A/N: Thank you all for the comments! I really appreciate you all taking the time to read and comment your thoughts!
Chapter 39
The Endeavor Hero Agency - Present Day – Day 42
"I don't know, Dad, it was really strange," the voice of his daughter Fuyumi speaks over the receiver of the phone. "She was on edge at the mall, with two guys that I've never seen before. She looked scared and was sweating. When she came over to our house, she didn't seem keen on mentioning it. I might be reading into it, but I'm just worried about her."
Endeavor sits at his desk, listening to his daughter's concerns as he thinks about his own assessment of Asami's behavior at dinner over the weekend. She was clearly nervous and in some distress over the whole matter. He hasn't spent much time with her outside of her work with the agency, having always wanted to give Fuyumi and her their needed alone time, but it was clear that she was unlike herself. Not to mention the burns he had noticed on her.
Endeavor didn't tell Fuyumi about the marks on her friend's body, because she's already worried enough about her. He recognized those burn marks instantly, as he was the reason they appeared on Rei's body. They were distinct handprints scorched into her wrist, so she's clearly gotten herself mixed in with a flame user. He couldn't bring himself to ask her about it then and there because he was worried about the trouble that she might find herself in if she told him. Those were from a flame user; one with a quirk that burns hotter than his, so if Endeavor wants to save the girl from whoever is hurting her, he will have to do so subtly.
"And her date, Haruto… I know it's a silly thing, but she told me that she would never date a guy named Haruto. It's a long story, but I feel like that was her way of saying something without them noticing? I don't know, Dad. Something about the whole night was off."
Endeavor nods, taking in Fuyumi's every concern about the night, brushing his hand over his lips, trying to push the idea of her assailant under his roof out of his head, but the plethora of evidence against it drives him to question. The man in question was odd to put it lightly, but he didn't seem to be the type to turn to aggression; then again, he's come across many villains in his career that he's learned to never take anything at face value.
"She hasn't answered my text about when we should meet up next. Did she show up to work today?"
"She did," he tells her.
"She must be busy then," his daughter responds with a saddening tone, but he challenges internally if that's what it really is.
"Fuyumi," his voice is deep and holds its signature lack of emotion. "I'll look into it," he promises her and she thanks him. He sets the phone down and thinks back to Asami. He thinks about the final moment they had together before she left. Her eyes were watered, undoubtedly from speaking of Touya, but there was also a longing in them that surpassed the sadness of his lost son. A desire for him to understand…
"Thank you, Endeavor. I'll miss you." Her words ring back in his ears as a haunting ghost. Why would she say that she misses him if she'd see him after the weekend?
Endeavor thinks about Asami and her demeanor towards everyone at the table. She seemed lighthearted and reminiscent, but when Natsuo left, she became distressed and distant. Her date was strange to say the least, and it is clear that she was anxious in keeping him from speaking his mind.
He wracks his mind, wondering what was the turning point for her demeanor in the night. Natsuo's outburst was one thing, but she's been around him before when he reacted that way. She always responded with a lighthearted approach to simmer down the white-haired boy, but this time…
He complimented her recent work at the company and… Endeavor is struck by the realization as if he were hit over the head. And that's when she became uncomfortable. Endeavor immediately recalls the look in her eyes, and the desperation to get out of the room with her date. Then suddenly after that, she returns without him, eyes spilling with tears, and a fresh burn on her wrist.
The idea makes Endeavor sick that a fire user came to his home, terrorized someone close to his family, burned her right under his very roof, and he was none the wiser to help her. How can he call himself a hero when he can't even keep those closest to him safe?
He thinks about Natsuo, and how he couldn't keep him safe from that unhinged villain who attacked them in the streets. He needed the assistance of Shouto and his classmates to apprehend the man, but he eventually had the boy safe in his arms that night… but Asami… What was her night like with that man, and how did she get herself involved with someone who's looking to harm her? While he was frozen to save Natsuo and relied on children to protect him, Asami was fighting for her life—desperately calling out to the hero to help her—and he did nothing to save her.
