Kyeo307: DIO could try again, but his fate won't be at Jotaro's hands this time.
Bearticguy7: Love 'em!
dumstertrashfire123: We're in a bit of a cooldown right now, a few chapters to get the main group settled back into things.
Euphoria: Thanks! I love your ideas on the Heroes Rising arc!
Jay: They could...buuuuut, it's a bit too early.
nocringeman: I'm not entirely sure where Michael Jackson came from...but…*DOOM music intensifies.*
PhantomKnightPercival: Thank for sticking with this story for so long!
Guest(s): Hoo boy, there's a lot of you. I have read all of your reviews, and I love the ideas and enthusiasm from all of you!
Spaghetti sauce: Thank you!
heavensdo0r: No YOU'RE amazing!
FinchFlyingAce: Not a bad idea!
Jddraign: You're the man!
Jpx0999: It is.
Balenced goose: Love the ideas, and the names! Keep up the great work!
"Uugggh..." Kyoka plopped down onto the common room couch, face first.
"Er...welcome back?" Ochako said.
"The plane ride was sooo long...and I ended up sitting next to this random old man, so I couldn't even get any JoJo time..."
"JoJo time?"
"JoJo time...the guy was looking at me weird, so I didn't get a wink of sleep...and I couldn't use my favorite pillow..."
"I'm sorry. Hey...when did you guys start dating exactly? I remember when I accidentally caused those rumors...you didn't really seem fazed when I said there might be a war."
"Oh yeah, we were dating by then."
"Oh wow...you and Deku were trying to sort out the rumors then."
"Yep."
"Well that was a mess."
Kyoka chuckled, and removed her face from the couch, sitting up and wiping her eyes. "The whole thing was just stupid, yeah. I was more afraid that this 'mystery girl' could've been an enemy stand user or something."
"Well...at least it didn't escalate!" Ochako said with a grin.
"Yeah...so when are you gonna make some moves on Izuku?" Kyoka asked, and stopped Ochako's hands before they could touch her cheeks. "I'm not teasing you...this is a girl talk. You admitted how you felt about him to me, remember?"
"I did...I'm just not ready yet." Ochako admitted. "Now that I'm a part of this whole OFA thing, should acting on my crush really be the first thing I think about?"
"JoJo and I got together right after the Yakuza Raid...you know he actually kind of died, right?"
"Deku was telling me about that...Overhaul used his quirk on him during the fight, because...oh...JoJo was saving you."
Kyoka nodded. "I saw it happen, Ochako. Cummings threw me off a building, JoJo saved me, but Chisaki killed him. I saw the whole thing go down...I was completely in love with him at that point, it was more than a crush." Ochako's eyebrows came together once she saw the haunted look in Kyoka's eyes. "All I could feel was despair...this overwhelming pit of sadness and hurt...he is so important to me..."
"Kyoka..."
"That was the moment that I decided that Cummings wasn't going to live." Kyoka said. "I was mourning, and enraged, and I wanted her to share the pain I felt. My morals were fucking gone, Ochako...all I wanted to do was kill her."
"I can't imagine feeling like that..."
"You will, if you don't at the very least try to tell Izuku how you feel." Kyoka grabbed Ochako by the shoulders. "I never want anyone to feel the way I did that day...it was one of the darkest days of my life. I almost never got the chance to let him know...I almost lost him without him ever knowing just how deeply I felt for him...it was only thanks to Gyro that JoJo and I are the way we are today...so don't make the same mistake I did."
"It will take time, Kyoka...I'm still coming to terms with how I feel...I remember when he said goodbye to me before you guys fought the Necromancer..."
"Similar situation...but for me those feelings were turned up to eleven."
Ochako looked at Kyoka, and she realized something.
Now that she was a part of the loop, Kyoka no longer had any need to pretend she was fine around her. Her friend, someone who had always joked and teased whenever she was hanging out with her...was now showing her a different side of herself.
Kyoka was someone who had been through a lot, someone who was haunted by the things she had experienced. This was someone who had seen the darker part of the world, and was forever changed by it.
She was still the Kyoka she knew, still the playful, kind, and tough girl she had come to idolize down in those caves...but she definitely had a dark side.
"I'm not saying to tell him now, but don't wait until the last minute..." Kyoka warned. "You will regret it."
"O-okay..."
Kyoka's face relaxed, and she turned away in a mixture of guilt and embarrassment. "Sorry if I scared you...I was a bit intense back there."
"Don't be...it was good advice, especially since you lived it. I'll use it."
