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{Father}
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Word Count; 6,122
A couple hours of burning agony had gone by before Dabi came back into the room and demanded Costa push her hands through the bars and behave as he treated her wounds.
She complied, only because she'd never experienced anything so physically painful in her entire life. When he'd pulled out a large plastic bottle and poured cool water over her burns, she cried out in pain, pressing her brow into the hard metal of the bars. He put ointment on her and wrapped her hands in white bandages, not once looking up into her eyes.
They didn't say anything to each other during that interaction. It was not until Costa had pulled her hands back through the bars, cradling them against her chest, that Dabi let out a long sigh and looked at her.
"You make me do such frustrating things." He said with a shake of his head, pursing his lips. "How much longer are we gonna play this game, angel?"
"Fuck off, prick." Costa kicked herself away from the bars, scooting toward the cot. Dabi shook his head again, rolling his eyes as he stood up.
"I'll come change those bandages later, after the plans I have in store for you this afternoon." Dabi said to her. She almost didn't catch the excited gleam in his blue irises. A crawling sense of fear skittered up her neck as he put his arm up against her cell. "I have a gift, just for you. Packaged all the way from Okinawa."
Costa narrowed her eyes at him. Mirko and Hawkes had been in Okinawa when Dabi was visiting one of his contacts. But Costa didn't know the specifics about who he was meeting or what exactly he was doing there. Whatever gift he'd brought her, she didn't want it.
"Don't bother, it's not my birthday." She glared up at him and he laughed, his lips pulling into a half-smile. His voice dropped into a lilt as he stared down at her through the bars,
"How old are you anyway? Sixteen? Seventeen?"
"Seventeen."
He let out a low whistle, followed by a slow chuckle that made Costa's skin crawl. She shivered in disgust, curling in on herself. Dabi crouched down, propping his elbows up on his knees as he told her, "You're still so young. Still so much to learn."
"Don't patronize me, freak."
"We'll have to do something about that filthy mouth of yours," He tilted his head to the side, his eyes dropping down to her lips. "It might be pretty but you've already gotten yourself into too much trouble too many times."
Costa deadpanned, sarcastically replying, "I thought you liked my honesty, or are you all talk?"
He grinned at her, "There's being honest and then there's being crass. Two different things."
"Whatever, you think I give a shit right now?" Costa was seething at him, her hands still throbbing with pain. The numbing cream was starting to kick in, but it was only doing so much to ease the pain. "Whatever it is you want to show me, or give me, I don't want it."
"Oh trust me, you will." Dabi smirked, knowingly, "I'll make sure of it, my angel."
He left without another word, leaving Costa slumped against the bars in defeat. She let out a frustrated noise, burying her face into her palms. She felt like she were about to burst, having been cooped up in this cell all damn day. And Dabi having a surprise for her? What was this, a rick? Or a trap?
All she knew was that she'd have to get out of this place before she to the chance to find out. Costa inhaled sharply, screwing her eyes shut, and breathed out slowly.
Okay, this would be fine. It wasn't anything like the obstacles she'd faced before, but it wasn't impossible. Although she didn't know the first thing about how to break out of a facility she know absolutely nothing about, unaware of where anything is, there was a chance she could somehow manage.
A slim chance, but it was a chance nonetheless.
As if a burst of energy hit her all at once, Costa jumped onto her feet and began pacing the cell. Her eyes scanned every inch of the room: from the chipped, tile flooring, to the stained concrete walls, to the leaves scattering across the room, to the dirty, creaking springs in the bed-frame of the cot- wait, who the hell puts a bed frame under a cot, and one with springs too...?
Wait a damn minute.
Costa dashed to the cot and yanked it right off its rusty, metal frame. The springs were small and tightly spiraled but she threw her head back and sighed freely when she saw them. If she could just get one free, she could try to pick the lock and crawl through the air vent.
How dumb did they think she was? She swore, in this day and age, people thought quirks were the only harmful weapon that could be taken away. They could never take away her wit or intelligence, which was poor on them. Maybe they should've fried her brain to keep her complacent instead of planting this fucking quirk in her.
Costa grabbed one of the springs and pulled, trying to unravel it into a straight rod. She grunted as she yanked at it, able to unravel it, but unable to disconnect it from the rest of the frame. Fucking metal. Costa twisted it for over twenty minutes and to no luck, it would not come off.
