The news of All Might's retirement was currently the only event that buzzed through people's minds. A sense of unease began to slowly settle into society after their symbol of peace collapsed before their very eyes.
(E/C) eyes landed on the figure in the bed while they stood at the doorway, unmoving. Slowly, he placed his hands on the wheels of his wheelchair, rolling himself into the room. The words of the nurse echoed in his mind.
"She won't make it. We've seen cases like this before back in the past, where they've received a quirk but the effects on the body were too strong, making the victim lifeless, brainless even...I-I'm sorry K-King, but...She won't make it."
The only thing that was keeping King sane was the fact that the heart monitor continued to beep in a steady manner, only at times did it falter slightly that it made King's heart drop. It was a constant reminded that you'd pass, possibly silently and without notice, never to wake up again.
As King rolled himself closer to your bed, he took a look at the desk beside you. Flowers and cards from many friends, family and a few pro-heroes were littered on your bedside table, a few were strewn across the floor now.
Beep
King's eyes gazed over to your heart monster, noticing it missed a beat. It's been 4 days, and the doctor expected you to last for a week.
With gritted teeth, King slowly lowered his head onto your abdomen, feeling the pent up tears begin to flow. He could blame himself, but he knew Kenta already held that burden, and King knew realistically it was neither of their faults. Nevertheless, the guilt stuck with him like a parasite, the thought of his own daughter suffering due to the transferal of his quirk to you was clenching at his heart with nails made of daggers.
"I'm so sorry..." King weeped, bowing his head at his beloved princess as his salty tears were soaked by the soft cotton blankets that kept your body warm.
Beep
The door slid open, Kenta's lifeless body stood idly by, watching his close friend weeping for his practically dead child. Guilt and remorse was all he felt, he hardly did anything to protect her and instead she protected him. The thought suddenly dawned on him, that the entire (L/N) family has risked their lives countless times to save Kenta's skin from All for One. How much longer could he stay, he wondered.
With a heavy heart, Kenta made his way towards King and you, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. An 'I'm sorry' wouldn't be enough at all, and Kenta knew that if he were to say that it was all his fault, King wouldn't be happy with that either.
Beep
Beep
Beep
Beep
Two pairs of eyes looked back up at the monitor, hearing it speed up before coming back to normal once more.
King and Kenta stayed silent, their eyes glaring holes at the monitor as if it was lying to them.
"She saved my life..." Kenta spoke hoarsely, taking a plastic chair and dragging it closer to the bed. It scraped against the tiles in an unsatisfying way. "All for one was about to attack me, bus she pushed me out of the way...I owe it to her and even you (L/N)-san... I always seem to bring danger to your family, I—" Kenta spoke but stopped, the air becoming heavy around them. With reluctant eyes, Kenta looked over the (E/C) male before him. His face was beginning to show age, a few wrinkles were now covering his skin when he smiled, and the smile was genuine. Despite the fading sense of hope behind King's eyes, the smile was full of kindness and understanding, as if King knew what he was going to say.
Beep
"Tell me..." Isao looked past your bed ridden body, staring out the window where the sum blazed its early morning rays. "Tell me something...Shirio." Isao's use of Kenta's first name slightly caught him off guard, but a sense of familiarity settled in him. "Tell me something true." Shirio slowly sat himself down onto the plastic chair.
"...Thank you..." Isao didn't move, he continued to stare out the window in longing.
beep...
"I'll be here." Shirio leaned back in his chair, his eyes trained on his long time friend. "Emiko, Kazuki, and I will be here for you."
Isao finally looked down, hands trailing forward to grip onto your hands.
Shirio felt as if he was a walking black cat, something that brought bad luck along the paths he walked. He always wondered why the (L/N) household hasn't already rid of him to the government. He wondered how Isao dealt with him and the casualties he brings along, but in this moment Shirio knew why Isao hasn't pushed him away, why Shirio never found himself alone.
Isao needed someone more than ever, with the loss of possibly his job, his quirk, the use of his body, and not to mention you, Isao didn't need to put the blame on anyone, he didn't an explanation, an excuse...He needed someone and currently the only person present was Shirio.
"..." It was then that Isao began crying, sobbing his heart out as he clutched the body of his daughter before him. "...Shirio..." Shirio looked at the broken hero. "Tell me more...The silence is killing me..."
With the doors closed and all of his energy drained, King sat silently in his wheel chair, bony cheeks soaked from all the sobbing earlier. Nurses were rushing in and out of your room but none of them made an attempt to talk to King. Kenta also stood by, sitting on one of the many waiting chairs that were located near your room. Both of their minds were numb, the loss was all too much for any of them to speak about.
"What're you doing? We told you there's nothing—"
"Nothing my ass, have you tried everything?"
"What is there to try?! Doc there's nothing you can do, even with your quir—..."
Kenta looked up from the ground, the conversation between two doctors caught his attention. One of them just so happened to be your Mother.
"You know that drug can have lethal side effects..."