"You understand what you're getting into, asking to be involved right?" Kyoka asked. "I just want to make sure...I don't want you to regret it."
"No, I'm already too deep in it now." Ochako said, shaking her head. "Now that I know what's going on, I'm not backing down."
"Even after fighting DIO?"
"Especially after fighting DIO."
Kyoka studied Ochako for a minute, and nodded. "I expected nothing less."
Izuku flipped the lid on the silver case, and sat across from it, arms crossed.
It took a while, but the eye began to glow a bit brighter.
"Well...what do we have here?"
Izuku remained silent, only staring at the eye with a glare frozen on his face.
"Still touchy, aren't we?"
"..."
"You just going to stare lovingly into my eye, or are you gonna say something? Come on Midoriya...I know you have something to say."
"You were going to hurt Uraraka too..."
"Hurt her? Don't forget be ridiculous. I was going to murder her...oh boy what a spectacle it would've been if you had found her...it was gonna be messy...heehee..."
"You won't be able to hurt her, or anyone I care about, you failed." Izuku put emphasis on that last part.
"Yeah...I guess I did. What Emporio said was true you know, I do betray everyone I come across...but that's because I can't afford to trust anyone. Ironically... I probably would've succeeded if I had chosen to keep allies...like you."
"You even betrayed Valentine."
"I...suppose I did...that one was unintentional though...he was the one man I actually trusted. I know damn well that I'm an evil bastard, and I have little shame. You know...despite coming from the same place, we're polar opposites, you're too pure for your own good, and I'm the worst of the worst."
Izuku pulled out a silver cylinder from his bag, and opened it.
"What is that? Taking me for a walk?"
"Taking your energy."
"My energy?"
Izuku took the silver cup and scooped a bit of the red aura out of the case, and screwed the lid back on. "I can still use your regeneration without interacting with you directly."
"Am I a tool to you?"
"Yes."
"Wow...that's kind of fucked up. I may only be a copy of the Necromancer, but I'm still a living thing you know."
"This is your punishment. I'm going to keep you under the silver, until I need a refill, then I want you to be awake. I want you to see me use your power, to improve the life you wanted to destroy. You will be awake only to be reminded that you failed."
"...Do you enjoy it? Making me your slave?"
"..."
"You do, don't you? You enjoy it, you want me to suffer."
"I'm your opposite, remember? I'm not doing this for myself, your power will be used to help others, unlike what you intended it for."
"You're doing this to spite me, don't lie. YOU. HATE. MY. GUTS."
Izuku leaned over so that his face was inches away from Thriller. "I do, I really, really do. I hate you, but I'm not going to stoop to your level. You're going to be used to help people Necromancer, deal with it."
"Heheheheee...HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEEEHEHEHEE! I can't believe I'm saying this...but I'm proud of you!"
Izuku slammed the lid on the case, picked up his chair, and threw it into the wall in frustration. DAMN IT! Just hearing his voice again is making me angry, let alone what he said. Let him think he knows me...he doesn't. I'm not doing this for my own sadistic pleasure.
I'm doing this to protect everyone.
Izuku looked at Thriller once again, and the eye was still pulsating in it's laughter. I'll give him one thing...knowing that he'll never be able to hurt the people I care about again? Constantly being reminded that his actions had consequences?
I do enjoy that.
"JoJo!"
"Huh?" Johnny turned to see Setsuna Tokage waving at him. Oh boy, Kyoka is gonna be pissed.
"Tokage."
"I was wondering why you disappeared, but one of your classmates said you went to Italy with your uncle." Tokage said, playfully punching Johnny in the shoulder. "I'm jealous man, you should've taken me with you!"
"Well, my uncle only invited certain people."
"I get it. Hey, listen...I really want to bridge the gap between our classes. I know Monoma is an ass, but we're all going to be heroes in the end, why can't we work together?"
"That makes sense, what do you have in mind?"
"Well...maybe people from both classes getting a little...closer, wouldn't hurt." Setsuna leaned on the doorway, posing in such a way that borderlined casual and seductive.
Johnny, at that moment, looked exactly like his father.
"I agree, people from our classes becoming friends would be a great idea." Johnny said, his face in a neutral deadpan.
"Right? Maybe then, we could put a bridge over that gap...one that we could cross at any time." Setsuna inched a tiny bit closer.
"Is it a rickety wooden bridge, or cement?"
"That's up to you."
"I'm not a good builder."
"I could teach you."
Someone save me please.
Suddenly, Johnny was grabbed by none other than Mina Ashido. "Hey JoJo! You're back!"
Ashido, you're now one of my favorite people.
