Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

The first matches were starting, but Dazai had little interest in that.

Once Chuuya had finally decided to leave the arena and go change out of that godforsaken cheerleading costume, Dazai had suddenly realized just how much time had passed as he was staring- er, observing the chibi.

He looked down at his phone, opening it up to see a slew of new messages that had come in.

League of Idiots

Shigbert>> stop changing the fucking chat name psycho

Shigbert>> also howd you like that little pretty boy of yours in a skirt XD bet you were droolng

Dazai scowled, not wanting to admit to anything regarding him and Chuuya. But, he supposed it was necessary for the mission to play along.

<< ah! It was most excellent indeed!

<< and to think its all mine!!!! >////////<

He sighed to himself. How tedious.

Shigbert>> ur such a pain

Dazai rolled his eyes as he shut off his phone. He could say the same thing about his crusty boss. No, scratch that. He could say the same thing about this entire mission.

Needless to say, he was bored. He didn’t have to keep up his persona here since no one around recognized him. He didn’t need to do anything but watch a stupid Sports Festival with a bunch of high schoolers who were playing heroes.

The first fight was rather boring. Dazai was more focused on picking his nails than watching two children fight each other without even the use of their Quirks. While Brainwashing was certainly a powerful Quirk, Dazai had no interest in it. Especially because he could already tell the brainwashing kid was going to lose the match.

That green kid certainly was something. It was immediately obvious to Dazai that there was something peculiar about his Quirk. Then again, Dazai didn’t know much about Quirks to begin with, not that he cared. Dealing with the UA students was Chuuya’s job!

It came as no surprise to Dazai when the brainwashing kid lost. He had zero combat ability and was relying solely on his Quirk to fool his opponent. Not clever at all.

Dazai kicked his feet up on the chair in front of him, ignoring the shout of protest from the person sitting in that seat. He was all out of popcorn. Damn.

The next match was definitely more interesting, but still not surprising. Of course the number two hero’s son was going to win! That tape kid had nothing on him! Booooring!

Dazai did laugh really hard at the third match, though. Lightning boy getting absolutely wrecked by his own bolts was hilarious!

The last match before Chuuya’s was a bit more interesting. Dazai actually wondered if pure skill and speed was enough to get around slippery acid. After all, the engine kid relied heavily on the ground and on his own stability. Something like acid was a bad matchup against him.

Of course, one had been trained from a younger age, while the other had not. Inevitably, the engine kid was just too fast, dodging around the acid. Pink girl really should’ve thought out a strategy more, and perhaps coated as much of the rink as possible with her acid. She had the natural advantage in this battle already, and that would’ve cinched her the win.

But whatever. None of those hero wannabes were who Dazai came here for.

He sat up in his seat as the next match was announced, wondering how Chuuya was planning on showing off this time. Was he going for speed? Agility? Strength? Fighting skill?

Dazai couldn’t wait!

His eyes zeroed in once again on the chibi as he stepped up onto the platform.

Show them… show them my Chuuya.

Chuuya stepped up onto the platform, hands leisurely tucked into his pockets. He came to a stop once he entered the ring, and he looked over at Aoyama.

His classmate didn’t look nervous—Chuuya didn’t think he’d ever seen him nervous once—and he was blowing kisses to the crowd.

Chuuya knew Aoyama’s weakness was his weak stomach, but he wouldn’t even need to exploit that. He already had a plan.

He had shown off his skill with his Ability enough during the Sports Festival. Sparring one on one was the perfect way to display skill without relying on a special kind of power. He would show the heroes that, even with his Ability incapacitated, he could beat all of them.

It might be harder towards the end of the tournament, but Chuuya was determined to upstage Midoriya’s explosive success in the obstacle race thoroughly.

Sorry, Midoriya. No one will remember you once I win.

Truly, he did feel a little guilty for all this. He didn’t even care about being a hero, or being the best, or winning the Sports Festival even. He was taking up someone’s spot in the hero course who deserved it. But it was all a part of Dazai’s master plan that he should screw with the future of these kids.

Although, since he was planning on also disgracing and killing their symbol of peace later, and exposing their Hero Commission for kidnapping their members and illegal experimentation, he was screwing up their futures anyway. Might as well prepare them for that now.

“Aaaaand… START!”

Chuuya didn’t need to be told twice. He immediately jumped out of the way as a sparkly laser shot towards him. He vaulted over a second, then a third, really showing off his agility for the audience.

“UNBELIEVABLE! Nakahara from Class A is holding his own without using his Quirk!”

Chuuya bit back a smirk. He loved fighting the good old fashioned way. This was even easier than dodging bullets. He ducked under another laser, sliding the last few feet before closing the distance between him and Aoyama. He swiped his foot against the ankle of his classmate, tripping him.

Of course, he still wanted to have a little, less good old fashioned fun. So he caught Aoyama before he hit the ground, grinning.

“Sorry,” he muttered, very quietly. “Wouldn’t want you to hit your head.”

Aoyama blinked, a blush blooming over his face.

“A-ah?”

Chuuya smiled, dropping Aoyama back onto the floor from a smaller distance. He stood up, dusting his hands off as the horns sounded. Aoyama’s head was over the boundary line.

“What an amazing feat! Nakahara takes down Aoyama without using his Quirk even once!”

The crowd was roaring, hundreds of voices cheering and shouting praises at him. He smiled, reaching a hand down to help Aoyama to his feet.

His classmate blinked up at him, still slightly red in the face, but nonetheless took his hand. Chuuya hauled him to his feet.

“Are you okay?” Chuuya reached a hand to the back of Aoyama’s head, touching it softly. He pretended not to notice the way Aoyama shuddered slightly. “I didn’t drop you too hard, did I?”

Aoyama seemed to recover finally, chuckling and shaking his head.

“Ah, no no! You were amazing, Nakahara-kun!” He smiled, literal sparkles appearing out of nowhere. “I wouldn’t have blamed you if you punched me in the chin!”

Chuuya chuckled softly, accompanying Aoyama as they walked off the rink.

“I wouldn’t do that unless I had to. I wouldn’t want to break your jaw.”

Aoyama waved his hands lightly. “Tis no trouble, really!”

Chuuya chose not to comment about how unaffected Aoyama seemed about losing. He supposed some of his classmates might think themselves lucky just by coming this far.

The next match was announced overhead, Tokoyami and Yaoyorozu heading up next. They passed Tokoyami in the hallway. Chuuya wished him good luck while Aoyama gave him a big hug and what sounded like a wet kiss straight to the cheek. Chuuya had to really work to stifle his laugh at Tokoyami’s affronted noise, his classmate somehow blushing face despite the feathers.

How did that even work…?

They walked back to where the rest of their class was sitting. It seemed Midoriya was back from the infirmary, which was good. Last time Chuuya checked, he had two broken fingers. Which he supposed was the usual for him, but still.

“Ah, Aoyama-kun! Nakahara-kun!” Uraraka smiled at them as they walked in. “That was a great match! I really thought Nakahara would use his Quirk to win, so it was so unexpected!”

Chuuya just smiled as he took a seat down in the front by their group. “Eh, where’s the fun in that?”

Aoyama hummed cheerfully as he sat down on his other side. “Absolutely! It was a thrilling match! Totally fun!”

“I wish I could say the same for my upcoming match.” Uraraka chuckled nervously. “I don’t think Bakugou’s gonna go easy on me.”

Iida cocked his head. “You don’t think?”

Chuuya frowned at that, responding before Uraraka could answer. “Why would you want him to?”

