You bulleted through the sky and caught Bakugou in your arms, blood seeping into the black fabric of your outfit.
"Bakugou!" Shouto flew up to you, using his fire as jets, as her carried his father with him.
"You're stronger than I thought you were." You noted.
The two of your went down to the ground and you gently placed Bakugou on his back. "You're calm." Rock Lock noticed.
You glanced at Midoriya's position, then down at your hands that were tending to Bakugou. They shook a bit, but not noticeably enough. You thought back to the USJ when your class was much weaker than they currently are.
Your mind returned to your thoughts while you were protecting your class, scared that your father would make you freeze up and you wouldn't be able to fight for them.
I'm not. I'm terrified. Terrified you guys will get hurt.
"I'm not." You finally said in response. "But emotions numb rationality."
Midoriya's entire being was simply filled with rage. His head flashed images of his loved ones injured, battered, an unsightly view. He sent Shigaraki a glare, a question without words.
"How dare you?"
Shigaraki's fingers contorted to the black tendrils that stabbed Bakugou and Endeavour, targeting the enraged boy. Midoriya took them in his hands and teeth and they shattered.
"Take it back!"
You stood. "I believe my father is on the brink of killing my classmate. So I believe I must intervene."
You appeared between Shigaraki and Midoriya, swinging your hand and sending Shigaraki back with a strong gust of wind. "Did he touch you?"
"I..."
"Midoriya!" He suddenly went limp and you grabbed him before he could hit the ground. "Midoriya! Hey!"
•
•
•
"You... stay in there!" Shigaraki's voice ordered.
"Don't be like that, Tomura. Besides, I clearly had to lend you my strength." A sort of ghost of All For One clung to Shigaraki's right side. "You nearly burned to Cinders, and even after surviving that, you would have plummeted to your death."
"Just shut up already! Like I said, master... I'm running the show now! This is my dream!"
Midoriya tried to move, but he couldn't even speak, let alone step towards his foe.
"You can't move in this world yet." He felt a hand place itself on the back of his head, tenderly enough for him not to feel hostile towards its owner. "So let us handle this."
The person rose to their feet and Midoriya recognized their face: Nana Shumura.
"To think, not even my death could keep us from meeting again... All For One."
•
•
•
"Midoriya!" You shook his shoulders before placing him down on the ground next to Bakugou.
Shigaraki still kept his position in the sky, motionless, but not falling, as if someone was holding him up. You stood up and stared at it for a while.
"Y/N?" Shouto took your shoulder. "Are you alright?"
You continued staring in silence, a quiet ringing in your ears beginning to sound like a voice.
"Since my brother is as obstinate as I am. So is he the next in line, brother?"
It was partly familiar and partly not. Like a voice that you only heard as a baby and continues to pound in your memory like an unread letter still sealed on a desk, glaring at you to open it.
You pushed off the ground and absent-mindedly began advancing towards Shigaraki, noticing his scrunched up expression, as if someone were hurting him in that moment.
• Flashback •
"Don't worry, my dear." All For One assured. "You will like this person."
He led your to a door in this other house he claimed her own. He opened it and there was a boy three or four years older than you, hands holding him without an owner to them.
You flinched but found no need to move away.
"Y/N," Your father knelt down. "this will be your brother from now on. His name is Tomura Shigaraki."
You turned your head. "But that name belongs to you."
• Flashback End •
"Tomura." You said in a gentle voice, putting your arms under him and lifting him so it didn't seem like he was still in the sky because of sheer will.
Is he still alive?
You saw him twitch and you immediately moved back, which proved to be a good idea as he seemed to be blasted backwards.
You sped back down and put your hand on Shouto's shoulder, who's head was quite literally spinning from how many limp bodies were surrounding him. "Bakugou! Midoriya! Endeavour!"
"They're still alive." You assured before rubbing your temples.
"Tomura... no... you must retreat." You heard your father's voice say.
It made your skin crawl, your blood boil, as every ounce of your being was angered by the simply sound. You turned, your eyes glowing, and you swung your arm to follow a gust of wind mixed with... energy particles?
You looked to the sky. "Nejire!"
"Things have escalated around here, I see!" She exclaimed. Iida sped by and stopped next to you. "A gigantic villain is making his way over here1 We've informed the heroes fighting the Nomu over there!"
You hummed in response. "Get those who are promptly injured away from the scene. Shouto, are you physically and mentally able to fight?"
"Always." His left side burst into flames to signal it.
"Good. Because you'll find that this 'gigantic villain' has reached the end of its path."
The gigantic villain Iida spoke of came running towards the area.
You ran in front of it and yanked Shouto back. "Create the biggest chunk of ice you can." He did and you raised your arms, quickly turning the ice to water and surrounding Gigantomachia, freezing him in ice before he moved forward. "Go... run!"
