Whatever it is and whatever it becomes, I just want them both to be happy. It's like Ochako says about Eijiro and Kats…their our boys. We just want them happy, whatever that happiness means. Besides…tell me Shoto isn't the prettiest boy in class and him and Izuku together are hot as hell. Go on, I'll wait." Himiko's last sentence was said in a purr, her serious expression morphing into a smirk.
Momo giggled into her hand, by now at least somewhat immune to Himiko's off the cuff commentary about people's attractiveness.
Tsuyu put her finger up to her lip and shrugged. "I suppose. Izuku's the only boy in class I really think is pretty, but Shoto's hair is nice."
"Shoto is a very kind person now that he's speaking up more. I'm glad he's spending more time with the class. If Izuku can help him be more comfortable with us, I'm entirely in favor," Momo remarked with a smile.
"Yep! So I kinda…put them together for now!" Himiko said with a grin. She shook her head to clear it. "Anyways, let's go, we got a trip to prep for!"
"So…talk!" Izuku snarled, his muscles tense and ready to spring into action as he glared at the white-haired man before him.
"I'm older, Midoriya. Why don't we have a seat on that bench over there?" Nine said, gesturing to a nearby bench with a series of plants behind it, keeping part of the mall out of vision of it. Izuku worked his jaw, but complied at the subtle twitch of Nine's fingers, following the man and taking the seat furthest right of the man, Nine gracefully sitting down on the left. Izuku waited, shoulders hunched, green eyes narrowed on the man calmly sitting on the other side of the bench. Even with how angry he felt, he could sense it, the looming threat from above. He glanced up, seeing the swirling clouds visible through the skylight. He knew Nine could call it down with but a thought.
"Are you going to say something or what?" Izuku finally broke the silence.
Nine rolled his shoulders, cracking his neck casually. "I was merely waiting for you to calm down. I meant what I said. I have no intention of harming anyone here so long as you cooperate."
"Yes because your word means so much to me," Izuku shot back.
"I've never lied to you."
"The only times we've spoken are while you were trying to kill me and my classmates, that's not exactly conducive to trusting someone!"
Nine chuckled. "But we're so intimately acquainted!"
"You said that already, and it wasn't funny the first time."
"You are simply too tense, young man. Really, we're just here to have a calm, friendly chat."
"You've yet to say anything of value, so what the hell do you expect us to even talk about?"
"Can't an old friend just say hello?" Nine's grin was all teeth and no humor, his purple eyes boring into Izuku's emeralds.
"I know you're trying to piss me off, and it's not working," Izuku said with a glare back at the villain.
Nine arched an eyebrow. "Oh really?"
"Yeah…cause I'm already pissed off at you."
"Why, because you killed your parents?"
Izuku's entire body flinched at the comment, a low growl escaping his clenched teeth. Both of his fists clenched, his nails digging into his palms with enough force he began to feel the splitting of the skin and the trickles of blood beginning to escape from him. He forced himself to breathe in, to let go of the tight grip he had on his hands. Nine was just trying to rile him up and he refused to do anything that fucker wanted. But he also knew better than to engage with him on that…any hesitation or lack of certainty, the bastard would pounce on. Instead, he chose to stay silent and merely look at the white-haired villain with a blank gaze.
Nine smirked at him. "Seems I hit a nerve."
"What…do…you…want!?" Izuku hissed. He could not take this any longer! What did this bastard want with him?!
'Izuku, please, calm down. He's not worth your hatred. You know that. He's not worth it,' the quiet voice of Yoichi sounded in his mind, an encouraging warmth flooding into his chest.
'He's just some fuckwad trying to stir you up. Seen it all the time back in the day. Don't let this punk get the better of you kid,' Three added.
'I know, I know, I know! I just…' the mental sound Izuku let out was not human, it was closer to a tea kettle combined with a lawnmower. He could feel the vestiges wincing, but still they held firm.
Nana's hand rested on his shoulder, gently squeezing in support. 'It'll be okay. You can do this, Izuku. Let him bait himself into telling you what you need to know. Villains like him love to hear themselves talk, and if you let him, he'll give you enough rope to hang himself with.'