Ane-san would kill him if he even thought of going easy on her during a spar. Same with Gin. And Elise? Forget about it! The second you let your guard down around her, something is going wrong. Chuuya is still waiting for her to set the apartment on fire one of these days while he’s gone.

Uraraka turned to him, a strange look on her face.

“You really think so?”

Chuuya’s eyebrows furrowed. “Why would you want your opponent to go easy on you? Wouldn’t that be insulting?”

“I don’t know, man.” Kaminari frowned. He was already on thin ice from the cheerleading uniform incident. Chuuya narrowed his eyes as he waited for his inevitable bullshit. “Wouldn’t it be insensitive to go all out on a girl? Like, I get Bakugou is Bakugou and all that-”

“HEY!” Bakugou scowled from where he was sitting a few rows back. “Wanna run that by me again, Dunceface?!”

Chuuya just shook his head. “Kaminari, Shiozaki absolutely obliterated you.”

Kaminari let out a really weird noise, which Chuuya ignored purely because Uraraka’s eyes were shining at him.

His resolve hardened. “I don’t believe in going easy on my opponents.” Chuuya crossed his arms and sat back in his seat. “Everyone in our class is in the hero course because they’re good enough to have gotten in. Everyone in the finals is here because of their skill. The only thing that would be insensitive would be to write off their strength just because of something as stupid as gender.”

No one answered after that, but Chuuya was okay with that. He watched with a proud smile as Tokoyami and Yaoyorozu fought. While she was outmatched in skill, her tenacity was ferocious. Her will to win was alight and it made the match exciting. And Tokoyami wasn’t holding back either, though he was careful not to cause too much damage. Chuuya couldn’t fault him for that, since he’d done the same with Aoyama.

The match ended shortly thereafter, just as Chuuya had expected it to. But Yaoyorozu had put up a good fight, so Chuuya was satisfied.

Chuuya clapped as they both walked off the stage. He couldn’t help but notice people in the stands giving side glares to Tokoyami. It made Chuuya wonder if this was the dispute his classmates were just having about going easy on girls, or if it was a deeper issue. He thought he might recall someone saying that mutant Quirks were looked down upon.

Well, that wouldn’t do. Chuuya might not be friends with Tokoyami—or any of the students, mind you—but he would give praise where praise was due.

As Yaoyorozu and Tokoyami made their way back up to where their class was sitting, Chuuya was the first out of his seat to meet them.

“You guys were great.” He grinned, fisting his hands on his hips.

He wasn’t dense. He knew the effect he had on most of the class. They looked up to him almost like the senpai of those bad harem mangas Dazai would force him to read sometimes.

Cringe? Yes. Easy to exploit? Also yes.

He stuck out both of his hands for them to shake. Neither of them hesitated for long before they were shaking his hands with gusto. Yaoyorozu looked especially grateful, her eyes shining. Tokoyami was more reserved than she was, but he was giving Chuuya a small smile.

It was then that Bakugou decided to shove past all of them, likely heading to the waiting room since he was up next after Kirishima and that metal guy from Class 1-B.

There were a couple indignant noises from the rest of their classmates, but Chuuya, Yaoyorozu, and Tokoyami all just shared a slight chuckle. Bakugou’s behavior never got on their nerves much.

“Thank you, Nakahara-san.” Yaoyorozu bowed politely. “Your words are much appreciated.”

Chuuya just grinned. “Your tenacity was a force to be reckoned with! Gave Tokoyami a real run for his money there.”

Yaoyorozu floundered a bit, flushing. “Oh, you flatter me Nakahara-san.”

“He is right.” Tokoyami said suddenly, earning a look of surprise from Yaoyorozu. “Maybe it did not feel that way to you, but I knew what a quick thinker you are. That is why I rushed you right off the bat. I knew if I gave you time to think, you would overtake me.”

Now Yaoyorozu was really blushing, looking as if she wanted to refute, but Chuuya nodded quickly.

“I’m sure with more teaching from Aizawa-sensei, you’ll be one hell of an opponent!”

She blinked, and then chuckled. “You… both of you are very kind.”

Tokoyami just squared his shoulders. “I do not make a habit of flattery.”

Chuuya grinned at that, Yaoyorozu’s face brightening a little. “Neither do I. I look forward to competing against you in the future.”

Yaoyorozu smiled, nodding. “Yes, I… of course. I will look forward to it as well.”

Chuuya nodded, turning to Uraraka.

“I look forward to watching you kick Bakugou’s ass.”

She jumped up from her seat, nodding quickly. He could see the determination shining in her eyes, much like Yaoyorozu.

Chuuya was starting to enjoy the Sports Festival.

This mission wasn’t all about sucking up to hero students and puny villains. There was work to be done.

But why was Elise in charge of it?!

Sure, she was the oldest, and she had the most liberty to move about, being an Ability and all. But that didn’t mean she didn’t have very strong emotions about this!

But alas, Chuuya didn’t have time today due to the stupid Sports Festival or whatever. And Dazai was out of the question, fucking off with some villains god knows where.

There were two objectives to their mission—one: retrieve the hostages. That required research, which their disguises hindered their ability to do easily. However, the disguises were really more for the second purpose: kill the figureheads All Might and All for One.

Those two would be hard to get to without some trust. Otherwise, it would be a real pickle! Not that they couldn’t accomplish it. Elise knew Dazai and Chuuya could. But when also dealing with other heroes, while trying to sneak out their rescued members? Well, it was a lot to ask. So the disguises were helpful in that manner.

Of course, it meant that Q and Elise were doing a lot of snooping around on their behalf for the first mission objective. But Q was seven, so it really meant that Elise was doing most of the excess work.

Oh well, she had no issue with Hosu anyway.

All Might apparently had an old mentor who lived around here, albeit farther away from the main city. Elise’s job was to find that man and finagle her way in there. While the man had been retired for quite a long time now, he still held his teacher’s license and was in regular contact with the Hero Commission.

Plus, there was the added piece of information Dazai had collected from All for One: All Might had some kind of successor at UA. While they didn’t know who it was, it was highly likely they would come to seek out a mentorship from this guy. Rintaro had done his research and knew about the internships Chuuya’s year would begin to sign up for after the Sports Festival.

Basically, Elise would saddle up with this guy for a few days, gather what information she could about All Might and the HPSC, and once the student made their appearance she could take her leave and focus more on figuring out the HPSC’s mess from up close. Dazai said he was going to handle the gritty details.

Simple enough, right?

Well… finding the man was apparently quite difficult. Not because Elise was bad at searching, but because this man was likely very good at hiding who he was. Being All Might’s former mentor probably had its drawbacks.

Elise sighed, deciding to take a seat at the cusp of an alleyway. While she couldn’t feel exhaustion, she could still tire out. She was unused to upholding this form and putting it through such extensive stress.

Stupid toddler legs! Rintaro is really getting it now!

She was demanding so much cake when this was over!

She rubbed at her itchy shirt. Seriously, why did she have to look the part of a pathetic orphan?! That was Chuuya’s job!

Of course, while Chuuya had his job, Elise still had hers. Unfortunately.

Truthfully, there was more to today than just what Chuuya was focusing on. Even more than he thought she was focusing on. For all he knew, she was in Hosu just looking around.

Naturally, the fun came from Dazai involving himself, because of course Dazai had a hand in everything.

Besides, it’s really Chuuya’s fault for not asking questions when she’d told him what she would be doing while he was competing. So really, it’s on him if he doesn’t like that it’s going to bite him in the ass later!

When Dazai had last been at their apartment—he sometimes came by when Chuuya was in school just to mess around a little—he had left a little note for Elise. And in short, well…

Elise was kidnapped.