He picks up his phone, dialing the extension and waiting only two rings before she picks up. "Yes, Sir?" her voice calls out over the phoneline.
"Hatsuse," he responds. "Do you have a moment to come into my office?"
"Of course," she returns before hanging up the line. He inhales deeply and before he can exhale, she's opening the door to his office and stepping in.
Endeavor looks up at the purple-haired girl who approaches his desk. She has a soft smile on her lips as he makes eye contact with her. "How was your weekend?" he asks her vaguely, waiting carefully for her answer.
"Umm, it was nice. Just had a quiet night in," she awkwardly responds with.
Endeavor's bright turquoise eyes trail down her body to her hands that rest with fingers laced in front of her. He can't see from here if her hand's burned or not, but he can see that her wrists are unscathed. He's unsure if she's wearing makeup to cover the mark, but she wouldn't be healed this quickly.
"Are you able to check this story for me?" He asks her, leaning back to show her he wants her to approach his desk.
The purple-haired girl promptly approaches his desk and he comes up with some story on his image he heard rumors of. She begins clicking on his keyboard to check what he's discussing while the hero watches her carefully. Being this close, he can see that she has no scars on her wrist or her palm as she did the other night.
An unsteady feeling creeps onto the hero as he watches her work on his computer. "This weekend was your birthday," he says simply, giving off no indication where she was.
"Yeah," she says with a soft blush touching her cheeks. "I should've texted Fuyumi about dinner, but I ended up not feeling too great and decided to stay home."
Endeavor holds his breath, body freezing at her words. "Oh," he releases almost involuntarily. "Nothing serious?"
"Oh no!" she quickly waves her palms up at him. "Just a slight headache. I'll text Fuyumi sorry for missing—"
"No!" Endeavor quickly snaps over her and she blinks at him in return. "No need," he corrects quickly. "I'm sure she'd just like to see you for dinner or something."
"Yeah, I haven't seen her for a while, so I should call her," she says thoughtfully. She turns back to the computer with a pensive look. "I'm not seeing anything about this story you're mentioning."
He shakes his head, "It's no problem. I must have misread."
The clicking of his office door brings both of their attention to the forefront. The two-toned hair of Shouto peaks into the office. "Sorry, I can come back—"
"Its alright, we were just finishing up," Asami smiles with crescent moon eyes at the boy as she approaches the exit. She looks up at the boy as he straightens up to her presence. "Shouto, when the heck did you get taller than me?" she laughs with her hands on her hips.
The boy simply blinks at her with confused dual-colored eyes. "Umm, I'm not sure," he responds awkwardly while Endeavor watches the girl with a cautious glance.
"Well, it's good to see you again. I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!" she says as she waves at the boy.
She leaves the two confused men in the office as they stand there stiffly at her questionable behavior. After a moment of sitting there in silence, trying to decipher what just transpired between them, Shouto clears his throat and turns to his father. "Bakugo wanted to have a word with you," he speaks up in a bland tone.
"Bakugo?" Endeavor returns.
Shouto nods and opens the door to the office to allow in the blonde boy and his green-haired classmate. "Tell him," Shouto encourages him with a nod.
Bakugo scoffs at his classmate, wanting to snap at him to not tell him what to do, but he holds back and turns to the large flame hero.
"That guy the other night with that PR chick of yours," he begins with his signature crass demeanor. "I recognized him," he says simply. "He seemed familiar at first but it wasn't until I got home that I realized where I knew him from."
Endeavor stiffens, waiting for the young boy to tell him what he's already starting to suspect and dreading.
"He was one of the lackeys from that loser group of villains that kidnapped me; the League of Villains. That burned creep called him Twice."
Endeavor's heart drops to the deepest pits of his stomach. He feels his pulse pumping throughout his whole body as it misbalances the natural flow of his blood. His limbs are stiff and he can't move as every fiber of his being heats up in a sweltering worry.
"I don't know what she'd be doing with someone like him, but she seemed pretty frantic at some points."
"Th—" Endeavor's speech fails him as the panic of the situation washes over him. "Thank you, Bakugo," his voice barely croaks out.