Izuku chose to listen, silently staring at the other man in the hopes he'd break first…which, apparently, he would. Nine's smirk dropped, a flat expression crossing his face as his eyes sparked for a brief moment. "Fine, hero. Let's make this simple. You hate me, and that's fine. I get it, I do. I admit, I would too if I had done what I did. But doesn't that make you want to make me pay? You remember that, don't you? That feeling at the USJ? How much you wanted me dead?"
"'Wanted' implies past tense," Izuku said quietly, his voice deadly calm.
Nine's lips curled upwards. "Forgive me, I assumed much. Then here's my question…why am I alive?"
"You've got hostages-"
"Oh drop the bullshit, Midoriya. Why do they matter more than the pain I put you through? Why do they matter more than your parents do? Why not attack me, here and now? Kurogiri's not here. I have no Nomu. We both know you stand a decent chance of winning that fight if it's just us."
Izuku's face twisted for a moment, a snarl flashing across his face as his eyes glowed for a split second. He struggled against the pressure in his chest, the urge to release some of the energy within him pressing from within, his veins burning as green began to creep beneath his skin. He bit his lip as he tried desperately to pull back on it, to hold it down and back but it kept slowly trickling out. He decided instead to focus on the hated man in front of him. "Of course you'd say that. But unlike you, I give a shit about other people!"
"That's where you're wrong, Midoriya. I do care about other people. That's the whole point behind my mission. I want a world where your strength lets you make decisions for yourself! Why should one such as I or you be forced to live under the thumb of those who could never touch our greatness? Our power? I can level entire cities in minutes…and I imagine you could as well. Shouldn't we be the ones making the call? We could protect anyone with our strength, couldn't we?"
Izuku blinked rapidly at Nine as he continued to expound on his philosophy, utterly in shock at how blatantly pathetic it was. It sounded like something out of a comic book! This…this was the man who'd killed his parents? All those people? Over something so utterly banal? All of his sheer confusion was swiftly flaring back up into anger, into rage. Nine did all of this…for some stupid might makes right philosophy that didn't work on the surface, much less if you dug into the specifics.
This was something a young teenage boy thought made sense, not a grown adult. Defining strength solely by power to destroy. What about power to create? To craft? To bring forth art? To have the patience to toil the land to farm food? Power to create power, to bring fresh water? Ability to build houses, to make advancements in science, in medicine. Society was built upon a collective effort, one that often failed to help those who were downtrodden, yes, but it didn't change that it required everyone to make it work. And those who were forced into servitude never stayed there forever. Every empire falls. Nine was just repeating the same mistake of the empires of ages past, and reveling in it.
'Well, he's clearly a disciple of my brother, that's for certain,' Yoichi mused in the back of Izuku's mind.
'...you're kidding me,' Izuku thought back.
He could sense Yoichi shaking his head slowly. 'Sadly, no. We grew up reading manga and western comics together. We both loved them. They were kind of the foundation for our relationship, if I'm being honest. It was the one thing we could bond over, even before his ability manifested. He was always strong, and fit, and charismatic…and I could barely go for a walk before collapsing in exhaustion. But we could always enjoy the tales of heroes and villains, of demon lords and the brave souls who stopped them…but for some reason, my brother always identified with the demon lord more than anyone else.'
'...please don't tell me he does all of this out of some desire to become something straight out of a manga,' Izuku pleaded desperately, already knowing the answer.
'Kid, we all had to get over it, you might as well get started on that too,' Daigoro grunted.
'...he killed all those people because he wanted to be some manga supervillain? Killed all of you over that?'
'Well, that and he wanted One For All, since he thinks it belongs to him,' Nana replied with a mental shrug.
'...I didn't think I could hate him more. And yet every day I'm proven wrong,' Izuku mused, his ears picking up on Nine finally winding down with his speech.
Silence fell between the two of them for a minute, as Nine seemed to actually be proud of the absolute drivel he'd just been spouting. Izuku stared blankly at him, internally trying to somehow reconcile how he felt but…no. Everything was a giant mess of incredibly negative emotions that he just did not have time to process at this time. So, he just spoke without thinking. "That's it?"
"...what?"
"That's the whole reason you do all this? That's your justification for murder? For torture? For killing my parents? For tormenting a young man and turning him into a walking bomb?!" Izuku's voice rose as he spoke, barely able to keep from shouting but not enough to keep other nearby store goers from glancing in his direction, concerned. Idly he noted how many began to hurry away, finding the two men unsettling (internally he was glad of that, because the fewer people nearby, the fewer hostages Nine had). His energy pulsed in his chest, the anger that he'd been keeping tentative control over beginning to bubble and overflow, ripping from within to drip from his fingers, green splashing upon the ground and vanishing.