In name, at least. Chuuya’s plan for her to take today to visit Hosu while most of the heroes would be attending the Sports Festival and thus not watching the streets was good, sure. If not a little sloppy, at least. After all, the plan would require her to stay away from home for days, possibly longer. They would need a better explanation than simply “she’d wandered off” to work for the heroes.

He hadn’t really put much effort into finding a plausible reason for her to disappear into Hosu, so he had simply told her to get on with it and not let anyone find out. But that hero would find out when she saddled up with him, and work could always get back around. It wouldn’t look good for Chuuya if his sister went missing and he didn’t seem to care or tell anyone.

So really, a contingency plan was necessary in case she was spotted or her disappearance was noticed by someone else, which was more than likely considering the severity of the stunt she would be pulling, getting close to a hero.

Yeah, saying a toddler wandered this far away from home was a bit of a stretch. Dazai had merely given a—she would only begrudgingly admit—better explanation for her disappearance, and one that better aligned with the goal of Chuuya’s pity facade should it be made public.

Which, of course, it will be, thanks to Dazai.

It was all staged between the two of them. Elise wasn’t sure if he was planning on giving Q or Chuuya a heads up, or if he was just going to let them figure it out as it occurred. All she had told them was that she would be in Hosu for a few days, and for Chuuya to keep his phone on in case she needed something. She was almost certain Dazai wouldn’t tell them much else, if he got in contact with either of them at all.

Not that Elise cared much either way how prepared they were for this, since it might be mildly amusing.

Well, the story went that Dazai had kidnapped her while Chuuya was away at the Sports Festival. He had then taken her to Hosu—for reasons poor little Elise didn’t know should anyone ask—leaving her there where she didn’t know anyone and couldn’t ask for help, especially being a slow-to-trust slum kid.

She was sure Dazai had like fifteen subpoints to this plan that she didn’t know about, but she didn’t want to bother with that. It was all complicated shit and whatnot behind the scenes. She didn’t need to worry about anything beyond her basic objective. Chuuya and Dazai could fight about the details in their latest lovers quarrel or whatever.

She stood up, just about to resume her search when a shadow fell over her.

“Are you lost?”

She looked up, seeing someone in a thick metal suit of armor. He was glaring like the sun with how shiny his outfit was.

She let her eyes brim with tears, crouching and looking at the metal mask he was wearing.

“A- a villain?!”

The man stepped back a bit, quickly lifting the metal visor from his face. He had a friendly face, soft features that screamed big brother vibes. Chuuya had them as well.

“No, no! I’m a hero, actually.” He knelt down, his posture unthreatening. “I’m Ingenium.”

Elise blinked, a few of her tears slipping down her cheeks.

“A… a hero?”

He nodded, pulling the helmet off completely and tucking it under his arm.

“It’s true. I’m on patrol right now. Tell me, are you lost?”

Elise allowed her tears to well up again. No one can say she’s a bad actress.

“I- I can’t find Nii-chan!”

She let herself cry like a baby, and Ingenium quickly jumped into big brother action. He leaned closer, though he didn’t try to touch her.

“Ah, don’t cry. We’ll find your brother. Tell me, where do you live? Is it around here?”

She continued to cry, rubbing her little fists into her eyes. “I don’t know! It’s not- well, that man brought me…”

Ingenium frowned, leaning a bit closer worriedly. “What man? Did you know him?”

“I- no!” She wailed miserably. “I- we got on the train, a-and I fell asleep. He was gone, and- and I…”

Ingenium seemed to understand, reaching an arm out to her. “Here, why don’t I-”

“Hold it.”

Elise perked up. She hadn’t sensed someone nearby. He must’ve just arrived, from… the alley?

She turned around slightly, and screamed. Not a scream of terror, though that’s probably what others might’ve assumed. No, it was because this guy was fucking ugly!

Eeeeewwwww!

He stalked closer, dragging his jagged blades at his sides, scraping trash bins as he passed.

“Ingenium. You’re a hard fellow to track down.”

Immediately the hero was up on his feet, getting between Elise and this guy.

“Stain.” He squared his shoulders, planting his feet. “I thought you might still be in the city.”

Elise frowned. She’d heard that name somewhere, right? Probably in passing?

Ah, right. The hero killer everyone was raving about on the news. Was it pure chance Dazai would send her to the city at the same time that he was here, or was this just another facet of Dazai’s grand we’re-not-telling-Chuuya plan?

“Little one,” Ingenium muttered over his shoulder, not taking his eyes off of Stain. “You should run. He is dangerous.”

He didn’t wait to see if she left before lunging at the man. However, the fight was, embarrassingly, rather short. Ingenium was fast, but in a cramped alleyway with a lot of debris there was nowhere for him to go. A few slashes and suddenly he was down.

Elise didn’t move from her spot, staring at the fallen Ingenium as he sputtered for breath.

“R-run…”

Maybe she should feel bad for rejecting his final wish as Stain plunged another blade down into him. He might still be alive, but it would only be a matter of moments before those injuries caught up to him.

Stain looked her way, but didn’t regard her with much interest. At least, until she started walking closer.

He snarled—ugly—and took a step back from the body.

“This isn’t a scene for a little girl to be hanging around. You should run home.”

That’s right. He’s a hero killer, not a killer of innocents. In a way he’s like Chuuya and Dazai—he had a higher motive than just senseless destruction, and he’s only going after those in the way.

Elise knelt down beside Ingenium, lightly petting his hair. He didn’t make any move to respond, not even a whimper or twitch.

He was out cold.

She looked up at Stain, who was regarding her with a curious look.

“You a slum kid?”

He was looking at her clothes and ratty hair, she could tell. She just nodded, and he clicked his tongue.

“Figures. You probably see stuff like this a lot.” He sheathed his swords, turning towards her but keeping his distance. “The heroes are out wasting their time while children are suffering.”

Elise cocked her head. This guy sounded… almost moral. Idealistic even. A strange trait for a villain, but not completely unexpected.

She stuck her finger in the growing pool of Ingenium’s blood, bringing her finger up to her lips. She’d seen Stain do just this—lick the blood. Did it taste good?

Suddenly Stain caught her wrist, keeping her from licking it off.

“What are you doing?”

She looked up at him curiously. “Like you did.”

Stain blinked, dropping her wrist as quickly as he had taken it. He didn’t replace the distance that had been closed between them. Instead, he just sighed, putting his hands on her shoulders and carefully maneuvering her towards the mouth of the alley.

“Wait for help to arrive. His sidekicks are nearby.”

She gripped his finger as he pulled away.

“You’re strong.”

He sighed, pulling his finger away and patting her head.

“You don’t understand me yet, child.”

He turned around, heading back down the alleyway. Elise didn’t bother trying to follow him. An idealistic villain was of the same brand as a corrupt hero: someone who knew better, and yet chose to ignore the rules anyway.

She sat down next to Ingenium, her ratty pants becoming soaked by the man’s blood. She just stroked his hair gently as she waited for his sidekicks to arrive.

Just as Stain said, it was only a matter of minutes before help was arriving, faces flooding the alley’s entrance.

“Oh my god, Ingenium!”

“Sweetie, what are you doing here?!”

“Someone get them some help!”

“Why don’t you come here, sweetheart? It’s okay, we’ve got you.”

Elise’s hand was taken by a lanky woman who walked her out of the alley. The crowds were being held back, but their fear and horror were visible to Elise. The woman’s hand felt cold and unfeeling in hers.

“Is that a child?”

“Oh gods…”

“Thank you for coming on short notice.” The woman muttered to a short older man. “All active duty heroes are expected to help here or pursue Stain. She’s not injured, just probably in shock…”

“Eh, it’s quite alright Miss.” The man smiled, looking down at Elise. “I’ve helped plenty of children in my years. She won’t be any trouble.”

