Author's Note: I've noticed that I haven't exactly laid out my plan for this. The title of the last chapter makes it seem like the end if you don't know my plan for this epilogue. Woops! So, the epilogue will be three chapters, wrapping up what I see as the three major threads still left hanging. The first one last chapter was clearly Inko and the family stuff with the Midoriyas, and this one will be focused on Tenko and what's happened to the villains after their surrender. The next one will be pretty satisfactory, so enjoy this chapter before we get to the proper end!
Izuku had never been to Tartarus before. He was standing outside the entrance with All Might, getting visitor passes made. It had been weeks since everything had gone down with All for One and the Vanguard, enough time having passed that Izuku was ready to get his cast off at the end of the week. But, they still had unresolved matters, namely Tenko and how he was doing. He'd been put in the level up from All for One, apparently, and Izuku wasn't sure how even he felt about that. Having them so close together after all the things that had happened felt wrong, and he felt One for All stir within him at the thought of being in the same building as All for One. He had to focus on Tenko, though. This day was about him.
The guard that had stopped them exited his checkpoint-slash-office and walked over to the two of them. He handed Izuku a plastic card with 'visitor' printed on it, with a clip to attach it to his jacket. It was much easier to do things with two hands, but because of Izuku's immeasurable luck, he'd managed to end up with only one for the time being. After fiddling with the pass for a moment, Izuku decided to just stick it onto the cloth of his sling instead of trying to clip it onto his clothes.
When everything was sorted, the guard waved them through. Izuku and All Might walked over to the large metal shutter that acted as the door. As the two of them stood at the door, the small camera at the top turned on, a red light blinking in the center. After a moment, the door began to open. It was unlike any door Izuku had ever seen as it opened in layers, the first plate sliding from the bottom to the top, and then the next layer doing the same from the right to the left, then the top to the bottom, then the left to the right, and so on until eight thick layers had opened up to reveal the inside of Tartarus. Izuku would've thought it was overkill if it wasn't the least the government could do in order to contain the Villains that resided inside these walls.
All Might let out a slight sigh, and began walking. Izuku followed after him and the two of them started down the hall, a pristine white. It was almost blindingly sterile, the hall devoid of any color whatsoever except for the clothes of the two One for All users and the black lenses of the cameras lining the corridor. Izuku had felt like he was prepared for this, but he was just now realizing that maybe he shouldn't have so readily said he'd visit Tenko in Tartarus when he was only sixteen. It had been a hassle to even allow him in there due to the fact that he was a minor, but Nezu had apparently pulled strings and gotten him an appointment with Tenko. He was grateful for that, but it was still intimidating.
"It'll be okay," All Might whispered to him.
Izuku felt better having All Might by his side. He'd been healing well from his injuries sustain in the fight against All for One, but it seemed that the former Hero's body had become less robust after giving away One for All to Izuku, and that had only become more so after burning through the rest of his residual power in the climactic battle against All for One. Izuku felt bad for All Might, because he'd dedicated so much of his life to being All Might without having much of a private life. How does someone suddenly fill the time they'd used to spend doing something they loved that they just couldn't anymore? He was technically Quirkless once more, so did that mean that he would stop teaching at UA? Izuku hoped not. His first lesson at the beginning of the year had been a rocky start, but he'd really shaped up and become a good teacher for the class, so Izuku hoped he wouldn't have to stop teaching because of his inability to puff up into All Might.
The two of them were eventually met by a stout middle-aged man with thinning hair. He was taller than Izuku, but that wasn't saying much. All Might bowed to the man, prompting Izuku to do the same, as he returned to gesture. This man was the warden of Tartarus, a prestigious position that held him in high esteem with the Hero Public Safety Commission, being their direct subordinate, and Heroes across Japan as he oversaw everything within the walls of the prison, an arduous task for the most prepared but somehow manageable for this man, who didn't seem to be weighed down by his work environment in the slightest.
"Hello, All Might. It's been a while," the man said, his smile creasing his face.
"It has. It's good to see you too, Kanshu," All Might said, returning the wide smile on the man, who was apparently named Kanshu's face.
"You must be Midoriya," Kanshu said, turning to Izuku.
"Yes. Thank you for allowing this," Izuku said.
"Hey, thank you for helping put them in here. They were allowed to cause way too much damage to both the people and the ideas that our society values, and it was looking a little rough there for a minute," Kanshu said, giving Izuku a thumbs up.
