I sat in Saw's place… it was… not what I was expecting. It was a one room studio, a bookshelf full of books, a bookshelf full of VHS and DVDs, a TV with a DVD and VHS player hooked up to it. The bed was fair sized, pillows and blankets, made, a small table with two chairs and a small kitchen area with a small fridge, sink, and microwave.
It was… cozy.
"This is nice." I said with a small smile, especially after…the fiasco Saw caused, this was a nice change of pace to just feel cozy for once.
"If you knew what I've done on that bed you would not be sitting on it." Saw said as he exited the bathroom, drying himself off with a large towel.
I immediately stood up. "Okay, never mind, that is very gross." I shuddered.
"Yeah yeah like your sex life is so clean." He huffed as he began drying his head now. "So why are you in my house?"
"To talk about what the hell you did." I said honestly.
"Isn't that obvious?" He asked as he was now drying his back. "I went to some fucked up slave store, killed most all the sellers, killed all the buyers that were there and saved the Breeders. What else is there to say?"
"Why did you bring back a few of the merchants?" I inquired.
"Thought you wanted them for information. Or to do whatever it was you wanted with your whole no kill rule thing." He said, now drying off his arms and legs.
"Which I did and learned quite a lot of things." I said. "Just curious as to why you…immediately jumped to doing all that in such short notice, I know you hate human trafficking but…still."
"Heh, let me tell you a story." Saw said as he opened a closet door. A few hanging shirts and… skirts, oddly, some shorts all on hangers. On the floor was a laundry basket he threw the towel into. "Long time ago some kid had enough and shot his father dead while he beat his mother to death. After both were dead, the kid gets sent from crappy foster home to crappy foster home. Bunch of self entitled wackos only in it for the state paycheck. Well the kid figures "fuck this" and runs away one day, figured the streets would be kinder. One late night the kid breaks into a house to steal some food, owners wake up. They're immigrants and speak little English, but they offer the kid some food seeing he's dirty and hungry. The kid and their daughter get along great, and he hangs around, the first ever kindness he's ever shown. Time goes by and the kid comes back to the house to find it ransacked, the husband dead and the mother and daughter missing. Cops show up, and rather than ask questions, tackle the kid to the ground and beat him bloody. Turns out some gang came by, got rough and took who they wanted and killed the man. Kid goes back to foster care. Time goes by, kid does some jobs, finds a woman about his age in a pile of bodies for disposal, looks identical to the girl he remembers from the nice family. So he looks into it, finds out she was the girl and had spent all those years missing as some jackasses personal cumdump til he got too rough and snapped her neck. So the kid, now a man, set fire to the jackasses house after hanging him with his own insides once his saw blade sliced him in half."
"Ah…I can see why you hate them then." I nodded. "That's…reasonable."
"Yeah. Personal hatred aside, was that all?" He asked as he now sat on the mattress.
"Eh, nothing much." I shrugged. "Just wanted to learn that." I said honestly.
"Alright." He shrugged and flopped onto the bed laying down.
I shrugged and walked out.
"Oh, pardon me." Scotch said as he and I passed each other at the doorway.
Huh… do I…
I sighed, walking a bit away… then activated Invisibility. I rarely use this quirk. A few Skill Points and it works on my clothes too.
Once I was unable to be seen I crouched near the door and listened in. I better not hear a bunch of noises…
"You alright?" I heard Scotch ask.
"Yeah I'm fine. Few of those assholes got in a hit or two on me but Saint patched me up." I heard Saw reply with a tired sigh. "Honestly the customer pricks were more dangerous than the merchants."
"Well…I suppose that makes sense." I thought, thinking the people buying would tend to be stronger than the sellers.
"I still can't believe you did that." Scotch said.
"Eh, human traffickers, people who lie about who they really are, and bible thumpers are the three people I can't stand." Saw replied.
"Heh, sounds fair. So… was it bad? I've heard things but…"
"... Well, Imagine something between a strip club and whore house but all the ladies are blindfolded and being felt up by people from head to toe and they don't even flinch. Like their body doesn't recognize it. They just… stand or lay there. They just keep whatever pose they were made to be in and the smell. The obvious was there and it was everywhere but the unwashed stench was all over that place. I'm amazed I didn't vomit."
"Yeah, that sounds like what I've heard."
"That sounds disgusting!" I mentally shouted, feeling like I'm gonna vomit just from the thought.
"Heh, so the blood wasn't the only reason you took an hour shower." Scotch said.
"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't the only reason. Ugh, spent probably twenty minutes washing my hooves alone… sticky floor… not a good sign…" Saw said with a sigh. "Thought I saw some fucked up shit back home. This place almost makes me feel like everything I saw and did wasn't so bad…" Saw replied.
"Nah, you're still bad." Scotch laughed as I heard the two moving. "Besides, I'd have never met you if you never came here."
"Yeah… guess I owe Midoriya that much for springing me out of that place."
"You can also thank me for saving your life…." I thought bitterly, thinking about Jaku and feeling bad.
"So, gonna go on more solo missions?" Scotch asked.
"Maybe. This was a small place so it wasn't really that tricky. Honestly I would rather bring Sam, Dean or Luna with me over Midoriya." Saw said.
"Why?"
"Because I don't think he could handle what I saw there… it was… messed up. He still believes in doing good for others and that there's good in most people and as much as I give him shit for it… I've seen him when he's about to snap. I don't know what he'll do if he does in a place like that but I worry it will end badly. He'll accidentally do something he will regret."
