Rule #39a: There is no such thing as a small world
The Sports Festival seems like so long ago… And yet, it was like it was just yesterday. Toru mused as her grip tightened around her phone. So much has happened since then, with the internships and Stain…and Tamaki…and now, there's camp.
The strange boy next to her suddenly slung his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. It was enough to shake her from her thoughts. "…you have there"
"Sorry?" Toru asked, taking out of her earphones as she tried to get a peek at the older boy. All that she could see, however, was strands of blue hair that escaped from beneath the dark hoodie that he wore. "Did you say something?"
"I was just saying that that's an interesting charm you have there" He pointed to the little yellow octopus and tulip charms which hung from her phone. "Though, I have to admit, it is a pretty ballsy to proudly show your connection to the Grim Reaper"
Now that had Toru's attention. Most people tended to steer clear of the topic of the moon slayer that was Koro-sensei and the resulting nomus; instead, preferring to sweep that particular piece of history under the rug. So, it was strange to hear someone so openly talk about such a thing. "You suuuure do know a lot" Toru hummed, turning her head to face the boy fully; there was an air of familiarity about him, though she couldn't place exactly where that was from.
"What can I say?" He shrugged, "I'm just a big fan of yours; I feel like I know you so well! I can't believe I had the good luck to run into you again!"
Toru tensed at the implications. "Again…?"
"It makes me think that it might not be a coincidence" The bluenette continued. "No, no, this feels more like its destiny" He cooed as the arm over her shoulders pulled her in even closer, until the albino was practically sitting in his lap, unable to flee thanks to the hands binding her.
"Oh, that's right! From your point of view, we haven't met since the attack on UA" He chirped, eyes lighting up in mock realisation. "So, why don't we spend some time catching up, Hagakure Toru? I think we should have a conversation, don't you? A friendly chat—oh! And, of course, if you try to run or fight me in anyway, well, your end will be fast, that I can guarantee"
Shit. Toru silently cursed. I know where I know him from: Ritsu's database. This is the missing boy, Shimura Tenko, or more commonly known as, the villain Shigaraki Tomura!
"Soon as all five of my fingers touch your chest, your heart will be the first thing to disintegrate. In a matter of seconds, you'll be nothing more than dust & powdered bone!"
Double fuck. Toru swallowed as she tried to will her heart to stop beating out of her chest. "Don't forget, there are witnesses here. If you do that, a hero will come and catch you in no time"
"I'm not stupid" He scoffed, "But just look at these sheep! Any one of them could use their quirks and start a massacre whenever they wanted. And yet, they're all here, smiling like they think laws and rules will protect them! Because they assumed everyone has the same morals. They're convinced nothing bad could ever happen to them. Do you know what that means? After you, I could kill twenty, thirty, maybe even more before the Pros showed up to stop me!"
"You don't need to showboat" Toru couldn't help but retort, the words flowing from her mouth without thought.
"Don't I?" Tomura bowed his head so that he could whisper into her ear. "Act natural, don't make a scene. I'm just an old friend who ran into you at the mall, okay? So, calm down and wipe that look off of your face"
"You can't even see my face" She snarked, unthinking.
"I don't need to" Tomura grinned, "You're wound tighter than a coiled spring"
"Oh, sure, like that's just a switch I can turn off & on" She muttered under her breath, shifting in place in his lap. Despite her bravado, she was really rather nervous about being so close to someone who could destroy her with a single touch if he so desired.
"From what I hear, it most certainly is. Tell me, Flashlight, what would you do if I triggered you right now? Would you go on a rampage just like Stain? What about the Grim Reaper? Or maybe you have your own way of doing things? What will you do if I show the world the monster you really are?"
"Takes one to know one" Toru retorted, refusing to give in to the teen's manipulations. Her refusal to bow only seemed to frustrate him further as his wrinkled face, now free of its usual disembodied hand, appeared dry & like an old orange left out in the sun, scrunched up in a silent growl. "Doesn't it, Ten~ko?"
The albino couldn't say for sure where this bravado or balls to poke the literal bear had come from, only that she felt it was in her best interest to keep him talking; at least until one of her classmates returned. Afterall he, in his own words, just wanted to have a conversation "…like old friends" She was well-aware that if the villain wanted to kill her right there and then, he could very well do so and there was almost nothing she could do to stop him, save from maybe adding third-degree burns to his visage. Or worse.
Besides, Tomura—or Tenko, or whatever he went by, these days—had already shown clear intent to harm others—even children—during his stint at the USJ. And she wouldn't put it pass him to try something akin to that threat, right there & then. Of course, that didn't mean she wouldn't go down without a fight; she wasn't stupid. But at the very least, she could cause some (psychological) damage on her way out.
"How?" Tomura growled, neither denying nor accepting the accusatory tone which spelt out his name—his real name.
"History is fascinating, don'tcha think?" Toru swallowed thickly. She was pressed so close to the bluenette that he could hear the soothing sounds of Ririko playing through her earphones. "All those little stories that people just seem to brush away or take for granted. Like—ooh!—like the Shimura murders! You've heard of those, haven't you? They're pretty interesting, don'tcha think? I mean, they haven't even caught the guy and its been what? Fifteen years?"
