Chapter 108
.::Sleepless in Nagoya::.
"I can't believe the nerd actually fell asleep." Bakugou's whisper dripped with disdain and annoyance as he glared at Midoriya. The green-haired boy sat slumped against a wall, eyes shut and head lolling to rest on his shoulder. Hitoshi just rolled his eyes, not bothering to comment as he turned back to his math workbook to finish the page he was working on.
Eraserhead meanwhile just stared at Midoriya in wide-eyed silence, apparently stunned by this turn of events. "Is he really asleep?" he whispered.
"Yeah, nerd was already exhausted before we came here," Bakugou huffed quietly, Hitoshi nodding in mute agreement. Honestly, he wasn't surprised Midoriya had fallen asleep; if anything, he was surprised he'd lasted as long as he did. He'd warned them this morning that he'd stayed up far later than usual last night.
Apparently Bakugou's rant the previous day had bothered Midoriya more than they thought, especially with Aiko's visit. Given how the last time she'd visited Eraserhead had ended, he hadn't wanted to take any chances, so had set up camp in front of Eraserhead's cell. He probably would have stayed up all night if Kurogiri hadn't passed through the hall to get to her lab, and promptly warped Midoriya to his bedroom.
So yeah, he wasn't surprised. Hitoshi was used to not sleeping thanks to chronic insomnia issues, but it was obvious Midoriya wasn't. Eraserhead still looked skeptical though. "Are you sure?" he asked, keeping his voice low as he eyed Midoriya.
"He's got no reason to fake it," Hitoshi piped up quietly, making the man snap a sharp look his way. Hitoshi tried to ignore his gaze and kept his eyes locked on his workbook, saying, "He stayed up late last night. I heard him in the hall at like, two."
Specifically, he heard him quietly yelp at Kurogiri's arrival before getting warped away. And then race back to the hall to make sure Aiko wouldn't sneak in... three times. Midoriya hadn't mentioned it to them that morning, but Hitoshi heard it all. Kurogiri's exasperated "please just stay in bed" after the third time was pretty entertaining.
"You have a clock?" Eraserhead asked.
"Not exactly, but the Switch has one," Hitoshi replied, and Eraserhead now fully turned his head to stare at him in disbelief, bloodshot eyes even wider.
"...What?"
"A Switch Neo?" Hitoshi said with a shrug. "It's, uh, a gaming system."
"...A gaming system," Eraserhead repeated, eyes still wide.
"Nerd took it there so he wouldn't be bored," Bakugou huffed. "Still don't get why he didn't get one of those things for me."
"You'd just break it out of spite," Hitoshi replied dryly. The blond scowled but didn't argue, knowing he was right.
"Stupid Deku's the one who broke a controller, not me," he grumbled instead, and Hitoshi snorted.
"Yeah, but Neko Café Manager brings out the worst in everyone. You'd just throw it at the ground or something out of spite."
Eraserhead was just staring, so hard. Didn't his eyes hurt? After a few moments he slowly leaned back against the pillows, exhaling a shuddery breath. "Are you okay?" Hitoshi asked, feeling compelled to say something to him. He didn't miss the hero's brief flinch, jaw tightening as his head turned to look away from them.
"I should be asking you two that," he muttered, voice still pitched low. "You're the ones in the most danger."
Bakugou nearly jumped up, eyes flashing with anger. Hitoshi's hand shot out to grab his leg before he could shout, earning a glare but making the blond come to his senses as Hitoshi jerked his head towards the door. There were guards outside, and any yelling would get attention. Bakugou's lips curled in a snarl but he nodded jerkily as he turned back to Eraserhead.
"Us?" he hissed, keeping his own voice surprisingly quiet. "You're the one who almost got killed!"
"And you two are untrained teenagers," Eraserhead replied sharply, looking back to them with a frown. "One of you might be a vigilante, but this situation is far beyond anything you're equipped to deal with."
"And you are?" Bakugou retorted coldly, glaring pointedly at Eraserhead's leg. His quiet whispers sounded like growling, anger tinting his tone as he spat, "Last I checked, even before those bastards tried to kill you, your leg was already broken! And now you're stuck in that bed!" The hero's eyes hardened at the rebuke, sitting a bit straighter.