All she was left with was irritated calluses and the painful rubbing sensation of dry bandages on fresh burns.
She hissed, slumping down beside the cot for a break. She glanced up at the air vent she'd spotted earlier, during her conversation with Dabi. It was too small anyways, perhaps it was only wishful to think she'd be able to crawl up there and find her way out. Hell, she'd probably fall right through the ceiling the second she was up there.
She inhaled sharply, pressing the heels of her palms into her eyes.
She tried twisting and pulling at the metal spring for another hour before the door creaked back open and Dabi waltzed inside. Great, time for her stupid present already.
"Get up." He ordered and she only glared at him. His eyes hardened, "Get. Up."
"Make me, bitch."
He shook his head in disbelief and by the way one of the muscles in his jaw twitched, Costa could tell she'd pushed on his patience one too many times. He pulled out a key and unlatched the cell door, throwing it open harshly before striding right up to her.
Costa backed up against the cot, raising her hands in a defensive stance. "Don't you fucking touch me."
Dabi's entire left hand erupted in blue fire as his right hand grabbed her by the throat. Costa gasped at his harsh grip and he pulled her closer so their faces were a mere couple of inches apart. He held the fire at least a few inches away from her cheek. She could feel its scalding warmth, causing her to glance away, nervously.
"I'd be careful how you speak to me from now on," He said lowly, appearing both furious and like he wanted to eat her whole all at once. "Wouldn't want to burn that pretty little face of yours, would we?"
Costa said nothing, breathing heavily through her nose as she stared up into Dabi's eyes. She glared at him, not backing down from his predatory stare. Then, he quirked a smirk, letting go of her throat. The fire disappeared from his hand and suddenly he was pulling out a short metal chain and clasping it around Costa's anti-quirk wrist cuffs. "For extra precaution. You aren't exactly trustworthy." He snickered at her, as if he were trying to make a funny joke that'd make her laugh.
Her nostrils flared as she sent him another hateful look.
He grabbed her by her chain and began dragging her out of the cell and out of the room. Costa's eyes squinted as they adjusted to the bright lights in the corridor. The walls and floors were concrete and there were long, overhead lights flickering above them. Costa glanced back at the door closing shut, the door to her cell, memorizing the number. 03.
What floor was she even on?
Dabi tugged her, pulling her away from the door, leading her down the eery corridor. It was surprisingly quiet, besides the loud wish of the air conditioning overhead. Costa glanced up at the panels missing from the ceiling, exposing the inner workings of the ventilation system. She eyed the doors they passed, all appearing like hers, labeled 04, 05, 05...
But they were closed and no sound came from under the cracks in the doors. There were no windows in the corridor. It was as if they were underground, which would be terribly inconvenient for Costa's hope in escaping.
She scanned her surroundings, taking note of the stairwell signs next to every fifth door they passed as well as the fire extinguisher hanging on the wall that they were about to walk by. The glass covering was cracked.
Dabi maintained a steady pace, fingers latched tightly around the chain connecting Costa's wrists together. Costa glanced down at the cuffs before peering up at him, another dangerous plan floating around in her mind. If she could just wrap this chain around his neck-
The sound of the air conditioning sputtered out before all of the lights in the hallway abruptly flickered and then shut off all at once. Dabi paused immediately, standing in the darkness of the hallway.
Power went out.
This was her sign to act.
Costa yanked the chain out of Dabi's grasp before he had a moment to register her movements. She could see the outline of his head whipping around, his hands reaching out for her. Costa jumped back a few paces, her shoulder hitting the wall, her back brushing up against the cool glass covering of the fire extinguisher-
She turned her head and saw it, not even hesitating to slam her elbow into the crack in the glass. It shattered, falling to the ground and Costa's elbow throbbed.
Perhaps luck was on side, because when that blue fire erupted out of Dabi's hands, coming right for her, her hands quickly swiped that fire extinguisher off the wall and squeezed that handle for dear life aiming it at Dabi's fire. Dabi's flames met the spray of the extinguisher and Costa closed her eyes against the hot smoke that hit her face.
"DAMN IT!" Dabi roared, before he was barreling right into her.
