Chapter Text
Himiko squealed as she leapt at Jin, wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug. Jin, to his credit, was quick to return the hug, squeezing his unofficial little sister.
“Jin! You’re out!” Himiko said after a few moments, “Does Hound Dog know you’re out here? Oh! And where’s your mask? I know you’ve been working on spending time without it…” She began to ramble, her speech rapidly increasing in pace, much to the amazement of the onlookers.
“Oh God, it’s spreading…” Someone muttered, causing Todoroki to perk up, his focus now entirely dedicated to the scene. No doubt he was already working on new threads for his ‘Crazy Board’ that he would be forcing his classmates to observe. It is just another link to the chain that will inevitably prove that Midoriya was All Might’s secret love-child.
“Well, Himiko! That’s kinda easy to explain. It’s needlessly convoluted! ” Jin replied after the vampire finally calmed down enough for him to get a word in. “Therapy has been going well, thanks to Hound Dog. I wish I knew him a long time ago… I hate him, he smells like corn chips. ” Himiko just stared blankly at him before raising an eyebrow. “Anyway! A lot of it has been, well, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and some medication prescribed by Granny RG to help stabilize me. It’s been helpful. It’s fucking useless! I’ve been responding well, and your visits definitely helped. But, Hound Dog decided that I should get out a bit and interact in a… safe environment? He seemed to be on edge about something.”
Twice looked into the distance as various snippets of memory played in his head.
“Mister Bubaigawara… please… I beg you, stop throwing that tennis ball against the wall!” Hound Dog pleaded, tears in his eyes as he desperately fought the urge to fetch it.
“But I’m boooored… Hell no! This is fun! ” Jin replied, throwing the ball again.
Hound Dog felt his eye twitch.
‘I can’t handle this right now… m-maybe… yes. YES! I’ll pawn him off to 1-A for a little while! Their special brand of chaos will keep him busy for a few hours while I de-stress.’ He thought, chuckling to himself. ‘Also because it’ll annoy Aizawa. Fucker still owes me money.’
“So, yeah! Doc said I could hang out for a while, build up my tolerance in a crowd! I’m having a great time! I hate it here! I wanna go to bed.” He finished.
The silence was deafening.
Himiko looked up at the taller man and narrowed her eyes. She wasn’t pleased with the university’s therapist. Not one bit.
“I see…” She began, “I suppose I’ll need to have a few words with the mutt about making sure you’re properly acclimated instead of throwing you in the deep end.” She huffed before finally letting go of him. “Still… I’m happy to see you again, Jin, and I’m proud of you.” She smiled warmly at him.
Tsu stood still as she watched her nemesis interact with the stranger. No matter how much she wanted to otherwise, she couldn’t help but feel guilty. She hated it. Toga was supposed to be borderline psychotic, dammit, not whatever the hell this was! She suppressed the urge to shudder as she thought about her first meeting with the blood-sucker, phantom pains still lingering in her tongue from when it was nearly severed. She remembered the crazed look in her eyes, the deranged smile, and her obsession with whatever twisted version of ‘love’ she felt the urge to share.
She still had nightmares from it.
What she was witnessing, however, was completely different from the killer she had known. Loathe as she was to admit, but the crazed expression and radiating malice were gone. Or at the very least reduced to a manageable level. She gave a quick glance to Ochako. She was about to speak when the mochi-fiend cut her off.
“Not now, Tsu…” she whispered, “I’ll explain later. I know it’s relevant to why those two are here, and why Nezu wants to help them.” She finished. “It might help put things into perspective for you.” She added.
Tsu sighed and nodded in agreement. Like it or not, the two supposed ‘former villains’ were at UA for the long haul. And, maybe, it would help assuage the growing guilt.
Meanwhile, in Momo’s room…
Momo smiled as she held Eri. The snoozing girl nuzzled into her side as she slowly rocked side to side, just the way she remembered her own mother doing for her when she was Eri’s age. It was comforting, and the sight of her smile warmed her heart to no end. There she sat, child in her arms as she began to daydream. Her newly awakened maternal instinct dredging forth fantasies of Momo raising Eri, the strong hand of her husband holding hers, her belly round with a little sibling for Eri… She wondered if the baby would have green hair, or freckles like-
Momo jolted back, shaking her head in an attempt to clear the fantasy from her mind and blush from her face as a strange rumbling echoed in the room. Looking down, she noticed Eri stirring, a sleepy red eye opening as the little girl slowly pushed herself up to stretch. Momo was barely able to keep from cooing at the display. Another rumbling echo sounded, this time she was able to locate the source.