"Our circumstances are different," he countered, matching Bakugou's simmering wrath with icy coldness. "The risks we each face aren't the same, but yours is worse."
"The hell's that supposed to mean!?" Bakugou growled, while Hitoshi regarded Eraserhead with narrowed eyes. Pieces started to slot together in his mind like a puzzle, but what picture they formed, he wasn't sure yet.
Then he saw the hero's eyes briefly flit towards Midoriya, and at that moment realization hit him like a brick.
"It's not Stockholm syndrome," he said, startling Bakugou and getting a sharp look from Eraserhead. Having his eyes on him made Hitoshi's hands cold and clammy, remembering the last time he'd been the subject of the hero's gaze. He swallowed and instinctively averted his own gaze, looking to Bakugou just in time to see realization visibly dawn on his own face.
"You think the nerd's trying to turn us into villains," he whispered, eyes wide with disbelief. Eraserhead wasn't just worried about them getting hurt, he was worried about indoctrination. He was a veteran Pro Hero, with years of experience under his belt, far too connected and set in his ways to change loyalties. But Hitoshi and Bakugou were young and hadn't made any active connections or loyalties, thus more malleable and open to changing their stances.
That was why villains tended to kidnap kids with potential and murder adults.
As usual, it didn't take long for Bakugou to shift to rage, his stunned stare quickly twisting into a furious scowl. "Are you kidding me?" he hissed. "We're not—we hate these fuckers, we're not going to—"
He cut off with a grunt when Hitoshi sharply jabbed his side with his elbow as his volume started to rise. He shot Hitoshi a brief glare but closed his mouth. At least he didn't need to remind him about the guards outside the door again. Hitoshi turned back to find Eraserhead's gaze still focused on him, having to suppress another shudder as he briefly remembered them flashing gold.
He pushed down his unease and forced himself to meet the hero's gaze squarely as he spoke. "Midoriya's not trying to bribe us or gain our trust so we'll join the Alliance and become villains. And we're definitely not happy here. The games and stuff are just him trying to make this less shitty than it is because he knows this is fucked up."
"It's also a decent first step to earning trust," Eraserhead pointed out, eyes hard. "And that makes you lower your guard, and thus more susceptible to manipulation."
"That's not what he's up to, though!" Hitoshi protested with a frown. "He's trying to make it better! No secret intentions!"
"How can you be sure?" Eraserhead asked, and Hitoshi's jaw clamped shut, fists tightening in frustration.
This was the big problem: Eraserhead didn't trust Midoriya. They knew that, and knew that he had absolutely every reason to be suspicious, but that didn't make it less frustrating. Not when they couldn't tell him about the escape plans, that letter Midoriya wrote himself, or even the key fob they saw yesterday.
Just thinking about the key made his chest flutter. It had been successfully smuggled through the Switch controller box, with Aiko none the wiser. Midoriya had actually opened it in Hitoshi's cell with him and Bakugou present, just so they could see that it existed with their own eyes. Having the literal key to freedom in their hands had left even Bakugou speechless for a moment.
With that, the reality of their impending escape became all the more real. It made it really set in that this was happening, they were on their way to escaping this hellhole.
And they still couldn't tell Eraserhead because of the people sitting just outside the door. The risk of being overheard was just too great.
Eraserhead seemed to take his silence as an inability to find reasons to counter him, continuing briskly but still soft so as to not wake Midoriya, "No matter how nice he is, he's still Shigaraki's brother. He's still part of the Alliance, no matter how indirect he claims to be. He grew up here, this environment would warp anyone's morals."
"Deku isn't a villain," Bakugou said lowly. "He's a crybaby and hero fanatic."
"You don't know that. It could be an act."
"It's not, he's been this way since we were freaking babies!" Bakugou snapped, and that was enough to startle Eraserhead into silence and make Hitoshi glance at him. Oh right, he forgot they were apparently childhood friends or something.
"What?" Eraserhead asked, seeming torn between confusion and shock.
"You heard me, we literally grew up together until he ran away after auntie and uncle died," Bakugou scoffed. "Still don't have a clue how the hell he ended up here with villains, because I know he was an only child, but the nerd's barely changed since then. And trust me, I'd know if he was pretending," he added with a huff. "He's not. He's still practically the same crybaby I grew up with, down to crying way too easily. I'll bet you his room is full of hero merch too!"