Shouto's brows furrow at his father's offhand response to this very disturbing news. "Didn't you hear him? A villain was in our house last night with Asami. She could be in danger. Or she could be working with them," the thought makes his throat tighten with anxiety.
"I will handle it, Shouto," his father presses in a tense tone. "Thank you for this information, Bakugo," he nods at the blonde. "Now, go work with Burnin' today, I have some things I need to handle first."
The boys all look at the flaming hero with confused expressions, but none fight his assessment on the matter, hoping he has the best intentions. Once the trio are gone, Endeavor exhales the shaky breath blocking his airways. His worst suspicions have been realized as Bakugo confirms that Asami somehow managed to get tangled up with the League. He doesn't know if this is of her own fruition, or if she was forced into it, and there is only one person who can answer that for him.
Endeavor picks up his phone, dialing the last person he'd ever thought he'd reach out to for support. The phone rings less than one time before the recipient answers with a carefree, "Hey, Hey! Well, if it isn't the Number One Hero?"
Endeavor has no patience for the hero's cheery disposition in a time like this. "Hawks," he returns with a dark tone.
"Oh, someone sounds a bit on edge. Did you get your morning coffee today? You know I can recommend this amazing—"
The flame hero growls at the boy's intolerable performance and speaks over him, unwilling to listen to this charade any longer. "Hawks," he presses him. "Where is Asami?"
There is a deafening silence on the other end of the phone and Endeavor can tell that the winged hero is wracking his mind at what he has just asked of him.
"Uh," he awkwardly laughs. "Not sure what you mean? Is she not in today?" his voice is breaking and it's clear that he's uncomfortable with his inquisition on the matter, and not with the implication that Hawks would know about Asami's routine because of their scandalous love affair, but rather because something damning has happened with the League, and Hawks is well aware of it.
"Where is the real Asami?"
The silence lasts for a while, and if it weren't for the wind blowing through the receiver of the phone, Endeavor would've thought he hung up on the man. "Listen…" finally the cool-boy charade is shed and Endeavor can hear the reality of the situation sinking in. "Why don't I meet you somewhere so we can talk. I'll send a feather with a location on it. And…" he exhales a building breath of anxiety. "Just… be discrete, please."
The line disconnects and Endeavor feels far more anxiety about the situation than he had before. He doesn't know what this idiot did to get Asami involved with the League, but he can tell that he is somehow responsible for the trouble that she is in.
Less than an hour later, Endeavor is given coordinates to a small building outside of Hosu City by a stray red feather. He makes quick work of heading to the location, being mindful to keep the boys and his sidekicks out of the way as requested by the young hero.
When he arrives to the building, he finds the winged man sitting down on a crate, elbows on his shaking knees as he wrings his gloved hands. He jumps when he hears the hero enter the room, clearly on edge with this shady meeting.
"H-hey," his voice cracks as he jumps to his feet. "Were you followed?" he nervously asks.
"Was I fall—" Endeavor cuts himself off and shakes his head at the boy's insolence. "Hawks, what the hell is going on?"
The blonde swallows down the heavy lump in his throat as the anxiety of the situation builds. He runs his fingers through his unruly hair as he finds himself swaying uncomfortably side to side. He was getting familiar with Twice; the dual-personality villain was getting comfortable with him, and it was only a matter of time until he slipped up with Asami's location. Once he had that information in the palm of his hand, he was going to rescue her and get her out of the hell hole that Dabi placed her in. He had a plan, and he was so close to freeing her, but everything just had to go awry.
Hawks takes in a deep breath, knowing that he's waiting too long to respond to the man and an answer is needed. "Asami's been kidnapped," he responds to him shamefully and the flame hero replies with a stiffening posture. "The League…" he exhales heavily, "Dabi took her."
Endeavor is struck by a wall of panic as the blonde discloses this. He thinks about the day he faced the young man after his battle with the High End Nomu. He can still feel the heat of his flames as the villain entrapped them in a circle of blue fire. His flames burned far hotter than Endeavor's, and if he is the flame user that burned Asami, then…
"How did this happen?" The red-haired man growls at the boy in front of him.
