Tangled Webs (MHA/BNHA)

1. Debriefing for the Prodigies

𝒩𝑒𝒾𝓉𝑜 𝑀𝑜𝓃𝑜𝓂𝒶

The lights in the lobby are bright, but nothing could disguise the way Yuyu Haya is looking at me with blatant disapproval. She's awfully opinionated, for being the receptionist. I walk up smoothly, brushing my sunny blond hair out of my face, "Yuyu," I say smoothly, acutely aware of the time and how little of it I have to spare. "You won't count me as 'past curfew', will you?" I slide my sunglasses down the bridge of my nose and wink one of my pale blue eyes slyly, hoping she's as easily swayed by me as she is with the others. "It's just that the mission ran long, and..."

Yuyu practically trips over herself as she snaps out of whatever she was thinking about. I'm not sure I want to know. "O-oh, of course not. Happens all the time, late missions, missions running late, no problem."

"Thank you, dear, much appreciated." My lips curl upwards as I sidle past her desk and into the backroom, then unlock the iron door and head down the long, windowless hallway. The floor begins to decline gradually, indicating that I'm headed underground. On the way, I pass a young man that could pass as my brother if pressed- This has been tested. 

He offers me a wide smile. "Neito, hi! Sir was just looking for you, you won't want to keep him waiting."

I nod, keeping my face easy as anxiety flashes through me like a bolt of lightning. The last time Sir Nighteye wanted to see me, it was far less than a friendly calling. The man is practically my father at this point, but does he act that way? Ha. I swallow hard. "Thanks, Mirio. Have you seen...?"

Thankfully, the older Spy knows what I'm going to say and spares me the completion of my sentence. "In your guys' room."

I nod again before continuing down the hallway. Sir's office is at the very end of the corridor, preceded by a rather tacky blue and yellow carpet that feels like it's sticking to my feet with every step I take. I raise my trembling hand and knock sharply before entering. 

Sir Nighteye sits pensively at his black oak desk, sharp chin resting in his hands. I offer him a winning smile that he doesn't return. Well, I hope it was winning. I've been told my smile is rather condescending. 

"Neito." He says quietly, and a shiver runs down my spine. I'm a professional, top tier, and somehow he still manages to rattle me. I can tell by the way he's looking at me that he used his Quirk, Foresight, and he's not exactly thrilled with my lateness. Of course, he isn't thrilled with anything I do since 'the incident', and I think it's absolute bullcrap that it's still an issue. That was two whole years ago, and I'm a changed man!

Hah....Hahahaha. HA!

We're going with that. Right? Yep. "Hello, Sir. Is there an issue?" I ask calmly, a complete contrast to my manic inner monologue. 

And yes, I know I'm crazy. 

"Besides your tardiness, no." Sir says bluntly. "But it's time for your next debriefing."

Ah, yes, excellent, it's been such a long time since I've had a good mission! I hope I'm not alone on this one, though I wouldn't even mind if I was as long as I'm out and about. "What is it?" I clench my hands in excitement. 

"We need you to tail a young woman that we believe could be of use to us." 

Oh yes, oh yes, this is absolutely wonderful, if Sir is trusting me with a recruitment mission, then he must trust me at least a little bit! I am, honestly, quite excellent at recruitment missions because I'm good with people, I think, at least relatively. What if I'm not and Sir wants me to fail so he has an excuse to get rid of me? Oh, I'll keep that in mind. "What's her name? Are there any other details I should know about her?"

 Sir says nothing, instead handing me a file that I flip open and gaze over eagerly. 

Name: Pony Tsunotori

Age: 18

Quirk: Horn Rocket

Birthday: April 21st

Gender: Female

Hair: Blonde

Eyes: Blue

Preferences: Apples, anime...

The list goes on, but I feel like I know her well already, strangely. There's a picture attached, and I smile. She looks so cheerful, so trusting. Should be an easy mission. Sir speaks finally, causing me to snap the folder shut in surprise. "She's from the United States, so she is fluent in English. You are looking to travel abroad and go to college in the States, so you are going to take lessons from her." he speaks factually, strictly, as if he's reading a history report. So, this is who I'll be: A college nerd. Fabulous. 

"Will I have a fake name?" I ask curiously. 

"Not this time." Sir replies. "You don't need any more to keep track of, and we don't need you slipping up."

Dang, that was a straight jab. 

"Understood." I say, spinning on my heel and leaving. The second I'm out of his radius, I bolt straight to the room I share with my best friend. 

Hanta lays on his bed, tossing a ball above his head and catching it half-interestedly, over and over again. It makes me twitch just wondering how many times he's caught that ball. His dark hair flops over his eyes, and that drives me crazy as well. I can tolerate it, though, because it's him. 

We're brothers, by everything except blood. We look almost completely opposite, from his shaggy black hair to my short blond locks, not to mention that we all know who's taller. Heh. 

"Hanta!" I gasp, sliding across the floor and smacking the ball out of his hand. "Did you-!!"

He isn't perturbed at all, only grins and holds up a folder near identical to my own. I told you; we've known each other a long time. 

"Pony Tsunotori." I say excitedly.

"Setsuna Tokage." he replies as we trade files and read them eagerly. "It's a recruitment mission."

"Yep." I smile. "And it should be pretty easy." 

Oh, how naive I was.