"You think his rage will make him do something terrible by accident?"
"From what I've seen, friend and foe blur when he is at that breaking point. Part of why I tease and mess with him all the time. Doesn't matter how much good he wants to do if the moment he gets pissed he does something stupid and throws It all away unintentionally."
"That would be bad. Trust is hard to earn on Armageddon, and even harder to regain when lost."
"I call bullshit you dumbass ram." I mentally growled, as currently he's the only person I've ever snapped at and for actual honest good reasons.
"Yeah… still, I don't want him to get any innocent blood on his hands." Saw said. "I know I can live with myself after… I don't think he could."
"Heh, probably not… not a lot can. Or would want to. I've known people who sold themselves to Lust and Violence because of their guilt." Scotch said.
"Well I'm different and not going to fall into the pitfalls you think I will." I thought to myself.
"Yeah… think he can pull it off?" Saw asked.
"I'd be lying if I said I was hopeful… knew this one girl, came here to prove herself on Armageddon. She died, respawned, died more, lost a whole village to the Chaos Guilds and then the people. Heard from my mom she sold herself to Lust after reaching her limit, and she was strong too." Scotch said. "It's a story all to common here. People come here to help, and end up either a product of the evil, or worse, joining that evil, like the Five Brothers."
"It's almost like I keep trying to do thing's but everyone keeps telling me to fuck off."
"... I worry about that green haired idiot." Saw sighed. "Don't know if it's bravery, stupidity or stubbornness that drives them… but I can't shake the feeling something is gonna happen that will… shatter them."
"If I shatter then I'm no better than those that you claim I'll become." I thought. "I won't shatter, I can't shatter…too many people need someone to actually do good instead of just fueling the growing number of evil…"
"Like what?" Scotch asked.
"I dunno. Maybe that friend he ran into that gave him his mom's ashes or… maybe some other strong jackass that's basically unbeatable, or hell might even just be some fucking stupid accident out of everyone's control. He's trying to bear the responsibility of not just the town or his family's safety but the whole damn world. He's just one person, not even the Saint has really done much and he's been at this for literal centuries." Saw said.
"Millenia." Scotch corrected.
"Even worse. Add that were rather stuck here in this damn Victorian looking zone and well, hard to reach out when between here and there are all kinds of fucked up that ain't even made by the Chaos Guilds it's just how this place is. The whole point of this party as far as I can tell is to get Midoriya to share the weight with others but like the stubborn brat he is he won't ease it for himself."
"Sounds like the stress alone might do him in."
"Heh, that would be ironic."
"I've literally been getting better about this, thank you for telling me to eat shit AGAIN Saw." I mentally grumbled.
"Is it about trust?" Scotch asked.
"Maybe. Maybe not. I know he trusts Delilah, even after that… spat, the two are doing better. Not sure what he thinks of Sam, Dean and Luna. They're new still. Got good skills and instincts but I don't know what he thinks of them honestly… and well, I know for a fact he doesn't trust me." Saw said.
"Gee, it's almost like it's a two way street asshole, and the others…well, they just got here and I don't want to immediately dump a lot of things onto them…"
"Because it's easier for him to deal with if something happened if he hates you?" Scotch asked, making me pause.
"Heh… yeah. Respawning would almost guarantee I'd be thrown to the winds and he'd probably never see me again. And if some bullshit happens that leaves me dead for real… it would be easier for him to move on from it if he hates me than if he even gave a rats ass about me…" Saw sighed.
"Even with the Immortality Ability, that's a concern?"
"There's always one way to bypass it. At least that's what the Saint said. I don't get close to people because who'd miss me?"
"I would."
"... I know… and I feel guilty that you would… I'm not worth missing, mourning, or even remembering…"
"And somehow I'm the one that gets yelled at for not talking about my feelings to other people." I rolled my eyes at this.
"You know, I think you are a lot more like Midoriya than you think." Scotch said.
"Excuse you? How?" Saw said, voicing my thoughts.
"You're both terrible at sharing your emotions and being open, you both try and shoulder responsibility no one asked you to, you both don't care about your own lives when out helping people and you both try and protect people in your own ways." Scotch said. "Only difference is that you're more bloody and rude about it because you don't believe you should be considered a hero."
"... Ugh… you're lucky you're cute…" Saw groaned. "Still, I'm no hero."
"Maybe not to Midoriya's standards, but I bet a lot of people back on your world had you to thank for bad things happening to bad people."
"Pft. That was more David's thing. He got rid of bad people…"
"But you avenged good people."
"...I guess…"
"Well…Scotch does have a point…" I thought to myself.
"You should give yourself more credit. And open up more." Scotch said.
"Need I remind you I was only this open plus more when we met because I was absolutely shit faced?" Saw replied with a laugh.
"No need to remind me, I was sober enough to remember everything." Scotch laughed. "So, want to cuddle and watch movies?"
"Yeah. I got Brave in the DVD player now."
"Sounds fine."
There was a bit of shuffling, then the sound of a TV turning on and playing some ads a DVD would have.
I decided to take a peek into their room to see the couple and see how they were about to just relax and watch a movie.
Peeking through the window-
…
…
They were cuddling. Maybe spooning even. Saw being the little spoon and Scotch being the big spoon. All four of Scotch's arms were wrapped around Saw, and Saw had their arms holding onto Scotch's arms. They were as close and against each other as they could, and Scotch was even holding Saw in such a way that his chin rested on Saw's fuzzy, curly haired head.