"Yeah," Izuku sighed.
Kanshu began to walk, turning on his feet and starting down the hall once again. Izuku and All Might followed him as he walked and Izuku recognized that the end of the hall, a black metallic door, was an elevator door. The three of them approached it and Kanshu pressed the button, resulting in a chime that rang out shortly in the hall. When the doors opened, the three stepped into the elevator and allowed the doors to close behind them, the clunking sound of metal reminding Izuku of the way All for One had thrown things around while chasing after him during his escape. He took deep breaths to focus on the now, but Izuku figured it would take time to fully unwind from his experiences that summer.
"I have to admit, Midoriya, that I was surprised when I was told that a Hero course kid wanted to visit a prisoner here, much less the prisoner that was specified. I'm aware you two have something of a history, so I'm not judging, but it is certainly not every day that this happens," Kanshu said after the doors closed.
He hit a button, labeled '4', and the elevator started moving, lurching as it began to descend. The inside of the elevator was black, but the lighting was good, if a little bright. Izuku hummed in thought, thinking about how to respond.
"Having history is one way to put it, but yeah. I made a promise to him, and I intend to keep it," Izuku replied.
The elevator ride after that was silent. Izuku was left to his own thoughts, and began thinking about what exactly he'd say once he was face to face with Tenko. Izuku was aware that he'd garnered a reputation among those who knew him as an overthinker, but he really hadn't put any substantial thought into what he'd say before he'd come to be mere floors away in the same building. Izuku didn't want to force anything with Tenko, as he'd likely had more than enough of that under All for One's tutelage. Despite the fact that Izuku still had no clue what Tenko went through in the time he was with All for One, and what had occurred to put him in a position where he was vulnerable enough to be swept away and lost track of for what must have been years. Izuku didn't know how to broach a lot of subjects with Tenko, so he decided he'd just let it come to them, not try to push anything onto Tenko that he didn't want to talk about.
When the elevator opened, it was to a completely dark hallway. Izuku was about to comment on it, but lights flickered on almost as soon as he took a breath to speak. Even though lights turned on to light the way, this hall was simply colored the dark gray of the metal the walls and floor were made of. As Kanshu started guiding him and All Might down this corridor, Izuku realized that it was probably this way because almost nobody apart from the guards came down here. The prisoners kept this far down rarely got prisoners, so rarely that there was barely a precedent as Kanshu had noted. They likely kept the first few layers of the prison pristine looking and pretty to look at so that it presented itself as a place where the worst of humanity could be rehabilitated, but the lower they got, the less upkeep was performed on the appearance of the building itself, just the materials it was made of. That made Izuku wonder if any other facet of the prison shared this … apathy, was the word Izuku was thinking of. If it was functional, Izuku supposed it didn't matter what it looked like.
The trio came to a stop in front of a normal enough door. There was an identical door a few meters to the left, but it seemed unimportant. Kanshu turned to Izuku and nodded to him seriously.
"He's in there. All Might and I will be watching from the control room, monitoring. Good luck with him, kid. He hasn't exactly been the most talkative guy. Not like the big one," Kanshu said, shaking his head at the thought of what Izuku could infer to be All for One. People all dealt with boredom differently, and All for One was apparently a talker.
Kanshu walked through the second door to the left and entered some sort of secure booth. All Might gave him a strong look, which Izuku returned, before joining the man inside. Izuku turned to the door that would lead him to Tenko. He was ready, and it was time. He only had to hope that Tenko was as well. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, Izuku walked into the visiting room.
When Izuku entered the room, he was met with a stark white interior. It was jarring to him, having gotten used to the absence of white outside. It took a moment to readjust, but when he did, Izuku saw machine guns in all four corners of the room, all pointed toward the center. Izuku had to look to the right when he realized that the door opened up to the corner, and caught in his gaze the large window that was blacked out as he turned away from it. He looked over at the middle of the room and saw a thick pane of glass splitting the space into two halves, one for Izuku and one for the occupant of the seat just behind that glass, wrapped up in a straightjacket and restrained to his seat, Tenko Shimura. The two met eyes, and Tenko's miserable scowl straightened out slightly. Izuku gave him a small smile, and the two were silent as Izuku made his way to his seat opposite Tenko.
