(It took more time than it should have to put together this chapter, but it's a long one with some Dablyn fluff. I hope that make up for the delay. I'll have more UA student and underrated character interactions soon but for now it's more Midoriya and Bakugou getting adjusted to the sidekick role.
The next song in the soundtrack is above, I'd suggest you start playing it at the "*'" point for the best reading experience. You don't have to but you are more than welcome to.
If you're ready to read ahead, enjoy! Most of the future content is kind of undecided and I'm making most of the chapter plots as I go. :3)
Chapter 5
"Wow, this changes everything..."
2 days later...
"Do you believe that finding Diamond and the other missing figures, you and your pending allies will need to go to this gala? Proper equipment and all, according to this unlisted friend?" Detective Tsukauchi interrogated Touya Todoroki simply. "Yes. She has regular business with villains like me, and knows her customers well." Dabi answered formally. "I see." The detective nodded and wrote his newfound information down. "When the staff at UA decide on the interns working with you, we will see what the department can do-"
"Why did you call us here, Detective?" Akemi Clayton barged into the quaint office snarkily. She was glaring at the two heroes-in-training, Katsuki Bakugou, and Izuku Midoriya. Her frenemy, Dabi, scowled out of boredom. The tension was thick like butter as the three took their seats in front of Detective Tsukauchi's desk at the Kamino City Police Station. Tsukauchi exhaled calmly and did some typing on his laptop, pulling out a set of files from one of the drawers of his office desk. "It's quite simple really. Recently-"
"I know why." The famous blonde, Bakugou, known as Ground Zero, smugly interrupted. "Kacchan, we applied and interviewed to help with this case for extra credit and to prove our credibility to Aiza-I mean, Eraser-" Midoriya, known as Deku, recalled timidly. Akemi and Touya sighed at the young boy trying to downplay his classmate's arrogance.
"I dunno why the hell you roped me into this mess. I don't do hero work. Never have, never will." Akemi sneered. Her light brown eyes glowed irritably at the detective as he clenched a fist. "Calm down, pipsqueak. I'm sure there's a-" Dabi tried to calm Akemi down, unintentionally frustrating his acquaintance more. "Pipsqueak..." The blonde snickered under his breath.
"Do I have your attention now?" Detective Tsukauchi's voice hit a drastic crescendo as he dramatically slammed one of the files he took out onto the desk. He took a deep breath and exhaled remorsefully. "I apologize, I usually have much less of a temper." The detective muttered. "No, no. I apologize, sir. I don't know if I said anything wrong but-" Akemi gently patted Izuku's shoulder. "Relax. You're good." She interrupted him calmly.
Touya was amused...until he took a look at a photograph from the file. "Where the fuck did you get this?" Dabi switched looks between Tsukauchi and the picture in his hands with a growl. Akemi glanced attentively at the picture he was holding and abstained from a flabbergasted gasp. "Isn't it a crime to withhold stuff like this without consent from the people involved?" She blurted. "Let me see that!" Bakugou grunted and snatched the picture from the villain's grasp, practically gagging at what he saw. "It's practically porn..." Ground Zero grunted under his breath with disgust.
"Can I finish please?" The detective reiterated. Akemi and Midoriya tentatively nodded and waited for him to continue speaking. The fiery blonde and Dabi, however, kept their attention on the picture. All they could do was keep wondering what other invasions of privacy the station maintained under wraps. "I'm sorry to disappoint you two but I am going to need that photo back." Tsukauchi requested patiently. "You better tell me how the hell you got it-" The villain growled. "Strictly confidential." The detective answered immediately, prudently taking back the picture.
He pointed out the young woman with black hair, and her body mostly covered by Dabi's back. The photograph captured her legs wrapped around his waist, her mouth open, and the scratches on the villain's back. Now I see why the blonde kid thought that was porn. Akemi thought to herself awkwardly. "This is the more obscure, number five hero, Diamond." Tsukauchi explained to the three, "She has lived here, in Japan for more than three years now, but recently disappeared-" Touya frowned, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "I forgot about that, I haven't seen her in days..." He interrupted.
"Yes, multiple heroes and villains have been abducted recently as well. Her regular allies included. We believe this has a connection to Stain's recent escape, which we have been trying to approach carefully. The point is, you four are our best bet to finding her and the other abducted heroes while we cover investigating his recent activities." The detective continued his explanation, putting another photograph onto his desk.
"That guy is back?! But we literally-" Midoriya suddenly fumed in his seat. Dabi smirked at the kid's unexpected burst of anger, earning a smack on the head from Akemi. "Calm down, Deku. This is what we interviewed and applied for against our classmates." Bakugou grunted stiffly. This ironically calmed down his childhood friend. "You're right, Kacchan." He completely changed his demeanor.