“Ah, I take it you’re hungry, Eri?” She asked as Eri blushed in embarrassment. Momo was about to speak again when her own stomach made its displeasure known. The pair stared at each other for a moment. Eri was the first to break, her attempt at a stoic expression cracking as she began to giggle. “How about we join the others downstairs for a treat? Does that sound good to you, dear?”
Eri was enthusiastic, revitalized at the thought of more apples to snack on. The nap didn’t hurt, either. Momo was comfy.
“Do you think Uncle Fumi will share some apples with me, Mama?” Eri tilted her head to the side, mimicking Tsu’s.
Good lord, this child was going to kill her.
“I’m sure Tokoyami and Dark Shadow would be more than happy to share with you, dear. Now… ready to go downstairs?” Momo looked down at Eri as the unicorn got to her feet, hopping up and down in excitement.
“I wanna see Papa, and my uncles and mamas, and the kitty lady!”
Shortly after, downstairs…
The tournament was in full swing. The group had voted on what game they should play next, with Mei winning the right to choose due to a clever mix of intimidation, persuasion, and bribery. Her choice? ‘Heroes Ultimate Coalition: Melee’, of course.
“I dunno, Hatsume, isn’t that one known for being a total sweat-fest with wonky hitboxes?” Kaminari foolishly asked, oblivious to the look of dawning horror on Izuku’s face. He quickly began to realize something was wrong, however, when the mechanical genius slowly… painfully slowly, turned to face him, her expression a twisted parody of manic joy as she glared at him.
S̶͉̩̆͘I̸͔͎̊͗́L̷̳͗͛̽Ę̸͐̎N̶͕̹̾C̷̣̬̄E̸̫͙͌̐̀.̵̮̠̮̌͛͑ ̶̡̭͂H̵̖̗́̑Ė̶̮A̸̬͓̽͝T̴̖̞̙̾H̵̟͚͆́͘E̸͙̒N̴̰̟͈͒̈͠.̵͔̖͊ Was all she said.
Needless to say, Kaminari shut the fuck up.
The ding of the elevator arriving at the ground floor shook the insane wrench-wench from her fury, the subject of her wrath already forgotten as she saw Momo and Eri step out.
“Hiya, Boob-lady! Hiya, Eri!” Mei called out. Mineta began to choke at the sudden nickname. Nobody tended to him. Bakugou was too busy cackling like a deranged hyena.
“B-boob-lady?!” Momo gasped, her hand flying up to cover her mouth in shock, “Why, I never!” She continued, absolutely scandalized. She would most certainly not use the nickname in her poorly written smutty literature. Nope. Especially not the one with a fair noble lady being surrounded by seven beautiful but rough ne’er-do-well ladies and their handsome and chivalrous ringleader. Momo blinked for a moment before pulling the handbrake on that train of thought. ‘Where the Hell did That come from?!’ Off to the side, a frog croaked, one step closer to her goal.
Mei tossed her controller to the side before getting up to scoop Eri into her arms, much to the girl’s delight.
“What brings you down here, kiddo?” Mei began, “Finished up your nap and got a little hungry, huh? I’m like that when I have a good nap, too!” She continued, Eri hanging onto every word. Looking up, Mei scanned the room for a moment before spotting Tokoyami standing in a corner. “Hey, Levity Chicken! You mind if I snag one of your apples for Eri?”
“Levity Chicken?” He asked aloud, Dark Shadow emerging to poke at him, teasing him about his new nickname.
“She called you a funny bird, ha!” Dark Shadow began, “Aw, don’t be grumpy, Fumi! Little Eri likes our apples the best. It’s our thing!” They continued, Tokoyami begrudgingly agreed. “They’re in the fridge in one of the drawers. She can have as many as she wants! A gift from Uncle Fumi and Auntie Dark Shadow!” Eri would have squirmed out of Meis grip had the inventor not been paying attention. Instead, she set the girl down, who then promptly scurried up to the Man and Quirk duo, hugging them tightly.