That is so adorable and cute-
My brain suddenly blew a fuse as I realized I used Adorable and Cute to describe a scene with Saw… not just that, in this context Saw was the primary item of reference for the Adorable and Cute… Saw…
… Saw!
"I…better leave…" I thought as I turned around and left quickly and quietly.
Once I was far away from Saw's place I began thinking about all I heard… I started to feel guilty for eavesdropping on them… and he's not wrong, I don't trust him…
"Again…not my fault for not trusting him…he's made every attempt to be a jackass to me all because I care…" I grumbled.
"I'm not worth missing, mourning, or even remembering…"
I sighed as that memory of his conversation hit me… I remember feeling like that before… back before all this…
"At least I'm trying to get better about that…" I grumbled, not liking how Scotch was right with how we were a lot alike. "Seriously, when I do this I get scolded and get into fights, but when others do it it's fine…"
Hmm… Maybe I should just actually try and… hang out… with Saw… I shivered. Just the thought made me uneasy… but… he has helped me a lot too… for all the times he was an asshole… he also showed he can be a good person. He read and respected my notebooks, helped me with Delilah during that whole thing… Even when I got mom's ashes he… was respectful.
… He's right. It would be easy to move on if I hated him… honestly though? I think I do care about him… he's still an ass and annoying… but hey… I've never really had friends before so… maybe that's just one way friends interact? Considering my past experience, at least Saw has shown he cares for me when I'm down and at bottom…
I scratched my head bitterly as I tried to get my head on straight with all of this. "Why does everything have to get complicated now?" I groaned.
I was walking down the dirt road here when I smelled some smoke. Looking I spotted Sam, Luna and Dean around a small homemade campfire. The trio was talking and I was still invisible…
Well, guess I might as well.
"Hey guys." I said, undoing Invisible and walking over to the trio.
"Hey Midoriya." Luna said, Sam and Dean giving me a quick wave. "What brings you here?"
"Just walking around and saw you three and decided to hang out." I said. "So how goes it?"
"Pretty good. I'm cooking some meat." Dean said as he moved a small metal rod over the fire that was piercing various meat chunks.
"Meanwhile we've just been thinking." Sam said, Luna nodding.
"About what?" I inquired.
"Mostly about our new Quirks and how to utilize them later on." Luna said.
"Well, if you want I can teach you how to use your Quirks, as my analytic mind and ten years of training has made me close to a master with all the quirks I have." I admitted.
"Maybe some other time. Right now we're kind of doing something." Sam said. I noticed he had a notebook of his own and was writing in it.
"Well, best to start somewhere, what are you writing down if I may ask?" I asked innocently.
"Uh… names." Sam said. "Names of people from back home we lost."
"O-oh…" I sighed, looking down. "I…understand." I said, thinking about mom and her ashes.
"Yeah… We never got to bury or cremate… anyone… was rarely a body left to put to rest, and the ones that were… was often… in pieces so… we're writing down everyone we ever knew's names and gonna burn the paper. Just something to maybe help us move on."
"Still wish things could have been different." Dean sighed. "Did you put Baby on there?"
Sam sighed. "Yes Dean, the Impana is on here… and Rainbow Dash." Sam said.
"I miss her. She was fun and she made the Impala turn into a rainbow flashbang when she turned the headlights on." Luna smirked.
"They sound like good friends." I said, sitting down around the fire and just…listening to their conversations and feeling the fire's heat.
"Eh, they were annoying and had a major ego problem." Dean said.
"You just hated that the pin he was bound to got stuck somewhere in the Impala and it let her possess the car." Sam chuckled.
"For the record Rainbow was a pony, like me, a Pegasus though, but she was also a ghost." Luna said. "She got run over back… sixty years ago and while her body was gone cause wild animals, she stayed bound to this pin she had on her when she appeared like I did."
"A rainbow mane, tail, blue fur and wings. Weirdest ghost thing we've ever done." Dean said.
"The pony sounds familiar, and it sounds like Rainbow was turning into Ghost Rider for some reason." I admitted.
"Heh, she did that once. Kinda." Sam shrugged.
"Kinda?"
"It was… when she… died. Died twice I guess." Luna sighed. "Ghosts can be dispelled and sent to wherever they are meant to go by salting and burning the object that they are bound to or the body. She took control of the Impala to… get us out of a tight spot… some of those monsters used fire and… well, as Hunters, we always keep Salt on stock in the Impala out of habit and…"
"Too many people died either keeping us alive or fighting alongside us." Sam sighed. "In the end, I wonder if we were the only people left on earth that were alive."
"Ah…" I nodded slowly in understanding. "I understand…hearing from my Bakugou about home…it all went wrong and everything was destroyed by villians…I wonder if the monsters that attacked your world went to mine as well…" I sighed, knowing only Dad would be there and…feeling bad that he lost his whole world because of my one decision…
"So, what uh, what are you gonna do with the uh… Breeders?" Dean asked.
"Can't believe that's a thing…" Luna huffed.
"It's awful and I'm going to have to bear it myself cause no one else is going to." I admitted. "I'm trying to figure out something to help get them to…a better version of themselves but I know nothing about Code…"
"Why do you have to bear it yourself?" Sam asked.
"As far as I can tell nobody wants to deal with Breeders, and I don't want them to just sit there blindfolded as they starve or dehydrate to death."