The woman sighed with relief, dropping Elise’s hand and gently guiding her by the shoulders towards the man.

“We really appreciate your help, Gran Torino.”

Elise blinked, looking at the man. He was smiling kindly at her, a hand outstretched.

This was the man, her objective for this mission was close at hand.

She reached out for him.

The match was brutal, destructive, and awesome.

Chuuya had all but cackled with delight as the rocks had rained down on Bakugou. Even when they’d been deflected, Chuuya’s mad grin hadn’t faded at all.

Because damn, Uraraka was more ferocious than he’d initially thought. Bakugou could’ve been crushed had he not been saving his overpowered move.

Also, Chuuya’s respect for Aizawa grew several notches as he stuck up for Uraraka and Bakugou both. Some of these people in the crowd needed to shut their damn mouths.

The arena was being fixed by Cementoss, and then apparently Kirishima and Tetsutetsu would be having a rematch before the next rounds started. So Chuuya had a bit of time to kill.

He decided to chat with Midoriya. He’d already been buttering himself up to that student in particular, for more reasons than one. Of course, Midoriya was first and foremost an easy target. And next, because he seemed to be connected to All Might. In fact, that pro hero in particular would likely seek him out before his next match started.

“Hey,” he wandered over to where Midoriya was getting up. “You good after breaking your fingers?”

Midoriya jumped a little, but then he blushed sheepishly. “Ah, Nakahara-kun… Yes, I’m alright. Recovery Girl healed me.”

He lifted up his hand, two fingers bandaged but no longer purple it would seem.

“That’s good.” He nodded, cocking his head teasingly. “You ever gonna stop doing that?”

Midoriya’s face flushed more. “B-breaking them? Ah, I hope so…”

Chuuya chuckled, clapping a hand on his shoulder. “Glad you’re holding up. You’ve got Shouto next, right?”

Midoriya cocked his head. “Oh, Todoroki-kun? Yeah, I think we’re first.”

Chuuya nodded. “Good luck, then.”

He decided to take a stroll outside the viewing box, like most of the others were doing. He wandered a bit, heading to the bathroom to take a minute breather from all the buzz around him.

He looked down at his phone. He made sure it was on like Elise said, just in case she needed to call about something. He didn’t know what she thought she might have to call about, since her side of the mission seemed fairly straightforward. Though, she hadn’t gone into much detail about everything she would be doing, so he couldn’t really judge correctly.

He sighed. While he didn’t like the idea of Elise and Q both being on their own right now, there wasn’t much he could do. Mori’s word was law for this mission. And Elise had her own part to play in it.

As much as Chuuya might not like it.

Suddenly, he bumped into someone. The phone clattered from his hand, and he caught his balance right as the other person began to fall. He rushed forward, grabbing their arm and twisting them around to help catch the person.

It was… that purple haired kid with the brainwashing Quirk, whom Midoriya had just beaten in the last round. An impressive kid.

He stared up at Chuuya before abruptly shuffling back, as if Chuuya was some kind of disease he didn’t want to catch.

Chuuya’s eyebrow twitched, but he put on a face of concern. “Sorry, did I hurt you?”

The guy looked like he wanted to be mad at Chuuya but couldn’t muster up any anger.

“No, you… you’re Nakahara, right?”

Chuuya blinked, and he nodded. “Nakahara Chuuya. And you…?”

The guy stuck out his hand. “Shinsou Hitoshi.”

“A pleasure to meet you.” Chuuya grasped his hand firmly, giving it a good shake. “Hey, didn’t you help me find my brother?”

The guy blinked, and nodded. “Yes, I did.”

Chuuya grinned. “I’ve wanted to thank you for that! I’m grateful for everyone who helped.”

At least he was being sincere this time. The guy seemed to not know where to go from there though, so Chuuya figured he’d keep going.

“You know, you were amazing in your duel against Midoriya.”

He blinked, rubbing the back of his neck. “You think so?”

Chuuya nodded, smiling. “Yep! You would’ve won if he hadn’t somehow broken out of your Brainwashing.”

Shinsou cocked his head. “Yeah… my Quirk.”

Chuuya’s head tilted to match. “It’s quite impressive. The trigger is through some sort of speech, right?”

Shinsou’s head moved down, then back up. He seemed to not know what to say.

“I… yeah.”

Chuuya raised an eyebrow. “Yeah.”

Shinsou took a deep breath, looking back at his face. “Sorry, I know I’m being a bit weird. It’s just, well, you know about my Quirk and how I use it, but you don’t seem put off by it.”

Chuuy’s head slowly tilted again. “Put off? Did you hit your head or something? Why would that matter to me?”

Shinsou blinked, tensing for a minute before seemingly forcing himself to relax.

“Well, I… I guess most people are put off by it. You know, losing your autonomy to another person…”

While Chuuya understood just how horrible it felt to lose one’s autonomy and feel like his body didn’t belong to him, it didn’t mean the ability to do that wasn’t still cool.

“Well, it’s your power, right? Not like it’s your fault people find it creepy.” He shrugged. “Besides, my little brother’s got a mind control Quirk, so stuff like that doesn’t really bother me.”

Shinsou’s eyes widened as he processed the information, and his posture slowly relaxed.

“I see.” He hummed lowly, a sound that could’ve been contemplative or upset, Chuuya wasn’t sure. It almost seemed like he was testing the waters. “You were amazing in the Cavalry Battle.”

Chuuya cocked his head. “Oh?”

Shinsou didn’t seem like one to beat around the bush, it would seem.

“You picked the winners.”

Chuuya blinked. He didn’t think the kid would just go right out and say it, but there was no use denying it.

“I did.”

Shinsou’s eyes widened briefly, but then he set his jaw.

“I’m not going to ask why. It’s clear if no one can hold a candle to your talent, you should be able to pick whatever opponents you want. But why my team?”

Chuuya put a finger to his lips. He wasn’t going to beat around the bush either. It was only fair.

“Shouto and Bakugou were easy choices. They’re strong, they gathered well-formulated teams, and all of them have a real shot at victory. So, what was it that stuck out about you? Is that it?”

He stepped closer, noticing Shinsou tense a little. He fought back a smirk.

“I wanted to see what you would do. Your team functioned like a well-oiled machine, and yet you made sure you didn’t stick out against anyone else. You were aiming for a surprising victory, so I gave it to you. I wanted you to surprise me more.”

Shinsou’s eyes widened again, realization and something else sparking in his eyes.

“I see…”

“Don’t think we’re done just because you got beat.” Chuuya grinned, nudging him slightly. “And don’t take it to heart that you didn’t exactly “win”. I’d count it as a win to be acknowledged by me. I figured, since you were keeping your presence quiet, it would be a shame if you never got to show off so others could see how promising you are. The pro heroes in the stands are the most unobservant I’ve ever seen.”

Shinsou bristled, but he didn’t refute. It wasn’t often that people spoke of pro heroes like that, even if they shared the same opinion. Shinsou likely thought Chuuya was an oddball for this entire conversation.

Then, Shinsou began to chuckle a bit, his shoulders relaxing. Maybe it should be considered a strange reaction, but Chuuya was used to inspiring strange reactions such as this. He let Shinsou laugh for a good long moment, the student shaking his head in amusement and perhaps something else.

“You’re strange, Nakahara.” Shinsou finally said once he stopped laughing.

Chuuya just shrugged. “So I’ve been told.”

“A-ah…”

That came from behind Chuuya. He turned, his gaze falling on Midoriya.