Hitoshi raised his eyebrows, wondering if Shigaraki would let that slide, but then realized he probably would. The guy did literally kidnap Eraserhead for Midoriya as a present, so he apparently accepted Midoriya's interests and tried to use it to bond with him. Very badly.
"He's definitely a hero fan," he said instead. The notebooks were proof of it. They weren't analyzing hero's weaknesses to exploit them, they were cataloging every detail in a way that only fans could. Excitedly pointing out costume details and speculating on uses, trying to think of ways to improve their Quirks or cover those weaknesses...
After seeing the notes Aiko left on Eraserhead's entry, the difference felt stark and clear.
He knew better than to mention the notebooks though, that would just alarm Eraserhead. So instead he shrugged and said, "He even went to get an autograph from that one guy last week—Present Mic, I think?"
That had the hero going tense once more, which, shit, seriously? Did he not like the guy or something? Maybe Hitoshi should just stop and let the guy who actually knew Midoriya pre-Alliance handle it. "Look, point is, you might think he's some villain, but he's not," said childhood friend huffed. "He's a giant softie and cries at the drop of a hat. I seriously have no idea how the hell he ended up with villains, but he definitely doesn't work with them or anything."
Eraserhead still looked doubtful, so Hitoshi decided to take a risk and try one more time. "Shigaraki doesn't even like him hanging out with the Alliance members close to his age," he piped up. "He told me as much when we met."
"Shittyraki gave me a big spiel about that too," Bakugou scoffed. "Said that it's way too dangerous for a Quirkless kid to hang around all those mooks." That had Eraserhead's eyes narrowing, no doubt thinking about the fact Midoriya did have a Quirk. Bakugou picked up on that too and added, "And yeah, we know he's not that defenseless, but Shittyraki doesn't seem to get that. And bastard's got a point anyway, some of those creeps would be hard as hell to fight even with a Quirk."
Hitoshi's eyebrows arched, surprised the blond admitted some of the Alliance members would be a challenge to fight. With his pride, he'd expected the other boy to be more dismissive of the potential strengths. Then again, with the wheelchair race they got a good look at several of their skillsets. At the very least, that one guy who could kinda turn into goo wouldn't be very weak to explosions. Nor would explosions help if he got caught in one of Mr. Compress's marbles.
...Huh. That hadn't been the point of the wheelchair race, but Hitoshi realized they got a lot of useful intel from it. Something to think about later.
"We get you don't trust him, but we do," he said. "He's not trying to make us think this place is all sunshine and rainbows, or go along with all the messed up crap that goes on here. We're just trying to get through this until we can all go home and pretend this was all a really bad dream."
"So knock off all the hostility or whatever and stop making the nerd cry," Bakugou said with a jerky nod. He gritted his teeth as he grumbled, "Seriously, it's really annoying to hear him mope all the time about you hating his guts."
That finally got a different reaction, the harsh glare finally lightening. "I don't hate him," Eraserhead sighed. "I'm just... wary. Look, shouldn't you get back to your homework?" It was an obvious attempt to end the conversation, and the two teens weren't happy but they knew they wouldn't have much luck arguing. After a moment they silently turned back to their books, though they shot him dark looks as they did. Eraserhead just opened his magazine again and ignored them.
A couple minutes later Midoriya stirred from his sleep, yawning and rubbing his eyes. He then froze, eyes snapping wide open as he looked around in a near panic. "Oh no, did I fall asleep? I fell asleep, I can't believe I fell asleep! How long was I out?"
"You slept through lunch and dinner," Hitoshi deadpanned, and snorted at the look of sheer horror he got in return. "Nah, not really. You were out probably less than an hour."
Midoriya's face fell, his horror briefly replaced by a look of betrayal before he pouted grumpily. "Mean," he muttered. "You really scared me for a second!"
Hitoshi just shrugged. "Maybe in the future you should go to bed at a normal time then."
"That seems pretty hypocritical coming from you, eyebags," Bakugou snarked, and Hitoshi rolled his eyes.
"I have chronic insomnia and nightmares as an excuse. He was planning to spend all night camped outside the door without sleeping." He saw Eraserhead's head snap their way at that, but ignored him as Midoriya whined.