"Have you asked if anyone wants to take on the burden?" Dean asked.
"Would you like to?" I asked them in response. "Any of you, would you like one of the Breeders?"
"Well, yeah." Dean said.
"Really?" Sam asked.
"Yeah. I won't like it, but I'll take one if it means that's one person not being forced into some hell they can't even register is happening to them."
"And you two?" I asked. "Would you have done this if I didn't ask?"
"I don't think I could." Sam said. "I just… can't."
"... I would." Luna said, getting a look from her two brothers. "Do you two forget I'm Bi?"
"No but still, surprising." Sam said.
"Eh, kinda figured you'd go for another pony." Dean said.
"But here's a thing, I needed to ask you three, you needed to be asked to do this. There was literally no one that would have just taken one of them without asking, without a reason other than to just help…I'm the only one that was going to do it without a second thought." I said, feeling like a point I keep trying to make with people is not understood…
"Let me ask you something…" Sam said. "What is herd mentality?"
I was confused by the question.
"It's a psychological phenomenon where someone is influenced by the majority when it comes to certain things." I explained.
"Yes, and there are typically in Herd Mentality those who influence the herd, say, a shepherd, and then the herd itself. Now, from day one you have told the town, the people that you will keep them safe, that you will handle the issues, that you can be trusted to take care of everything. So, why are you surprised that no one is stepping up to help you when you have been saying you can handle everything from day one?"
… FUCK!
"Because I thought people would be inspired to do something, not just dawdle around with their thumbs up their asses like before."
"Yes but consider the following. They have for as long as they have all lived here been subject to torment and hardships by the Chaos Guilds, and retaliation often resulted in death or… turning into a Breeder or other… things of similar nature. A fate worse than death. So, you came, offered them help, and despite the rough start from what we heard, have delivered on that promise. Here they are safe, secure and even very well hidden so having never had the will to fight, they fear stepping up because that's a mentality not easily broken. They look to you for protection and to handle the issues that arise because at the end of the day they are still just following the orders of the strongest person in the room just because that's how many of them have survived and lived. For most of these people that's all they've ever known, they don't know how or if they did they are broken and unwilling and unable to now." Sam said.
"The fuck were you learning in that college?" Dean asked.
"Little bit of everything. Mostly Law but I read up on lots of other stuff." San said. "If you want them to step up then you're going to have to take charge not just as their protector but as their leader, and teach them or at least those who want to, to fight, and protect. You need to be a leader and delegate things, and over time, things will change. The issue on this planet with a lack of heroes and people willing to do what you do isn't just a lack of power or strength but a lack of will or knowledge. So, teach them in order to make a change. Otherwise the changes you want won't happen. You can't expect people who have never known hope of the will and drive to do good and be better to just do it having never been exposed to or had any knowledge of it prior."
"I'm trying to lead by example here…" I frowned.
"Then show them directly, don't just show them what you can do, show them what they can do. Show them how. Teach them. Like the Saint teaches us, teach them. Just less… crazy."
"It would be great, if my Leading by Example wasn't constantly shown with people being apathetic about it." I frowned. "Do you know what Leading by Example is?"
"You model the behavior you want others to exhibit. If people's apathy is the issue stopping them from getting to where you want and know they can go, then tackle their apathy."
"You'd think I was trying to do the whole time…" I frowned.
"I haven't seen you sit and talk with the townsfolk." Dean said. "You only really talk to us for the training or after, even then you always look like you'd rather be elsewhere than the bar and the only reason you really hang around is because Delilah is there."
"And I've been trying for ten years." I frowned. "Even with all my training, all the pain I went through, I kept trying to help the people here, to show them that you can do good without needing to be asked…but no…all I got was mocked by people that were too deep into this or just had people thank me and go about their days not caring…"
"As far as the later, they likely don't really know how to… process an act of genuine kindness." Sam spoke up. "But for the people who mock you, they all likely experienced first hand the… hardships you will have to face and fight against."
"Like James." Luna said.
"... Who?" I asked awkwardly.
"James, the Leatherworker. Said about forty years ago someone from Violence took his sister, cast a rapid healing spell on her, then spent an hour publically gutting her as she screamed and begged for it to stop but the spell kept her alive. After that and the spell wore off he killed her and forced James to use her hide to make him a vest."
I just… oh…
"Shit like that is why these people are the way they are and James hasn't seen his sister since." Dean said. "Now that's the kind of shit you learn when you actually talk to people at the bar. It's fucked up shit, but it tells you about why they are the way they are."
"If not similar just as cruel and fucked up." Sam nodded. "So, the way I see it, try and help them one on one rather than making some big thing to spark hope. Start by helping who you can how you can one at a time."
I rubbed my temples. "Fantastic…" I grumbled. "Just more and more things I need to try to do and worry about…"
"Well, good news is you are not doing that alone." Dean said. "Between Saw, Delilah, Sam, Luna and I we know just about everyone in town and their stories. And we know just who to start you helping out." He said. "Almost done with the list Sam?"
"Oh, yeah… just… there…" Sam said, finishing writing names down and once he did he pulled out three pages. "This is everyone… sorry for the long overdue goodbye." Sam sighed, tossing the papers into the fire.
"Bye…" Luna sighed.
"Goodbye." Dean added, picking up a beer he had and pouring it out next to the fire. "Come on, Jessica is this way." Dean said, pulling me along behind him by the arm.