“Hey, Nakahara-kun. Shinsou-kun.” He bowed his head politely, coming up with Uraraka behind him. “These matches sure are something, huh?”

Chuuya turned to face them, nodding. “You’ll do great.”

Midoriya chuckled nervously, but Uraraka piped up behind him. “Of course! You’ve been training for this, right Deku?”

Chuuya still wasn’t sure why she called him that. He was certain she knew that was an insult, but Midoriya didn’t seem to question it.

Midoriya nodded, though he didn’t seem convinced.

“Midoriya,” Chuuya stepped up, putting his hands on his face to turn his head up from where he seemed to be admiring the tile floors. He’d already said it, but apparently he needed to say something at least twice before it got through Midoriya’s thick skull.

“You’ll do great. Okay?”

And then… he seemed to bust Midoriya. He could almost swear there was steam coming from his head as he began to malfunction.

Damn. He didn’t think he’d been teasing Midoriya to this extent. This kid sure was easy.

“I-I-! Yes! Of- I can! I can, Nakahara-kun!”

Well, at least he was semi-articulate still.

Suddenly there was a ringing from above them, and an announcement going off that Tetsutetsu and Kirishima were going to commence their arm-wrestling competition.

“Ah,” Midoriya went a little rigid. “I’m up next, then.”

Chuuya moved his hands to his shoulders and gave a gentle squeeze. “Good luck.”

Midoriya’s face flushed as he nodded, heading quickly to the preparation room. Chuuya looked at Shinsou.

“Glad we could get the chance to talk.”

Once he received a nod in return, he turned to Uraraka. “Should we get back?”

Uraraka smiled, nodding. She waved to Shinsou as they bid farewell, walking back down the corridor.

Hmm. He felt a nagging sensation, like he was forgetting something, but oh well. He’ll remember later, he supposed.

Hitoshi had watched Nakahara go curiously. He still couldn’t figure him out, but at least he’d gotten his answer about the Cavalry Battle. So he was satisfied with today.

He’d turned to leave and head back to his own class’s viewing box when his foot had kicked something. Whatever it was slid a few feet away.

Ah, it was someone’s cell phone. Damn, it was old and dingy too.

Nakahara had been looking at his phone when they’d bumped into each other. Hitoshi supposed this was his.

He wanted to return it, but he wasn’t sure which viewing box was Class 1-A’s. He supposed he could return it to him later. He was sure they would end up meeting before leaving today.

So he pocketed the phone and headed back to his class.

Shouto’s head was swarmed with stupid thoughts as he stepped up to the arena. This time his opponent was Midoriya Izuku, All Might’s protege. His rival.

Well, aside from Chuuya, who was watching up in the stands surely. Shouto had seen how eagerly he’d watched everyone else’s matches. He didn’t have to look to know Chuuya had that same grin as always.

He also knew without looking that someone else was watching in the stands. Someone he really wished would’ve stayed home or been on duty rather than watching the Sports Festival.

He could almost feel the heat from here.

He refrained from scratching at his neck as Present Mic called the match. As soon as he did, everyone’s voice was tuned out. All he heard was the blood rushing through his ears as he shot wave after wave of ice.

…as Midoriya crushed through wave after wave of ice.

Dammit. He could see Midoriya yelling, but he heard none of it. He knew if he tuned in, Endeavor’s words would get through to him too. And he couldn’t have that.

I’m doing this without you…

Shot after shot, they were moving so fast Shouto couldn’t even feel the ground beneath his feet. This didn’t feel right. He was cold, he knew, but the chill didn’t reach his skin. He felt it in his veins, but there was nothing… nothing on the outside.

Maybe he was freezing from the inside out.

Rushing and rushing, both the blood in his veins and his feet on the floor—or was he floating?—as he dodged the ice shards from Midoriya’s latest blast. His right foot stuck to the floor for half a second, ice creeping up the sole of his shoe before he broke through it. His Quirk was trying to hold him down, force him to confront his other side. It was as if his ice was begging for his fire.

Not his. Endeavor’s. Endeavor’s.

Chuuya’s voice from earlier stuck out in his head, through the rushing of his blood in his ears.

“It’s your skill. Training can’t make you strong. You have to be willing to gain.”

It didn’t feel right. Endeavor had instilled all of who he was as a person—as a masterpiece—into him from the moment of his birth. It was Endeavor’s blood rushing through his ears. His Quirk pulsing through his left side, begging to be released.

No.

“I think you’ve learned it and now you’re ready to shove it back in your father’s face.”

Chuuya was wise, but he couldn’t know. There was no way he could know what Endeavor had put Shouto through to get here. He almost wanted to throw the whole festival just to piss his old man off more. But he wanted to show him that he didn’t need Endeavor’s training, or his Quirk. He didn’t need anything from Endeavor.

This time, his foot did freeze to the ground long enough for Shouto to get knocked back. Luckily, he caught himself before he was flung out of bounds. He looked up with a glare up at Midoriya, who was heaving and sweating but still very much on his feet despite how absolutely obliterated his fingers were.

His eyes caught on something fiery, and they widened. Rage bubbled inside him at the thought of Endeavor moving further into his line of sight, but then his eyes focused, and just for that brief moment he could see Chuuya clearly in the stands, his hair wild like fire in the constant wind from Midoriya’s blasts.

He wasn’t grinning.

Matter of fact, he was frowning at Shouto.

Chuuya seemed to realize he had Shouto’s attention while Midoriya was catching his breath. Really, he shouldn’t let his opponent breathe, but he was also a bit distracted.

The stadium was silent as for the first time during the fight there was no exchange of attacks. It was as if the whole crowd was holding its breath.

Chuuya could’ve said something, anything, and Shouto would’ve been able to hear it. But he had already said everything he needed to back in that hallway.

Instead, he cocked his head, a look of challenge on his face, as if to ask Shouto if he was really going to stand there and let himself fail.

“Whatever you gained from him is yours now. Your training, your Quirk. It’s all yours.”

The phrase hit him like a sack of bricks to the chest as he recalled it. Brief moments flashed through his mind—Endeavor, the training room, his mother-

He was back in that room again, curled up in his mother’s lap while she gently stroked his hair to console him.

“I don’t wanna, Mom…” He had whined, his own voice sounding like it came through water in his ears. “I- I don’t wanna be like him… someone who bullies you…”

“But you want to be a hero, don’t you?”

Her voice was clear suddenly, cutting through the water like the prow of a ship cuts through even the most coarse of seas.

He could see her smile—one he previously couldn’t remember her ever having.

“It’s okay for you to be one. As long as you have a future you feel strongly about.”

Shouto tried to recall himself to reality as the painful memories began to set in—training, the kettle, her being gone-

Midoriya punched him in the gut, causing him to fly backwards.

He could barely feel it.

“Todoroki!”

Midoriya’s voice was sharp and loud over the wind whipping through the stadium. Shouto’s classmate looked mad, or maybe just worked up from adrenaline.

“You’re hurting yourself!” They met eyes, and suddenly Shouto saw the worry in the other’s face. The pain, not for himself but for Shouto. “Use your Quirk! Your fire will help!”

Shouto’s eyes widened, his words colliding with Chuuya’s like two neutron stars colliding and forming a voice so dense it pulled him right off his feet and swallowed him whole.

A memory he’d forgotten about. All Might’s interview. Shouto suddenly remembered…

And his mother…

“You don’t have to be a prisoner of your own blood.”

—and then, the noise came flooding back.

He heard the rustling of the nervous crowd, Midoriya’s heaving, his own heartbeat. His, not Endeavor’s. This was… his body. His.“It’s okay for you to become who you want to be.”

