The silence had never made the room heavier than it was in that moment, with the entirety of Class 1A staring at one they once called their own.
"I got the gist." Detective Tsukauchi said. "He gave the boy a quirk and took control of the family."
Principal Nezu turned to the rest of you with pity in his eyes. "Can I ask you to leave the room?"
"No, you may not." Shouto answered bluntly.
You stepped forward past the pleading classmates, brushing your hand on the detective's shoulder before kneeling down in front of Aoyama and his family.
His parents' eyes softened when they saw a hero so closely affiliated with All For One kneel before them, but Aoyama refused to look at you, the guilt apparent in his eyes.
You tried using the calmest voice you could, trying to make it seem less like an interrogation.
"Is there anything you can tell us about my father?"
Aoyama's father's voice trembled as he spoke. "We know nothing. He makes requests and we obey... that's all. Should we fail? He'll kill us. If we lie to him... we're dead."
You heard the detective begin to speak but you held up your hand. "They're telling the truth. He does it to everyone that works for or under him. I'm under the assumption that he stopped after gaining a failure clause that he could put in other people."
You cleared your throat, trying to return to the calm tone you had.
"Did you know that this would happen?"
"No! Of course not! We're the ones to blame for our son's agony! He had no way of knowing what would happen and we didn't think of the risks!"
You then went to their son. "Aoyama?"
"Your deaths.... could very well have been on my head, yet I found myself smiling alongside you all as if we were truly friends."
Your lips parted, but you allowed him to speak.
A part of you knew that Aoyama truly did want to be friends with this class - even you did. It was such a genuine atmosphere, with all kinds of people, yet they coexist like a perfect puzzle, each completing one another.
Nowadays, it's not very common.
Aoyama's fist clenched as he spoke, saying, "I, Yuga Aoyama, am a villain through and through."
"Oh yeah?!" Midoriya suddenly jumped in. "Then why did you try to save Kacchan and Tokoyami back in the forest? And the cheese you left me that night... Did All For One order you to do that too?
"Of course not! I'm kicking myself for not realizing that it was your S.O.S. to me! And the reason you're crying now clearly isn't because you failed All For One!
"Doing wrong doesn't make you a villain for the rest of your life!"
Midoriya held out his hand. "Take my hand Aoyama. You can still be a hero!"
You put your hand on Midoriya's shoulder and nodded, saying he did good despite the officers taking measures to make sure Aoyama cannot add to the further conversation.
"While the sentiment is nice, I assume that it won't be enough to let Aoyama off." You said. "However, it seems as though Aoyama is genuinely apologetic for conspiring with my father. In that sense, detective, would it be possible for him to be useful?"
"Well, we'll first have to see if he's booby-trapped like Nagant-"
"It'll take too long for a hospital to check him out." You thought for a moment. "I can ask Justin."
"How will he be able to confirm that?"
"His quirk gathers information on a person even they don't know about. He told me my quirk, he can probably see if Aoyama or his family is altered in some way. That'll speed up the process."
Midoriya put his hand on his chin, eyes flickering from your hair to Aoyama. "We can't find All For One. That's the situation, right?"
Kaminari's eyes widened in realization. "Ah! If nothing else, maybe we can steer the way the villains join the fight."
"Looking at it from another angle," Yaoyorozu started, "as of now, there's only one person who could possibly deceive All For One!"
You turned to the heroes standing in the room. "My mother's quirk can make sure that he doesn't lie or try to deceive us, since I can input a bit of my lifeforce into him and I'll be able to see what he's thinking. In which case, we should be able to trust him."
"Even without that!" Iida continued, standing as the class's president. "That is all in the past. The responsibility also lies with us for being unable to perceive what lay in his heart."
Detective Tsukauchi directed his attention to you. "Bring your friend, Justin, here. We'll see if he's the real deal first."
You nodded and left the room.
When you walked about the building in search of Justin, you heard footsteps behind you and turned, seeing Shouto, who wasn't going through any effort to conceal himself.
"Ah, Shouto. Is something the matter?"
"We finished a conversation with Aizawa-sensei just now. I came looking for you since you had been gone a while."
"Had I? I didn't realize."
He walked next to you, peering into open classrooms where some people slept. "Why do you often miss the more emotional moments of 1A? Can't be bothered?"