Tomura's expression turned from dark & twisted, to something far more manic as he grinned, wickedly. "If you want to talk about interesting little stories, then why not talk about those one swarming around Class 3-E of Kunugigaoka Junior High School? Didn't you guys slaughter your own teachers?"
"Are you saying you believe those things?"
"Well, why shouldn't I? Afterall, I have it on good authority that you kids did more than just
"Oh yeah? And whose authority is that? Daddy dearest?"
Tomura simply pulled out an old snapshot of some bar. Though, it was the lab coat-toting doctor within the frame that caught her attention. "Shiro says hello"
With no way for the outside world to see her physical figure (without a UV light or sense to detect as such), body language had become a big part of her vocabulary and at that certain point in time, it spoke volumes. Toru's smile didn't quite fall, but it did twitch at the corners, making it harder to hold in place or fake the bravado she was trying to portray. Her body tensed against Tomura's handless one and her heart beat wildly beneath her ribcage like a little drum circle.
"Is something the matter, To~ru?" Tomura grinned wickedly. She didn't reply, her thoughts still stuck on what the villain had implied, but all around them the store lights within their radius begun to flicker dangerously.
"…You shouldn't talk about things you don't understand" Toru eventually replied, her tone much colder than it had been previously.
"That's funny, I was gonna say the same thing!" Tomura chuckled darkly, "You see, when it comes down to it, I we're not that different. Heroes and villains, we're all the same, the only real difference is who of the us, the public likes more and unluckily for me, that'll always be the musclebound idiots in spandex! I hate it! I hate basically everything, but the Hero Killer pisses me off the most right about now. Which is why I'm so thankful that he was taken off of the board"
"Why are you grateful? Wasn't he one of yours?" Toru puzzled.
"Not technically, but that's what the media made it look like" He huffed, "And that's what my problem is. It's like, suddenly everyone is obsessed with that stupid Hero Killer. The attack on UA, the nomus I released on Hosu—he upstaged all of it! It boils my blood! No one's even giving me a second thought! Why is that? Despite what he claimed to believe, all he really did was try to get rid of the things he didn't like. What do you think the difference is between us, To~ru?"
Toru swallowed thickly as she tried to ignore the fingers tapping against her sternum. "What's the difference? I don't understand, what do you want me to say? Do you want me to talk about your goals & your companions? The thugs were mediocre at best and the All Might-revenge thing is so last century. Do you want me to talk about your involvement in the USJ attack? Because, as I understand it, you mostly just stood there and whined. Or maybe, you want me to talk about Stain, the Hero Killer? Because him? He had some good points, but very poor execution"
"And you would know all about that, would you?" He taunted.
Her tongue darted out to wet her lips as she paused, before continuing on with her rant. "LIke Koro-sensei said: Rule #33a: Don't work the system when you can work the people. It's why All Might is so popular and why Stain was able to upstage your little coups, because they played the people instead of the system. The same system which has failed everyone else ten times over. It's that same system which let All Might flourish whilst Stain failed, but at least the Hero Killer didn't abandon his mission at the first inconvenience, like you did. It's what made him so hard to kill and even if the way he acted was wrong in the eyes of the majority, he held true to his beliefs. That's the difference"
"Ah!" Tomura dropped his chin onto Toru's shoulder as a wide and manic grin split his cheeks. "It's like a weight's been lifted off of my chest!"
I…do not like the sound of that. Toru quietly gulped down her fears. It was never a good thing when then big bad villain cackled like a witch on helium.
"I see it now! All of the dots have connected!" Tomura gushed, "Why he makes me so angry even though he is long gone! Why you irritate me so much! Everything makes sense now! It's him! The problem is All Might! Yeah, yeah! That's it—!"
No, no-no, that's NOT what I was saying! Toru panicked, though the bluenette didn't seem to care.
"—That's the most rational explanation! Hehe! I didn't see it even though it was right in front of me this whole time! What was I worrying about so much? He's why these morons are able to smile so thoughtlessly! They feel so safe because their garbage guardian smiles so thoughtlessly too! As if there's no one in the whole world he can't save! Oh, I'm so glad we had this chat, Toru! I can see it now! It's so simple! Like Stain, All Might must perish so that everything may be fixed!" The words rushed out in a flurry as his grip tightened on the invisible girl who struggled and squirmed in his grip.
"Whoops! Don't struggle now!" Tomura warned as he was forced to readjust his grip. Beneath his hands, Toru's skin began to fluctuate in temperature as she tried to escape his tight grip. It wasn't working. "Unless you want to die? Or maybe you want all of these people to crumble as well?" Toru froze at the threat, stilling in her movements as his arms finally loosened their grip. She didn't dare flee for fear of what he might do in her stead. Because he had proven time and time again that he would very well carry out those threats that he so carelessly tossed about. "But what's one more life on those bloody hands of yours, hm?"
"Like—like you can talk" Toru quietly cursed the stammer.
Mercifully her shining white knight arrived not too soon after. However, it was the last person she ever thought it would be. "Er…Hagakure?" Aoyama greeted in a flourish of unsettled sparkles. "Are you done already, mon amis?"