"Alright alright." I said, following along. "No need to drag me."
Dean walked me into town and over to a brick and wood building. It was fairly big, and I noticed a playground or two around. "This is the schoolhouse. First one this town ever got to have. That is actually thanks to you. Now that they don't have to sell their kids to Lust and Violence for 'safety' they can finally raise kids and have a school for them. Jessica used to be one of the brothel workers but after you moved them all here she now works here as a teacher."
"That's good to hear." I nodded. "And glad the School is also looking like it's doing well…was a nightmare trying to help come up with a curriculum when School work so differently here than back home."
"Yeah. Come on." Dean said, leading me into the school.
We had to wait for Jessica to finish her class but once it was Dean walked me in.
"Hello Dean." Jessica said. She was a Den Mother, clearly, but rather than a wolf or some kind of canine race, she was a jaguar. She wore a rather nice dress.
"Hey Jessica, so Midoriya is looking for shit to do/ways to help out the town and I thought of you." Dean said.
"I see. Pleasure." She said, offering me a hand. "I believe this is the first time we've interacted before."
"I've tried to meet everyone I can but…well, so many hours in the day I suppose." I shook her head. "It's nice to meet you Jessica."
"So, you want to help out then is that right?" She asked.
"Yes, I do want to help out." I nodded.
"Heh. Well while the kids are learning all we can teach them, reading, writing, basic math, and other useful skills, we are still lacking any courses in teaching them basic magic, alchemy and most important, combat." Jessica said.
"Well…I suppose I can teach them about magic and…combat." I said honestly.
She shook her head. "No, we have people who can do that, we just lack the materials. Basic arcane spellbooks, alchemy sets, and training weapons. Most of the kids learn best by seeing it or reading the material themselves, and that's hard to do when the books and supplies have been… well, we've never really had them in town before."
"Oh, then I can solve that." I said readily. "With Creation and a few other quirks I can use in tandem, plus how much I've learned about magic through the years, I can get you anything you need real quick."
"That would be great. Can you make Alchemy sets though? They're often a bit complex."
"I have at least three different Intelligence quirks, as well as my own rather high intellect." I said readily. "Just show me where I need to go to start creating all of this and I'll do it."
"Heh, how humble." She smirked at me. She then brought out a book that I realized was a catalog. It was old, worn but displayed various Alchemy sets, instruments and such. "Do you think you can make them from images? I know they're usually made from glass, stone, maybe metals for more special advanced ones but all in all the designs vary depending on the type of potion one wishes to make and how potent you want it to be."
"I shall give it a try." I nodded, looking over the various items closely, using my mastered eye for detail to the best of my ability to make sure I won't mess this up for the kids.
It took a few tries but I managed to finish making the first one. I then spent an hour making a few more, and then made thirty copies of some magic books I made with information from memory, and some herbology books I read, some copies of a book I remember reading about proper katana use, some basic science stuff, and-
"Uh, I think that is more than enough mister Midoriya…" Jessica said. I blinked and realized I had… piles of books next to me. They reached the ceiling.
"Uh…whoopsies…" I said sheepishly, blushing in embarrassment as I got a little overexcited about this. "I uh…got a little excited…"
"Well… might wanna change undies in that case." Dean said, making me turn beat red and making Jessica chuckle. "Hey, you walked right into that one, not my fault you had poor wording."
"Shush you." I said quickly. "So anyways, besides all the…books I made, what else would you need?"
"Well, the training weapons are being made by others, it just takes a bit since we don't have a proper Crafting Station machine or anyone with a high tier Crafting Abilities." She said. "But for now, this is more than enough. Although I doubt the kids will enjoy the extra homework." She laughed.
"Never had homework to be honest." I shrugged. "But alright…hmm, I think there might be something from the Shadow Village."
"They have been trading in lots of raw materials and such. They're all so nice. I hope more portals to places like that can open up."
"Maybe. Alright then, if that's all here, come on Midoriya, we got more stuff to do." Dean said.
"Alright." I nodded. "It was nice to meet you Ms. Jessica." I said as I gave her a polite bow.
I followed Dean outside and I felt… good. It was a small, simple thing but it was good. "Now onto Fred."
"Alright…and that felt good to be honest." I said honestly.
"Just a heads up though Fred is… stubborn." Dean started.
"And I'm more stubborn." I admitted.
"Right, you're dense." Dean said. "What I mean to say is that he hates your guts and wishes you the worst."
I frowned.
"Why?" I asked carefully.
"Well, maybe not you directly… but… look, it's best he tells you cause even I find it odd." Dean said. I followed him to an old house, it looks like they ripped it out from outside the in The Nightmare and dropped it in here… actually, that's likely what happened. Dean knocked on the door. "Hey, Fred, it's Dean! You got a visitor."
The door opened. Frank was some kind of… Gecko man, standing on… well, one leg, the other was a metal peg leg, and he was missing half his right arm. He saw me, then screamed and shut the door. Still screaming.
"Also he's scared shitless of you." Dean added.
"What did I do?" I asked worriedly.
"Well that's the part he has to explain." Dean said, suddenly kicking the door as it stung open with a hard thud. "Fred calm the fuck down!" He yelled as he stormed in.
Slowly I walked in to see Dean had already wrestled Fred into a chair.
Fred then saw me and flinched. "G-Get out of my house!" He yelled.