"Too many emotions for me to handle." You opened another door and were immediately greeted by a crying baby. The mother looked up at you, tears also staining her cheeks. You walked in and held out your arms, allowing the mother to take a break from the crying mess in her arms.
"That's why I used to spend a lot of time at the grade school. Children often have very simply emotions. Sadness, happiness, anger, whatever it may be, and I can handle it. But as humans grow, they tend to get more and more complicated. Class 1A is no different. So, imagine 2-3 emotions times the amount of people in a room."
Shouto nodded, sitting next to you as your rocked the baby in your arms. "Y/N, could you tell me about your mother's quirk? You told me that you had only been using it before going to France, but it seemed to complex even then."
You hummed. "People are naturally attracted to things that contain life: nature, other people, stories, anything that seems to hold some sort of soul. Justin told me that that's why people think I'm pretty. Prettier than usual, anyway. That's because I have a bit more life force than others, hence why my mother could marry my father, despite him being immortal."
You gave the baby back to the mother and she bowed her head in thanks before the two of your left and began roaming the halls again.
"My mom's extensive life force meant that it was hard to contain, hence why sometimes things get controlled without my-" A door suddenly flung open as a gust of wind radiated from inside. "-permission."
Shouto took the door handle and bowed in apology to those inside before closing the door.
"That's also why I'm able to do simpler things like lifting small objects."
"What about reading minds?"
"I input my life force into them, making them a sort of extension of my body." You poked his forehead. "I shouldn't do it for too long, though, otherwise they'd be able to see my thoughts. Hence what happened to you."
"When you showed me your memories."
You nodded and lowered your hand. "My odd 'shambles' ability is just me transferring my body from one part of my lifeforce to another."
He nodded. "Interesting. It's quite a powerful one."
"I think that's why All For One married my mother. I know it wasn't for love." You began twirling your hair on your finger. "Anyway," You opened another door and found Justin sitting next to a woman, complimenting her baby, while Aster was talking up a guy in the corner of the room. "we found Justin."
•••
"He's not booby-trapped." Justin confirmed, allowing a few of Aoyama's classmates to let out a sigh of relief.
You turned to Detective Tsukauchi. "By the way, do you have a photo of the current All for One?"
"Why?"
"Aster's quirk is a combination of his father's and mother's quirk, making him know everything about a person's location. However, he can't use old photos or photos drastically different from a person's appearance."
Midoriya's eyes lit up. "What powerful quirks that family has!"
"Well, unfortunately, we don't. He escaped Tartarus not long ago, and basically everyone who saw him died or works with him. But we have some photos of members of the Liberation Army."
"Your friends have saved us again!" Mina suddenly jumped onto you with her arms awkwardly wrapping around your arms, pinning them to your sides.
You looked at Aster, who grinned and said, "I'll do my best!"
As Class 1A fanned out to start the search early, Aster was given photos of those who escaped Tartarus as well as members of the Liberation Army.
He sent you the locations and you sent them to a group chat with Class 1A. From there, the search popped off.
That one's near me, I've got it!
There's two near me, back up needed!!
Sero, will u take that one or will I??
I've got the one down the northern street
You threw your cuffs at a villain before you and pinned his hands to the wall by the sleeves. "Earphone Jack!"
"I got it!" She sent sound waves into the villain's ears and, after a bit of pained screaming, he slumped over.
"Nice job." You said, summoning your cuffs back to your wrists.
"Thanks. Is that all in the area?"
You glanced at your phone. "So far, yeah. Besides, the sun is setting. Let's head back."
She smiled at you. "Your pretty cool, Y/N. I mean, I've said that before, but you remain cool as a cucumber even in stressful situations."
"You're very cool as well. After all, it's not bravery if you weren't afraid in the first place." You put your hand on her shoulder. "In any case, people like something they can relate to, right?"
Jirou smiled a bit wider and looked away. "Yeah..."
•••
"I'm pooped." Kaminari drawled as he faceplanted into the floor.
You undid your cloak and let it hang off of your arm. "I still have a bit of work to do. Shouto, can I ask you to bring this to your room?"
"Of course. What work?"
You placed your cuffs in his hands. "Just minor hero work. And maybe some duties as a companion. Sleep well."
As you left the dorms, you felt your phone vibrate in your pocket and you held it to your ear. "Hello?"
"Hey, Y/N, it's me."
Your eyes lit up a bit. "Midnight..."