Hawks pulls his head down in shame, "I can't disclose much," he begins, "But the Commission has me on a mission to infiltrate the League under the guise of an ally. I did so, but Dabi doesn't trust me. He kidnapped Asami as his way of ensuring that I don't play hero on him and double cross the League."
"How long?" Endeavor asks him with a growing impatience between his brows.
"Since the Billboard Charts," Hawks tenses his jaw.
"And who has been working at my firm in the meantime?"
"A double or clone of her. I suspect one of Twice's."
"Is she relaying information to the League that she's gathered while under my roof?" the man asks with an increasing tone of anger.
Hawks shrugs into himself at the hero's building frustration. "I don't think she's even aware she's a double," he tells him truthfully, and that is not a good enough answer for him.
"You foolish boy," Endeavor shakes his head at the young man's incompetence in protecting someone he cares for. "If you believed you were in over your head, you should've involved me," he growls lightly.
Hawks throws his head down in shame, already beating himself up about allowing this to happen, and not needing the disgrace from his idol on top of it. "How did you know?" he asks him with a soft tone.
Endeavor exhales heavily, figuring he should ease up on the young hero. "She came by the home on Saturday, and she was not acting herself."
Hawks' brows press together in confusion when his golden eyes meet the icy stare of the flame hero. "Saturday?" he questions. "That was her birthday, she was with…" he bites back the words to admit that he spent the night with her double on her birthday, still keeping in mind that their relationship needs to remain a secret.
"I saw the real Asami," he tells him, turning towards him to read his expression.
The blonde's eyes widen as the layers of shock flow through each micro movement of his face. His throat tightens and his mouth dries at the information. "You… you saw…" he can't even allow the words to be voiced as he wracks his mind with how this is possible.
Why on Earth would Dabi allow her to leave his clutches to spend time with the Todoroki family? He had to have known that Endeavor would show and that this would muddy the narrative with the double. "Is she okay?" Hawks releases in a desolate tone, because beyond the reasonings of why Dabi would do this, all he truly cares about is if she's alright.
"She was panicked and uncomfortable in the home. I believe the villain Twice was there as her escort since his face is widely unknown to the public, and I haven't cared to review it since the Kamino incident," he informs the hero. "She was also burned," he tells him harshly, fully intent on hurting the young man for allowing this to happen to her. "Her wrists and palm were burned. Clear indicators of hand marks on her."
Hawks' eyes downturn with sorrow as his brows press together with a deep line of anger. He feels his heart racing with pure hot hatred at the idea that Dabi is burning her. He can't imagine what other atrocities he's putting her through, and all he can think about is how helpless he feels to protect her.
The young hero squats down to his shins, running his fingers through his unruly blonde locks as he exhales the idea of Dabi hurting the woman he loves. His hands shake and he doesn't know what he's supposed to do.
Endeavor looks down on the distraught blonde with little pity in his heart as he should have been made aware of this situation from the beginning. "Why haven't you made rescue attempts?" he asks him with a harsh tone.
Hawks exhales, "I was worried that if I attempted anything, Dabi would retaliate against her."
"Well it's a bit late for that," Endeavor scolds him as the fact that Dabi is retaliating against her is evident. "Your assignment that the Commission has you on; are they aware of Asami's capture?" Hawks returns with a slow shake of his head as his eyes are fixated on his shaking hands. Endeavor suppresses another growl. "We're going to them then," he tells the boy sternly. "We're telling them what's transpired," he says turning from the blonde and heading out of his dingy place.
"What?" Hawks perks up as he lifts himself to his feet. "No… you…you can't!" he calls out, following the red-haired man.
"You may think I am ignorant to your inappropriate relationship with Asami, but I was never blind to it," he growls to the boy as he stares down at him from the brim of his nose, making a point to show his disapproval. "It was clear with her transfer to my agency; why do you think I took her in? I was not about to let you ruin her career over it." Hawks swallows hard at the man's sharp tone. "I never understood what she saw in a clown such as yourself; never once taking your duty seriously. But she was an adult and able to make her own decisions, however foolish they were."
