Suzume feels lighter that afternoon than she has in a long time. The peach jelly packet was thoughtful, if not a little bit weird to eat, and the girls random hugging was even weirder.
Still, it wasn't unwelcome.
She sits in the last class of the day, with Aizawa in the front reading out of his lesson plan.
She still feels guilty for her betrayal of him. Nighteye had hurt her, and she had forgotten all that he'd done. Fought for her sake, protected her, escorted angry, quirkist fucks out of the arena so she didn't have to listen to their poison anymore.
It wasn't fair.
Maybe hero society has never helped her. Probably it never will. But there are heroes who have not failed her and he and Midnight and Present Mic are some of them.
Hawks too.
Her classmates are decent to her, even Bakugou seems to at least know to keep his mouth shut about her quirk status these days and no one else has ever given her as much trouble over it as she'd expected.
Maybe because she revealed it on her own terms by beating the hell out of two strong-quirked boys.
Maybe I should do that more often.
Yeah.
She totally should.
Her hero debut needs to be her beating the absolute shit out of a giant, terrifying villain and proudly declaring herself quirkless while standing on his back like she's George Washington crossing the Delaware.
It'll be perfect.
And utterly unlike her.
Suzume props her chin in her hand and looks up at her favorite teacher, still thinking about silly things like her hero debut and whether Gigantomachi is weak to crotch kicks.
Likely not, but a girl can dream.
Aizawa taps his open lesson plan with a long finger.
"Lets see here... Right. Summer break is fast approaching, but of course it stands to reason that none of you have enough leeway to just relax for the entire time," he gives them all a slant eyed look, "So, we'll all be going on a summer camping trip."
The class erupts around her into cheers.
"I knew it! Aw yeah!" Kirishima posts up for a high five and Suzume, swept up in the excitement, slaps her hand on his so hard it stings.
"Lets play truth or dare!" Mina shouts.
Tsu nods, "And have fire works."
"Summer break means curry.
"And swimming!"
"The parameters of our activities will probably change in a natural environment, thus challenging us to adapt! And we'll eat and sleep with the whole class."
"I'm so excited!" Toru turns to Suzume. "What do you like most about summer?"
Suzume stares dead at her.
"Murder."
"Wait, wha-"
"However," Aizawa's eyes flash red and his hair flutters, shutting them all up instantly, "should any of you fall short of a passing grade for the end of term exams, you'll spend your time in remedical lessons."
Bakugou scoffs. "What a load."
Suzume glances back at him. "Speaking of loads, how many trucks of hair gel did Best Jeanist use on you?"
His red eyes snap to her. "Shut the hell up!"
Suzume rolls her eyes at him.
"Your bark is as bad as ever."
"What the hell did you just say?"
"I'm not repeating myself."
"You can use the rest of the period to study."
Suzume, instead, lays her head down for a nap.
When she wakes up class is being dismissed and a cool hand has touched her arm, now fully healed.
She peers up at Shouto, who's looking down at her with his mis-matched eyes. His hair seems to be getting longer.
"Oh, hey you."
"Hey," his mismatched gaze went from her own dark eyes to the flicker of shine in her earlobes. Her new earrings dangle little flashes of turquoise. Rio had sent them as some kind of 'good job not getting murdered' gift. The dangling parts would break off if pulled hard enough, like a tear off cat collar. They were yakuza designs, beautiful and functional at once.
She loves them dearly. They may be just a bit of vanity but the prettiness is nice. When she looks at the mirrors she looks at the glittering blue instead of her bland face and her broad shoulders.
"You got new earrings."
"I did," she smiles up at him and lifts her head. She really might bring a sleeping bag one of these days. Or a pillow. She's not worried about her grades, she already has most of the answers to everything on the tests for one reason or another. Suzume tilts her head to show him how they swing cheerfully beside her no-longer-bandaged neck. Her new scar is still puffy and red.
Shouto stares at that for a moment too.
Suzune rubs her palm over the mark self consciously.
"My brother's wife gave them to me for punching out Stain."
"I'm jealous. All I got was a lecture," Shouto says dryly.
It makes Suzume pause and sit up slowly.
A very stupid idea has just occured to her.
Maybe it's resentment that makes her sit up. Maybe its left over bitterness at Nighteye that makes her want to break laws on his own turf. Maybe its her own earrings and her constant rebellion against the world around her.
Suzume stands up suddenly and turns to Shouto.
"Do you want your ears pierced?" she asks, a silly, probably reckless idea planting itself inside her mind.
Shouto blinks at her in surprise. "My ears?"
"Or your nose, I don't really care. Yes or no, Shouto?"