“T-thank you, Uncle Fumi, Auntie Shadow.” She managed out before running back to Mei. She had certainly come a long way since Overhaul. Although he wouldn’t say it out loud, Tokayami was incredibly proud of his adopted niece.
With apples secured and a spot at the table set for her, Eri happily hugged Mei.
“Thank you, Mecha Mama!”
Well, that certainly did something for Mei.
“Eri, kiddo… W-what do you mean by that?” She asked. This was something completely new to her. She knew she was physically attracted to 10-Million, to Izuku , but that was a feeling she knew how to handle. She had babies to help make it tolerable, after all. No, this… this was a different kind of warm feeling. It made her feel deliriously happy for some reason. Eri scrunched up her face as she thought of a way to explain it.
“Papa said that mamas are those who make you feel happy and safe… like all my mamas. Mama Froppy, Mochi Mama, Mama Momo… And Papa.” She began, “You all make each other happy, and I see how you and my other mamas look at Papa.” She looked Mei dead in the eye, “You want to make him happy too, right?” She challenged. Mei was speechless, her words failed as she nodded her head. “Then that means you’re my mama, too!” Eri declared, finishing her attempt to explain her logic.
Mei had only known the unicorn for a short time, but if anything were to happen to her… She’d kill everyone on campus and then herself.
As Mei was having her new crisis, Eri looked around before settling on the frog. She was glaring at Kitty Lady, but then she looked sad as she looked away. Then she’d do it all over again. Eri was a smart kid, she knew something happened, especially since her other mamas weren’t talking with her much. Finishing up her apple, the unicorn carefully climbed down the chair she was on and went up to Tsu, gently getting her attention.
“Mama Froppy? C-can I sit with you?” She asked, innocent as can be. Tsu jolted, a surprised ribbit leaping from her lips as before she looked down at her, as much of a warm smile as she could manage on her usually neutral face.
“Of course you can, Eri.” Tsu leaned down to pick Eri up, setting the girl on her lap and hugging her. “Ribbit, did you have a good day today, Eri?” She asked. Eri nodded as she got more comfortable on Tsu’s lap. She pondered over her thoughts for a moment before she looked up at her amphibious mama.
“Why do you look so sad and mad, mama? I-I didn’t do something bad, did I?” She asked, prompting Tsu’s eyes to widen as she quickly hugged the girl tighter.
“No, no! You didn’t do anything wrong, ribbit….” Tsu began, trying to figure out a way to explain her animosity towards Himiko, “It’s… complicated. Hard to explain. You see, me and Ochako, your mochi mama,” She added with a short chuckle, “We met Toga a while before Izu-kun and Mirio rescued you. She… we didn’t get along. At all.” She continued, shooting a glance towards the woman in question. “In fact, she tried to kill me and Ochako. I have a scar on my tongue from where she cut it open. I nearly lost it.” Tsu demonstrated by stretching her tongue just enough for Eri to see the scar, “And then she stabbed Ochako and drank her blood. That was the last time I saw her. Ochako, I think, saw her when we were rescuing you. I don’t know why she was there.”
Eri looked distraught, but she managed to keep from tearing up. Her Mama Froppy was tough, so she’d do her best to be tough, too.
“She was crazy.” Tsu began to wind down, “But… I can see how much different she’s acting now, I don’t know if it’s a trick or not. I’m scared she may try to hurt me, or your other mamas, or your papa…” Tsu continued, shivering slightly, “But most of all, I’m scared that she might hurt you , ribbit. I don’t know what I would do if that happened. So, I tried…” Tsu began to tear up, the guilt roiling under her skin, “I tried to be mean to her, to get her to go away.” She confessed to the girl. “She just makes me so scared and angry, just seeing her…”
Eri stared at Tsu for a time. Disappointment was all too apparent in her eyes as she contemplated Tsu’s confession. She knew she should be mad; Kitty Lady was one of the few to tell her that her quirk wasn’t a curse, outside of Izuku, Uncle Aizawa, and Grandpas Mousey and Toshi. She knew she had done bad things, but those were accidents… right? Like when she made her daddy disappear… It hurt. It hurt her little heart to see her mama act like that, even if she was scared and angry. Surely she could see that Kitty Lady was trying to be better.
