What was she going to say?
What was she going to explain to her family?
What was she going to tell them?
Mina hovered her thumb over the call button to her mother's cell number, for the fourth time in the last ten minutes, before the screen went black, and she had to switch it back on from standby mode again. She knew that she only had about twenty four hours, tops, before the mission would actually begin to go rescue Izuku. That meant that there was only twenty four hours in which she could do this.
A thousand questions were running through her head as she considered hitting dial. Things that she needed to go over in her head, things she needed to think through and finalize in her brain before she actually committed to hitting that button and calling her family.
She already knew that they were worried sick. There wasn't any doubt in her mind in that regard whatsoever. For all the teasing and taunting, and for all the punches to the guy that she wanted to give her siblings at times, all the times she wanted to just plug her ears when her mother started to talk, and all the times she wished she could shut her father up, the Ashido family all had strong bonds. For all their banter and jokes and sometimes legitimate arguments, they cared deeply about one another. Mina loved her family, absolutely. And that was why she didn't want to worry them any more than they already were bound to be.
But there wasn't any way that she was going to be able to do something like this without worrying them even more.
How did she explain that she wasn't going to return home, even though she would no doubt be discharged tomorrow?
Did she tell them that they were going to rescue Izuku?
If she did, would it be a better idea to wait until the morning? If they knew that she was going to go and try and rescue her boyfriend, would they call the cops to try to stop her?... Actually, she didn't know why she was even thinking about it. Of course they would. What doubt was there?
So many things were swirling about inside her mind that it was beginning to get difficult for her to focus. Various questions unrelated to her current predicament were distracting her. So many feelings, so much raw emotion was dragging her attention away from the task at hand. Strife and remorse and regret all playing their hand at trying to break the pink skinned girl and make her unable to bring herself to push that call button.
Izuku's Quirkless origins being outed by Bakugou, and her own panicked admission of it.
The state that Izuku was bound to be in at the Villains lair.
Her questions regarding One For All and if it was even possible to steal the Quirk.
Confliction and, primarily, anger towards Kirishima for hitting her like he had done, and his lack of understanding of the situation.
Fear for her boyfriend's safety.
And none of that was even considering the seemingly inevitable backlash she was bound to receive for acting the way that she had. The backlash Izuku was going to get for hiding his Quirkless origins from everyone, even if he explained that All Might had asked him to remain silent. Would their classmates shun him now? For lying about the origins of his power? For betraying their trust?
…For being Quirkless?
Everything was just jumbled up, every fear, every doubt, all holding her back. Making her doubt herself before pressing the button to call her mother's phone, not trusting herself not to either burst into tears again, or reveal something that could give up the plan. She was a mess. And she was acutely aware of the state that she was in… But she couldn't think of any real way to get out of it.
Not unless Izuku was right next to her. Which she needed. Which she needed more than anything else right now.
"Ashido, kid? I just wanted to check in on you."
When Mina looked up to see whom it was that had come to visit her, she found herself suddenly in the company of a tall, skinny man with long limbs, and a particularly long neck, messy blond hair, and eyes that were shadowed over by his own brow. To many, this was the image of a man who was totally unimpressive in this world of extraordinarily people with incredible superhuman abilities.
Mina was one of the only people who knew that this was the true form of All Might, number one Pro Hero. And the reason that Izuku had even been able to follow his dreams to become a Hero.
And, by extension, the entire reason that she'd been able to meet him at all.
"There… Haven't been any developments regarding young Midoriya's location." A lie, Mina knew. Kirishima and Todoroki revealed that to her already. He was probably not allowed to release information like that, in case that someone leaked the information. Mina didn't blame him for lying. "I just thought you'd want to know that we're looking into it still…"
She looked at him, her black eyes empty, with dark bags underneath them, a clear indicator of how tired she was, how little she had slept, and how much she had wept since this whole mess had gone down. There was no energy, no real words that she could say to the man. Izuku and All Might had a bond, of that there was no doubt, and she could tell that the loss of his protégé, as well as the return on the Villain's original target, had been a…. Experience for the older man, like it had been for her. From what she'd been told about their time together, and how Izuku had been trained by the guy…
It was possible he was hurting just as much as she was. Almost probable, actually.
The pink skinned girl hadn't seen the older man since the entire Summer Camp had begun – Which was only four days ago. That fact disturbed her a lot more than she was willing to openly admit. Four days. That was how long ago everything was. Four days ago, she was with Izuku. And they were happy. And there were worries… But they'd not fought. They would still talk, and they would laugh, and they would smile and hold one another…
She could hold him and she could kiss him…
She could tell him she loved him…
She couldn't talk. Words weren't going to come right now. Not right now. All that would happen was that she'd burst into tears. She couldn't talk right now. Not about Izuku. Not to All Might.
He seemed to understand all of this though, just by looking at the state that the young girl was in. the Eighth One For All User sighed, and entered the room, closing the door behind him. The differences between his true form and his Hero form were stark. It wasn't difficult to see why no one had managed to figure out who he was by eyesight alone in that regard. Expressions were a lot more easily discernible in his true form as well, Mina thought. He looked just as sad. Just as broken. And just as defeated as anyone of the students had felt.
All Might was a Hero, sure. One of the best, without question… But he was still human. He wasn't a machine. He could still fail, feel defeat and shame, and regret. It was easy to forget that he was just as vulnerable as anyone else. Particularly when the media depicted him as someone unshakable. Unbreakable. Someone who was always going to be there to fix what was wrong…
But he was just as weak and frail as the rest of the world.
Mina wasn't sure if that made her feel more reassured… Or terrified beyond words.