Shouto felt the ice melt off him as the heat inside him burst alight with flames.

Midoriya’s head shot up, looking shocked, but soon he grinned. Shouto suddenly felt much better than before.

“I can’t wait to see the giant middle finger coming his way.”

Shouto suddenly felt a matching grin stretch his entire face.

Me too, Chuuya.

The flames felt unfamiliar, tickling at his skin as he felt his own heat. His flames pulsed to the same beat of his heart, in his chest. He felt his eyes well with tears—regret, maybe? Or relief? He couldn’t be sure.

He remembered warmth; his mother’s arms, the fire of Touya’s determination, Fuyumi’s cooking, Natsuo’s laughter when they shared a stolen moment as brothers, the sound of Endeavor not being anywhere near the house.

The surge of his flames grew greater, flooding out Endeavor’s voice behind him as his eyes focused back on Midoriya.

…eat shit, old man.

“Holy shit!”

Chuuya sat with Midoriya as Recovery Girl bustled about, getting ready for Midoriya to undergo surgery. She was waiting for Shouto to arrive so she could fix him up first, since Midoriya’s wounds would take more attention.

“I guess I provoked him into using his fire?” Midoriya raised an eyebrow. “I’m still not sure how, but I’m glad he finally used it. I thought he would freeze to the floor.”

Chuuya sighed. He felt bad for missing Iida and Shiozaki’s match, but he honestly was a little worried about his classmates. Neither of them had looked good after their match together.

It was obvious that Shouto had been on the edge of something like a panic attack during that match. He hadn’t looked well from the start, but it wasn’t anyone’s place to make him forfeit the match. Chuuya was just glad he’d snapped out of it in time.

Still, he couldn’t help but worry about Shouto continuing to compete.

Speak of the devil, Shouto came in a moment later, looking calmer than he had all day.

Must’ve stuck it to his father.

Recovery Girl quickly bustled over, guiding Shouto to the cot on Chuuya’s other side.

“Now, now. Let’s get you fixed up for your next match. Then I have to see to this young man.” She fixed them both with looks. “I hope you both know how reckless that was. If Cementoss hadn’t gotten involved-”

“I apologize, ma’am.” Shouto bowed his head at her. “It was my fault for escalating things.”

Midoriya let out an indignant squeak. “No, it’s on me for encouraging it! I could’ve reacted better rather than going straight for it.”

“Boys,” she sighed. “No one’s assigning blame. Just take it to heart for the future.”

Both boys nodded, looking down at their laps awkwardly enough that Chuuya had to laugh. Both of them looked at him.

“I have to say,” he gave them a thumbs up to them where Recovery Girl wouldn’t see. “That match was pretty entertaining.”

Recovery Girl tutted. “Now, now, Nakahara-kun. I hope you’re not encouraging them.”

“No!” He exaggerated the word, the no doubt mischievous gleam in his eye giving him away to Midoriya and Shouto. “I would never!”

She shook her head, heading over to Shouto’s side and giving his hand a quick kiss. Instantly, his injuries began to fade.

“Do you want to rest here, or would you rather go back to watch the others?”

Shouto frowned. He was clearly a bit drowsy, but he started to get off the cot. Chuuya got up and shoved him back down.

“He’ll rest here.”

Shouto looked up at him curiously, but didn’t argue.

Recovery Girl nodded, turning to Midoriya. “For you, I’ll put up the sheet before we get to work.”

Midoriya nodded nervously. Chuuya understood, since doctors and surgery freaked him the fuck out. He planned to hustle out before any of it started.

He patted Midoriya’s shoulder gently. “I’ll come see you later.”

He looked up with gratefulness shining in his eyes. Chuuya could tell he needed some reassurance before he underwent what was likely his first surgery ever.

The door to the infirmary opened, and Chuuya thought he knew who would come in. Honestly, he had been waiting for All Might to come by sometime to check on Midoriya. He blatantly played favorites among his students.

But when he glanced over at the newcomer, he couldn’t help but be confused.

This guy… an emaciated guy in an oversized suit that Chuuya might’ve seen around campus a few times, from a distance.

All Might suddenly seemed like a no-show, but who was this guy?

Something about him stuck out to Chuuya. His stringy, almost deflated blonde hair, his sunken eyes and cheeks, his smile—wide and friendly, overstretched almost—it was almost… familiar.

The blue in his eyes was striking despite the rest of his sad appearance, and suddenly something in Chuuya’s head clicked.

Oh shit…

He probably just stumbled upon something he shouldn’t have. Something that would make Phase 2 of their mission all too easy.

All Might… had a weakness.

Chuuya internally cursed as Recovery Girl gave him a curious, almost skeptical side-eye. Shit, he needed to leave now.

“Well,” he turned to his classmates, trying to act normal. “I’ll see you guys later. I hope you recover well.”

Midoriya smiled, while Shouto just nodded. They both waved as he left hastily. He didn’t spare another look at shrunken All Might.

Maybe Dazai should quit his job and become a fulltime nuisance. That seemed like his perfect line of work.

After Chuuya’s match with the belly button laser kid, Dazai had decided to leave. He didn’t need to see the whole ceremony in person, though that didn’t mean he didn’t want to see it through to the end.

So he found himself at Chuuya’s apartment. Q let him in, albeit reluctantly. He made it just in time to catch the match between broken-bones-boy and fire-hater.

Q was keeping his distance. He had been watching on the laptop before Dazai had arrived, but clearly was no longer interested now that he would have to share with Dazai. He busied himself with his doll.

“Tell me when Chuuya’s next match is over.” Q called from the other room. “I need to call him to tell him about Elise.”

Ah, Dazai loved his plans sometimes.

Recruiting Elise behind Chuuya’s back sure was fun. However, also recruiting Q was even better. With this, they could ensure that Chuuya’s pity facade could extend a bit more should people find out his sister was missing.

What a shame it would be to only have a few people see it, though.

“Any ideal time after he’s done?”

He heard Q scoff. “Just when he’s around a lot of people, so maybe when he gets back to the viewing box?”

Dazai felt a cold grin spread over his face. Oh, he could help Chuuya receive that call in front of a lot of people.

He doubted Chuuya would have his phone on him during his duels, but he was also sure he would’ve left it in the viewing box since Chuuya didn’t like to spend his time before fights in a room by himself. He probably just left it around everyone else. Hero students were nosy, so Dazai was sure someone would pick up the phone if a call came through.

Of course, he wasn’t going to tell Q. He would just refuse and call during a more appropriate time rather than when Dazai wanted him to.

So he sat back and waited. He already knew the perfect moment.

Tokoyami had put up a good fight. Chuuya commended him for it properly as they walked off the platform together and back inside.

“You are very light on your feet.” Tokoyami mused. Chuuya thought that might be a compliment. “We fought like the chase between light and darkness.”

Chuuya grinned a bit, nodding. “Yeah, you were awesome too.”

They passed Kirishima in the hallway. Chuuya shared a high five for good luck as he went on his way. He was about to fight Bakugou, after all.

They entered the viewing box again, receiving congratulations from the rest of the class. Ever since Chuuya had started commending the losers of matches alongside the winners, everyone started doing it. Tokoyami received as much praise as Chuuya, and seemed gladdened by it.

Chuuya sat down, and wondered not for the first time why Bakugou was let into the hero course. His explosive power was exceptional, but his temperament could use a lot of work. Chuuya rarely saw mafiosos so callous.

While Kirishima could take a lot of blows, punches coupled with the explosive power were too much to handle. He was eventually knocked down, some of his hardened skin blasting off and causing him to bleed onto the arena floor.