"Come on, give me a break! I usually always go to bed before eleven and get up early! And I already got lectured by Kurogiri for that!"
"I know." Hitoshi smirked, and the other boy stared at him in wide-eyed realization. His mouth opened but no sound came out, totally speechless. Hitoshi shrugged and said, "Insomnia and nightmares, remember."
"At least I planned to actually sleep if I got to camp out there," Bakugou scoffed quietly. "Should've just let me do it after all." Now Eraserhead was really staring, no doubt remembering Hitoshi's earlier comment about Bakugou threatening to do just that. No doubt he was starting to make connections on why they wanted to sleep out there. Hitoshi let him, offering no input.
They already knew Eraserhead didn't trust Midoriya. Hitoshi just hoped this conversation would give him more to think about.
Lunchtime found Shouto at a coffee shop in Nagoya nursing a cup of hot chocolate. He'd spent the night sleeping in a park, because he had limited funds and no idea where to find shelter for the night. Nagoya's weather was notably dreary compared to the other places he'd slept so far, the sky clear but air still chilly. At least his fire side kept him somewhat warm, but it was still unpleasant to sleep outside in the cold.
He'd spent the morning looking for a decent shelter, settling on an abandoned office building. He'd even spray-painted a "1-A_No_Dream" message on the wall at Ashido's request, after which the pink girl filled him on their plans for the day. Uraraka had already left to finish searching the first floor of Aiko's apartment building by then, and then they would return to Odawara after lunch. At this point they couldn't really do much in Nabu, so it would be best to just return and regroup to plan their strategy.
Also, they still had no idea if whoever planted the tracking device knew about the warehouse or not, so it was best to get away from Nabu in general.
Shouto still had the robot beetle in Uraraka's backpack currently sitting at his feet under the table, buried under clothes and snacks. He'd lifted the "wings" to check the light that morning, and it was blue. He wasn't sure what that meant, since Ashido had only mentioned orange and green lights, but he assumed it must at least be connected to whatever received the signal now. Which meant his location was likely being tracked.
The thought set him on edge. He still couldn't tell if the beetle had a microphone or camera of some sort, so he couldn't just throw it away somewhere and leave just yet. If it did have some sort of surveillance capabilities, they'd notice the change in scenery. He'd have to stay here for a day or two before finding a place to dump it, just to be safe.
...And also because he didn't have enough money to buy a ticket back to Odawara right now.
In his rush to leave, Shouto hadn't bothered to check how much money he had. They kept most of their shared funds hidden inside Uraraka's sleeping bag since she was better with money. His own slightly sheltered upbringing had admittedly skewed his monetary sense a bit. The leftover money from what he'd taken to get lunch had fortunately included enough to buy a ticket to Nagoya, but he hadn't thought about whether he'd need more before leaving. Which was why he'd spent the night outside instead of finding a motel or net café.
Once again he found himself counting how much change he had on hand. After his konbini dinner and breakfast onigiri, and this hot chocolate, he had a bit over five thousand yen left.
A train ticket from Nagoya to Odawara cost twelve thousand.
Yep, definitely not enough for a way back. He wasn't sure he could scrounge together the necessary funds, especially since he'd need to buy food. Worst comes to worst, he might need someone to come get him. Good thing Jirou was rich in this world and could easily afford the tickets. He'd still have to wait for her and Kaminari to finish exams though, which was far from ideal since they also had to do vigilante work. Maybe Ashido or Uraraka could go to them instead to pick up money for tickets...
Which, might also be tricky to arrange since his burner phone's battery had died that morning.
Half the reason Shouto came to the coffee shop was to see if he could charge his phone, but they didn't have any outlets for customers to use. Some of his meager funds might need to be used to rent a booth at a net café just to recharge it, or at least get online to tell everyone he'd probably need someone to come pay for a ticket out of Nagoya. In retrospect, he probably should have mentioned the money thing to Ashido when he had the chance earlier.
As he pondered this he glanced out the window in thought, watching people walk by. Most of them had their hoods up or wore hats, some moving at a brisk pace, and he frowned as he turned his attention back to the coffee shop. A small TV behind the counter showed a weather report, and though the sound was muted, he could tell the forecast for the day wasn't ideal from an umbrella graphic.