Silently, All Might walked towards the young girl, and then sat down on the bed beside her. His hands came together, in one single, large fist, just in front of his nose. His back was bent over, his elbows resting on his legs, and his eyes firmly focused on the ground in front of him. He remained like this for a few seconds, not even looking at the Acid Quirk user that was next to him. Mina could tell he was trying to think of something encouraging to say. Something inspiring. Something that would befit the name of All Might.
There wasn't anything though. Nothing that he could say. Nothing that came to mind.
And even if it did come to mind… It would just ring hollow. Especially to her.
"…I should have been there." He eventually said, bringing his left hand up to his forehead and clutching a large chunk of the front of his skull with it. His right arm flopped onto his legs and his teeth began to show as he gritted them. He was shaking. A sight that made the acidic girl let out a small, short gasp. "I was supposed to be there, before the incident with Shigaraki and Midoriya, but it was decided that me being there would just attract the Villains… But it was the wrong decision. Even if my presence there had attracted the Villains, I could have still done something to help you kids!..."
Regret was a powerful thing, Mina had come to learn, and it affected the strongest people out there, she was learning right now. Though not to the extent that Izuku did, she had always admired All Might, like most in their society did, for his strength and resolve and firm character. How villains always fell before him…
Yet here he was. Wrecked by that regret, and questions of what could have been if things had played out differently. What many considered to be the sole reason for their society being as Villain free as it was, whom many considered to be the very pillar of Heroism, was sat in front of Mina, lamenting his inability to do anything.
He was feeling just as helpless as the rest of them.
"… One For All…"
Mina quietly said, looking at the Pro Hero with tears in her eyes. She wasn't really sure how to bring up the subject of Izuku's now lost Quirk. It was bizarre when she really just thought about it. Quirks being passed down to another person was…. Well, while it explained a lot about how Izuku was when she first met him. How his Quirk worked, and everything about why he was how he was, and why his Quirk hammered him. Everything fit perfectly. It was why she believed it so easily and readily.
Many secrets were still kept from her about the Quirk and its function though. Many things that she just didn't get…
And that did leave her with the slimmest possibility of hope.
"I… I have a question about it…"
Looking up from the ground, All Might turned to face the teary eyed girl, eyes slightly wider than they normally were. "Yes?"
Only in that moment though, did it occur to her that All Might had no idea that One For All had been stolen.
It almost felt like she was on a grievance visit all of the sudden. Like she had been sent to inform a relative of someone who the deceased was close to that they had passed away. Well, not really, but kind of? A Quirk was something that, in most cases, you were supposed to have until the day that you died, and took your power along with you. The idea of passing one on still was an odd one for Mina, but hearing that it was gone…. She tried to imagine that Acid was suddenly taken from her. Gone. Without a trace, and no chance to return to her. It was difficult for her to consider, simply because of how she had been raised and viewed the world, but she tried to imagine it.
She tried to imagine becoming suddenly Quirkless. She tried to think… About how Izuku had lived his life.
The only way that she could describe it was like a part of her had died.
Quirks were so fundamental in this world, and to every person who owned one… It was like a part of them – No, it was a part of them. To have it suddenly stolen…
Izuku and All Might were both Quirkless though, without One For All in their veins. To have that given, and then to lose it… To report that it was gone forever, the only thing Mina could even compare it to was being told a loved one had died. There just didn't seem to be anything even remotely close to
"I… When… Bakugou was talking to us earlier… He…"
She paused for a moment, trying to pick the best way to phrase all of this.
"You… When you…. First told me about One For All… You told me that it couldn't be stolen, didn't you?... It only leaves Izuku when he wants it to right?..." She could already see the confusion, mixed with the downright terror that All Might's face was starting to make. He already knew where this was going, she could tell…. But she couldn't stop herself from just continuing anyway. "B-But…. Bakugou said that…. His Quirk was just…. S-Stolen. In front of him… By someone…"
Her eyes went wider as she repeated what the red eyed boy had stated beforehand.
"…Someone who had a Quirk that could steal other Quirks…"
All For One. The name of the Villain that could take Quirks from people… The person whom had supposedly…. Just stolen Izuku's dreams of Heroism from him
Her eyes were desperate. Begging.
Just pleading.
Pleading to be wrong.
Pleading that Bakugou was lying.
Pleading…. For something that she knew wouldn't ever happen. She knew that she was setting herself up for heartbreak… To be told that she was wrong… But the words came out anyway.
"That…. That can't happen, right? One For All can't be stolen unless Izuku wants it to happen, right?..."
For a few moments, All Might just didn't say a word, though there was a clear tension that hung in front of the pair of them. All Might's silence honestly said a lot more than any words that he said ever could, but Mina tried her best, hoping to cling onto anything she could for as long as she could, even if it didn't make sense, and that it would hurt more in the end.
She just wanted to hope that maybe, against all probability in the universe…. That maybe, just maybe…. Izuku wasn't going to have to suffer anymore.
All Might then just sighed, taking one of his hands, and gripping the bridge of his nose, tightly with it, showing a set of gritted teeth. His eyes became hidden, totally enveloped by the shadow of his brow as he looked down again. He look like a defeated man, utterly broken by what he had just heard.
"When I said One For All was incapable of being stolen…. That simply refers to if someone attempted to steal the Quirk according to One For All's rules." The professional Hero muttered in explanation. He was quiet, probably thinking of a million other things right now, along with a genuine fear for the status of the Quirk that only just trickled throughout his body now, and had been passed down with a singular purpose for generations. There was no doubt he felt like he had failed… "One For All cannot be stolen by another person under most conventional means. That's why, no matter how often he might have kissed you, for sake of example, you will not receive One For All unless he wants you too…"
His head then flopped down into his hands, as he clutched his head.