"Ah, yes, your oh so dramatic rescue of the city from the Winged Nomu. You know he was a young man before the change? How?"
Izuku had no desire to let him know anything further…but the unsettling rumble of thunder above had him letting out a deep breath and speaking. "...I knew him. I knew that Quirk. He was there. You trapped a person inside a monster and used them to hurt people. All for your absolute bullshit of a mission!"
Nine sighed deeply. "And we come to the crux of the issue. You are still so foolish and naive. And here I thought we could come to an understanding."
Izuku never did figure out what possessed him that moment, but he was fairly certain it was the spirit of his brother whispering in his ear…or he was just that mad. He held one hand up, green energy running down his fingertips, stared Nine blankly in the face, and flipped Nine off. "Understand this."
Nine's face twisted like he'd just eaten something sour. The cocky look faded as his own lips returned Izuku's earlier snarl. "Fine. That's the last chance you get, hero."
Thunder rolled in the skies above as Nine's eyes glowed a soft purple, his fingertips flickering with his own energy. Izuku narrowed his eyes in return, a green spark appearing across his shoulder for a split second. "You said you'd leave in peace if I heard you out."
"I did," Nine replied with a soft tone, an underlying threat woven into it.
The two stared at each other for a few seconds, until the tension was broken by a soft voice calling his name. "Izuku?"
Shoto had finally finished up his purchases. Lots of cold soba in bulk, mostly. But he'd also found an interesting pen and notebook combination. The notebook had a bright, fun yellow cover, and the pen was a pink reminiscent of Ochako's costume. Shoto had been told a few times that buying gifts for your friends was a way to show you cared, so he figured he'd buy this for Izuku. It would remind him of his girlfriends. Then again…he was now also dating the other girls? Perhaps something to represent them?
That was how Shoto lost the next fifteen minutes of his life. A tea cup for Momo, a frog themed water bottle for Tsuyu, a pink lava lamp for Mina, a very nice purple guitar pick for Kyoka, and a little crystal ornament to hang from the ceiling for Toru. There. He had something to give Izuku that represented all of his partners.
He paused for a moment as he noticed a little keychain. It was a red snowflake. Very odd coloration…but he picked it up anyways. He was giving Izuku gifts as a thank you…perhaps one for himself? He felt a smile twitch on his face as the thought made him feel oddly warm, even on his right side. Yes, this was a good idea.
He checked out as quickly as he could, wanting to find Izuku before he got too far, since he had a feeling Izuku might get lost in the bookstore. As he started walking towards the bookstore, he felt a faint pressure on the air. A strange sense of…threat? Danger? Just a looming uncomfortableness that was making him flinch. Something…made him want to walk further, past the bookstore…oh, there Izuku was. Wait, who was that?
"Izuku?"
Izuku's eyes snapped over to see Shoto standing a few meters away, a few bags dangling off his arms. His eyes roved over the greenette and onto the man beside him, going wide for a moment before narrowing. Izuku saw the brief hints of smoke, the tiny twinkles of frost and hurriedly held up a hand to Shoto.
"Shoto, it's okay. We're just talking," he says soothingly, keeping an eye on Nine's body language.
The villain smirks, rising to his feet. Izuku rises with him, trying to keep both Nine and Shoto in his line of sight. Shoto takes a careful step to Izuku's side, his hands flexing as he glares at the white-haired villain. Nine rolls his shoulders and turns to face the two teenagers. "I keep my word, Izuku Midoriya. I'll leave in peace, so long as you and your friend stay your hands."
"Then leave already," Izuku said softly, the threat in his voice audible even in the crowded mall.
Nine sketched a mocking bow, even as the thunder roiling above continued to sound, the sound of rain hitting the rooftops echoing throughout the mall. "Oh, and Midoriya?"
"What?"
Nine's smile crossed his face slowly. "This was our next meeting…and I'm not on the floor. Well done keeping your word, hero." Nine spun about and began marching off, Izuku's fist clenching one more as he bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from speaking.
He didn't notice the blood dripping off his hand, mixing with the green energy that slowly trailed off him, until he felt a cold hand grasp his and gently pry his fingers open. He jolted, his gaze dropping off the white-haired villains back to look over at Shoto, the two-toned teen prying his fingers out of his clenched fist.