Finishing off his hot chocolate, he hefted the backpack over his shoulder and threw away the cup as he left. It would be best to just return to the office building before the weather got bad. While Shouto didn't heavily mind cold, he still didn't want to get caught in cold rain. Changing his clothes and waiting for them to dry would just be uncomfortable.
Shouto was halfway there when he heard a cell phone ring, prompting him to stop. His face soured as he pulled out the phone he'd woken up with in this world and glared at the screen. Unlike his burner, it still had some battery since he largely kept it turned off. He'd only turned it on so he could check the time after his other phone died. As far as he knew this marked the first time Dabi had called in... he wasn't even sure how long.
Except, it wasn't Dabi. Instead of "D" the phone displayed another unsaved phone number, giving him a pang of déjà vu. The last time he'd gotten a call from someone other than Dabi, it had been Hawks calling. Was he calling again? If he was, what would Shouto even say to him?
Shouto stood paralyzed as the phone kept ringing, watching until it rang a seventh and final time before the screen went dim. He exhaled shakily, slipping the phone back into his pocket and resuming his trek to the office building.
Within a few turns the streets around him were empty, everyone who had business in this area having already sought shelter. The skies were ominously overcast at this point, rain clearly ready to fall any moment. It wasn't pitch black, but the clouds still blocked the sun.
That was probably why he didn't notice a shadow pass over him until he heard and felt a swoop of air behind him, prompting him to spin around. His reflexively defensive posture quickly faltered though, eyes going wide and stance going slack in surprise.
"Hawks?" The Number Two Hero himself stood behind Shouto, wings folding behind his back as he touched on the ground behind him.
"Hey, Shouto-kun," he greeted with a nod, and the teen froze. Oh.
"I do not know this Shouto you speak of," he replied almost mechanically, falling into denial and avoidance mode. Hawks had no proof of his identity and Shouto's hair was still black, he could pass himself as a random civilian.
"Nice try, but I literally just watched you ignore my phone call a couple blocks over." Oh. That was harder to deny or debunk. "Also, you're wearing the same clothes Dabi described, just with a different hat." Shouto glanced down at his clothes in surprise, and realized he probably was wearing the same outfit he'd woken up in. In his defense, he had a very limited wardrobe in this world, and those clothes were warm.
"...How did you find me?" he asked, raising his gaze back to Hawks with narrowed eyes. Not that the left one was visible with his eyepatch, but one eye should be enough to express his wariness. "Was it the beetle?"
"Beetle?" Hawks repeated with a curious blink and head tilt. Which was probably a no. "No, I just happened to have a day off and went out to run errands. And then when I was about to head home, I happened to see a kid that looks just like the photo Dabi showed me step out of a coffee shop, and decided to give him a call. And surprise, surprise, I watched that kid pull out a phone. Which he then ignored."
He shot Shouto a pointed look at the last bit. "Oh," the teen said lamely, for lack of anything better to say. So he wasn't connected to the beetle.
"Anyways, how about we move this conversation somewhere more private?" Hawks suggested, glancing at the sky as he added, "And preferably indoors."
"...Okay," Shouto said slowly, and turned to resume his walk with the winged hero following behind.
Now that he'd been seen, Shouto knew that it would be next to impossible to lose Hawks. The man was one of the fastest heroes of all, perhaps even faster than Iida and his family, whose Quirks revolved around speed. Shouto could potentially freeze him, but that would draw too much attention. It was easier to just give in now, and hope he could talk the man into leaving him alone.
They walked in silence, Hawks apparently willing to let him choose the destination. Since he had no idea where else to go and didn't want to talk in public, Shouto took him to the abandoned office building he'd scouted that morning. Compared to the other abandoned structures he'd visited in this world this one was pretty nice, being well insulated (though without power or heating) and in pristine shape. The area was one that had clearly taken some economic hit, one of many similar buildings that had been vacated.
Chains had been looped through the handles of the main door, but a side door had been left unlocked, which was what Shouto used to slip inside. Said side door opened directly to a stairwell, and he led Hawks to the third floor to what he assumed to be a former office or meeting room. He'd left his sleeping bag there earlier, along with some of his clothes and a camping lamp.
It was also the only room where he'd bothered to sweep the floor a bit, making it the only space where they could sit without getting dust all over themselves.