"As if her current state isn't already lethal." Your Mother glared at the other doctor, her hand clutching tightly on a small bottle filled with liquid. "I've done my research when I was in Kyoto—"
"Miss, this is dangerous. We don't know the effects, this is still in testing—"
"She's dying." Both Kenta and King were now staring at the woman before them, her eyes brimmed with tears. "...Forget that, she's practically dead... Please, just let me fix this..." Her voice was low, one might think she was angry but with the way her shoulders trembled and the tear stains on her face said otherwise.
The other doctor sighed in response, slowly opening the door.
Your Mother walked inside with a heavy heart, the stares of her husband and Kenta burned holes through her coat. A few nurses were removing IV tubes and any other chords that connected to your body. You were deathly pale, the monitor according to the doctor stopped 2 minutes ago.
Quickly, she grabbed a clean syringe asking for the nurses to clear and make room. She punctured the small bottle she held with the needle, sucking the contents up completely before discarding the empty container.
She patted an alcohol swab near your shoulder before finally inserting the needle.
"Miss...May we ask what that is?" One of the nurses asked, her voice soft so as to not disturb your Mothers hard concentration.
"Ma'm, her heart stopped beating there's no way that drug will—"
Your mother held up her hand, silencing the nurses.
"Do you know who I am?" The nurses looked at each other, as if the other knew the answer. One of them looked at the other doctor who stood by the door frame.
"Her name is Emiko...Emiko Uyeda." The nurses seemed to gasp in shock before looking at the woman who placed a gentle hand on your forehead, her quirk activating.
"U-Uyeda-sama!" One of the nurses bowed. "Your work inspires us!"
"A-As amazing as you are Uyeda-sama, her case is rare—"
"...I'm her mother..." Your Mother spoke with a trembling voice.
Her eyes turned yellow and veins around her forehead began to bulge slightly with a golden glow. Her hands had the same effect as well. With her hand on your forehead, her quirk finally began. Every nerve in your body was now visible through your skin, a golden hue of light emitted from your body. The monitor started once more with your Mom manually pumping blood with the use of her quirk, nerve manipulation.
"You know even with you keeping her alive like this, the time it takes for the effects of those drugs to start may take weeks."
Beep
Beep
With a sigh the doctor left the room, motioning for the two other nurses to follow. Kenta stood up from his seat, slowly making his way towards your room along with King.
The doctor placed a firm hand on Kenta. "Don't let her overuse her quirk." He spoke before leaving. His eyes trailed over to King, making his way to grab the handles on his wheel chair. "It's time your back in your room sir." King only nodded, not even bothering to argue.
With the doctor and the nurses wheeling King back to his room, Kenta strolled inside to meet your Mother, hard at work in keeping you alive.
"So..." Kenta slid the door closed behind him. "What was the bottle you were holding earlier?"
"..." She turned to look at Kenta. "P167 Modifier..." Kenta stared at Emiko hard, the numbers to that name rang a bell in his head.
"P...Does that stand for Protein?"
"Yes."
"Protein 167 Modifier?" Kenta walked closer to your bedside, examining the dark brown bottle that once contained P167, it had no label. He sniffed the bottle, though it only smelt of unfamiliar chemicals. "Protein 167..." He hummed, deep in thought. "Isn't that responsible for gene manipulation?"
"Eh, kind of, you're close." Emiko turned to look at Kenta. "You're probably more familiar with the term Bolt."
"Wah!" Kenta looked at Emiko in shock. "You mean the drug?"
"Yes, Bolt Starter. It's a drug that messes around with genes connected to your quirk. A few quirkless people use it in hopes of unlocking their hidden quirk, though it rarely works a few cases have shown that it's not a hoax...Though other alters happen to the quirkless... Bolt is more commonly used on people with mutation quirks, thinking they'd turn more 'human' like. It originated in Kyoto when there was a spike in Mutation quirks, and the desire to become 'normal' arose." Kenta stood still, absorbing all the information, Emiko however wasn't done. "It's also where the name of the drug comes from, since it's a bit of an oxymoron. Bolt is what you'd call the drug if you were planning to alter your gene to cancel out mutations, Starter is the other name, used for the quirkless to gain their quirk."
"How do you know which one you're getting?"
"That's the troublesome part for most people, they wouldn't know if the drug worked or not since it has a 50/50 chance in either locking your quirk or giving you a mutation." Emiko sighed before a soft smile appeared on her lips. "But, in (Y/N)'s case, I suppose it doesn't really matter. Locking her current quirk, her Fathers, will turn her back to normal...Whereas unlocking her hidden quirk will allow her body to finally adapt to the changes, making her accustomed to her Fathers quirk and turning back to normal. Either way, I'm sure this will do her good."
"How'd you get your hands on this?"
"You know how we own Kyoto Peace Arch Hospital?"
Kenta nodded.
"There's a weaker version of this drug that's in testing currently in Kyoto, and it's being monitored at the moment. I was able to get the weaker version and did some modifications so it's pretty similar to the actual street drug." Kenta continued to stare at Emiko, baffled, and before he could ask 'why not use the weaker one?', Emiko explained. "The weaker ones doesn't do DNA changes that are able to unlock hidden quirks, it mainly reduces quirk mutations if anything."