Their other classmates mill about, chatting, making plans, and freaking out about their finals. A bunch of them are frantically pairing up or making groups for studying.
Shouto looks at her, considering.
Finally, he nods his head once. There's a spark in his eyes that tells her he's thinking of his father.
"Great. Then come with me," she orders.
She marches him out of the classroom, waving goodbye to the others on her way out. Shouto follows her all the way to the train station. He only pauses long enough to text Fuyumi that he's going to be out late with a classmate before they board Suzume's same train.
They don't get off at her usual spot.
They keep going. Back the way she had come not three days ago.
Back to her hometown, where Nighteye prowls the streets and Homage stalks people. Where Yakuza offer more protection to the average person than heroes do.
Suzume texts her own mother that she's out with Shouto and they're not doing anything dangerous.
Shouto is good company. He doesn't chat her ear off, but he doesn't ignore her when she decides she wants to talk about a landmark that they've just passed either.
Togata isn't on the train. He must have the day off, she figures.
So when they reach their destination Suzume leads Shouto off the train, and down into the city.
They pass by plenty of people. They go so far she probably could have justified a cab, but they're hero hopefuls and she could use the exercise. She added more weights to her harness, wrist and ankle bands, and it makes her feel like she is dragging again.
The neighbors around them grows familiar. Suzume leads him past laundromats and the bar on the corner until they're walking inside a tattoo parlor.
This is a dumb idea, but they're already here. And the idea of breaking the law blatantly where Nighteye can't catch her is incredibly thrilling.
It still looks mostly unused. Most mob run places do. The restaurants they passed certainly did, but the food is always the best and with Kai as the heir apparent to the Shie Hassaikai she's never been less worried about germs. So maybe she'll take Shouto out to eat once they're one here, if its not too late.
They walk in to see a familiar older man waiting at a little reception desk. The walls are covered with new artwork here and there in styles that weren't there last time. They must have gotten a new artist at some point. She looks briefly at the small dummy on the side table that still displays various piercings, with a label beneath it to tell what each of them are.
Through the door to the back she can hear the faint buzzing of a tattoo gun.
Suzume finds that she still likes the look of the two dermal piercings under the eye, but she's never had the guts to get one.
She still doesn't, of course.
The gargoyle looking man grins when they come walking in.
"Well well! It's Chi-Chi's little girl, Suzy."
"Hello Tai," Suzume dips a quick, polite little bow to him. "My friend wants to get his ears pierced, and I knew no one else would do."
"Naturall," he grins at her. "Head on back and have my boy set you up. Don't be scared if Yuzu is back there, she doesn't poison customers.
"How nice," Suzume says dryly.
She herds Shouto back into the back room. There's a woman's silhouette bent over someone behind a curtain, planting a tattoo upon their skin. At the piercing stations is Koichi, and Dabi.
When they see the pair of them Koichi brightens into a smile. Dabi's mouth twitches mildly, before his blue eyes land on Shouto and he falters momentarily.
Suzume leads Shouto over to sit at Koichi's station. The younger gargoyle man hands him the studs to choose from.
"You came back. And you brought a friend, that's so nice."
Koichi grins at her.
Suzume sits in the open chair at the station beside Shouto.
"I guess it could be called nice."
"Are you even old enough to get your ears pierced alone?" Dabi asks in his raspy drawl.
"Nope," she says honestly. "That's why we 're here. Because we can pay you a little more in cash to do it professionally, or I can figure out how to use a needle and a slice of apple and do it myself."
"Let's avoid that," Koichi suggests dryly.
"Is this legal?" Shouto asks, looking between her and them.
"As long as you don't tell anyone else, it doesn't really matter. This isn't killing someone or dealing drugs. It's just getting your ears pierced."
"Speaking of killing someone," Koichi says, turning to Suzume. "I saw a video of you punching out a hero killer. How'd you manage that."
Suzume wrinkles her nose.
"He was already on his last legs, and he was distracted by his own monologue. It wasn't hard."
"Monologue or not, that was kind of… incredible. If he wasn't trying to kill you, I mean. You guys probably didn't have any fun at all."
"Definitely not," Suzume agrees.
"At least you got to be a meme."
"... At least I got to do what now?"
Koichi blinks at her.
"You didn't know?" It's actually Dabi who asks the question, drawing her attention back to him. Maybe its because she's no stranger to gore or scarring, but she actually thinks he could be handsome in his own way.
"No?"
"Huh. Google it."
Suzume does not.
Instead she gets on the 1-A chat and sends out a message.
Suzume : You guys am I a meme?
Several people are typing.
Oh god.