"That doesn't apply to a Quirk that's only function is to take other Quirks by force… One For All can still be stolen by All For One…So he either gave it up willingly… Or…"
Mina gulped. Izuku wasn't the sort of person who would ever give up the power that he had. He had fought for that power. He'd earned it. There wasn't anyone more worthy of having that kind of power. And he wouldn't ever let it go. Maybe to save Bakugou… But the Explosion Quirk user hadn't mentioned anything like that. Izuku….
He wouldn't give up One For All like that…. So…
It would have been ripped from his body by the Quirk All For One.
A wave of sickness suddenly hit Mina, making her cover her mouth before she could actually throw up out of sheer horror at what that meant. She didn't have a clue how All For One worked. If it was painful, how it was activated… What it meant for Izuku afterwards…
If he'd even…. Survive it…
What felt like an hour passed, though it was only a minute or two of total silence between the Professional Hero and the younger Hero in training, as both tried to comprehend the new information both had just received from the other. Despite being on two different sides of the coin, and caring about the same person for vastly different reasons, both felt they could understand the pain that the other was feeling right now.
So much regret. So much remorse. So many questions of if they could have done something better, and saved themselves all of this pain and mental torment.
Intense desire. Impatience. An inability to even stand still anymore.
Drive… Yet fear at the same time. All blended together, making their bodies shake with emotion, making their stomachs swirl… But forcing them to move.
That was why Mina was going on the mission tomorrow, no matter what. Even if Bakugou was going to come along. Even if his mere presence here made her want to scream with everything that she had in her lungs. Even if she was never going to be looked at by her classmates in the same way ever again for how she'd lost her temper like she did… She was still going to go on the mission.
Everyone else be damned.
"…All Might?..." Mina wouldn't lie though.
She did feel helpless. Weak. Powerless. Like she couldn't do anything. That mission, it was dangerous, and there was an incredibly high chance that they wouldn't even be able to do anything at all. It was the first time in her life that she truly just felt that there wasn't any sort of prayer to do anything.
The USJ, she hadn't done anything. Everyone else had done everything around her, and she felt horrible about it. She felt weak back then. And she'd tried so hard since then to push herself forward, to push herself far beyond her own limits after that. She's stood up to a Villain four times her own size before she even stepped foot into Yuuei, and then fell to her knees in just pure fear at the USJ. After she'd been accepted. After she'd finally started making true strides towards becoming a Hero…
But not long after, she met Izuku. She began to speak to him. And he pushed her. Forced her to do better. In everything. She never felt weak after the USJ. Never felt hopeless….
Not until now, anyway.
She was a contradictory of nonsensical messes, and she knew this. She wanted to be the one to save Izuku. She wanted to be the one to rescue him. To save him…
Like he'd saved her.
She wasn't sure in herself though. Not anymore. She was going to go on the mission, and she was going to do her best. She was going to fight like hell to bring him back, and she wasn't going to, for even a second, give up. She'd fight until it killed her. She'd push herself to the absolute limits, beyond everything that she had, and even further past that. She was going to do everything in her power to bring him back…
But feared that it was all an effort in wasted energy and time. And that, even with her powerful Quirk… she might not be able to do anything. It was the honest first time in her whole life that, even with all her power, with all her strength, and ability… She felt like she couldn't do anything at all.
What was even the point of her Quirk if she couldn't help her own boyfriend when he needed her more than ever?...
""I…. I can't do anything…" Mina said, fighting back tears. She was so sick of crying, she was doing everything in her power to downright refuse to. She couldn't revel the mission to All Might. She refused to. "I… Even if the Pro's let us try and help in some way… I…." She gulped. "I'm not smart. I couldn't help figure out a plan…. I'm not strong…. I couldn't even use my Quirk to protect Izuku… To save him… I… I don't… I don't know if I'm even… If I even can be a Hero…"
Her hands balled up into fists. She'd never felt more pathetic in her entire life…
"But…. All Might… I'm… I'm begging you…. You're a Pro… You're one, if not the best… If anyone can..." Turning her head slightly, she moved to look towards his face. True form or not, he was difficult to read in this scenario. She couldn't tell what he was thinking in response to her words. Truth be told, she didn't even know what she was saying, so she couldn't blame him. "…I know he…. He's lost his Quirk... I know that…But… I'm begging you…."
Without effort, and without energy, she bowed her head. She didn't even have the strength to stand up and get on her knees, or she would have done that in a heartbeat.
"…Please… Save him."
"Even if One For All is gone…"
Without any warning whatsoever, All Might then suddenly transformed into his Muscle filled form, much to the surprise of the pink girl next to him. It was a process that she hadn't seen before, and truthfully, she was amazed by just how instantaneous that it was. Just a puff of steam, and he was revealed to be the Symbol of Peace underneath all that skin and bone. There was no smile on his face though. Not that trademarked one that he made to put those around him at ease. There wouldn't be much of a point to it, since he knew that nothing he said or did was going to fully help Mina to relax.
The words that came out of his mouth were just purely from the heart. No hyperbole. Nothing that was said just because he wanted the Acidic girl to feel better. Just cold, pure intent.
"I will save young Midoriya! A Quirk or not, he is still my protégé, and still a proud member of Yuuei! I give you my word, young Ashido – I will save him!"
Actually getting herself to calm down enough that she could even hold her phone again without shaking took a while. Fifteen minutes in total. Fifteen minutes in which she'd needed to just take deep breaths, and long exhales, to try and calm her body down. This entire situation was just a collective breeding grounds for anxiety, for depression. For everything Mina was forcing herself not to give into.