"I...See..." It was a lot to take in for Kenta, for anyone really if they were to walk into the room.
It was nearly 7:30, and visiting hours ends in 30 minutes, yet Emiko still kept her hand on your head, desperately trying to keep you alive. Kenta didn't want to leave either you nor your Mother alone.
Emiko head was pounding, two hours ago she passed her limit. She was thankful for Kenta for monitoring her, going out to get her food along with water.
"(L/N)-san... I'd have to leave in 30 minutes... You can't possibly do this over night, you haven't even gone to the bathroom."
"She has to live." Emiko's voice was shaky, breathless even. Kenta coulnd't blame her though, she stood there for two hours trying to keep you alive manually. "Without my quirk, her body will shut itself down again in a few minutes... She has to live."
"(L/N)-"
"She's going to live."
"..."
Kenta left but soon came back with two glasses of water and a bowl of salad.
"Excuse me." One of the doctors knocked on the door, turning to look at Kenta who still hovered next to your Mother in a protective manner. "Visiting hours are over."
Kenta nodded, slowly making his way towards the doctor. "Give her 30 more minutes."
"I'm sorry bu-"
"30 more minutes." Kenta replied more sternly, gently shoving the doctor out of the room.
"Sir-"
Kenta stared the doctor down, ready to stand in the way of him and your Mother if necessary. The doctor huffed in annoyance before waltzing off, probably to retrieve back up.
And Kenta was right.
A few minutes passed before the same doctor and a few more nurses came into view. The only noise was the footsteps they made as they walked down the seemingly vacant halls. It felt like a horror movie.
"Sir, we can't have you stay here any longer, and the same goes for Uyeda-san. As much was we respect her, this isn't where she works."
"If she leaves now, Master (Y/N) will die." Kenta took one step forward, slamming the door leading to your room behind him close. "I won't allow you to let that happen."
"You don't expect us to fight you do you?" One of the nurses began to slowly make her way towards Kenta. "We understand your worry for (Y/N), but-"
"If you understand then let her stay for 30 more minutes."
"That would be unfair for the others that are coming to visit their loved ones." A male nurse spoke up. "I'm sorry to say this, but you're not the only family that here in this hospital that is suffering."
"Who said we were suffering?" Kenta huffed. "We're not planning to stay an extra 30 minutes to mourn the death of a loved one." Kenta's eyes narrowed down on each of the nurses before him. "I told you to give Uyeda 30 more minutes to save someone's life."
"I'm sorry but (Y/N) passed away nearly 3 hours ago, Uyeda-san is doing nothing but reviving a zombie! Brain activity stopped working the moment she was sent to the hospital, her heart stopped beating 3 hours ago, and you expect a street drug to somehow bring her back to life?" The doctor was practically shaking in frustration and Kenta noted the eye bags that rested beneath his eyes. "She isn't the only one who passed away in this hospital in the last 4 days." The doctor looked down sadly. "Everyone has been losing hope ever since All Mights retirement, I understand your frustration really, and the loss of your daughter only adds onto your pain."
"For the last time we're not suffering!"
"I sure as hell am..." The door slid open, revealing a tired Uyeda. "5 minutes was all I needed don't worry. She's stable now."
"...What?" Everyone's eyes turned to your Mother who merely nodded her head. "H-How..."
"I explained it earlier to you when I came didn't I? The street drug." She took a bottle from her coat pocket, the empty one that once laid on your bedside table. "You should know better, like I'd give my daughter something I got from the streets. This is from the Kyoto Peace Arch Hospital, and sure the effects more closely resemble the actual street drug than the legally safe and monitored ones back in the hospital... But to give (Y/N) the full potent effects?" Emiko scoffed. "Hell no... I tailored this specifically for her." She tucked the bottle once more into her coat. "Anyway, she should be stable now. The protein is in effect so she should experience the changes in 24 hours. I'm pretty sure the change is drastic, so please keep a close eye on her. I'll be back tomorrow."
Finally, Kenta let out a sigh, turning on his heel and making his way towards the hospital exit with Emiko following. It wasn't until they were fully out of sight from the other doctors did Emiko make another turn.
"It's this way, isn't it?"
"Yeah, he's there." Kenta looked over at Emiko who peered around a corner to see if any nurses were near by. "He needs someone with him."
"I know." Emiko sighed. "And you do to." Emiko looked over at Kenta. "We can stay with him-"
"No, one person with him will be enough." Kenta smiled thought Emiko still felt unhappy with the situation. "I'll be at home...And I'll visit her as well." Emiko nodded.
"Her families number is on the side of the refrigerator, if you feel the need for closure. They don't blame you Kenta, no one does."
"Everyone should..." Kenta whispered. "But I suppose I shouldn't be thinking like that... I'll send her parents my regards.'
"I'm sure Dorothy will appreciate it."
[Unedited AF]