"Can I ask why you're afraid of me?" I asked softly, trying to be as non-threatening to Fred as possible.
"You-You did this! You took my limbs!"
"Hey easy Fred." Dean said, pushing Fred back down. "Now calm the fuck down and explain it to him like you explained it to me."
Looking down, Fred breathed shakily. "It was a century ago. I used to work as a scavenger, looking for supplies for the town… then he showed up. Same eyes, green hair… and that sadistic smirk…" He shivered.
I thought for a second…but then put my fist into my hand as an epiphany popped up. "I think I know what happened…but I want to make sure, was there anything else that made this person look like me?" I asked carefully.
"Yeah. He'd mutter to himself, was always taking notes on everything, even the smallest pointless details." Fred said.
"Huh… does sound like you." Dean added.
"Right…was there any differences you noticed? Like a lack of Freckles, choice in clothes, anything?"
"Yeah. They wore a black vest, pants and shoes, white dress shirt and red tie. Also wore these thin black gloves." Fred said.
"So he's got style unlike our Midoriya." Dean said. "Don't give me that look, you wear those jumpsuits all the time."
"I do have style, he sounds like some punk." I huffed. "Did you hear a name?"
"Called himself Deku." Fred said. "His friend called him the same name as you."
"He had a friend?" Dean asked.
"Yeah, didn't see them but they sounded like a lady."
"Right…so you were attacked by a Reflection of me." I said. "And the friend was either someone with Invisibility…like Hagakure Toru…or someone else." I said carefully.
"Don't know, all I know is that aside the body, you two have the same face and it brings me back… didn't even let me scream. I was paralyzed and felt everything as he cut my leg and arm off. Slow to. Said he didn't want to damage them."
"Why would they want your limbs anyway?" Dean asked.
"I'm a Karvonin Gecko. Our bodies are like catnip for Necromancy or Poison Amplifiers. A drop of my blood mixed into some rat poison could make the stuff strong enough to kill ten thousand people. Mother knows what he did with whole limbs." Fred shook.
"I…did he have a tattoo on his body? Anything noticeable?" I asked worriedly, fearing I might know what they did with his body.
"No. Just kept talking to that lady about 'The Old Days' and some nonsense."
"Hmm…" I hummed. "The Old Days…gonna have to look into that…" I muttered. "But…I know this is asking a lot…but…what if I could give you back your limbs?" I asked Fred, knowing with Copy Cat and One for All I could easily gain the Gecko's race and use my own limbs to work with him as if they were his own regrown.
"Heh, wish it was that easy. They cursed me when they did this. Not even a respawn will help me, takes a very high curse dispel magic to get me my limbs back." Fred sighed.
I frowned. "Pesky curses…" I muttered, wishing I took a bit more time to learn about curses but was busy with so much else.
"I've lived with this for a century now. I'm used to it." He sighed. "Still, seeing you just brings up bad memories."
"I understand." I nodded. "I didn't want to scare you…but if I can figure out how to break the curse I will immediately get here and break it so you can get your limbs back."
"Heh… that'd be nice. So, why did you bring them here anyway Dean?" Fred asked.
"You also said you wanted an item." Dean said.
"Oh yeah…"
"What's the item?" I asked.
"It's called Hell Slime Jelly. Dropped by a monster of the same name. Stuff looks nasty but has the taste and consistency of Coffee Jelly."
"Right…" I said. "Do you need it for something else or just for the Coffee part?"
"It's delicious. If you find some by killing the slimes go ahead and try it. Tastes great." He smirked. "Part of why I enjoyed being a scavenger, I could hunt for them myself and stock up."
"Simple pleasures." Dean said with a smirk and a nod.
"All we can enjoy are simple pleasures."
"Gotta enjoy the little things." I nodded.
"If you go hunting for them, they most often appear in an area I called the Blue Forest. It's thirty miles north of the old town's location. It's a nice change of pace where there is actual live nature and plants. Not like this place but it's different from the rest of the place."
"Fair enough." I nodded. "I shall keep that in mind." I said. "Is there anything special about that Blue Forest?" I decided to mentally ask my Shadow Hunter hitchhiker.
"Well, it looks nice. Nothing all that concerning though. Just cannibal plants, the hell slimes, some other beasts and such, nothing that interesting." She replied.
"Alright, thank you." I mentally thanked her.
"Alright, well we can add that to the list. Now who else…" Dean hummed.
Two Years Later
All in all, things with the town have gotten… better. We managed to get the heavy majority of the Breeders Saw saved adopted, limiting someone to three out of… safety reasons. In the end I didn't get any, which made me both happy. Heh, weird feeling.
I spent the time going through to everyone, getting what I could for them or looking for stuff or just helping with whatever I could. It makes everyone happy, and I managed to make some friends in the town. Turns out Dean was right, the bar was a good place to get to know everyone. Even if I was extremely awkward at the start.
I managed to eventually tell Saw I eavesdropped on him and Scotch talking that one time. I received an admittedly deserved gut punch for that, but after that I actually… talked with him. In the end, we agreed that while our methods will differ drastically we both just want to help people, and so we will. He still sasses and throws jabs at me, but now I return fire. I actually enjoy it even.
I was actually in the Blue Forest now, those Hell Slime Jelly's were actually very tasty, and I was hunting for them.
From my location up in the air, using Gravity, I took aim with Sharp Shooter. Turns out this thing has a rifle form, and fired. The bolt of light taking the multi eyed slime out and dropping several of the jellies and other goods.