"Huh, this is actually pretty nice," Hawks commented as they sat on the floor across from each other. "Way better than the other abandoned places I've visited."
"Do you visit a lot?"
"Villains really like using abandoned buildings as hideouts or meeting spots. So does your brother." The last part was said nonchalantly, but Shouto could see a critical glint in Hawks's eyes as he watched him. "What's the story with that, anyway? Why'd you freeze him and run away?"
"It's complicated." An understatement.
"I figured," Hawks replied breezily. "We have a lot of time, so wanna try explaining?"
"No," Shouto replied, and the older man blinked, clearly taken aback by the blunt and immediate refusal. Frankly, at this point Shouto knew no one would believe the story without sufficient evidence. He'd already been through that particular shade of disappointment once with the runaways. And even if he did convince Hawks he was telling the truth, they were too close to the escape. They couldn't risk any sort of intervention now, well-meaning or otherwise.
Not just from other heroes. Hawks knew Dabi, and Dabi knew Aiko somehow. It was just too risky to let him find out.
"I'll explain everything after I'm done with what I'm doing," he said. "But until then, I can't go back. So please don't tell my brother about me."
Hawks frowned, scratching the back of his neck. "Uh, yeah... About that..."
That response was not good. "What did you do?" Shouto demanded.
"Technically, nothing," Hawks said quickly, holding up his hands in an appeasing gesture. "But your brother is in Nagoya right now, so..."
Oh. That changed things. "Then I'll leave," Shouto decided. He'd only stayed because of the tracker. But now that Hawks had followed him, there wasn't much point. "Can I have ten thousand yen for a ticket?"
Hawks's eyebrows rose at the request. "You don't even have enough money for a ticket?" he asked, propping his chin against his fist. "Are you really sure you're okay on your own, kid?"
"I have enough to get by." And access to plenty more once he met back up with the others. "Just not enough for a ticket right now. So, can you give me some money?"
"Sorry, kid, but I don't really carry money on me," Hawks replied with a shrug. "I usually use a credit card. And also, I'm not too comfortable letting you go off on your own when I still have no idea what you're doing."
"I'm still not telling you." Hawks wouldn't believe him, it wasn't worth the effort. When Hawks opened his mouth Shouto then added, "And I'm not telling you where I'm going so you can buy a ticket, either. You could pass that on to Dabi." The hero seemed momentarily surprised, but then closed his mouth and shrugged.
"Right. Well, then it seems like you're out of luck kid."
Shouto frowned, feeling his determination briefly waver. While he still refused to tell Hawks everything, he knew that he was still in a less than optimal position. He had severely limited access to his resources at the moment, and Hawks provided an opportunity he might be able to use. Somehow.
"I... could use a chance to charge my phone," he finally said. "And... some food. If that's okay?"
Hawks sucked in a breath, wings flexing a bit as he rubbed his neck again. "Well, see, that's uh, not what I meant by you being out of luck," he muttered. "You have some bad timing. And you also have some bad tastes in shelters..."
Shouto's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean? This place seems fine—"
"Hey, who the hell's up here?"
Shouto froze at the voice, turning in horror to the door as footsteps drew closer. "If you're some other drifter, I got news for ya, this place is already—"
The voice cut off as a familiar face appeared in the doorway. Bright blue eyes underscored by purple scars glared into the room, scarred lips pulling into a scowl that vanished upon seeing Shouto.
Dabi.
For a moment, time seemed to freeze as the two brothers locked gazes. Both faces went slack with shock, Dabi's mouth hanging slightly open and Shouto just staring back.
And then Shouto leaped to his feet and bolted past him for the stairs.
So, anyone remember way back in Chapter 64, Hawks was stationed in Nagoya? c:
ALSO! If you haven't checked it out: in honor of Spooky Season, I'm currently writing a horror murder mystery story called "See Right Through Your Smoke and Mirrors." I started it last October, but took a long break because it's got some VERY tight timing and planning involved if I don't want UA to just temporarily shut down. But the draft is almost complete and I'm aiming to have all the chapters out by Halloween. Which means basically daily posting now, I think!
And tonight... Oh, tonight's chapter has the scene that led to having to double down on all the planning. I am looking forward very much to people's reactions to it~
Question for next time: How disastrous do you think the Todoroki Family Reunion will go?