Costa side-stepped, slamming against the wall. Dabi followed her trajectory and suddenly he was grabbing her by the collar and swinging her. She gasped as the momentum had her slamming into the opposite wall, the fire extinguisher clanking to the floor beside her.
"You don't seem to listen when I speak to you. Is that it? Are you deaf??" Dabi's voice rose, the psychotic lilt to it causing Costa to immediately scramble to her feet. She felt slightly dizzy due to smashing her head into the wall, but there was still more than enough fight left in her.
"No, I'm just a bitch." Costa said lowly before swiftly swiping the extinguisher up with one hand and swinging it through the air, aiming for his head. He went to grab her, and she knew the extinguisher hit home when she felt the impact in her arms, as well as the 'thunk' sound reverberating off the walls. Dabi's body collapsed onto the floor and Costa stood over him, fire extinguisher raised above her head, breathing heavily.
That was when the power decided to come back on and Costa blinked down at Dabi's unconscious body.
Holy fuck, she'd just knocked him out, all the while chained and unable to use her quirk. She held the fire extinguisher out in front of her face and placed a big fat kiss on the cool metal. "You're literally a life saver. I thank whoever made these things for existing."
Costa then shook down Dabi, digging into his pockets, searching for the keys to her handcuffs. She came up empty-handed, cursing to herself, and when she whipped her head around to scan the hallway, her mess of knotted curls stuck to the back of her sweaty neck. Her heart froze inside her chest as she caught sight of something flashing in the corner.
A security camera blinked at her, rotating to directly face her, as if someone had manually moved it.
"Shit." She cursed, taking off running down the hallway. She stopped at the end of the corridor that split into two different directions. She looked down each way, cursing at how both looked the exact same. Then she noticed the stairwell door right in front of her and swung it open, slipping inside.
"FOUND HER! What a badass move, using the fire extinguisher against him to put out his flames..." Kaminari practically screamed into the ear comms, causing Jiro to grab his ear and harshly pull. He winced, looking up at her in shock and hurt, "What the hell??"
The three of them had managed to slip in and make it to the security room. It took all but a minute of searching videofeeds after Kaminari turned the power back on for them to find Costa, standing in some hallway, knocking Dabi out cold with a fire extinguisher.
"Shut the hell up before you get us caught," Jiro smacked Kaminari in the shoulder, nodding toward the door where they had a chair propped up against the locked doorknob. Software began clicking different camera views, following Costa into the stairwell as she scrambled down the steps, breathing heavily.
Jiro looked past Kaminari, toward the video feed of her classmate running down the steps. Jiro leaned forward, nearly inches away from the screen. Then she said, into her comm, "Miriara's taking the eastern stairwell, down from the fourth floor."
"Copy that, good job team." Mirko responded, her line crackling to life. Then there was a shuffling and then some murmuring in the background, before Kirishima exclaimed,"Bakugou- don't-!"
A boom practically shook the building, followed by a siren going off, red lights flashing over their team's heads. Kaminari, Jiro, and Software all glanced at one another, "Well shit."
"I knew he would do this!" Kaminari threw his hands up in exasperation. "He's supposed to wait for our signal! We did not say "go", did we?!"
"Let's just get out of here, okay?" Jiro went to the door, just as Software gasped. The two of them whipped around and froze as they saw several figures over the video feeds, running through the hallways, toward the eastern side of the building.
"Damn it."
Jiro immediately pulled herself back into one of the desk chairs, pulling herself closer to the screen. She kept her eyes glued on Costa, heart hammering in her chest, as she watched her get off on the first floor.
Costa burst through the stairwell door, full on panicking now that the alarm was sounding. They must've seen her knock Dabi out over the security cameras before escaping. Of course they sounded the damn alarm. But Costa was still handcuffed and now weaponless, running aimlessly through the halls like a lost kid.
Her eyes widened when she glanced down the hall she'd stepped into, red lights still flashing from above, and saw a figure walking in the opposite direction fo her. She held her breath, slipping right back into the stairwell and shutting the door silently. She pressed herself against the wall and placed a hand over her chest, just as she heard footsteps fast approaching.
The door flew open, and an unmasked Twice stepped into the stairwell with a puzzled expression on his face.