Right?
“Mama…” Eri began, hugging Tsu tightly before letting go to help wipe her eyes clear of tears. “You were being a b-bull? A bully.” She managed after stumbling over her words a few times. And if that didn’t twist the knife further in Tsu’s conscience. “But, you can be better, right? If I have to, and Kitty Lady has to, then you need to, too.”
Tsu looked at her. She was conflicted. Who wouldn’t be in that situation? Eri had a point, yes, that Toga was trying to be better (as far as anyone could tell, at least). However, Tsu still felt justified in her fear and hate towards her. As guilty as she may feel, it doesn’t erase the undeniable fact that Toga was a threat. All she would need is one bad day and a chance, and then the damage she could cause would be inconceivable. Her point from before also rang in her mind: She could have convinced herself that she was trying to get help, to be better. For all Tsu knew, Shigaraki set her up to the task, and her unstable mind took the role, ready to execute whatever plans the League had.
Tsu hugged Eri tightly as she looked around the room. The stranger, Jin, seemed to be doing well and Toga was chatting with her classmates. It wasn’t until Tsu looked a bit harder at the blonde bloodsucker, that she noticed something was amiss. It was subtle, but she could see her looking at Jin with gradually growing concern. A slight squint in her eyes, her body tensing up. It triggered the frog’s prey-instincts. As if a Predator had sniffed out a vulnerable member of the herd.
“Jin?” Himiko spoke up, causing everyone to turn their attention to her. Not that she noticed, her focus was entirely on her big brother. “Are you okay? Where’s your mask? Do you have it with you, just in case?” She asked, slowly standing up and cautiously making her way to the man, who had suddenly become rigid. She walked around to stand in front of him, her eyes scanning him over, searching for something. Jin seemed unable to speak, or didn’t trust himself, judging by the clenching of his fists. Growing increasingly more worried, she began to search around the room, almost in a panic before she had a realization.
“Yaoyorozu!” She suddenly barked out, “I need you to make a mask! Quickly!” She looked back at him for a second, “Something breathable and thin, whatever you can.”
“W-whatever for?” Momo asked as she raised an arm, light emitting from her skin as she began to weave a simple spandex hood, not unlike the head of a morphsuit.
“It’s his quirk. It’s unstable, and he uses a mask to help cope with it. I can explain more later.” Himiko said sharply, giving the heiress a thankful look before rushing back to Jin and looking him in the eye. “Jin… I’m going to put a mask on you, okay? You’re not going to come apart, you’re safe, you’re real. ” She whispered, slipping the mask onto him. The effect was almost instant. His body relaxed and he slumped against her. “Good… Let’s take a seat, rest a bit, okay?” She continued, Jin nodding as he shakily turned to sit down, sighing in obvious relief.
“I’m sorry, Himiko… I hate seeing you upset because of me… ” He mumbled.
“Don’t be. You did very good, Jin. Four hours in a crowd without incident, and we caught it in time.” She whispered, doing her best to sooth him as she hugged the taller man tightly, “I’m so proud of you, big brother. You’re doing so much better already…”
If Tsu didn’t already hate herself for how she was treating Toga, she most certainly did at that moment. Without a word, she gave Eri one last hug before setting her down. With the unicorn safely deposited into the care of the rest of the class, she left, wanting to hide from her shame, from the guilt. She wasn’t sure what to think anymore. Despite her misgivings, even she had to admit that she had a newfound respect for the vampire. If she could be like that towards someone she clearly cared about, then maybe… Maybe Eri, Momo, and the others were right. Maybe she can change for the better.
Her departure was not unnoticed. Ochako, seeing her best friend’s distress, quickly set out to follow the frog, pausing only to give Eri a quick hug before leaving.
She had to show Tsu what she had learned. Maybe, just maybe, it could help. However, given what they all just witnessed, she wasn’t so sure pressing the issue was wise. Maybe she could give her the info she learned so she can look over it when she was feeling better? A foot in the door, so to speak.
It was worth a shot. Right?