Hawks places his head down in shame, hating himself for allowing this to happen in the first place. He should have considered the consequences more before engaging her, he should have thought of how this would affect her and her career over his own selfish desires. He should have always put her ahead of him, and now she's being burned for his mistakes.
Endeavor watches as his words stack on the blonde with an overweighing guilt. A tinge of regret strikes him as he remembers the boy telling him that he looked up to him when he was a child, and that idea makes him regret the harsh words he's just spoken. He's angry with the idiot for allowing this to happen, and even more angry that he took on this burden of trying to rescue her on his own. With each passing day, Asami is at risk of being killed, and it is not his duty to take this on singlehandedly.
Endeavor sighs, closing his eyes and allowing himself to cool down from his annoyance with the whole situation. "I will not allow some villain to take her and burn her like she were nothing. We will go to the Commission and tell them what has happened. They will assist in getting her back to us, and you two can face whatever backlash the Commission has for your relationship. But hiding it from them will only get her killed, and I will not stand for that."
"Yes, Sir," Hawks returns with a broken tone and a single nod as he attempts to bow to him apologetically.
The flame hero turns from him sharply on his heel and the two of them wordlessly make their way to the Public Hero Safety Commission's office where they will inform the president of the predicament that they find themselves in. Hawks isn't sure how the president will react when she finds out that he never ceased his relationship with Asami after her threats, but he understands that those worries come second to finding and bringing Asami back safely.
In the elevator of the building, the two heroes awkwardly stand next to one another in deafening silence. Neither is sure what to say to the other as both have their minds muddled thoughts on how to save Asami.
After a long stillness in the air, Endeavor finally breaks the silence with a clearing of his throat that causes Hawks to jump up. "Asami means a lot to me," he divulges in a tone that Hawks has never heard from him. It's still characteristically harsh, but there is a semblance of pain and reminiscence to it. "She was like a daughter to me," he admits candidly and Hawks keeps his eyes on the ground, unable to look at the large man.
Endeavor stiffens as a wavered breath leaves his lips. His bright eyes turn downwards with sorrow as the memories of her pierce his skull like a painful reminder of everything he's lost. The aching memories reeled their way back into his skull when he was speaking with her at the prayer alter, but he couldn't put to words what he was feeling back then as he attempts to now.
"When Asami was young, her father and I had an agreement with one another that we each found mutually beneficial," he begins, lost in his memories. "Her father was a prominent businessman, and I was the Number Two Hero, training my eldest son to become the next generation's Number One Hero. He was looking for a lucrative pairing for his only daughter, and he brought the idea of arranging a marriage between her and my son. With his money and my name, they would have been an auspicious pairing."
"Asami and Natsuo were arranged?" Hawks releases without thinking.
Endeavor attempts to swallow, but his throat is too dry. He shakes his head ever so slightly, "No, my son…" his name catches in his throat, but he's finally able to croak it out, "Touya." Hawks finally looks over at the red-haired man, only to find his eyes are glazed over and he is somewhere far from here as he lingers on the memory of his long-lost son.
"At first, the two of them were like rabid animals together," he speaks, but he's no longer talking to Hawks as no one is in the room with him while he's so lost in his memories. "The two of them fought insistently; relentlessly trying to one-up the other one as they scratched and yelled and fought one another like feral cats. I thought there was no way this union would take," he shakes his head incredulously at the fact that there was a turning point for them. "Then one day, the angry glares turned into lingering glances to longing stares and the older they got, the more interested in on another they seemed."
"The idea of a union between the two become more realistic, and Hatsuse began the preparation on his end," Endeavor continues. "Had he had his way, the two would have been married when Asami turned fourteen, but I pushed back; Touya was a hero in training, and he needed to focus on his exercises. I told Hatsuse the two would be married after his debut as a hero," Endeavor solemnly says, wondering how things could have been different.
"What happened?" Hawks hesitantly asks after a long pause from the red-haired man.