"Hi," Izuku said as soon as he sat.
"You came," Tenko said, an air of uncertainty in his voice.
"Of course. I meant everything I said to you that night. It took a few weeks, but I'm here. How is it here?" Izuku said. He never let his eyes leave Tenko's even if he looked away as he considered Izuku's question.
"It's total shit. They feed you slop, and the bed they gave me is awful. Kurogiri's cooking was better," Tenko said, his frown returning.
"I figured as much," Izuku said.
"What'd they end up doing with Kurogiri, anyway?" Tenko asked, narrowing his eyes.
"When I explained what exactly he was, they took him to Central Hospital. They're doing tests to see if Oboro Shirakumo is still in there, if Kurogiri's all that's left or if there's an in-between. They've been doing the same to the Nomu that were able to be restrained. So far, there's nothing conclusive, but they think with time they could get some concrete answers about what exactly a Nomu is and how they work," Izuku said, smiling at Tenko's concern for his guardian.
"And the others?" Tenko asked, his eyes zeroing in on Izuku's again. It was nice to see the concern for his comrades that probably got them to stay with him for so long.
"I'm told that they can't even begin to figure out who Dabi really is. Something about his fingerprints having been burned off by his own Quirk, and he won't let them take samples of his DNA. I'm afraid he's been locked up tight, probably for good as long as he keeps up his tantrum at his so-called 'plans' being cut short," Izuku explained.
"That bastard was always the craziest one in the room, he just hid it better. Part of me thinks he likes the burns," Tenko huffed out.
"Yeah, I have a feeling he'd have refused to come with us if he'd been awake at the time. Anyway, the others are doing just fine. Toga's been given Quirk counseling and mundane therapy in addition to her jail time. Twice is locked up in a regular jail, since his Quirk can't be used on its own to break him out. It's the same with Toga; her shapeshifting is null and void if she doesn't have access to blood, which she's only getting under supervision and in moderation to sate her urges. I think it's you and Stain that got the worst of it. I mean, locked up like you're feral? I'm not sure it's right," Izuku rambled.
"It's what I signed up for. When I took your offer, this is what I was accepting. I knew that speaking up for the little guy and making a better world wasn't going to be what my life was like. That was always going to be you. This was always going to be me. I'm okay with that," Tenko said, sighing.
"I know. It just rubs me the wrong way for you to be treated like you're gonna lash out at any moment. That was Tomura Shigaraki, but that's not you, Tenko. I know that you're someone different in your heart, it's just that you changed as a result of your surroundings," Izuku admitted.
"Maybe. I'm only still getting moments of what my life was like before. I get the feeling that I wasn't happy there, either though. Maybe I'm not meant to be happy. What if I'm meant to suffer? What if this is just an upgrade from the prisons I've been trapped in my whole life?" Tenko thought out loud.
"You're not meant to suffer. You're just ... unlucky. But, you're not in those situations anymore. You can make the most of your new one, and I can help you. We can do something to make this a little less like a prison and more comfortable for you," Izuku said.
"Thanks for the sentiment, but I think this is what I want — what I need. It's feeling a little uncomfortable all the time that's getting me through it, honestly. I think this is what I'm meant to do now. Just be here, paying for my mistakes," Tenko said, his eyes taking on a thoughtful quality to them.
Izuku chose not to say anything. He felt it would've ruined Tenko's train of thought and the moment of quiet understanding the two had just shared if he'd said something, so he kept quiet. Izuku just let Tenko think, and eventually come to him. They had all the time in the world to talk. Technically, they had an hour, but Izuku wasn't counting.
"Stain?" Tenko asked, breaking Izuku out of his own thoughts.
"He's in Tartarus as well. He was already an S Rank Villain before he joined the Vanguard, so he's gonna be in here forever. I don't know how he's being treated, since I haven't been asking about him a lot, but I trust that he's in good hands," Izuku said.
"Thinking about him makes you feel bad, right?" Tenko asked, clearly not trying to sugarcoat anything.
"What? No, I'm just not totally used to thinking about a criminal of his caliber that was right in front of me. That's all," Izuku deflected.
"I'm right in front of you, and I've tried to kill you multiple times. It's not that, so what is?" Tenko asked again, leaning as forward as he could in the chair.
