POV TOMURA
"Dadzawa, is your friend Tomura okay?" I hear Eri ask on the opposite side of the door. Eraser probably didn't expect to run into his daughter awake this late while smuggling us snacks from the kitchen. I can hear how he tries to hide how startled he is when he speaks.
"Eri, what are you doing up? You should be asleep," Eraser says.
"I was asleep!" Eri cries. "I swear I was! But... I think your friend is in trouble."
"I promise Tomura is just fine," Eraser says. "There's no need for you to worry. Now c'mon, let's go tuck you back in."
The sound of their footsteps subside, and silence creeps over me in the darkness of Eraser's room. I think I'm alone at first. But then I feel it. Like hot breath on the back of my neck, and a possessive hand on my shoulder. Him.
Tomura, All For One growls. Would you like to explain to me what's happening?
I just close my eyes and pretend it's my imagination. Eraser will be back any second, and he always makes the bad thoughts go away. I just need to hold out for a little while longer.
My dear Tomura, All For One continues. I took you in as my very own. I raised you into the man you are today. Why are you betraying me this way?
The evilness of AFO rears it's head in the form of a snarl at the end of his words, punctuating the sentence like a snapping turtle at its prey. How long does it take to tuck in a child?
You know me better than anyone else on the planet, Tomura, AFO says. You know I have the ability to strip you of your free will. I've been kind as of late, letting you run around and live this silly fantasy of yours.
"You're locked up," I mutter into the air. "Y-You can't do shit."
I jerk forward, gasping as the air in my lungs escapes me. It's like a vacuum was clamped over my mouth and nose, and I bet I look like a fool trying to pull the imaginary thing off my face. After thirty seconds of suffocating, thrashing around on the bed, AFO lets me breathe. I gulp down oxygen, slowly letting the colour come back to my face.
Leave this place immediately, All For One demands. Or I'll make you kill him.
Eraser enters the room, eyes wide with panic as he sees me. I'm sobbing, uncontrollably so, like a toddler who hurt themself. Eraser drops the snacks on his dresser and climbs in bed beside me, holding me close to his chest. Slowly, I stop trembling, and instead completely collapse onto him.
Eraser asks what's wrong. I pretend I didn't hear the question.
Leave, All For One snaps. Or you will regret it!
I pretend not to hear him, too.
POV DABI
When Himiko shows up at the base, I nearly kill her. "What the fuck?! You brought a hero student?!" I scream at her. Himiko flinches a bit at my loud tone, and I immediately drop it to a frustrated grumble. "Do none of you know who our enemies are? You could've been hurt, blondie."
Himiko wraps her arms around my torso, nuzzling into my chest. "You should worry less about me and more about taking a shower, nugget," she teases. "Where have you been the last two years? A dumpster?"
I roll my eyes and playfully push her off of me. I ruffle her bangs a bit, and she giggles. "Seriously, though, what's up with your tag along over here? She your girlfriend or some shit?"
"I'm not gay," the hero girl blurts, a disgusted look written across her face. She fidgets with her fingers and scans the place, crinkling her nose.
I glance at Keigo, who was already looking at me, eyebrows raised. That confirms my suspicions: this girl is suffering from a bad case of internalized homophobia.
But frankly, I don't give a fuck. I pull Himiko back so I'm between the two of them and grab the girl's shoulder, scowling at her as I tighten my grip. She winces, but she's too terrified to strike me, which is exactly what I was hoping for. "How about you tell us your name, pinky?"
The girl trips over her words, stammering like an idiot. "U-Uraraka Ochako, s-sir."
"Tch. You're a preppy little bitch, aren't you? Think you're too good for our little blondie?" I heat my hand up a bit, and the hero student tries to scramble backwards only to bump into Twice. He stands with his arms crossed over his chest, glaring down at her. (He can play the intimidating part pretty well when he tries.)
"Th-that's not it!" Uraraka cries. "I just don't like- I'm not- that's—"
"Well let us tell you something, Ochako. If you ever do anything to hurt our little Goldilocks..." I let my devilish smile finish the sentence, then release my hold on her. She trips over her own feet as she clings to Himiko's side.