Costa didn't even think in that moment, she simply acted, because when you see one of the members of the gang that kidnapped you- you attack.
She swung her arms forward, slashing her chain in the air before yanking Twice back by the neck. He flew back and Costa pulled her chain flush against his throat, wrapping the rest of it around the back of his neck. He gasped in shock and clawed at her fingers but her grasp was strong and unyielding.
Even when his doubles started appearing, she pressed herself back against the wall, holding the original Twice against her as she suffocated him, "If you touch me, I'll kill him."
"Wait, that's me!" One pointed in surprise at the original Twice.
Another grumbled, "Just kill the guy."
"No, wait, I'll cry if he dies!" The third one dramatically exclaimed.
Each of them piped in with completely different reactions, which made Costa furrow her eyebrows in confusion. "Shut the hell up and get out of my way."
"No way, José!"
"Step on me, you're hot!"
"Never."
Costa grunted as she kicked the back of Twice's knees, causing him to fall to the ground. Then she pulled her fists back and knocked the metal of her cuffs into the back of his head really hard. She watched as he toppled to the ground, followed by every one of his limp clones.
"Two down, nice." She couldn't help but chuckle to herself, dusting her pants off. Perhaps if she only kept running into them one of one, she could actually do this. Her eyes then flickered up to another camera that was rotating toward her, almost mockingly.
Jesus, they had those everywhere. How the hell was she supposed to sneak out of this place. She glared at it, shaking her head. "Fucking hell."
Kaminari winced. "She definitely doesn't know it's us that are watching her."
"No shit, sherlock," Jiro rolled her eyes, pressing on the button of her comm, "She's getting off on the first floor right now, but..."
Jiro's eyes zeroed in on the video feed of the adjacent hallway Costa was running across, the hallway she was about to make a left onto. Toga was there, skipping and mumbling to herself aimlessly about the "flashing lights". Kaminari let out a hissing noise, "She's about to run into weird knife girl."
Jiro watched intensely, with bated breath. "She'll make it. I know it."
Costa froze as she rounded the corner and came face-to-face with none other than Toga, a young blonde girl who went around wearing a school-girl uniform. Toga paused when she noticed Costa as well, until a grin spread across her rosy face and she said, in her cutesy little voice, "Well, hello there."
Costa immediately put her fists up into a defensive pose. "Hey."
Toga was ditzy and a little deranged, but she wasn't stupid. She knew who Costa was and what she was trying to do. A member of the league of villains would simply not allow one of their prisoners to escape. She was only following orders.
Toga let out a girlish sigh as she pulled a knife out of nowhere and giggled at Costa. "You're really pretty, I bet you're a tasty treat."
"Crazy bitch." Costa said lowly, her chains swinging down in between her arms. Toga giggled again before she slashed her knife through the air, in a diagonal motion, aimed for Costa's forearm. Costa swiftly ducked under Toga's arm and delivered a punch to her ribs that had her yelping like a dog.
Toga stumbled back, her arm now coming into a horizontal slash toward Costa's neck. Costa gasped, barely dodging the slice. She watched in shock as Toga's knife cut through the front section of her hair, trimming it to her collarbone. Her jaw dropped as her long strands of hair fell to the floor. "That was fucking rude."
"I thought you needed a trim." Toga grinned, flashing her abnormally sharp canine teeth.
Costa ran forward and pummeled Toga, lunging to grab her waist as well as the wrist holding the knife. She squeaked as Costa took both of them down, her grasp tightening over Toga's until her fingers crumpled, forcing her to drop the knife. It clattered to the ground loudly and Costa let out a winded huff.
"Sorry for this," Costa breathed out, staring down into the girls pretty, golden eyes. They kind of looked like hers. "But not really."
Costa head butted Toga, wincing and pulling backward immediately after. But it did the job, because when she recovered from the impact and glanced down, Toga was conked right out. Costa gulped, immediately swiping Toga's knife off the door and jumping to her feet. She didn't search for more cameras this time, instead, running headfirst down the next hallway.
The adrenaline pumping through her veins left her feeling slightly dizzy.