How could just one day feel like such a drained slog? Like such a forced march through hell? Like a forced, painful, trudge through mud and grit? How was it even possible to be dragged through that much agony in such a short space of time? The last day had been more painful than anything she'd done, than any injury she'd received, or whatever lectures and punishments her parents had rolled out when she was being a brat and was punished.
She let out a sigh and looked at her phone again. It was still scattered with notifications, telling her about all the various texts, calls, and messages on social media apps that she'd gotten over the last day. If she bothered to count them all up, they'd probably go into the latter half of the hundreds. Maybe even into the thousands. Most people in her family were more into sending short, snappy messages, rather than long winded, detailed ones. That was just how they were. Impatience was just an Ashido trait, it seemed…
And that almost made actually pressing the button to dial them that much harder. She already knew what to expect. Or at least had a good idea. She knew what she could expect. Two thousand questions in under a minute. Uncomfortable questions, ones that she didn't even want to deal with. Questions about Izuku. About her injuries. About her friends. About everything that was going down. About what happened. She had no doubts that they'd want details on the Villains, how many she fought and what exactly went down to make her receive injury. And if Aizawa had told them about her escape play…. Then she'd have another round of questions that she'd need to answer.
And she didn't want to deal with it. These were things that she just didn't' want to have to put up with. Not today, on top of everything else. Today was already the lowest that she ever felt at any point in her life, and if she could avoid feeling this way, or making it even slightly worse, then she wanted to do so. She didn't want to call them… But she couldn't keep putting it off forever. The rescue mission began tomorrow… So if she wanted to be able to go along, and not have to worry about her parents showing up the next day trying to drag her out of the hospital, she needed to do this as soon as possible.
It was just something that she had to do. It really was that simple.
Another sigh escaped her mouth, and finally, after putting it off for nearly a full hour, she hit the dial button, and brought the phone up to her ear.
There wasn't even a delay long enough for her to hear the first dial-back.
"Mina!" Her brother's voice. Micha's, specifically. Mina's eyes rearranged themselves, her left widening, while her right eyebrow burrowed itself into her brow.
"Micha? What're you using Mom's phone for?"
The sounds of footsteps and rumbling on the other side indicated that the rest of the family were now clambering around her brother. "We've just been waiting on you all day! Where the hell've you been?!" More shouting and talking from the other side of the phone, from pretty much everyone else all at the same time made any other words an incomprehensible mess to the point Mina couldn't even hear a single one of them. It all just merged together into one giant cloud of white noise that she couldn't differentiate.
One more reason that she wasn't keen on this call at all. Everyone would just be yelling over one another trying to converse with her.
"C… Could you maybe talk one at once? I seriously can't hear a word any of you are saying." Mina said with yet another sigh escaping her lips. She could already tell that this wasn't going to be a fun talk.
"Mina!" Her mother's voice. Judging by how much that she could hear from the surrounding areas, like everyone else shuffling around one another, Mina guessed that she'd been put onto speakerphone, so everyone could hear what she had to say, and she would be able to hear everyone else. "Are you alright?!"
"About as well as you'd think." The pink girl flatly stated. Seriously, how did they think she was going to be in this situation? "I… I just wanted to call. I'm being discharged tomorrow."
"Already? They told us you had a knife through your hand! It's already healed?!"
"Yeah. Recovery Girl's Quirk is awesome. Healed me up quickly. I've got some nasty scars though…" The older woman's Quirk did wonders for those who were injured, always. Mina sometimes did wonder what Yuuei was going to do when she eventually retired. They'd need to either find someone who had another powerful Healing Type Quirk, or they were going to have to seriously reevaluate how they taught the next groups that came after them.
Sounds of relief and a more calm serenity came from down the other line. Like a weight had been lifted off of all their chests, which it probably had been. She heard the younger Mika and Mara yelling some things at one another, but for the most part, her family seemed to have calmed down from just hearing about this from her. Not hearing anything from her probably hadn't helped. With everything going on, she just hadn't had the time, or the patience until now.
Next to speak up was her father, whom had been blended into the white noise a bit thanks to everyone else. "I'm so glad to hear that you're okay. I'm sorry that we couldn't get there to visit you today. What with Micha getting arrested after deciding to use his Quirk on a news reporters camera – "
A slight pause, probably so that the older man could give his firstborn a glare, before he spoke again
"- And the build-up of traffic has been awful. Lots of people have been moving around thanks to the news. We should be fine tomorrow though. We'll come pick you up at – "
Before he could even finish, Mina cut him off. "I'm fine. But... Don't pick me up." There was another pause, followed by some muttering on the other end that she couldn't quite make out. "I just wanted to call you. To let you know that I'm okay. Don't bother coming to get me though – I can promise you that the media and police won't even let you close." That part wasn't even a lie. Bakugou's parents hadn't even been permitted to come and visit him. Too many variables right now, especially since Bakugou's return hinted that the League had a rough idea where the students were. "I'll need to grab a train to get home…. But that's mostly why I'm calling. I won't be heading home tomorrow. There are still people here who need help... And I need to do something. Yuuei takes care of its students, it'll be fine."
"You're not staying there, are you?!"
"You can't stay at Yuuei!"
"Are you serious?!"
And there it was.
Yet another thing she was going to have to deal with.
Mina had expected this. She honestly wasn't even surprised by the sudden, viscus refusal to allow her to remain at the school. Given everything that had happened to the students since the year had begun, it was honestly amazing that she hadn't been pulled out of Yuuei already. She'd had to fight her corner in those instances.