Suzume hurriedly shoves her phone back in her pocket and looks up in time to see Koichi drive the earrings into Shouto's lobes.
They're both glittering amber circles.
They look good but she had expected red or blue. Not amber.
Shouto looks at her.
"What do you think?" he asks, reaching up to touch one. He winces, apparently not expecting the slight ache that they come with.
"I like them," Suzume tells him honestly. They do look good on him.
Shouto looks at the mirror, and lets his hair fall in front of them. It hides them. Mostly. Anyone familiar with him will notice that theyre there. Including his father and sister and remaining brother.
"My father is going to hate them," he realized.
"Tough shit for him." Suzume says bluntly.
Shouto sighs, a world weary thing tinged with anger and resentment.
"I'm sure he's going to find some way to punish me for it. Especially now that he's seen me use my fire side again. Sometimes I wish I'm still sworn off of using it."
Suzume stares at him.
Something sweeps through her.
Rage.
Irritation.
Maybe a ghost.
Suzume stands up, ignores Dabi, and cups Shouto's cheeks in her hands.
She doesn't know what she hoped to accomplish here. To show Dabi that his baby brother wasn't daddy's little angel? To spit in Nighteye metaphorical face by getting underage piercings in his city? To piss of Endeavor and enable her friend.
Whatever her reasons was, she tilts Shouto's head until he's looking her in the eye.
What comes out of her mouth startles even Suzume herself.
"I'm going to kill your father."
Dabi chokes.
Shouto stares at her and blinks once, slowly. Like a cat.
"My father is a pro hero," he says slowly. Koichi fucking crosses himself and steps away from them. Suzume ignores him.
"And?" Suzume responds.
"He's very strong," Shouto says slowly, like he's not if she's slow or not anymore.
Suzume laughs softly at him, a dangerous glittering her smile.
"I know. I'm not going to fight him. I'm going to kill him."
Shouto blinks again.
"What's the difference?"
"Oh my sweet summer child," Suzume says softly. "People die every day in a million different ways. It wouldn't be that hard to kill someone without fighting them. Or without them even knowing you were doing it."
She's not worried about watching her mouth. This place is a yakuza one, after all.
"How-"
She shrugs.
"Well, say that someone left the gas burning stove on and the house filled with gas. All it would take for one fire hero to go up in a massive explosion is a single misplaced spark. And I'm sure your father has plenty of those. It would be a stroke of luck if it happened on a weekend where you were staying over at one of your siblings' places, or my house. Poor Endeavor is dead, but lives on through his children."
"Or," she goes on, "small holes drilled in lightbulbs will fill a room with small amounts of chemicals. If a hole was in each lamp and lightbulb all someone would have to do is try to turn a light on and it would trigger a chain reaction that would bring the entire house crashing down. A needle filled with air will kill someone. Or-"
She lets go of Shouto's cheeks and takes his arm. She taps her thumb across the vein above his wrist.
"If you pinch here in a certain way it can cause a blood clot that will travel to heart in three minutes and give a grown man a heart attack. It could even kill him. None of these involve fighting a man. At most you shake his hand."
Shouto is staring at her, she realizes.
"If," she pauses. "If you want me to kill your dad. I could also, you know, out him as an abusive fuck, expose him as adirt bag and a technical human trafficor and ruin his life, destroy his reputation and possibly get him arrest. If you, you know. You prefer."
She makes a face. "But that way takes longer."
Shouto stares at her for a long, long time. Then;
"How much longer?"
Suzume pauses and cocks her head. She does a bit of mental math, aware that Dabi is watching her intently. It's been a long time since she's done something like this. Half of detective work was proving someone was guilty to a court, so sometimes she had to go about gathering additional information. Sometimes, when she was young, she ran cons for her mother and collected blackmail.
The point is she's no stranger to digging up dirt on someone powerful.
Those powerful people had always been police, or actors, or politicians. Not a Pro Hero.
It'll take longer, and she's very, very out of practice.
Suzume hums softly.
"Seven months," she says at last. "Maybe eight."
"...You can't be serious," Shouto accuses.
"I am," she insists.
"No one will help you," Shouto says with a horrible amount of certainty. "The police won't believe that a pro would do that."
"Then it's a good thing I'm not going to them to help me," she reasons easily.
"Pro heroes won't back you up," Shouto isists.
"I'm not asking them either."
Shouto stares at her. Dabi is staring too, hard. Her phone is still blowing up in her skirt pocket.
"Why would you do that?" he asks at last.
"Because you're my friend? Obviously."
Suzume tugs at her scrunchie nervously. That felt like too much like a speech.
"Well?"
"... eight months, you said?"
Suzume grins, sharp and dangerous.
"Eight months."