Bakugou held him down, his sparking hand held right up against Kirishima’s face as their classmate yielded. Bakugou stood up in victory, strutting off the stage and not bothering to check on if Kirishima needed medical help—which he definitely did. He was bleeding a lot.

Kirishima walked toward them, towards the entrance into the building. As he neared, Chuuya threw down his jacket. It landed on Kirishima’s head, and when he looked up, Chuuya waved at him and called down.

“Put pressure on it and go to Recovery Girl’s office!”

Kirishima smiled, gratefully wrapping his arm with the jacket. At least he still seemed to be in good spirits.

Chuuya sat back with a sigh, and Uraraka smiled beside him.

“You’re so kind, Nakahara-kun.”

He just shrugged back. “Someone’s gotta look out for you guys. He was just walking around bleeding everywhere.”

Several of his classmates laughed around him, and he found himself smiling as well.

The mood died when the door to the viewing box slammed open, and Bakugou stomped over to Chuuya. He wasn’t sure if Bakugou was looking for a fight or a standoff, but everyone else around them seemed to assume the former.

Several students stood up at once, their postures defensive as several put themselves in front of Chuuya. It confused him to no end, since he could clearly take care of himself.

“Bakugou, isn’t it a little early to pick a fight with Nakahara-kun?” Ashido asked, leaning over the back of Chuuya’s seat. “I mean, your match is after Todoroki and Iida’s.”

“It’s none of your business, extras!” He shoved Kaminari aside and came to stand in front of Chuuya.

He really didn’t want to deal with Bakugou’s bullshit, but he couldn’t exactly tell him off like he wanted to.

“You and that Half and Half bastard are pissing me off today.” He snarled. “You’ve both been avoiding using your full power during matches, and I want none of that. I’m gonna have an indisputable first place, and you’re not gonna leave any doubt that I could win against you.”

It’s true that Chuuya hadn’t used his Ability during either of his matches. Aoyama made for an easy opponent, and Tokoyami, while strong and capable, was still inexperienced when it came down to it. They were both long distance opponents, so Chuuya had just dodged their attacks until he got in close and took them out.

An easy strategy, one which was a lot more satisfying than just using his Ability to win everything easily.

Chuuya leaned back in his chair, throwing one of his legs over the other. He could see a vein pulsing in Bakugou’s forehead.

“Why not worry less about me, and what I’m choosing to do,” Chuuya mused, raising an eyebrow at Bakugou. “And focus more on how you plan to beat me, with or without my Quirk involved.”

Bakugou’s fists clenched. Maybe this would devolve into an actual fight between them.

“That’s not how I want things done.”

Chuuya just shook his head. “There are two of us in this fight, both with different desires for how it will go. We’ll figure it out when we get there. For now, you do what you want, and I’ll do the same.”

That just seemed to make Bakugou even more angry.

“Then what was all that bullshit earlier with Pink Cheeks about going easy on opponents! You’re just a hypocrite!”

Chuuya raised an eyebrow. “It’s not going easy on you if I don’t use my Quirk. I’m going all out in the way I want to. I’ve shown off my Quirk enough today; there’s no better time to show off physical abilities than a one-on-one match. That’s what I aim to show the pro heroes.”

Bakugou’s face turned red with rage, but Chuuya wasn’t backing down on this. Finally, as Bakugou seethed until his body shook visibly, he chose to storm out of the room. A good choice, since he could get disqualified for misbehavior.

Maybe he was convinced he could change Chuuya’s mind during their match. If Chuuya could guess, he had angered Bakugou enough for his classmate to try to prove a point; to try to force Chuuya to use his Ability against him.

Chuuya would not give him the satisfaction. Bakugou was thinking about vengeance, which clouds the mind and judgment. Chuuya was going to take full advantage of that.

It seemed that those around him released a collective sigh of relief as soon as Bakugou’s angry footsteps could no longer be heard down the hall.

Kaminari shook his head. “You’ve got some guts, man.”

Chuuya cocked an eyebrow. “Bakugou thrives off the attention he receives from being problematic. I am not someone who placates such behavior.”

Sero just shook his head. “What a badass we have here. Such a shame we lost you as Class President. I’m sure you could make the other classes’ leaders cry.”

Chuuya chuckled, leaning back as Shouto and Iida both came into view on the platform.

“Oh, it’s starting!” Ashido exclaimed excitedly. “This is when it gets good!”

Chuuya turned to properly face the next match. His was after this, so he’d probably head down once it was nearing its finish.

He wondered if Shouto would use his fire this time.

Elise frowned as she was left to bathe.

She’d never… bathed before? She was an Ability, she could just get clean by Rintaro willing it.

But… Rintaro wasn’t here. And while Elise could change her appearance to an extent of her own will, she couldn’t change much.

Rintaro had her as a dirty slum child, so that’s what she was. She couldn’t change that by will alone, but she could wash up like a normal person.

Gramps had turned on the shower and left her to bathe. She had told him she could do it, hoping that she would be able to just will it to look like she’d showered.

But alas, Rintaro had to keep ruining her mood even from across Japan.

So she undressed quickly and got in. The water hurt, not because of temperature but because it was such an unfamiliar feeling. She’d never done this before, okay?!

It took a while to get used to the feeling, and during that time she ran through a brief plan in her head.

She only needed to stick around for a bit, right? After a week or so, the internships would start and she could leave. Better yet, if Chuuya found out who was interning here before the students even set out, she could leave early!

So, she just needed to lay low and act like a poor slum kid for a week. That wouldn’t be too hard. Elise was used to spending time acting cute around gross older men anyway.

She at least knew the basics—shampoo, conditioner sits for a while, right? And of course, soap—so she did her best to follow the steps she knew. At least her hair was much shorter in toddler form, only about to her chin, so she didn’t have much to worry about there.

At least she felt clean for the first time since this damned mission started. She was starting to go crazy from the lack of proper soaps. Rintaro had told Chuuya which specific toiletries he could buy, and they weren’t great. And even if Elise didn’t use them, she had to look and smell like she did!

On top of that, she and Q spent their days milling with others in the bad parts of town, and she’d travelled all the way to Hosu and sat in some dude’s blood for this excursion.

She wanted to be pampered, dammit!

She eventually finished up once she figured out how to turn the shower off, and she wrapped herself in a fuzzy towel. Wow, showers were really nice when you took them. She was so used to just being perpetually clean, she felt like she’d missed out on this feeling.

With nothing else to do—her clothes were dirty; maybe she could wash them?—she opened the door to the bathroom. What she found was a set of clothes right in front of the door. They were cutesy, very obviously the first thing offered in the female toddlers section at a store, but Elise would take them over the clothes she’d had to wear.

She shut herself back up in the bathroom and dressed herself. Her tiny limbs were uncoordinated, as all toddlers are, but she managed to get herself into the clothes fine enough. She rubbed her dripping hair furiously with the towel—so maybe she didn’t much like showers after all. Her hair was thick, wet, and cold!

Once she came out of the bathroom, she waddled around in search of the kitchen. Gramps had told her that he would have dinner delivered. It was still mid afternoon, but she wasn’t going to question the old man’s meal schedule.

Sure enough, when she found the kitchen, he was unpacking takeout boxes at the table.

“Ah, forgive an old man for being too tired to cook.” He said kindly. “Do you feel better, sweetie?”

Elise nodded, hoisting herself up into the chair at the table. She will never bore of blaming Rintaro for this.

He slid her a container and some utensils.

“I hope you like takoyaki.”

Elise shrugged as she opened the container. It smelled good enough, and looked just as appetizing.

“I never had it.”