I dropped down and began collecting the loot. I could hear something and immediately turned-
…
"Hey…Kid…" I looked at Katsuki, looking at me with a smile.
I was…speechless…but then I blurred over and hugged her. "M-mom!" I teared up happily. "I'm…so happy you're here…for real this time."
"Heh, yeah… it's good to see you… too…" She said, sounding weak as she put a hand on my head… then collapsed.
"Mom!" I panicked, using my Scan ability to see what was wrong with her since I upgraded it a lot with a lot of other skills to see why she just collapsed.
"Heh, shit… thought I had just a bit more time." She said, putting a hand to my cheek as I held her. I then saw with horror as her feet started to… vanish. A thin amount of almost crystal crawling up slowly and the parts behind it vanishing.
"No! I can't lose you too!" I shouted, trying to think of something, anything that could reverse this. "M-Maybe I could use Gravity and Overhaul to…to reverse-"
"Midoriya." She spoke, making me stop and look at her. She was giving me a smile and cried. "It's… It's okay. I've been waiting for this. For a long, long time. I'm dying kid. For me, this is the big one." She said as I held her. "Time Walkers, we don't go Mad, instead, we… fade. I'm gonna be erased from existence, time. I'm sorry but in a few more minutes once I'm gone you won't even remember me… no one will."
"Why!? That's not fair!"
"It's the price we have to pay for being Time Walkers. We're living paradoxes in a reality where Time can never be traveled or altered, just guided and witnessed." She said, still smiling at me and held my face to keep me looking at her. "I thought I'd get here with more time but you all were so far apart, took me longer than I wanted. Setting things into motion, getting others ready… I'm sorry you have to witness this… but you won't remember when it's over…"
"I…I can't lose another mom…I can't forget you…"
"I'm sorry Midoriya but… there's nothing you can do." She said, still giving me a smile. With her free hand she pressed something against me. Looking, I saw it was a strange compass and a book. "Here. You're gonna need these. Trust me."
"Mom…please…there has to be something…" I pleaded, even as I kept seeing her vanish more and more. "I…I can't lose you…"
"It's okay. I've been waiting for this for a long time Midoriya… I've seen a lot. Met people you are gonna meet too someday, become friends with. Kia and Tomura are fine. They'll be at safe places soon, and Tonura's family is fine too."
"That's…that's good at least…" I said, trying to feel good about that but…I'm still losing my mother…
"Hey… tell me about what you've been up to." She said, the crystal reaching her upper legs now…
"I've…I've been doing a lot mom." I teared up. "Made friends…made allies…I'm a good father and…I got Memory Stealer."
"Oh, good. Sad I missed you unlocking your True Keyblade." She laughed. "Listen to me Midoriya, you won't remember where you heard this but you'll at least remember the information." Mom started. "When a Time Walker is erased, we do reincarnate. I don't know who or what or when but I'll reappear as someone else entirely. Or, maybe I'll be another me. I don't know. None of us know. So, don't be too sad, even if you don't remember me and I won't remember you… we might meet again one day. Alright?"
"Al-alright mom…" I said sadly. My tears flowing down onto her cloak. "I…I'll miss you mom…"
"And I'll miss you two… and I'm sorry… Your path is going to be a long one, it will be difficult. You will come across people who will be stronger than you… people who will do everything to break and torment you. You will feel like breaking, you will feel like dying. You will feel like giving in and giving up but remember this even if you don't remember me." She said, giving me a larger smile as the crystals were now up to her torso. I had to lay her on the ground now. "You will be the Hero Armageddon needs to be saved, to be a place that's dangerous but livable. You and the others will change this planet for the better, it's just gonna take time."
"Yeah…I know it'll be difficult…and take forever and a half…" I admitted sadly.
"Heh, Midoriya. I'm not just saying this to make you feel better, or to help ease the situation…" She said, now down to her upper torso. "I mean it. Time Walkers can see the future and all possibilities. As long as you never give up… you will succeed."
"Thanks mom." I smiled, wiping away the tears the best I could even though there was…so many tears…
"I know our time together was brief, but I'm glad you've grown so strong, and you're going to grow so much stronger. Please, never let your light fade, and never stop trying to save people. Even if they have given up on themselves." She said, her arms suddenly became covered in those crystals. "Goodbye." She said, still giving me a smile as the crystals covered her head, and the last of her faded.
…
…
No… No, No, No, NO! I can't forget her, I won't, I can't, I can't forget her!
"I will never forget mom! My mom's name is…" I tried to say her name, but…nothing came to mind. "No, she looked…fuck what did she look like?"
"Hey Midoriya!" I jumped, looking up and seeing Saw walk up to me. "I got the Jellies and… are you good? You're crazy water works not-quirk power is going on…"
I felt my cheek, seeing I was indeed crying… Why… why was I crying…? I… weird… I can't… remember…
"No idea." I said honestly. "Weird…I…feel like I should be remembering something but I can't for the life of me." I said honestly.
"Then it probably wasn't important." Saw answered.
"Probably." I said, though I was so confused
"... So, what's with the book and compass?" Saw asked.
I looked at my hand, realizing I was holding a leatherbound blank cover book, and a compass that was hanging from a string I was holding.
"Uh…not sure." I said. "I…think I found it? Wait no, I was given this by someone…" I said carefully. "What are these?" I used scan on the two items.
I used Scan on the items.
