❧
"Kacchan?" You ask. "Who's that?"
"He was an old friend of mine," Midoriya says, tapping his foot, "but he got what he deserved."
"Well," you mumble, "I hope you feel better. I can't find the culprit on my own."
Midoriya's eyes snap to yours, as if he just remembered something. "Where is it?"
"Where's what?"
"The capsule," he stands, clenching his fists, "Where's the capsule?"
"Oh," you reply, "you must've dropped it when you passed out. I completely forgot about it."
"We have to go and get it."
"Why?"
"If we don't get it first," Midoriya growls, "they will."
❧
Midoriya always insists on traveling at night, so you just go along with it, knowing he's the one with more experience at sneaking around.
The sky shines with stars, blinking down on you both. Midoriya doesn't seem to notice the brilliance of the night, but he focuses on staying in the shadows of the streetlights.
Your apartment building is quiet, everyone asleep in their beds. You follow Midoriya up the stairs. They creak under your feet, and you clench your fists.
Why does Midoriya think the capsule is so important?
The yellow of police tape shines in the corner of your eye.
"There it is," Midoriya turns to you, "are you ready?"
You scoff. "You're acting like this is some top secret mission. Let's just grab the capsule and get out of here."
He shrugs. "Suit yourself."
He puts his hand on the doorknob, slowly turning it and entering your apartment. He holds out a hand, stopping you.
"Shhh."
You nod, although you're not sure why you have to be even more quiet than you were. Of course, he doesn't say anything to you, but only shuts the door and squats behind the couch, motioning for you to follow.
"Look around, but stay out of sight."
You roll your eyes. "There's no one here, dummy."
You do what he says, feeling along the carpet for the small, pill shaped capsule. Nothing.
Your head snaps up when you hear glass break.
The window?
You look at Midoriya, who's peeking around the couch. You do the same, heart pounding.
It's dark, but you can see the silhouette of someone climbing through the window. They're in all black, and you can't even hear them breathe.
They're completely silent.
They step inside, not even glancing at the glass covering the carpet. Squatting down, they run their hand along the carpet.
Searching.
"If we don't get it first . . . they will."
You look at Midoriya, who's frantically searching for the capsule. You join him, your hand skimming the floor.
"Ouch!"
You bring up your hand, a thin piece of glass sticking out of your palm. Midoriya grabs you, pulling you down.
The stranger looks around the room, standing up.
Shit. They heard you.
They stand up slowly, holding out a hand. You look at Midoriya, who's eyes are wide. He looks at you in terror and mouths something.
"We have to get out of here."
You nod, taking his hand. He looks at you weird but doesn't pull away.
Instead, he clutches your hand, giving you a hard stare. Then, he lifts his other hand, holding it out towards the windows.
And they explode, in a great boom of green light and sound.
Glass flies through the room, and Midoriya pulls you towards the broken windows, probably hoping to jump outside . . .
. . . but the stranger grabs your leg, jerking you to the ground. You scream as the glass on the floor pierces your clothes, blood seeping through your injuries.
The stranger leans down, a hand flying at your face. You kick it, thrashing your arms and legs like a toddler throwing a fit.
You successfully kick the stranger in the face, hearing a crack as you come in contact with his nose. He groans, holding his face.
His voice is deep, so he's most likely male, which gives you an idea.
As Midoriya grabs something from the ground, you rear your leg, swinging it at the crotch of the stranger.
You kick him in the balls, and he cries out, swiping at your face. Midoriya comes up from behind you, pulling you out of the way.
"I've got it!" He screams, clenching his fist.
He jerks you to the windows, pulling you outside, pummeling to the ground below. You clench your eyes shut, preparing for the skull-cracking impact of the sidewalk.
But when you open your eyes, Midoriya is holding you with one arm, the other holding on to a fire escape. You let out a sigh of relief, helping him pull you both onto the safe spot.
You look at your arms, which are covered in scrapes from the glass. Blood seeps through your clothes.
"Shit." You mutter, the pain hitting you in waves.
You look at Midoriya, who doesn't looked harmed, except for a few scrapes similar to yours.
You carefully run your hand over your skin, activating your quirk and watching as your wounds heal themselves. Blood dries and skin grows over them, only leaving a dull throb.
Midoriya watches in awe. "So that's your quirk, huh?"
You nod.
He looks away, his ears turning a shade of pink. "Could you . . . could you heal mine, too?"
Your heart stings. "No," you shake your head, "with my quirk, I can only heal my own."
"Oh, okay."
You recall all of the times you used to try to heal others, like Hiro and other kids in school. It never worked.
But the look on Midoriya's face makes you want to try.
"Come here."
He obliges, turning his face to you and holding out his arm. Cuts litter his skin like one of those abstract paintings.
You place your hand on his skin, the coolness surprising you. You close your eyes, concentrating, and activating your quirk.
You take your hand away. Nothing.
You sigh. "Sorry, but I told you so—"
Midoriya only stares at his arm, as blood dries and skin grows over his scrapes, patching his wounds.
You stare in awe. How come it worked on him?
"It's never . . . I mean, it normally only works on me," you tell him, looking at his arm, "it didn't even work on my brother when I used to try."
Midoriya only shrugs. "Thanks," he smiles.
"But I just don't get it—"
But then he says something that practically makes your heart stop. Something you never thought he'd say, especially with such an innocent look on his face.
"Maybe it's fate."
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