Izuku knew when he was beaten. He couldn't avoid Tenko's piercing, differently colored from his doing. Izuku sighed, and leaned back in his own chair, searching for the right words to properly convey what he was feeling. He knew he didn't hate Stain. He didn't hate anyone, not even All for One. Indifference was a word to describe how he felt about that egomaniac, but he wouldn't give him any more attention than he already had, so Izuku moved away from that line of thinking and focused back on Stain. Izuku knew exactly why he felt sick whenever he thought of Stain, and it was because of Iida. It was because he still regretted not having done more to help him way back then, and that only surfaced when the direct cause of his death, Stain, cropped up in his mind. Izuku said all this to Tenko, hoping he didn't sound too pitiful.
"I think we have the same problem," Tenko said after a moment of deliberation.
"How do you mean?" Izuku asked, eyeing his position strapped to his own chair.
"It's about accountability. I spent the past fifteen years ignoring it, but you overcompensate by trying to take everything onto yourself. It's what got us all into the mess of Kamino. I think we both need to level out. This'll help me do my part, but what are you gonna do?" Tenko explained.
"Yeah, I've been told that," Izuku mumbled.
"Yeah, so listen to it you moron. You said we could start again with each other, and you've done so much for that end, so I kind of want you to stick around so we can get around to doing my part. Don't go dying because you don't know how to control yourself," Tenko said, his annoyed inflection having no real bite to it.
"Right, I'll do my best. I promise you that we'll be able to start again together some day. For now, though, don't you think this is a good first step?" Izuku asked, unable to stop himself from breaking out into a wide grin.
"Yeah, it's okay. God, I sound like some dumb older brother with all the weird gushy shit," Tenko groaned.
"Well, aren't we technically brothers? Adopted, I mean," Izuku asked, his grin settling into an honest, smaller smile.
"Right. You said that Mas—. You said that All for One is your Dad. He gave me his family name, so I guess you're right," Tenko said, a revelatory laugh escaping him.
"Is that alright with you? I mean, I'm an only child, so I don't want to push anything onto you that you don't want just because of my own feelings," Izuku asked, suddenly feeling very small in the large blocky chair he'd been sitting in the whole time without issue.
"It's fine. I think I had siblings once, but I don't really remember what they were like. So, I guess it'll be a learning experience for us both," Tenko admitted, stopping to look down at himself when he mentioned his memory issues.
"Yeah," Izuku said, almost too faint to hear.
Izuku lost track of time after that. He and Tenko didn't talk about much, just how they both felt about their 'father', and found solace in being together after suffering through his manipulations. Izuku got the impression that Tenko felt a lot of conflicting feelings about the life he'd lived up to the present, but the most prominent feeling that Izuku could pick up when Tenko talked about how he felt was tiredness. Tenko had to be so tired, and he could finally get some time away from the world and to himself after all these years.
When their hour was up, Izuku was led back out to the hallway by Kanshu. He met up with All Might outside, where they didn't need to say anything to understand that the other had accomplished something that had left them feeling fulfilled. It was in the way that both Izuku and All Might carried themselves when they met back at the elevator, that they'd gotten something off their chests, and both could tell. Izuku got the feeling that All Might had slipped away to talk to All for One and resolve some of their issues with each other, but he couldn't know that for sure. It was the same kind of unspoken connection they had with each other, likely because of One for All, even though the physical power was gone from All Might. Something about the half-formed vestige inside One for All made it so that he was both inside the vestige realm and out in the real world with Izuku at the same time, and it put them on the same page in instances where they really shouldn't have been, even if they never truly realized it.
The ride back to the dorms was a quiet one. Izuku spent it thinking about how he had so much to look forward to with the coming semester at school, which would be starting up in about two weeks. In comparison with the end of the first semester, where the cause of Izuku's episodes had been a mystery, he'd been lying to his friends and an immortal monster had been out to get him, as well as someone who hated his guts because he'd been told to, Izuku had it pretty good now. His arm was still going to be affected forever, if not for a very long time because of those things, and he'd likely carry the baggage of his family tree with him for life, but those were things that didn't come in the way of what he truly valued; they didn't stop him from loving the people in his life, and them from loving him in return.
A smile broke out on his face as he resolved himself to do what he'd been wanting to for months. Izuku turned to All Might and admitted what he was thinking, finally breaking the silence between them that had let them wind down after their visit to Tartarus.
"I'm going to tell my friends about One for All."