I really hate that little hero girl, but I've got more important things to deal with right now. I look at Twice and give him a fist bump. "Keep an eye on them?"
Twice nods. "Of course, dude. One slip up and bitch is gonna be bleeding out in the basement."
I smile and pat him on the back. "That's what I like to hear! Well, I'm heading out. Gotta go kick Tomura's ass."
"Absolutely not," Kurogiri snaps. "You just got home. You and Hawks need to stay put, out of sight—"
"Pfft, and let Crusty stay with a pro hero?! Fuck no." I head to my room, nodding to Keigo who sat on the floor, playing Uno with Compress. (Twice gave up halfway through the round, and Kurogiri already won three times.) "We're leaving in ten minutes, Bird-brain!"
"Nooo! But I only have three cards left!" Keigo cries.
Compress slaps a green three down on the pile. "Uno!" he cheers.
"Aw fuck this." Keigo follows me back to my room, and we take a quick shower together before putting on new clothes and heading out the door.
"Wait," Kurogiri calls. "If you're going to disobey me either way, let me warp you there. It's much safer."
Keigo grins, skipping ahead of me as he tackled Kurogiri in a hug. "I missed you so much, mom! Let's blow this popsicle stand!"
I smack Keigo on the back of the head, and grin as he squeaks out a bird-like chirp. "I'll be back," I tell Himiko. "You need your hair redone."
"Thank you nugget! Bye-bye!"
POV TOGA
After Dabi and Hawks leave, I decide to pick up the game of Uno with Compress. Ochako follows me (which I like very much!) and Twice sits down, too, while Mamagiri gets to cooking. It's almost midnight, but we're all starving, so he's making us grilled cheese.
"It's nice to see you again, Uraraka," Compress says. "Under better circumstances, of course. How have you been? Are you enjoying school?"
Ochako glances at me, obviously nervous. I get butterflies in my stomach every time she looks at me, which is a feeling I can usually only get from drinking blood. I decide I must be in love with her. I give her my brightest smile, but she just looks away, down at her cards.
"Um, yeah, I guess everything is fine," she mumbles. "Besides the fact that I'm here again."
Jin must've saw me frown because he scowls at Ochako. "Why are you here, anyways? It's not like anyone forced you to be. Or are you just that much of a bitch?"
"Hey!" I call out. "Don't be mean!"
"I-it's fine," Ochako murmurs, catching us all off guard. "He's right. I... I don't even know what I'm doing. I thought..."
My hand moves on it's own, finding Ochako's and giving it a gentle squeeze. I don't like seeing her sad; it's as simple as that. "It's okay! Half of us don't really know what we're doing either. Life is best when you just wing it."
Before I even know what's happening, Ochako starts crying. At first, I think it's something I said. I think I did something wrong. But then she hugs me and buries her head in my shoulder, and a whole new feeling erupts in my belly. I look at Jin and Compress; I feel completely frozen in time. This has never happened before, with anyone, ever.
Emotions are a tricky thing in the league. Mainly because All For One deems them as a sign of weakness. He brainwashed Spinner and Tomura to think like that, too. If it weren't for Mamagiri and Dabi, we'd all be like that: cold, numb, fueled by the emptiness.
But slowly, light was introduced to us. Goofiness. Dumb jokes. Smiles. Good food. Video games. Movie nights. Happiness. And then Dabi took it a step forward with Hawks, proving to the rest of us that we could feel love too. Real love, not the kind I feel when I see someone all beat up and bloody.
I'm overcome by real love as I hold Ochako in my arms. We go back to my room with our grilled cheese (mine with bacon on it) and we watch happy cartoons until we fall asleep.
I hope that Tomura gets to take this step forward, too. He should experience real love, just like Dabi and I have with Hawks and Ochako. If Dadzawa is his person, I hope everything works out.
I hope All For One doesn't get in the way ever again.
A/N: I start at my new school on Monday >.<
I'm so nervous omg.