"Touya's body…" Endeavor doesn't know where to begin. Can he even blame the downfall of Touya on his mother's weak construction for his Quirk? Or was it something else that he cannot admit fault to? "His Quirk and his body were incompatible with one another," he finally settles on, dividing the blame equally between his and Rei's contributions to the boy. "Hatsuse found out that Touya was burning his body when he overused his Quirk, and that I was hiding that fact from him. Knowing that Touya wasn't destined to be a pro hero, or even graze the top ten, he pulled out of the arrangement and kept Asami from coming by the home. The change was devastating to Touya," he lowers his head in shame as he remembers the slugging of his son's shoulders, the heaviness in his eyes, and the lack of drive when Asami stopped coming around. There was nothing left for the boy to look forward to, especially when his training of him stopped as well.
Endeavor's teal orbs lift to the ceiling of the elevator as he watches the bright lights shining down on him. "It wasn't long until… my ambition…" he swallows hard, "Killed him," he returns harshly, because sugar coating it to say anything beyond the truth will just obscure the reality of his misdeeds. He was a terrible father to Touya and his other children. His abuse fractured the foundations of his home and his actions directly led to the death of his eldest son.
Hawks widens his eyes at Endeavor's candid retelling of his lost son, and feels the heaviness in the elevator as the man recollects on the boy he no longer has.
"Everyone was devastated—Asami especially—and she clung to my daughter Fuyumi after the tragedy." He lowers his head back and stares at himself through the mirror of the elevator doors. "I was worried about her for a long time, it was clear she had taken a liking to Touya," he says eyes meeting the blonde's through their reflections in the mirror. "It wasn't until she met you that I saw her light return to her." Hawks stiffens as the hero talks about him. "I wasn't a fan of your tone or theatrics when you first debuted," he frankly admits, "and I'm not sure what Asami saw in you," he shakes his head disappointedly. "But she was finally happy again, and didn't allow the death of Touya to rule her thoughts any longer. And that made me happy."
Hawks puts his head down in shame, running his fingers through his blonde locks as he stares down at his feet. "I fucked this all up," he says shaking his head. "I thought I was doing what was best for her and her career, but I was being selfish. And now Dabi's…" the idea catches in his throat and he can't even bring to words what Dabi must be doing to her.
"We will get her back," Endeavor promises him with a harsher tone than his words suggest. "And when we do, you treat her better, or leave her to find her own path," he finishes with a threatening undertone.
Hawks smiles softly at his fatherly response towards her, knowing that Asami would appreciate it with the lack of it coming from her own father. "Yes, Sir," he promises him as the elevator door dings open.
The two heroes step out of the elevator and make their way towards the president's office. A heaviness overcomes the two of them as they question what their next move will be. Asami is at risk daily when she's under the clutches of the League and Dabi, so they will have to make it clear to the president that haste is of the highest precedence.
The blonde woman looks up from her laptop when the two walk into her office, blinking back her confusion as the two heroes stand before her. "Hawks, Endeavor? To what do I owe this visit?"
Endeavor glances down at Hawks, expecting him to take full responsibility of this meeting. The young man looks up at his idol with a heavy gulp before taking a step forward. "Madam President," he formally greets her with a bow and extending of his crimson wings. "I have some important intel from my mission with the League, and I am requesting permission to make a move."
The president's narrow eyes briefly survey Endeavor before they slide back to Hawks, not at all pleased with the fact that he brought in the Number One Hero in on a secret assignment the Commission placed him on. "And what intel would that be?" she asks him with a tilt of her head.
Hawks lifts himself from his bowed position. "The League has obtained a civilian hostage, and I would like authorization to extract this hostage before the Paranormal Liberation Front make their move."
The golden-haired woman perks up at the hero's comment with interest as she shifts in her seat. "A civilian hostage?" she questions. "And whom might this civilian be?"
Hawks looks back at Endeavor for guidance as the bulking man stands behind him with stiff shoulders and arms crossed over his chest. He does not give him any cue of encouragement to continue, and simply looks at him with an expecting glare.
He turns back to the president, exhaling as he says, "Asami Hatsuse."
The president keeps her eagle-like features stone cold and unreadable as she watches the hero divulge this information. She gives him no indicator of what is going on in her mind, and with her last interaction of Asami on his desk in mind, he can't even begin to fathom how this outcome will unravel.