"She's headed west, toward the entrance. Toward the factory floor." Jiro said, repeating Software's commands through her communication mic. Bakugou and Kirishima hadn't really been responding to their directions but Jiro figured the occasional grunts and bangs heard over their lines meant they were too busy fighting their way in to reply.
But after a few seconds, Mirko finally responded by saying, "Jesus, why is she on the move?? And we're working on it!"
"She's trying to escape, and she's doing a pretty solid job at it too." Kaminari explained over the comm and Jiro nodded in response, snorting to herself at the irony of Costa escaping in the middle of a rescue mission. Hey, maybe she'd be the one to rescue herself instead.
Costa stopped in front of two metal double doors, with a big red sign labeled "exit" hanging from above. She turned over her shoulder, furrowing her eyebrows. It felt too easy, too simple. She shouldn't just be able to leave like this, this was supposed to be a heavily guarded facility- or maybe it wasn't and she'd only hyped it up to. She didn't know, all she knew was that she'd reached the exit in which she'd be free.
Except, when she pushed the doors open, she wasn't free, and it most definitely wasn't an exit.
Costa blinked as she stepped into a giant warehouse that seemed to be caving in on itself. Scaffolding covered the floor, stacked with boxed merchandise of all different sizes and giant bags of... flour? That was probably not flour. Costa slowly stepped into the room, her ruined sneakers scuffing against the concrete flooring.
Costa's eyes widened as she took in the lines of trucks on one side of the room, even a few buses parked in the corner. Not only that, but motorcycles and electric bikes were hung on hooks connected to the walls. There were also old furniture pieces and appliances, bedding and old antiques you could sell in a shop. It was like one giant storage room.
Costa didn't even realize that a man had been standing in the middle of the room as she scanned it, until her eyes fell upon him and she jumped.
He was standing still, peering up at the ceiling that was bubbling down over him, covered in mold and dangerous cracks. He was tall, wearing a pair of black slacks, a white button up rolled up to his elbows, and a dark jacket draped over his shoulder. He had cropped dirty blonde hair, he wore wide-trimmed black hat, and he was taking a long drag of his thick cigar.
Costa didn't say anything to him, thinking it best he not be aware of her presence. Instead, she slowly made her way behind a stack of crates.
She eyed him through the stacks, trying her best to be quiet and discreet in her escape.
He glanced down, checking his watch, as if he were waiting on something. He tapped his foot anxiously, tapping on his half-smoked cigar with his pointer finger. Costa had never seen him before, not in the league reports she'd been able to scan at Mirko's agency. Mirko had let her look through her files, including the ones with information on every single member of the League of Villains- including Dabi. They didn't know much about him, though. His real identity was yet to be discovered.
Another bang was heard from above and Costa glanced up at the ceiling in surprise, stepping back into a stack of crates and-
They toppled over onto the ground and the man whipped around, facing her direction. She silently cursed, pressing her back against the back of a cardboard box. The man was silent for a few seconds before his footsteps echoed across the room, closing the distance between them.
Costa shook her head, frustrated with herself for not being "discreet". But then she'd glanced to her right and almost cried with relief when she saw a pair of wire cutters sitting randomly on one of the shelves-- a pair of thick, good quality ones too. Costa thanked whatever higher power there was for scattering the tools she desperately needed like a trail of breadcrumbs right before her eyes.
She reached for the wire cutters and started on the chain. It snapped loudly as it broke free and cluttered to the floor. Costa cringed.
"Who's there?"
The man's voice took Costa by surprise, because of how familiar it sounded. In fact, the sound of his voice had her muscles tensing up tightly, her nerves alighting with discomforting premonitions.
She shook her head, shaking her assuming thoughts out, and dug one of the sharp pieces of the wire cutters under her first cuff. She had to press down hard for it to even make a dent in the metal, causing her to bite down on her lip, suppressing a cry of pain.
But the man's footsteps became more cautious when he called out, "Whoever you are, step out of your hiding spot, right now."
Costa's eyes widened as she pressed herself back against the box. Her heart started pounding hard in her chest, bile rising up in stomach. Could it actually- no, there was no way it was his voice. Costa placed a shaky hand on the ground, pushing herself up onto her feet.
She finally snapped off the first cuff and started on the second.