This was going to be one hell of another fight in of itself. One she didn't feel she had the mental capacity to deal with amicably. Tired and exhausted, stressed and scared as she was, Mina didn't have the ability to put the normal barriers that she kept up, the things she held back when talking to people, or anything at all. She'd already lost it once with Bakugou today, and she was going to lose it with her family if this kept up.
It was going to end in a fight. No question.
"Of course I'm staying with Yuuei! Why the hell wouldn't I?" She questioned, raising her voice. "I pushed myself to the breaking point to even be allowed to try out for the entrance examinations! I'm not throwing that out the window!"
"They just lost two students - One of them was your freaking boyfriend!"
Black eyes widened, before narrowing down, and golden pupils now glaring towards the phone held up to her head, like Mina thought that Micha would feel the death stare she was giving him right now. "...I'm very much aware, Micha. I was there, in case you've forgotten."
"You're supposed to be students, damn it! This isn't the kind of thing that Heroes are supposed to do!"
"You're not even in Yuuei. You failed the entrance exam. What would you know about Heroism?"
Movies. Video Games. Manga and comics. Those were really the only methods that Micha, or really anyone in her family, truly got any information about Heroism from. Like how kids would see movies about soldiers at war back before Quirks, and then assume they knew everything that there was to know about the military. In actuality, they wouldn't know a thing, other than the most basic of terms and statuses. Of conduct codes and formations.
Reality was much different to imagination. Mina had learned that beyond any shadow of a doubt. And her brother acting like they understood the world that she was in better than she did…
Her mother. "Mina, you can't go back to Yuuei. It isn't safe anymore!"
Her father. "We're already looking into other schools with Hero Courses. Shiketsu High is -"
"I'm not leaving Yuuei!" Exploded the pink girl, loudly and incredibly viciously. She could feel her right hand shaking again, though she wasn't too concerned about that right now. This wasn't from sickness from fear. This wasn't from anxiety. This one was just from anger.
Seven thousand reasons existed why she wanted to remain at Yuuei, even after everything that had gone down. The fact that she'd wanted to go there since she was a kid. The fact that she'd trained herself to the edge just to even try out for a place. The fact that she had friends there.
The fact that she met Izuku there.
While questions did rage on within her as to if she was even capable of becoming a Hero… She knew that she wanted to stay at Yuuei. She had emotional attachment to the place at this point. Ridiculous as it sounded to have an attachment to a school of all places. She adored the school, for just about everything that there was to adore and admire. She admitted it – She was a bad student. But that wasn't on the school itself. That was on her. And the school couldn't be blamed for an unforeseen attack that they had taken every measure to avoid… That was just unfair. In every single aspect of the word. None of the students held it against Yuuei…
But everyone else seemed to think that they had a better idea of how things should have gone down, unrealistic as they were.
And of all people, Micha had the gaul?...
"Yuuei can't even keep its own students safe! Heroes aren't supposed to face this - "
"Did you give up?"
Silence. For the first time since she'd picked up the phone, everyone on the other line just went completely silent. No noise. No conversation. No muttering and whining from the younger siblings. No questions exchanged by her parents, and no wisecracks from Micha. There was nothing but cold radio silence.
If she were being honest, Mina had suspected it for a while. Micha should have been in Yuuei. He really should have when she considered everything that she knew about her older brother. He should have passed without any problems. But he never did.
She was starting to figure out why.
"...What?" No smugness. No confusion. Not even concern at this point. It was one of the only times that Micha had just been downright stunned that Mina remembered. He always had a joke ready. Always had a comeback. Always ready to make some sort of smartass remark, and when all else failed, he'd just brush it off as some sort of joke that 'Pinky' took too seriously. Here he was just silent. Short words. No real emotion behind them.
"You heard me." Mina repeated. She already knew that she'd hit the nail on the head. "Whenever I think about it, you should have gotten into Yuuei. Your Quirk is powerful. You're smart. You're skinny, but you're strong. You should have easily gotten into Yuuei. But you didn't. You failed the practical, and you weren't even that upset. You've never been bitter. You almost seemed happy. Even when I got in, you weren't bitter."
That was what annoyed her about him talking about this like he understood it. Like he thought Heroes were supposed to be exactly like they were in the comics and video games.
"Did the robots scare you? Did they give you an actual taste of what being a Hero would be like? How dangerous it is?"
Silence again. Once more, she'd hit the nail on her brothers head. He didn't know the first thing about real Heroism. But he was talking as if he did.
"...I thought so." Mina sighed. These had been thoughts that had haunted her since she learned her brother had failed the entrance exam. It was why she had trained so hard – If anyone should have gotten in, it was Micha. Without question. Any respect that she held for her brother, it wasn't going to stop her from tearing into him right now. Things were too serious for her to try and let her family calmly know that she was going to stick with this.
When it came to getting permission from them now… It was going to be like trying to get blood from a stone… But that was okay.
"Don't talk to me about what Heroes should and shouldn't do. And right now, there's something I need to do. Not as a student. As a Hero."
Izuku was more important.
With that final comment, she hung the phone up, and let out a smaller sigh.
And then a small scream into her pillow in frustration.
Calling Izuku's mother was a hell of a lot easier, if twice as guilt inducing. Izuku and his mother were close. So incredibly close. Mina had learned this so very well when she'd met the older woman. The first time she'd ever met Inko. Seeing her again in the police station after that incident in Kiyashi. Mina knew how deep the bond between these two ran. It went beyond just maternal instinct. It went much deeper than that.
Inko was the only person that Izuku had to rely on during his Quirkless years. She was the only person who he could lean on. Inko wanted the best for her son. No one was ever going to be able to deny this if they even met her for less than twenty seconds.