"Ashido, nice seeing you."
"You too! Oh...was I interrupting something?" Mina asked, a little too innocently. "I'm sorry!"
"Er...it's okay. You're the one with the acid quirk right? Sorry, I don't know your name." Setsuna said, gritting her teeth. First Jiro, and now this chick...how many territorial bitches are in class A anyway?
That was rude...I need to relax, she's probably just a friend.
"Ashido, Mina Ashido! I'm JoJo's friend! I'm sorry to pull him away, but he promised to show me pictures from his trip."
"Oh...could I see them too?"
Johnny thought hard about it, and then he had an idea. "Sure Tokage, I have some on my phone."
Most of my pictures have Kyoka in them, she'll have to get the hint.
"Huh, didn't realize Jiro was there..." Setsuna muttered.
"Well yeah, she's become pretty close to me and my whole family, it would be a waste not to invite her." Johnny said.
"It seems to me like she has a habit of following you around...it's a little creepy."
"No, she doesn't follow me. We go places together." Johnny replied.
"Yeah, Jiro's cool!" Mina was quick to hype up her friend. "She's fun to hang out with."
"Well...if you say so...it's just a bit odd that she went with you to Italy." Setsuna said.
She really has her hooks in him, huh? I mean, she got him to invite her to his vacation for crying out loud. Poor guy...he doesn't realize that she probably is only sticking around because he's hot.
Jiro wasn't someone who could stand out in a crowd, but since she had the whole Cultural Festival thing, she probably took it as a sign to increase her popularity. What better way than to seduce a top tier guy like him?
She's using him to climb the social ladder, why can't he see that?
Sure enough, Kyoka Jiro herself appeared at the end of the hallway. Setsuna noticed Kyoka's eye slightly twitch, before she adopted a friendly expression.
I study my opponents, Jiro, I know a fake when I see one.
"Tokage, nice seeing you!" Kyoka said, glancing at Mina.
They're in cahoots.
"Jiro. JoJo was just showing me pictures from the Italy trip, I didn't know you were with him."
"Oh! Our whole friend group went!" Kyoka responded, and Setsuna mentally sighed in relief.
So she wasn't the only one that went with him...that is significantly less creepy. Maybe I'm misjudging her...
"Man, I'm jealous! You guys have to invite me next time, ha ha!"
"Well, I dunno, you'd have to ask next time." Kyoka said with a smile a little too wide to be genuine. "JoJo's uncle doesn't really know you yet."
Nope, I was right, she wants to climb the social ladder by using JoJo and his family, she wants to be popular. She wouldn't have taunted me like that if she didn't.
Couldn't hurt to throw a wrench into her plans.
"I'll be sure to. Hey...JoJo, you're a stand user."
"Excellent powers of perception you got there."
"Come on dude...I've never actually fought a stand user before, you see. So...I was wondering, could you help me out?"
"Oh! Jiro has fought stand users too, she can help!" Mina said, and both Johnny and Kyoka nodded.
"Really?" Setsuna was trying her hardest not to let her frustration out. Damn that pink hype woman!
"Once or twice."
"You've been somewhat involved with every stand attack at the school!" Mina said. "Don't sell yourself short!"
"She is short."
Kyoka smacked Johnny upside the head. "Stop making fun of my height, Jackass! I'm average!"
"You make fun of me all the time!"
"Yes, but it's okay when I do it."
"HOW?!"
"It's part of my charm."
"Why isn't it okay that I make fun of you though?!"
"Because."
"Kyoka, I'm going to hurt you."
"No you won't."
"I won't, but I'll threaten you anyway."
They aren't flirting...are they?
Setsuna watched as the two continued to bicker, and she became just how much these two had in common. They're both pretty good at banter...
I can't let her win, I don't trust her.
Setsuna smiled. "Welp, I have to get going, I'll see you gu-WOaOAH!"
Setsuna "tripped", and fell onto Johnny, her face, and more specifically her lips, making contact with his cheek.
The ol' "accidental kiss" technique.
Kyoka's jaw was almost hitting the floor, and she had a blank look in her eyes. It was clear that her brain was still processing what she had just witnessed.
"Woah dude, I'm sorry...wasn't watching where I was going." Setsuna brushed Johnny's school uniform off. "So sorry."
Johnny cleared his throat. "It's fine...(if it was really an accident), just...er...I have a bit of a bubble, and I'm not comfortable with people breaching it. Please be more careful in the future."
It might've been Setsuna's imagination, but it sounded like Johnny's voice had a bit of a darker tone to it, almost as if he was...warning her.