[Scan Complete!
Item: Books of Creation
Rank: SSS
This book holds detailed means of how to craft any and all items. Please use with caution.
Item: Compass of Searching
Rank: S
This compass points to whatever the holder is searching for, be it a person, object, or location.]
"Uh…okay!" I said incredulously. "One is a book that tells me how to craft literally anything…and the other is a Compass of Searching…" I said, deciding open the compass and see if it worked as I thought of searching for Saw.
The needle spun around for a second, the pointed right at Saw.
"Well, that's useful. And you said someone gave it to you?" Saw asked as I closed the compass.
"Yeah…no idea who gave it to me but they did." I shrugged…though when I looked down and found something glittering. "Huh?" I wondered, kneeling down and moving some dust out of the way and…finding a really interesting Gem. "The hell's this?" I wondered and used Scan on the gem.
[Scan Complete!
Item: Time Gem
Rank: SSS
This item is created through unknown means, and is the only of the elemental gems that can not be absorbed, they however are crucial in the creation of high end technologies and magical artifacts.]
"Huh…that's…stupidly lucky." I said, though when I saw it shaped like a heart…something in my heart twisted in pain…"So Time Gem…cool."
"Alright… Are you okay?" He asked. I looked over and felt my cheek… crying again?
"At this point…no…it feels like I'm forgetting something…forgetting something really important…" I said, struggling to remember what I was forgetting, what I should remember.
"Well, how many of the Jellies did you get? I got like two hundred, found a huge flock of the creepy looking things."
"I just got a hundred and six so far." I admitted.
"Well, Fred already has lots. I'm mostly stocking up for Scotch. He loves these things too, despite the creepy look, they do taste good." Saw shrugged.
I smirked. I was actually glad they've both still been together over the last two years. Personally, I think it's been really good for Saw too. He's been more… happy, as time goes on.
"Glad your happy Saw." I said honestly, putting away the book, Time Gem and compass in my assistant.
"Heh… yeah. If I'm honest I'm not used to things going this… well, for me. It's kinda awkward. Hell, two years already is longer than when… I was with Zach."
"All you need to do is make the attempt." I said honestly. "Everyone can be better if they try."
"Yeah yeah, no need to gloat." He waved off. "Still, it gives me more reason to be protective of the area around us. So, anything else we looking for? Cause I found this really cool thing." He said, bringing out an odd box from his Assistant.
"What is it?" I inquired. "And as far as I know nothing else really."
"Watch." He smirked, pressing the top then backing up. I took a few steps too. In a flash it turned from a small box into a full sized hot tub. Filled with hot water and the smell reminded me of a hot spring. "Cool right?"
"Yeah, that is pretty cool." I said honestly. "Portable hot tub, certainly helps with on the road barbeques."
"... Have you ever even been to a roadside barbeque?" Saw asked. "Besides, you want one, go kill the thing that dropped this cause this one's for me and Scotch and trust me… you won't wanna use it once we do~"
"Can you think of anything besides sex, booze and murder?"
"Hey, it's coming up on two years since Scotch and I got together. You expect me not to get excited?" He chuckled. "That being said I am trying to find them a gift but I'm not sure what…"
"Well, what's Scotch into besides you?" I asked, having seen Saw raise a hand to make a lewd joke but I shut him down.
"Heh, well, he's a big fan of sweets, pastries especially, He knows the Crafting Systems and most of the Skill Tree functions and such by heart, is a sucker for cartoons, loves supernatural mystery books, scented candles, seafood, fish tacos especially, anything with the color orange or yellow, fresh fruit salad, peanut butter ice cream, collects cards and toys, could tell you the entire story of Doctor Who from first doctor to the fifteenth since that's how many he's seen up to so far, a good massage, and the smell of sea air on a windy day." Saw listed off.
I just smiled… god damn it when Saw is like this it's genuinely wholesome and adorable… egh, still feels weird acknowledging it.
"Well…how about you take him to the beach, with a lovely fish based dinner and end it with a Tardis cake and a back massage?" I suggested.
"As much as I know he would love that, the Krakens, fish and crab men and zombie fishermen the local beaches in the- Oh in the Planet Room… I forget there's coasts there, we really haven't explored out that far in that thing…" Saw said.
Good he realized. I was almost ready to smack him.
"I'm very thankful you remembered we live in our own separate planet." I said honestly.
"Heh, given it's basically in a closet in your house I kinda forget that sometimes… weird huh? Now I just need to hope the baker can make a cake Tardis…" He said thoughtfully.
"I'm sure they can do it, but if you need a picture I'm sure you can find something."
"Oh I know I can, heck if I could I'd show them one of the scale model replica toys he has. His mom brings them to him among other stuff when she passes by. Unfortunately he keeps them in a display case in his place all in a row in order from which Doctor that version is from so I can't swipe it. Plus I don't want him to freak out. Might be able to get one of his spare posters though."
Heh, Superfan… kinda reminds me how I was with All Might before…
"Well…I can respect a fellow superfan." I said honestly.
"Heh, yeah. Well, thanks for the advice."
"Always happy to help my friend." I said readily. "Anything else or should we get going?" I asked, cause I've had enough crying over something I know nothing about for a while."
"Well, all things considered, I think we're good. Got lots of the jellies, meat, hide, various other items. I think we're good."
With a nod, I followed Saw back heading home. I did turn back to the spot I was crying at before… strange. For a second, I thought I saw someone…