She'd just have to face this man and prove herself wrong. He was not who she thought he was, he was just another obstacle to take down in order to get out of this hellhole. She couldn't be so easily mislead by her invasive thoughts, her connections to her past that made no sense- that made her think she was hearing things she most definitely wasn't.
Costa stepped out from behind the box as soon as her second cuff broke free. Except, something odd had happened in a single moment.
As soon as the second cuff hit the floor, this overwhelming pressure hit Costa at full force. She grabbed onto the metal of the scaffolding and stumbled forwards, now in the stranger's direct line of sight. She clutched her stomach as she gasped for breath.
She could feel the parasitic quirk inside of her, fighting against her sense of self control, screaming at her from the inside to let it loose. Costa inhaled sharply, forcing it back, a bead of sweat running down the side of her temple. She felt like her body couldn't fully contain it, as if it had a mind of its own and that mind wanted complete control over her body.
That was when she'd finally glanced up at the man, who stood only a few paces away, and the intrusive thoughts broke in.
Costa's heart stopped inside her chest and it felt as if time had frozen.
Her blood turned to ice, her limbs freezing up tightly, her eyes wide and burning as she refused to even blink away. She just stared, and stared, and stared into this man's face- a face that once looked just like her father's. His eyes were wide when taking her in as well, before his expression seemed to flatten out, as if he was disappointed to see her.
Costa shook her head, her words too far away to form inside her mouth. She only opened and closed her mouth, her entire body going cold. Shock. She felt like she were in shock. She was shaking, her fingers wouldn't stop vibrating, and this loud pounding began on her skull. A tear slipped out from under her eye that she refused to close, marking a trail of wetness down her cheek.
No.
There was no way...
"Costa." He said, as if he were making a statement.
His voice sounded like old cedar, just as it had when she was a kid. His hair was graying at the sides and wrinkles lined his eyes, his mouth, and his forehead. But his eyes, his eyes were just the same as the last time Costa saw them, although she couldn't remember exactly when that was.
She couldn't think properly. She didn't know how to get her hands to stop shaking. But for some unknown reason, her father- holy shit, her father was standing in front of her. So many questions filled her head, screaming in her ears as her face crumpled up with emotion.
What was he doing here? Why was he in the League of Villains hideout? Where has he been this entire year?
Why did he leave her?? After knowing what happened to her mom??
She took a staggering step backwards, her hand pressed against her stomach. Her eyes were now watering real tears, as she tried to blink away his image, but it wouldn't go away. The stirring inside her increased and she suddenly felt winded.
But then the stirring turned sour, and red hot. She no longer felt cold, for a slice of rage had raced down her back and now, she was glaring at this man. She had no idea who this man was. Her father had truly died a while ago, his memory fading with her mother's. She no longer wished him to be alive and well as she did before. For now, he was actually standing in front her, very much alive, and the knowledge of his existence seemed to enrage her.
"What... the fuck." Grasping at words was like trying to gasp for air at the bottom of the ocean- they filled your lungs and suffocated you as you choked on them. Costa found herself taking more steps back, despite his unmoving stance. She watched as his lips drew into a frown, the lines of his forehead creasing with the furrowing of his eyebrows.
"I never intended to see you." He blurted out, as if that were the first thing he needed to say in order to ease the tension in the air. Costa's mind was spinning and her breathing fell short. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, clearing his throat, raspy with years of smoking. "So, I'm not sure what to say to you right now."
Costa grit her teeth so hard they could've cracked. Then she forced herself to take a deep long breath, driving that stirring pressure back down inside of her, squashing it into nothing. She wished to remain calm so that she could figure out what the fuck was going on.
"What the hell are you doing here!? How about we start with that?" She spat out the words, her anger growing with every second she stood there, balling up her fists. He was the reason her mother died, it was all his fault. If she hadn't suffered years of his issues then she'd still be alive and well today. But no, he was a coward and phony who left the only people that ever gave a damn about him behind. He was a selfish piece of shit, that's what he was.
And Costa felt nothing but anger and grief as she looked at him.
"It's not what you think, or maybe it is." He sounded so nonchalant about the situation, as if he weren't surprised she was here. Her eyes widened as she realized, he wasn't surprised she was here.
"Wait a minute-" She finally took a step forward. "You knew about this? Do you have something to do with me being here?!"
