She looked at me with an approving look.

"You've done well, getting this far", she said. "Our quirk is rare, but those who do have it often lose their mind before they learn to control the whispers."

"I... I never even thought of that", I admitted. "I can't even remember a time when I didn't hear the whispers. I didn't know any better than living with them. The only thing that freaked me out was when they spoke after being inaudible for 12 years."

"Yes, I know the feeling", Ruma said with a rueful smile. "But they only speak under certain circumstances. I take it you're familiar with the term 'battle frenzy'?"

"I think so, yeah...", I answered. "Isn't that when you get so caught up in a battle that you don't really think too much anymore? Like when your body takes over and your mind goes blank. You just fight."

"I couldn't have explained it better myself!", Ruma said in an excited tone. "To be honest I have no idea if a battle frenzy is a real thing, but I started using the word for that exact feeling you just described."

Is she for real? She sounds so serious one second, and the next she's like a squealing schoolgirl.

"The whispers can't speak unless you let them", Ruma continued in a serious tone. "When you're in a battle frenzy, you're often using your quirk a lot without even realizing it. At least that's what I found out about myself. You'll always have a special connection to the dead, but in a battle frenzy you often allow that connection to become stronger and lift the veil between this world and theirs a bit, allowing them speak to you."

This sounds really dark, but it somehow makes sense to me.

"Now tell me, (y/n)...", Ruma said as she gave me a cup of coffee. "Have you ever felt like you're using the dead? Taking advantage of them? Imposing?"

"Yes", I admitted. "A voice in my head always told me not to use my quirk, because I was disturbing their peace."

"I can assure you, you're not", Ruma said. "They're dead. They have nothing better to do anyway."

"But-"

"I know what you're thinking", Ruma interrupted me. "'Easy to say for someone who has a quirk that uses the dead', right?"

I averted my eyes and nodded.

"You can do more than you think, (y/n). Those whispers in your head? They're actual dead people, and when you learn how, you can talk to them. For real."

My eyes widened in shock as I looked up at the woman in front of me, who was casually sipping at her coffee.

"Talk to them?", I repeated. "How?"

"It's not easy", Ruma admitted. "But I learned, over the years. I felt the same way you did. 'When you die, you're supposed to get eternal peace, right? Who am I to disturb the dead to use their power?' Well, as soon as I learned to control my connection to them, I asked them about it. They really don't have anything to do. They don't mind us lending their power. It's not like they still need it."

"But... How do you do it?", I asked as I furrowed my brows. "How do you control the connection? You can make it so strong you can talk to them, but you can also make it so you can't hear them at all."

Ruma nodded and sipped at her coffee.

"As I said before, the dead whisper in your head because you let them", she said. "If you want them to stop, just tell them to shut up."

"I... Just say it in my head?", I asked, dumbfounded by how easy that sounded.

Ruma nodded again.

Before I Forget || Bakugo X fem! reader X Todoroki || DiscontinuedWhere stories live. Discover now