He hummed. “Very good. Goes great with taiyaki after.”

She nodded. She knew very well what that was. Rintaro often spoiled her with sweets because she liked the taste, but she had no real reason to eat. Thus, she hadn’t actually ever tried real foods. Chuuya had been making it his side mission to help her try new dishes.

Gramps showed her how to give thanks for the food, and then allowed her to dig right in. It was hot on her tongue, but she didn’t feel pain as she chowed down like a starving person. Cut her some slack! She hadn’t eaten since breakfast! Forget the fact that she doesn’t need to eat!

Of course, she didn’t really feel hunger either. But she loved the feeling of eating and getting full, so she kept doing it.

The man chuckled. “Slow down. Wouldn’t want you getting a stomach ache.”

Elise just raised an eyebrow in confusion. She’d never heard of a stomach ache before. At least, Rintaro had never mentioned them. It was probably a useless piece of information to her anyway, so she just kept eating.

Her stomach felt full, and her chest felt warm. This man really knew how to treat a lady! Still, she couldn’t help but wish Chuuya and Q were here to be spoiled. Not that she’d ever admit that.

Ah well, more for her!

Dazai watched eagerly as Chuuya’s fight began. He was fighting that angry blonde kid from his class.

Q was still doing who knows what in the other room. Dazai didn’t much care. He was much more comfortable here than he had been in the stadium. Here he had more free snacks of Chuuya’s choice, plus knowing it would piss off Elise and Chuuya to know that he had been here and made himself at home while they were gone.

Dazai muted the laptop before Present Mic had even made the announcement of their match starting, in case Q was listening.

Watching the match start while on mute was pretty funny. He could tell by the blonde’s face that he was screaming with rage as he flew at Chuuya with all his might. As Dazai expected but the crowd probably screamed over, Chuuya vaulted out of the way with an agility that could not only kill, but already has.

Dazai watched for a few amused moments as Chuuya’s opponent, Bakugou, seemed to scream again. He rushed Chuuya blindly. This guy had been much more focused in his other matches. Chuuya had probably riled him up beforehand to get more of a spectacle. This just made Dazai’s current scheming all the better.

Dazai turned his head and called over his shoulder.

“Hey, go ahead and call him!”

Just as he had predicted, Q hadn’t been paying attention to the broadcast at all, nor was he planning to check if Dazai was pulling his leg. He could hear the ringing from here.

He grinned. Now he just had to sit back and wait for the drama.

Hitoshi heard ringing from his pocket. It was coming from Nakahara’s phone.

“Kyuu” was calling.

Shinsou didn’t know who that was, and he didn’t want to pick up Nakahara’s phone. But he figured maybe this was Nakahara using a classmate’s phone to locate his own. So he decided to step out into the hallway and answer it.

Before he could even say anything, a loud and clearly panicked young voice shot through the line.

“Nii-san! Elise is missing! I- I don’t know where she went!”

It… it must be the little boy from that day at the school. Nakahara’s little brother.

“I went to the grocery store, and when I came back she was gone!”

Hitoshi swallowed nervously. He didn’t want to freak the kid out, but he knew he needed to talk to him.

“Hey, kid. I’m Nakahara’s friend.” He said softly. The kid’s breath hitched on the other side of the call. “Nakahara is competing right now. Do you want me to tell him?”

The kid’s breathing trembled for a few moments of suspense, before he hiccuped.

“Tell him! Tell him now!”

Hitoshi pressed his lips into a thin line, but he nodded along. “Alright, I will. Elise is your sister, I assume?”

The kid murmured in agreement. “Elise is gone. Tell Nii-san!”

“Alright, I will. I will, don’t worry.”

Then the kid hung up.

Hitoshi spat a curse and rushed down the hall. The problem was, he didn’t know where Class 1-A’s viewing box was, and he didn’t have anyone he could ask. But he supposed… he could go to someone who definitely knew.

He rushed around the hallways, making it to the stairs and booking it up two at a time. He wasn’t in the best shape, but he wanted Nakahara to get the news as soon as his match was over.

He rushed to the commentator’s room, throwing the door open.

“N-Nakahara’s brother called!” He hunched over, gasping from the run. “His little sister is missing!”

The room was dead silent. When he finally caught his breath and looked up, he was met with two pro heroes who could stand to look less panicked.

The one with bandages all over turned to Present Mic. “The mic was on for that, wasn’t it?”

Present Mic sheepishly rubbed his neck, looking between the two of them. “I was just about to say something when you came in.”

Hitoshi felt his heart drop.

“Ah- it was a good thing you came to tell us!” Present Mic tried to soften the blow, but the damage was done. The news had just been broadcasted not only to the entire stadium, but to everyone in the world watching.

The bandaged man had already turned to the arena, and Hitoshi rushed to the window to see for himself.

It was the middle of Nakahara and Bakugou’s match, though it had stopped. Nakahara was standing stock still, looking up at the commentator’s window with shocked, wide eyes.

…well, shit.

Chuuya’s breath hitched as he heard the announcement. Even Bakugou stopped fighting as he heard the news.

Suddenly, all eyes were on him. It was a feeling Chuuya was used to, but that didn’t mean he welcomed it all the time.

What the hell? Q called? And Elise was-?

Was this some sort of plan from the two of them? But why?

No… no, this had Dazai written all over it. That blue-faced, bald-bitch bastard.

Had he planned this? For how long? Chuuya had said that it didn’t matter if they had an excuse for Elise being missing. They were supposed to be playing slum kids; one of them disappearing for a while was likely not much of a shock. Maybe he hadn’t given it much thought, but still.

But of course Dazai had to stick his mitts into things.

He had dropped his phone in the hallway, and Shinsou had likely picked it up. From the sound of the voice over the loudspeakers, Chuuya could deduce that much. And now- and now…

Holy fucking shit, what was he supposed to do?! This was all part of the plan, just one he was not let in on! For it to happen in the middle of his goddamn match; just what was Q thinking?!

Chuuya didn’t have time to freak out. He had to put his head back on before it started to look weird that he was standing frozen in the middle of his match with Bakugou. He had to figure out a course of action quickly.

What was in character for him? He surely couldn’t finish the match like this. To keep up the image of a concerned brother, he would have to forfeit.

Elise was most likely okay, he knew that. But it was easy to appear panicked when the plan was veering off course so suddenly. Perhaps the way he was acting would make the story more convincing.

Shit…

Chuuya figured, what the hell? It was Dazai who wanted him to show off for the world anyway. It was more important to his character to leave now and pursue the safety of his sister.

He turned to hustle off the stage, but before he could the back of his shirt collar was yanked backwards roughly. The crowd audibly gasped as Chuuya fell, though he quickly rolled back onto his feet and dodged Bakugou’s latest explosive attack.

“What are you doing?!” He yelled, seriously furious. Bakugou thought Chuuya’s sister was in legitimate danger; just what was he pulling?!

“You haven’t fought me with all you’ve got yet!” Bakugou snarled. “You aren’t leaving until we settle this! Use your Quirk!”

Perhaps Chuuya had riled him up too much before the match…

“I don’t have time for this!” Chuuya cried, trying to rush towards the exit but Bakugou wouldn’t even let Chuuya get near the line.

“You’re not quitting!” He all but screamed as he threw a blast that Chuuya was forced to dodge. “Get back here and fight!”

Chuuya huffed, landing back on his feet. Now he was mad. Bakugou was seriously getting on his last nerve.

“...fine.”

He rolled his shoulders, clenching his fists as he turned to face Bakugou. His classmate stalled slightly upon seeing what was likely a look of bloody murder on Chuuya’s face.

“I’ll end this quickly.”