He said nothing, which gave Costa the answer she didn't want.
Her head spun, her ears began ringing as the shock began to settle into her gut, into her chest and lungs. It weighed her down like a chunk of lead. "Why?" She croaked it out, pathetically. But she didn't want to know, not really. She had nothing left, no more energy to give, nothing to power her to endure any longer. She was over enduring at this point in her life, after so much.
Gael pursed his lips and Costa could tell he was debating on whether to truly tell her or not.
But before he even had the chance to, those double doors flew back open and a tall figure walked in. Costa's heart dropped as a very angry, very bloody Dabi strode into the warehouse, furiously. His eyes were crazed as he took in the two of them before they settled on Costa. His irises looked so cold, so cruel.
"Well, there you go, Costa. You've gone and ruined my surprise." He said loud and sarcastically, glaring daggers at her. She figured he was thinking of all the ways he could punish her for what she'd done to him, but at that very moment, she didn't care. She only wanted to know what the fuck her father was doing there.
"What do you mean... your surprise?" Costa narrowed her eyes at Dabi before bringing them back up to Gael. He was staring at Dabi in confusion, as if he wasn't quite sure what was going on either. That was when Dabi had started to make a beeline for Costa, but she knew better.
She could use her quirk now, after all.
A long staff made from light appeared in her hands and she held it out, sweeping her leg back into a defensive stance. She basically hissed at him, "Do not take a step further or I'll literally kill you."
He slowed to a stop, slowly, eyes glancing down at Costa's bare wrists. He shook his head, sighing in disappointment. It was his own fault, expecting her to be complacent. Costa didn't think he would ever understand that she'd never yield to him- or anyone, for that matter.
"Of course you somehow got out of your cuffs." Dabi flicked a piece of lint off his jacket just as Gael strode right up to him, eyes flashing in anger.
"What is going on here?" He seemed to seethe, trying to get up in Dabi's face. "You said I wouldn't even have to lay my eyes on her and that I could walk in, get the procedure, and walk out-"
"You're a fool and a coward-" Dabi spat right back into Gael's face, his crazy eyes causing him to back off slightly. "-coming to claim the quirk of the daughter you've ruined?? Why don't you be a man for once, Gael, and tell your daughter what really happened that night?"
Gael's nostrils flared as he grabbed Dabi by the collar. "You son of a bitch-"
"She deserves to know the truth, after all this time. And you, my friend-" Dabi smacked Gael's hand out of the way as if it were a fly and grabbed him by the back of his collar, dragging him toward Costa, "-are gonna share every nasty detail."
Gael looked fidgety and anxious as Dabi pushed him onto his knees, a few paces away from where Costa stood. She stared at him hard, slightly urging him speak up and explain.
Dabi only spoke up over the cowardly silence of her father. "Gael here, is a Kingpin to a powerful drug ring in underground Japan, mainly stationed in Okinawa. You'd know them as the Okita Foundation."
The Okita Foundation.
Costa remembered that name, it was the name of the drug ring she'd gone after during her work study for Kamui Woods. Tsunami, Katsuki, and her had busted one of their dealing sites a while back, disguised as a harmless corner-store bakery.
Wait a minute. Dabi was telling her that... her father had become one of the Okita Foundation's best drug dealers- in the entire country? Costa had spent the past year grieving and he'd been selling drugs??
"What is he talking about?" Costa's eyes landed on her father, suspicion and disappointment laced in her gaze. She wished he'd tell her it wasn't true, that Dabi was making it all up. But he only stared at the floor, sitting in his own silence. Her rage seemed to grow even stronger, tugging at her leash of self control, as she realized everything Dabi was saying was true.
"Oh, if you think that's bad, you should hear what he did to your mother the night she died. Right Gael?" Dabi kneed her father in the back, grinning mischievously. Costa's gut twisted, her eyes burning. She didn't tear her gaze away from her father and her voice was stoic, cold, not her own, as she demanded, "What. Did. You. Do."
"Oh he'll tell you," Dabi crossed his arms, chuckling, as if something incredibly amusing was about to happen. "But this truth is not my present to you, not exactly."
Costa peered up at him, her gaze lethal.
He only smirked back at her, "My present is letting you kill him afterwards."