"How did you find out about this capture?" she asks in a neutral tone.
"Dabi from the League of Villains informed me he took her," Hawks responds. "He did so because he does not believe the narrative we came up with that I sympathize with Stain's ideology. So he's using her capture to ensure I don't turn on him."
The president taps her boney finger against the edge of her desk as she wracks her mind with this information. "And when was Miss Hatsuse captured?"
Hawks licks his dry lips, "The day of the Billboard Charts."
The president briefly furrows her brows, only to quickly bring her expression back to a neutral one. "And has he made any demands of you that you've had to follow up on?"
Hawks' throat tightens with anxiety as the image of Best Jeanist strikes his consciousness. No one knows about his actions against the Number Three Hero—not even the Commission. He shamefully closes his eyes, "No nothing yet," he lies.
She doesn't seem at all convinced, and he swallows down the lump in his throat. "Hasn't Miss Hatsuse been working for the Endeavor Agency since the Billboard Charts?" she questions him.
Hawks exhales a heavy breath, "I believe the woman working for the Endeavor Agency is a double used to trick me into believing that Asami hasn't been taken. At first, I suspected Himiko Toga, but now I believe Jin Bubaigawara's Double Quirk to be the culprit.
Her brows furrow at him and her winkles grow heavier. "If Dabi kidnapped Miss Hatsuse to keep you compliant, then why create a double to make you believe she was never kidnapped?" she questions and Hawks' heart races in his chest. He can't admit to her that Dabi kidnapped her until he provided him with Best Jeanist's body as an initiation fee, then created a double so he wouldn't have to give her back to him. He has to keep the Commission unaware of what he's done to Best Jeanist.
"I don't know," Hawks lazily settles on and both the President and Endeavor stiffen at his response.
"So you're telling me that the League of Villains has kidnapped a civilian, created a double of them, implanted said double into Japan's Number One Hero Agency to gather whatever information is available, has the Number Two hero in their back pocket, and you are now just telling me this over a month later?" her tone builds in annoyance and Hawks tries to keep his expressions neutral.
"I believed that I could handle—"
"You've done a fantastic job handling it," she responds with a snark tone. "We now have no valuable information from the League since you infiltrated their ranks, and instead have given them a pawn to prance around and gather information on us!"
"Madam President—" Endeavor begins but she cuts him off.
"And you, allowed this leak to waltz around your agency, making a mockery of Japan's Hero society as a whole!" she turns on him. "You both have failed in providing a safe environment for the civilians of Japan, as well as gather information of what the PLF plans next. We are approaching a war gentleman, with no idea of what Tomura Shigaraki has planned. We cannot sit here with our foots in our asses allowing a ragtag band of villains make us look like fools!"
"I understand and I apologize for my incompetence," Hawks begins with an apologetic bow. "But now, all we can do is infiltrate the League and get Asa—"
"You think I am going to waste resources on extracting one civilian when we are on the brink of a war with a group of villains that number in the hundreds of thousands?" she snaps at him. "Everyday the MLA gains sympathizers since the attack on Deika City, and everyday we lose more Heroes in the lineups! At this rate, we will need students fighting this war, and we do not have time to run in and locate your little girlfriend, Hawks!" she finishes with venom lacing her tone.
"Hatsuse has proven to be a valuable asset to the Hero Society," Endeavor begins. "Her talents in Public Relations have helped shape the narrative—"
"And who's to say that she's not helping them now—" the president stops dead in her tracks when realization strikes her. "When did you say she was taken?" she asks them, logging into her computer with rapid speed.
"The day of the Billboard Charts," Hawks informs her hesitantly. "During our fight with the Nomu."
Her fingers dance over the keys of her computer as she searches something, completely entranced with what is returned to her. "Forty-two days ago?" she questions them and they nod. Her narrow eyes are back on the screen. She releases a sharp breath from her nose as she laughs at whatever path her mind is on. "Oh you foolish boy," she says turning the computer to her assistant standing behind her to confirm what she is looking at.