Duty made her call more than anything. Mina couldn't even begin to imagine how she was feeling right now. In the dark, no one to keep her updated, alone, only knowing that her son was kidnapped by Villains, and that the Heroes still haven't found a way to rescue them. That information wouldn't be passed down to the families of those kidnapped. They wouldn't want to risk leaking information…
Mina wasn't held to such a concept though. Inko was a trustworthy person, and if anyone – Anyone at all, deserved to know exactly what was happening to her son, it was her. Without even a second's hesitation, Mina had come to that conclusion, and felt it was the only right thing to do. To let her know that people weren't just sitting around, waiting for the best case scenario to play out. That there were people who were still fighting, still trying, and planning to find out what was going on. That there were people who were still going to do right by her son.
She answered the phone in only a few seconds. She had been crying, Mina could tell, without even a single word being spoken. How she hadn't died of dehydration… that was a question she could extend to the entire Midoriya family. "Is that you, Izuku?!"
Mina felt her own heart break a bit. That was how desperate Inko was?...
This wasn't going to be an easy call. Even if it was easier than calling her own family, that still didn't mean it was going to be easy. Or fun. In any way at all.
"...It's not I'm afraid, Mrs. Midoriya." She finally spoke after a few seconds of silence. Actually speaking almost made her feel bad – She was dashing that desperate hope that Inko was clinging onto.
Seconds passed before Inko, through sniffling and what Mina guessed to be two or three tissues, managed to respond to her voice. "A... Ashido?"
"It's Mina... And yeah... It's me." The feeling of having to call her like this was bad enough… Having her trying to be formal was just one more barrier she didn't want to deal with.
"Are... Are you okay? Have you heard anything about Izuku?!"
"I'm... Doing about as well as you are, I suppose..." There wasn't any reason to hide her feelings from Inko. Mina knew that of all people, Inko was one of the only people who would get it. Who would really, unequivocally, undeniably understand what it was that she felt and why she felt it. If there was anyone in this world who would be able to tell Mina that what she felt was valid or not, whom Mina truly cared for the opinion of in this circumstance, it was that of Inko Midoriya.
Because she was the only person who really was going to get it. Understand exactly what Mina felt right now. Even if she opposed the plan… There wasn't any doubt that she did get why Mina was going to do it. Even if she didn't agree. Even if she didn't approve.
She would understand… And she deserved to know. That really was it. She just deserved to know, more than anything.
"We... We got a lead on Izuku." The horned girl revealed, closing her eyes as she did so, as if to brace herself from the words that she herself were saying. "Someone from our class has a Quirk that let them put a tracking device on one of the Villains that attacked us. I... I just wanted to let you know. We're getting him back. I promise you, we're going to get him back."
Inko didn't response right away. The news seemed to have surprised her just as much as it had shocked Mina when she had first heard it. Understandable, and not at all something that she hadn't expected. Unlike her own parents, Mina felt she could be far more patient with Inko, since the green haired woman wasn't the type to start rushing around to her own devices and conclusions.
At least, Mina didn't get the sense that she'd do that sort of thing.
"Are you working with the Professionals?" To not be working with the Pros was basically illegal. It wasn't any wonder that that question had come up.
Lying would have been much easier. It would have been so easy just to say that they were working with the Pros. It would put Inko to rest, and would more than likely be the safer option for those who were going on the mission in the first place. It would help avoid a lot of messes in the future, especially when they eventually returned… But Mina couldn't do it.
For some reason, she found herself unable to lie to Inko. Maybe it was because she herself was already wrecked with enough guilt to sink a battleship, but she just couldn't bring herself to hide any of the truth from the fretting mother. A sigh escaped her lips.
"...No."
"That's too dangerous! You can't do that! Yuuei has strong Heroes that are teaching you - Take this to them!"
"The Heroes already know... But there's legal processes. We can't wait on them."
"Ashido - "
"I love your son."
Mina found herself unable to stop herself from saying that. It just came out, before she had time to mentally make herself stop. They tumbled out. And continued to tumble out before she could stop herself.
"I adore him. I love him so much it hurts me to even think about him right now. Everything… Everything that happened, I… I don't know if I could have done anything to save him. I don't know if I even…. Really deserve him. He's the... The best thing that has ever happened to me. I..."
She paused for a moment. What was she doing?
"…I don't know... If I can be the person to make him happy... He's the first person I've ever dated... And I'm the first person he's ever dated... It's... Pretty rare that ever works out in the end, huh?"
She felt her teeth grit.
"And... And I've been afraid... Afraid that he doesn't feel this way about me... Because he's never said that he loves me... Because he's not the type to show a lot of physical affection… He's…. He's kind of an odd sort, isn't he?... And if that's how he feels…. Then…. Then that's how he feels…"
She felt her hand ball up into a fist.
"...But that doesn't matter."
She knew why she was saying this now. It had taken her brain a few seconds to catch up with her heart, but she knew why she was saying all of this now.
"I love him. And I'm going to save him. Even if it's illegal. Even if I don't see him again after... "
She was saying these things because they were true.
"Even if I can't be a Hero. Even if it kills me... "
She was saying these things because they were what was motivating her to even go on this mad quest."
"I'm going to save Izuku."
She was saying all of this because they were her true feelings. Because they were the reasons that she wanted to go out on this mission. She was saying these things because, at the end of it all, Izuku was the best thing that had happened to her. She was saying these things because she didn't have much to lose anymore. Except her life, maybe.
A life that… Wasn't worth living without Izuku. No matter how ridiculous it sounded.
She hang up, and let out a sigh.
When had she fallen this in love with Izuku? How had she fallen this hard for him? They hadn't even been together that long, but she was already feeling like this about him? This was how far his disappearance had affected her?...
Maybe she was just crazy. She really wasn't sure at this point.