"I would rather you not harm yourself, Izuku," Shoto said softly.
Izuku's gaze snapped back to where Nine had walked away, just barely catching a glimpse of his white-hair turning a corner, where a suspicious cloud of black swallowed him up a moment later, the villain vanishing into it. Izuku let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding, even as Ochako bolted up to him, followed seconds later by Tenya, Mina, and Hanta. The rest of the class began to coalesce around them, Shoto explaining softly he'd sent out an emergency text to the group chat.
Izuku dealt with it. He dealt with the questions, the sudden tugs on him to check he was okay, the way Himiko was trying to wrap his hands even while police had flooded the mall and begun questioning him about the conversation. He answered robotically, keeping his gaze wandering. He tried to reassure the others, gentle comments, kind smiles, everything he'd ever learned about faking it. Unfortunately, he knew Katsuki, Ochako, and Himiko knew better…and he suspected Shoto did too, from the look the other teen gave him. Mercifully, none of them spoke up or said anything.
The thing was, he wasn't truly upset. He got it. He knew Nine was just trying to rile him up with the final comment. And he could feel the reassurance from the vestiges in his mind, something he couldn't help but be grateful for. He wasn't entirely sure how he was feeling, if he was being honest. Yes, there was the expected anger, and a feeling of guilt about the danger he'd put others in. But he supposed that was normal.
No, the weird haze he found himself in was more just…how? Why? Nine's entire logic was just pure stupidity! Even the logic of the old Meta-Liberation Army from the Dawn of Quirk's made some sense! This was just…a child's idea of strength and society. And this? This was what he'd lost his parents over?
His internal musings kept him so occupied, he didn't even really notice when he'd gotten back to campus. He barely noticed repeating his story for Aizawa, Nezu, and Toshinori. He barely even noticed Katsuki and Rikido cooking dinner. It wasn't until Eri was sitting in his lap that he felt some semblance of awareness return, some semblance of normalcy after that disaster of a mall trip.
"Dad?" Eri asked quietly.
"Yeah sweetheart?" Izuku replied.
"Are you okay? You seem unhappy," she asked, playing with the hem of his shirt as she looked down.
Izuku let out a huff, a half-grin crossing his face. "I'm alright. It was just a bad day is all. But you're here and that makes me much happier!" Izuku gently booped Eri on the nose, feeling a small chuckle bubble up in his chest as she scrunched up her nose in response, her face twisting like she'd just tasted something sour.
"Izuku?" The boy in question glanced up, seeing Shoto standing in front of him with a bag in hand.
Izuku tilted his head to the side. "Sup?"
Shoto handed him the bag. "I found some things you may like. I selected one for each of your partners. And myself. I would have for the entire class but I was already running behind meeting up with you. I wanted to thank you, for all the help you've given me."
Izuku was utterly blindsided by the gesture, blinking rapidly in confusion at the two-toned boy. Shoto…got him gifts? Themed gifts? Just for, for what? For helping? It wasn't like it was an imposition to help a friend. His mouth opened, but words weren't escaping him at all as he stared blankly at Shoto.
Eri solved his issue, grabbing the bag and plopping it into Izuku's lap. She then proceeded to poke him in the cheek, the greenette jolting for a moment and looking down at her. She gave him the most shit-eating grin he'd seen yet on her face, her smile being lost in her giggles at the boggled look he'd given by Shoto and now her, it fading away as he came back to reality.
He shook his head to clear it before smiling brightly up at Shoto. "Thank you! I'll check them out right now!" He began to dig in the bag, Eri and he both cooing over the little objects Shoto had found. The girls in question were crowding around him now, giggling to themselves at Shoto's choices, only to be interrupted as Shoto started passing out things he'd picked up for each of them, and then the rest of the class. One by one, every person was given something by the split-haired teenager, half of them unable to resist hugging him tightly.
To his credit, he only froze up twice from the gesture, but slowly he began to relax into them. Izuku watched as a small smile even crossed his face, his eyes showing his happiness shining through them as each person expressed their appreciation. Izuku couldn't help but chuckle to himself…Nine thought he could take this from him? He'd like to see the bastard try. Nine may have tried to steal his family from him once before…but he had this one now too. And he wasn't giving it up for anything.