Those around you began running off as the ice cracked.
It shattered and you quickly turned to ice back to water and you flew up. Nonetheless, he grabbed Shigaraki, thankfully without hurting any of your friends, which is the whole reason you attacked.
Fire abruptly shot at you and you felt too tired to move away, so it simply hit you and sent you plummeting to the ground.
"Y/N!!" Nejire called, bulleting to you and catching you. She glared at the source of the fire, who emerged from amongst the hardened back of Gigantomachia.
"Ooh, there you are! You all look like ants from way up here. Oh? Do I spy Shouto too? That's perfect!"
"Dabi!" Endeavour seethed.
Dabi tilted the bottle he was shaking over his head and it spilled over his hair, turning it white. "Ouch... is that any way to address me? I have a great name. Call me Touya."
Their eyes widened and stayed frozen in that position, their eyes only filling with more and more terror as Dabi continued.
"You're dumbstruck? Really? I know my face ain't exactly what it was... but I was sure my own kin would've figured it out. But I never forgot a thing. And I had plenty of reason to keep watching you. I'm not saying that everyone has to be pure and selfless... Just you. And guess what? Right now, my prerecorded life story is broadcasting nationwide and on the net!"
He began dancing in some sort of distorted idea of pure joy.
"Man, I'm having a blast! How could I make you hurt? How to best stomp all over your life?! I've been pondering all this ever since that day! I couldn't figure out why I even existed, and every day... I'd crawl to Natsu, crying my eyes out, not that you ever knew, right?"
The two were simply left frozen in shock, and somewhat grief, as if they were watching a corpse dance.
Dabi's words kept rippling their lake of peace, like rocks constantly being thrown in so it couldn't remain tranquil, as the fish within swim around in a panic, the same way a human would if the earth quaked.
One of the strongest in Class 1A and the Number One Hero were left horror stricken.
"When, at long last, you could stare your kids in the eye, did ya finally start to feel the warm and fuzzy bonds of family?! You must've thought, 'as long as I face the future, I can be better!' I can tell you're at a loss for words, so here's the answer!"
Dabi's routine ended with him pointing at himself, grinning, but not smiling. "The past never dies!"
"Anyone witnessing all this would have to be stupid not to lose faith, right?!" Dabi said. "Thanks for going strong up until now, Endeavour!!"
Desperation lingered in Shouto's voice, even though he was breaking. "Father! Here he comes!" He screamed. "Protect Midoriya and the others! Hado and I will fight!" His eyes were filled with tears, something that ceased from his eyes for so long. "Get moving! You gotta protect them! C'mon! Worry about the rest later!!"
Dabi held open his arms. "Flashire Fist! Prominence..."
Best Jeanist suddenly wrapped his thread around Dabi's torso and made his entrance from above. "Apologies for the delay! As of today, Best Jeanist is back on duty!"
"You! You're supposed to be dead! That corpse was real!"
"You've overreached, and now you're coming apart at the seams, like cheap, inferior denim!"
Dabi still didn't lose his manic smile. "So what what if you're alive? That doesn't change the hard truths about my family's past! Right Shouto?!"
Gigantomachia, who had also been bound by Best Jeanist, groaned as he struggled.
"Unthinkable! Machia's actually been pinned down?!" Mr. Compress exclaimed.
Spinner struggled against his own bindings. "Even Machia doesn't have unlimited stamina." He looked down at the passed out basically-corpse that was tied to him. "Wake up Shigaraki! You ain't dead yet, right? You gotta give the big guy and order! After all, you still haven't destroyed a darn thing yet!"
Nejire flew up and readied her attack, aiming at Spinner and Shigaraki.
Seeing this, Dabi shot flames in her direction. She let out a cry of pain and Shouto yelled out, "Hado!!"
But she didn't burn. It seemed like she melted, but the substance was grey.
"Shouto, move!" He heard a voice say, and he moved back, blue flames similar to his brother's engulfing Dabi like they had with 'Nejire.' Dabi, unfazed, turned to the source and two strips of metal about the size of bookmarks wrapped around his wrists and eyes.
You dragged yourself forward and combed a hand through your hair. "Perhaps you've forgotten, but your flames aren't the only ones that burn blue, Dabi."
"Taking after your teacher, eh, Y/N?" He said, lowering his bound together wrists, knowing that he can't burn through it as he did with the fibres. "That quirk you used for your little friend..."
"Twice's." You twirled a string of fibre Best Jeanist lent you around your finger that you used to get Nejire's measurements. "And on the battlefield, it's not Y/N." His cuffs dragged him towards you and you grabbed his wrists, allowing the metal around his eyes to drop so he could see the rage in yours.
"On the battlefield, it's Vie."