It was another sleepless night for Mina. Tossing, turning, and anxiety wrested with her to keep her awake and not allow her any sort of rest. Too many thoughts were collectively bashing against one another in her brain for her to even think about getting some sleep. She would need drugs to knock her out. Drugs that she was provided with, but refused to take. Ridiculous as it might have been, she didn't want to risk sleeping past the deadline time for the group's departure.
They probably didn't even want her on the mission. Kirishima had made that sentiment quite clear to her, not that she was particularly concerned with what he though. Were she being honest, she could not be more upset with the guy right now. She had a list of things a mile long that she could bring up and say she was pissed off with him about.
He wasn't the wimp that she knew back in middle school. She'd give him that much.
Though right now, she was wondering if that was a good thing or not.
His friendship with Bakugou put her on wobbly terms with him already ever since she started dating Izuku, but she had been more than capable of separating the two of them. Kirishima was no Bakugou, of that she knew with absolute certainty. And she was on good terms with the guy. She wasn't entirely certain what exactly they were. Friends, horn buddies, or whatever. But she didn't outright dislike the guy. She had no ill will towards him at all.
She certainly did now though.
After everything that she'd told everyone, after exposing Bakugou for the sociopath that he was, he still had it in him to somehow defend the guy? He still felt that he was someone who honestly deserved to be defended like that?
What happened to the guy who wanted to stand up to bullies, she had to wonder. How blind did someone have to be to think that Bakugou was a good person at this point? After everything…
And how?
How did he not get what her problem was with him? She'd screamed it right to his face – What on earth was there to be confused about? She'd made it as clear as physically possible what her deal as with Bakugou, what more did Kirishima freaking need from her? Was he just in denial or something? It wasn't like Mina had a whole lot of other guesses.
Either way, he had pissed her off.
She didn't know why she thought about this while she looked out her window the following day, in the middle of the afternoon. She'd been straight up staring out her window for hours now. There wasn't much else to really do. She didn't want to shift through all the messages and phone calls on her phone. She didn't really want to speak to anyone outside of her room. She didn't' really feel like she had the patience to do anything like that. She'd probably end up breaking something if she did. It was one of the only times she just didn't want anything to do with social interaction.
Honestly, she just wanted to be on her own until the moment came where she had to go and face them.
So she just stayed in her room. Watching cars and people pass through the area. Watching the weather change, hoping to God that it wouldn't end up becoming a downpour when it became time to leave. Watching the day pass by, at what felt like a snails crawl. Watching clouds roll by. To try to pass the time, she tried to look for ones that had some kind of shape to them. There weren't a lot though. It was a pretty murky day overall.
She even watched her parent's car pull in, only to be turned away by the police after a ten minute argument.
All she could do was shrug. She had tried to warn them not to bother.
"Ashido."
Around five in the afternoon, she heard a voice that made her eyes roll, and her chest tighten in annoyance and anger. Her hands turned into tight fists,
"…Kirishima."
She didn't turn to look at him. She just didn't want to. She couldn't even stomach the idea of looking at him right now, after everything that had gone down the previous night. She could see his reflection in the mirror anyway. She didn't particularly care to see much else.
The Hardening Quirk user didn't really say anything for a short while, instead just standing there. From his reflection, Mina saw that he looked uncomfortable, and there was a very clear amount of regret on his face. Probably for hitting her like he had done. He didn't seem able to look at her, even if it was just the back of her head. At the same time, he seemed like he was waiting for her to look at him before he kept on talking. It took him a few moments before he realized that this wasn't going to happen.
"I… I wanted to apologize." He finally spoke, forcing himself to look towards her. "I shouldn't've hit you like I did. I'm sorry."
"Fine." Was all Mina said. If she were getting right down to the most basic level, that wasn't what had bothered her. She had dealt with plenty of physical pain over the last couple of days. A knife through her hand, scars all along her knuckles and wrists, and the training hell that had been the Summer Camp. Suffering from physical agony was certainly something that she was used to. Kirishima's punch hadn't even particularly hurt her all that much to boot. It had been the shock, more than anything that had made Mina react the way that she had – Blankly staring at him and then leaving the second he told her that she had to either make peace with Bakugou being on the rescue mission, or not to bother coming along. That had been where the vast majority or her anger had come from. That was where the actual apology should lay. If that wasn't what he was here for…
Then Mina couldn't bring herself to care.
"….Look, I don't know what's going on at this point, Ashido." Kirishima admitted, with a sigh. "I know we don't exactly know one another that well, but I've always thought I at least understood you on some level. But… after that whole incident yesterday, I really don't know anymore." His hands receded into his pockets as he spoke, as his red eyes started looking straight at her. "Midoriya means a lot to you. I get that. And I don't know exactly what's gone down between him and Bakugou – "
"I told you everything that went down. Bakugou admitted to it."
"I don't know specifics! I don't know exactly what's been going on! Bakugou won't talk about anything specifically, and you've been locked up in here all day!" He ran a hand through his dyed red hair before he let out a sigh. "The only things that I'm certain on are these: Midoriya and Bakugou have a rough history. You and Midoriya have been lying to everyone since you ended up together…. And Midoriya's apparently got some sort of Quirk that can be…. Passed onto other people?" Mina saw his eye in the reflection quirk as he said it aloud. "I…. That doesn't even make sense…. But you reacted to it so strongly… I don't know what his Quirk has to do with anything, or why Bakugou seems to care so much… Unless he wasn't lying when he said he used to be Quirkless." He paused for a moment. "You see why I have no idea what's going on yet? None of what I'm certain of makes any sense, and just makes me uncertain all over again! What conclusion am I even supposed to make from that?"