It was probably nothing.
"No worries man, just tripped over my own feet! You'd think a hero student would have a bit more grace in her step! See ya!" Setsuna began walking away, but shot a glance over at Kyoka, who still looked as though she was going through a system startup...
And then they made eye contact, and Kyoka's eyes suddenly turned fierce. They didn't say a single word to each other, as the mere seconds they held each other's gaze was enough for both of them to get the message.
It was on.
"JoJo..."
"What?"
"Promise me, that if you ever leave me, it won't be for her." Kyoka said, looking Johnny in the eye.
"I'm not leaving you."
"This is a hypothetical scenario. Promise me, if something goes horribly wrong and we can't be together anymore, that she doesn't have a single chance. Only her."
"She never did, no one does, except you."
"You know I'm not possessive...if you wanted to break up, I'd respect it. Her though? The way she did that...she did it to shit on me."
"I know...I was about to punch her."
"She did that to make me feel small, to let me know that she's better than me. To be honest JoJo? That really pisses me off." Kyoka said through gritted teeth. "It's one thing to make a move on you, it's an entirely different thing to try and make me feel bad so she has a chance...I can't wait for that combined class JoJo, Mina...because I'm gonna FUCKING DESTROY HER!"
"You need to calm down." Mina said, putting a hand on Kyoka's shoulder. "She isn't better than you, not at all."
"I'm sorry, it's just..."
"She hurt your self esteem?" Johnny asked.
"As I said...my insecurities will never go away, but I'm getting real sick of people treating me like dirt." Kyoka said, glaring at the hallway where Setsuna exited. "She thinks she can steal you from me, and that's an insult to the both of us, JoJo."
"Well yeah, I'm not that shallow."
"Exactly, you aren't someone who can be taken, you're someone who's earned." Kyoka felt tears coming to her eyes. "I'm just so sick of it...people making me feel like I'm not enough..."
"Kyoka, hey-" Johnny reached out to her, but Kyoka waved him off.
"Don't worry, I'm not doubting myself...but what she did was the reason why I wanted our relationship to be a secret in the first place. People telling me that you're too good for me, that you deserve better...but you know what?"
"What?"
"I'm gonna show her why she shouldn't underestimate me." Kyoka said. "I've come too far to be intimidated by some lizard chick with a lady boner for my boyfriend...I'm gonna beat her."
"God dammit Kyoka, I'm getting emotional!"
"Good." Kyoka kissed Johnny on the lips, in full view of everyone in the hallway. It was a very long, passionate, drawn out kiss, and Mina was beaming and hopping up and down.
Students from General Studies, and a few 1B students began murmuring at the PDA that was unfolding before them.
Kyoka broke the kiss and smiled. "Because I'm gonna put her in her place. Even if she ends up beating me, I won't let her look down on me any longer...because you gave me the strength to do that."
"KyoJo kissssss..." Mina said in awe.
"Did...you just do that in front of people?" Johnny asked, surprised.
"Yep...just enough to cause a few...rumors."
"You willingly caused rumors?!"
"Of course she did!" Mina interjected. "Tokage is going to hear them!"
"That, and because...in Italy, we weren't afraid to act like a couple, no matter where we were." Kyoka said. "We just got to be in love, anywhere, and I really, really enjoyed that. Johnny...I want to start being more open with our relationship, because frankly, after getting some time away from jealous fangirls and psychotic villains, I'm tired of hiding it."
"I'm...really glad to hear that." Johnny said, smiling.
"Of course, we should take a few baby steps first...like letting more of our classmates know, and with the rumor that we kissed spreading around, we could probably lessen the blow, but...I want the world to know how much I love you, Johnny Kujo."
"Ditto."
"I'm in the middle of my fucking character development, and all you can say is ditto?"
The two began laughing, and Johnny turned to Mina. "Thanks, heheh...Ashido, for trying to save me back there."
"Well, to be honest, KyoJo is my favorite ship."
"Why am I not surprised you actually have a ship name for us?" Kyoka asked, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Because it's me."
"Because it's her."
"Fair."
"You seem to be recovering nicely." A deep garbled voice told Shigaraki.
"You do your job well, Doctor." Shigaraki told the figure who was gathering their tools.
"Thank you, for taking care of Tomura while I was Santana's slave, it's thanks to you and your skills he is able to continue fighting." Uchiko said.
The Doctor turned around and adjusted their mask. They were dressed in a plague doctor's mask, a dark lab coat, and they had a red cross on their belt buckle. The skin that was showing was a light shade of grey. "It is my job."