"What's going on?" Hawks asks stiffly as he glances back at Endeavor who looks just as confused as he does.
"We noticed a while back a lack of League activity in the past few weeks, mainly with the Blue Flame killer, Dabi," she begins to explain. "His patterns were dying down and his killings became sparse, then nonexistent. We couldn't find a correlation in the lack of activity until now." She shakes her head incredulously with a proud smile on her face. "In the past Forty-two days, chimes linked to Dabi have completely ceased save for one death. Since the capture, Dabi—despite being seen on missions with the MLA—has only killed one person. This compared to his average of three kills a week since his rise is a staggering halt in his actions.
"What are you suggesting?" Hawks tenses his jaw as the idea strikes his mind, but he will not allow it to go anywhere near his conscious recognition. Endeavor too gathers what the president is piecing together and feels himself getting sick at the notion.
"Dabi has stopped killing since his kidnapping of Miss Hatsuse. Whether she's keeping him busy by other means, I am not one to speculate, but judging by her track record of opening her leg—"
"Stop!" Hawks snaps at her as his voice reverberates against the walls.
She glares at the fuming hero with an unimpressed look on her face. "The pieces are there, Hawks," she deadpans unapologetically. "Dabi has not killed, even when in the field with other villains. His uncharacteristic holding back directly correlates with Miss Hatsuse's capture."
"So we instantly jump to the conclusion that he's fallen for her and suddenly become a hero?" Endeavor skeptically argues. "Dabi is a despicable villain with no redeemable traits. He's a madman hellbent on chaos mongering. To say that Hatsuse has anything to do with this lack of activity is a fantastical delusion."
"Are we to also overlook the League's sudden public image rising to a more favorable light? That since the Billboard Charts, the League suddenly has an online presence savvy enough to tear down the hero narrative whilst building up their own public reception?" she shakes her head at the two heroes with disappointment. "Clearly your relationships with Miss Hatsuse have you both clouded to seeing the facts."
"He burned her!" Endeavor snaps with a rising voice. "She had marks all over her body, she was not his companion!"
"Then a tool for his pleasure," she apathetically shrugs.
"Asami would never…" Hawks shakes his head, shuddering at the thought of her willingly…
No, she would never. He's a villain. And she's… she knows she's something to me… she would never…
"Hawks was placed in this role of gaining intel on the League for two months now, and returned with nothing. It's clear that the League—especially Dabi—do not and will not trust a well-established hero," she begins with a strict tone. "However, with your connections to Miss Hatsuse, and her proximity to the League, we find ourselves in a very lucrative position."
Both Hawks and Endeavor stiffen as the eagle-eyed woman continues. "Whether she's connected with Dabi as a willing recipient is or not is irrelevant. The fact remains that she is under their care and can gain access to information that will turn the tide in this war."
"What the hell are you saying?" Hawks asks with widened eyes as utter disgust reaches his features at the woman's indifference towards Asami's life.
"We will extract Miss Hatsuse from the League's clutches," she promises, "However, only after she gives us information, we can use to gain the upper hand on Tomura Shigaraki and the Paranormal Liberation Front." Hawks shakes his head incredulously as she continues. "You will make contact with Miss Hatsuse and inform her to use her position within the League to relay information to you. Once we have sufficient data, we will extract her during the raid on the villains."
"Are you fucking insane?" Hawks unprofessionally snaps at her. "She's a captive of theirs! She's a prisoner and you want me to tell her to spread her legs to them for intel!"
The president looks at the young hero with a bored look on her face as she leans back in her chair uninterested in this conversation. "A war is on the horizon and many people are set to lose their lives Hawks," she begins with a condescending tone. "If Miss Hatsuse wants to make a difference in the hero society, this is the job she's been given." The eagle-eyes woman smiles a sinister grin that crawls up the right side of her face, making her look absolutely menacing. "And if I remember correctly, you once told me she was the best at doing her job."
A/N: Hawks is right around the corner and I know ya'll ain't happy about it! Dabi and Asami just can't have a moment of peace can they?! Let the angst begin...or rather continue full steam ahead! What do you think is in store with this new plan?!