"Anyway...why was I pulled into this?" Akemi asked, raising a brow at the detective. "Having someone on the outside could be to our advantage. Your association with Dabi is solid and having a group with trust working on this case will get us closer than one without." Detective Tsukauchi answered, "You have also been praised as a quick thinker and adaptable to your surroundings. Someone like you would be a valuable asset to have." She nodded, dumbfounded that the detective would be acknowledging praise about her. "As for why Dabi is here-" He started to say. "They were fuckbuddies." Katsuki declared blatantly, making Akemi and the villain himself burst into laughter. The detective sighed and relaxed in his chair. "OhmygodKacchan. Theywerefuckbuddies. Wait...Kacchan? What's a fuck buddy?" Izuku queried innocently.
"So pure," Akemi whispered, stifling louder laughter. "It's something like that, explosion boy." Touya snickered. "Those of you who have a bad reputation with the public can redeem yourselves by working on this case." Tsukauchi offered it seriously. "I honestly forgot." Dabi raised a brow. The detective nodded.
"What do you say?" He asked the other three. "If the department thinks that highly of me and I'll finally be taken seriously in a society that needs reformations, count me in too." Akemi added. "Let's do our best!" Midoriya chimed in. "Don't make this like a Disney movie now." Touya remarked.
Naturally, Bakugou and Midoriya struggled to sit still, eager to hear the first thing they would be involved in. "Do you know what our part of the investigation is?" All Might's successor whispered to his classmate. "No, I'll ask." The blonde replied softly before meeting eyes with the detective. "Hey. What's the first course of action?" Bakugou interrupted bluntly.
"There's going to be a gala at the end of the week with all of the investors associated with the perpetrator's ruse, according to Dabi's friend. He suggested that if the department can provide funds for you four to get disguises and tickets, you all could go. It would be possible for you to also find a better lead on where the missing heroes and villains might be." The detective replied. "Ew, formal wear..." Akemi complained. "Not your cup of green tea, pipsqueak?" Touya joked. "You can say that." She answered indifferently.
"Sounds easy enough," Katsuki commented with a cocky smirk. "Will there be a lot of villains who might know us at the gala, detective?" Izuku queried formally. Detective Tsukauchi slanted his head from side to side for a moment. "Our IT department usually hacks specific servers to get that kind of data for us. I haven't had the chance to ask anyone there to do that." Tsukauchi answered. "Is it possible that we'll see any of the abducted people there?" Touya asked, raising a brow.
"Sorry, Dabi but we haven't gotten any copies of the guest or staff list for the event. We don't know for sure as of now." The detective apologized sincerely. "I get it." The villain understood. "I will try to convince my superiors to accept this as part of your investigation. In the meantime, all of you should try to gather any evidence or alibis you deem relevant and do not tell anyone." Tsukauchi insisted sternly. "Even our friends?" Midoriya raised an eyebrow.
"Especially your friends. If the wrong people hear that the government has put you in an important position of power, they will go after that power. You will be putting yourselves and your investigation in danger." The detective answered insistently, "Don't worry, just say it's for business or an internship. That's what UA sees it as." The four nodded. "You can feel free to tell me about anything important you find. I signed my contracts for the case, so I am legally sworn to secrecy and ensuring anything you want to keep confidential stays confidential. There are certain exceptions to that rule, but they are very minimal to respect your privacy." He continued. "Good. The last thing I need is more villains chasing Kacchan and me." Midoriya added with a sigh of relief after.
The same day, a few hours later...
"Eek!" Touya's eyes opened in a frazzled rush as the heavyweight of something he couldn't see clashed with his stomach. "What the f-princess?" Dabi turned on the lamp at his nightstand and stared at the pro hero in confusion. "H-hi Touya," Jaclyn mumbled, clutching her stomach. "What are you wearing? How did you get here? Everyone's been worried about you, you've been on the news and-" Their cheeks flushed a bright pink when she pressed her lips against his ear.
"Despite being a villain and acting like an asshole sometimes, you're still really really sweet." She gushed and buried her head in the crook of his neck. "Let's get one thing straight, princess. I'm not sweet. I literally-" Touya sighed at her interrupting giggles. "Nuuu, you are..." Jaclyn whined childishly, "You're lying..." He smiled slightly that somehow they were still sentimental with each other. "Fine, only sometimes." Dabi surrendered his argument and sat up to get a better look at her. A metal chest plate glistened in the light, covering her torso. The villain's heartbeat quickened as he noticed the scratches and bruises on her arms and shoulders. There was a dent in the chest plate that made his stomach wrench.
"Who the hell did this to you..." Dabi grimaced with an apologetic frown. A chill rushed down the pro hero's spine at a soft growl rumbling in his throat. "Are you mad?" Jaclyn stuttered nervously. "At you? No, not at all, I'm mad at whoever did this to you." He pecked her forehead and gently got out of his bed. "Where are you going?" She raised an eyebrow. "To get you one of my shirts. What you're wearing right now doesn't look too comfortable." Touya answered as he headed to his closet. "Touya?" Jaclyn called out to him suddenly.
"What?" He asked, slanting his head. "Thanks," She answered, bashfully twirling a strand of her black hair.