"Santana beat your nomu." Shigaraki said, getting off of the operating table. "He could definitely destroy a High End."
"He no longer fights alone..." Uchiko said, sitting across from Shigaraki. "The people in his employ genuinely care for him, I've never seen anything like it. Not to mention, it's clear that Santana somehow knows who the new OFA user is..."
The Doctor continued to pack their things.
"Should...we really discuss that in front of the Doctor?"
Uchiko waved Shigaraki off. "Relax, the Doctor doesn't care. He's just a professional doing his job, he's neutral. Doctor, tell him of your most successful operation."
"All Might, after your master destroyed his organs. They didn't want to take him to a hospital, and to be honest? If they did, you wouldn't have had to worry about him. He would've died."
"You treated All Might?!" Shigaraki said, seething.
"He was a customer, as are you."
"See, he's just a guy doing his job, he doesn't care about sides, he's just a doctor." Uchiko said. "He's neutral, so it doesn't really matter who you are, he'll treat you just the same."
"Well...he did save me from withering away...still, you're the reason All Might is alive too."
The Doctor remained silent. A man of few words.
"It's clear though...you said that purple-haired girl knew of the Master, right?" Uchiko asked. "She mentioned that All For One raised you to Beru..."
Shigaraki's face darkened. "That bitch...she dropped a cave on me...I hate her..."
"If she's aware of the history, she must be aware of One For All. There is this group that operates within UA, they are the reason Santana has a damaged lung. She's a part of it."
"So..."
"That group most likely has the OFA user as one of it's members, that's how Santana figured it out! He fought them!"
The Doctor seemed to be listening, but proceeded to continue with his routine. After all, it was none of his business. He pulled out a jar of eyeballs, and emptied it out in a garbage. "Past their expiration date..." He muttered to himself.
"So, what do we do about it?"
"Nothing, One For All is no longer our biggest concern. Santana must be brought down before we can make any moves against them, and considering I've lost contact with the Master...Santana has the advantage."
"For now..."
Shigaraki noticed that the Doctor seemed to be staring at them, but he soon realized it was simply checking on the patient. Without another word, the Doctor opened the door and stepped out.
"Izuku, please don't break your arm."
"I want to see if the energy works."
"Izuku, I must reiterate, please do not break your arm." Momo said sternly.
"I need to make sure the energy will be enough to heal them if I do!" Izuku protested. "I'm not going to go 100% on this!"
"Then you'll go the lowest percentage you can, no ifs ands or buts." Momo stood off to the side as Izuku powered OFA up to 50%.
"SMAAASH!"
CRACK!
"Ow!"
Izuku's semi-damaged arm began to glow as his silver gauntlet filtered Thriller's energy towards the wound. "It's working! My arm is healing!"
Momo sighed. "That is minimum damage though...I would still highly reccomend that you don't overdo it."
"I won't!" Izuku said, grinning.
We all know that's a fucking lie.
"Deku!"
Izuku turned to see Ochako running up to them with a grin on her face, followed by the other members of the B team. "Oh, Uraraka! Todoroki, Kirishima and Kaminari too!"
"Midoriya." Todoroki bowed his head. "I would've had no idea that you had ever battled the Necromancer. I'm sorry you had to go through that."
"Yeah man, from what Uraraka was telling us, the guy was intense when he was just an eye, I'd hate to see what he was like as a dude." Kirishima said. "I feel bad that I couldn't have helped you out, your poor mom."
"My mom is actually all right." Izuku said. "She seems even happier than usual, ironically."
"I'm glad to hear it. Hey...before you guys hang out in that secret treehouse again...there's still a Mothman flying around somewhere." Kaminari pulled up his sleeve, revealing the healing scratch marks on his skin. "That thing almost killed me!"
"Oh dear." Momo examined the wound. "That must have been a nasty cut when you got it, you're lucky it isn't going to scar."
"I mean, the scar would come with a cool story, y'know? I tustled with the Mothman!"
"You got that scratch dancing!" Ochako said with a grin.
"I tustled with it though, I did!" Kaminari protested.
"Oh, that reminds me, Kyoka says that she's really, really proud of you, for beating D'arby." Izuku said. "After Uraraka told her that you freed all of those souls, she was smiling for a good three hours."
"I'm proud of myself, and this amazing team of course!" Kaminari patted Todoroki on the back.
"I almost died, DIO shot me three times in the chest and left me at the mercy of a Chuck E. Cheese cult." Todoroki said. "But I had a lot of fun."
"That is a sentence I never thought I would hear in my life."