Those weren't unreasonable observations, Mina knew. Everything about One For All went against the standardly accepted knowledge of Quirks. It was an unusual superpower, so the idea of Izuku being Quirkless now was just one that made no sense to a lot of people. And everything else, Mina could understand him being confused about. She was close to Izuku when she learned all about it, so she had been able to accept it a lot quicker than most people probably would have been able to. All the same though…. It wasn't like, under the circumstances that everyone else had to accept this under, she didn't understand their skepticism… And confusion. And sudden distrust of her…. And Izuku. From a cold, logical stance… She did understand….
But that was all she'd understand.
"…You need specifics, do you?" She questioned, looking out the window and letting out a long, deep sigh. It was what she did to try and reset her emotional state the best she could. Just doing it did help her feel like some weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. At least a bit. "You know, of everyone in our class, of every single person out there, I thought you, of all people, would understand why I reacted the way I did."
"Ashido – "
"So, 'Horn Buddy', let me spell this out for you." Mina stood up and turned around, finally looking Kirishima directly in the eye. Of everyone that was in the hospital, she'd probably lost her patience with him the most, second only to Bakugou himself. She wasn't in the mood to hold back. Wrong as it may be, this was a way to vent towards someone. "Your friend has taunted Izuku for over a decade. There isn't any point in hiding it anymore, so I'll just admit it – Izuku was Quirkless, even though his parents both have powers. He's told me that himself, and I've met who gave him his power. And before you ask, I'm not telling you who it is." She could see Kirishima's eyes widen at that irrevocable admission. "So, Bakugou taunted Izuku. Bullied him. And I'm not talking about teasing him or making fun of him. I'm talking about beating him up. Assaulting him. Using his Quirk on him."
She glared.
"Telling him to kill himself."
Kirishima gulped.
"That's the guy you've been hanging out with this last semester. He's spent the last ten years beating up someone effectively with a birth defect." She then took a few steps closer towards her middle schoolmate, making it a direct point to be making eye contact. "And you had the gaul to tell me to get over him going to rescue Izuku? I don't know how much clearer I have to get than this – Bakugou is a fucking parasite, and I don't want him anywhere even near Izuku. I don't want Izuku to even think that he owes Bakugou one God damn thing. I don't want Izuku to go back to thinking that Bakugou deserves any sort of sympathy because he did one good thing. This entire mess is his fault anyway. He's more a Villain than he is any kind of Hero."
A second passed.
"Bakugou doesn't deserve to be forgiven for anything he's done." Mina finished. "He's a bully. Plain and simple."
For everything that had been told to his face, Kirishima looked – And there was no other word for it – Mortified. Horrified at everything that he'd just been told. His eyes were wide and he looked like he was sweating. For better or worse, and in this case, Mina had no doubts that it was for the worse, Kirishima tried to find the best in people, Bakugou included, but if there was one type of person that he disliked in particular, it was, like her, bullies. He hated them just as much as she did, and would try to stop them from harassing their victims, even though he often failed during middle school because his Quirk was weaker back then.
There was no way that he could have known this. And Mina didn't blame him for not knowing. It wasn't his fault that his Quirk wasn't Precognition or Psychometry. It wasn't his fault Izuku had kept quiet about everything that had gone down between the two of them. It wasn't Kirishima's fault in any way at all…
"… E….Even if that's all true…" He said, looking down to the ground. "…. We…. We can't turn down any help. We don't…. We don't have that luxury, Ashido."
Mina glared at him for a few seconds, and then sighed. Even though she knew he was right… "Then there isn't really any reason for you to still be in here."
"Ashido – "
"Get the fuck out." Mina flatly said. "I'll see you tonight, when we go rescue Izuku. Just don't expect me to be friendly towards you or your fucking buddy."
For a moment, it looked like Kirishima was preparing to fight his corner, but he quickly decided against it, and let out a sigh of his own. This wasn't an argument that he was going to win in any real capacity, and he didn't even really feel like fighting it in the first place, given everything that he'd learned about Bakugou right now. Confusion still wrecked throughout his brain, but he…. He had enough to work with. Any more, and his brain was probably going to explode.
Without any further words from him, Kirishima left, sliding the door shut behind him. All Mina could do in response was sigh yet again.
That had been… Drastically out of character for her, but in her defense… Laying everything flat out like that to him? Making it all as clear cut as she could for him? Only for him to decide that the best course of action was to still have Bakugou on the team?...
Maybe it was him making the right call. Maybe she was just being driven by emotion more than anything. A part of her acknowledged this… But she couldn't help herself.
Bakugou was just the one person right now she couldn't even stomach…
…It made it all the weirder to her why she even bothered to come to speak the guy about two hours later.
Being admitted into the hospital himself, he'd been given a room. No one really had much luck when it came to confining him to it, but he had remained there for a lot of the day, purely by his own will. Mina found herself standing outside his door, thinking for a moment why she was even here in the first place. What was it that she hoped to accomplish, she asked herself.
What did she even want to achieve? There was no real reason to be here, and she would gain nothing from this. All it was going to serve to do was make her even angrier. Maybe that was why she wanted to do it. Angry was something other than just being sad. Shaking with fury was better than crying. Angry got things done. Anger was a good motivator. Being angry was better than being said.
Honestly, all she wanted to do was just yell at the guy, and make her stance abundantly clear. But what would it seriously accomplish? It wasn't going to make her feel better, she knew, so why did she even want to bother?
Again, being angry was better than just being depressed, waiting for the clock to tick down… But it wasn't like she enjoyed being angry. She didn't like being someone to start fights. She never did otherwise. It didn't make her feel better, and it wasn't going to feel better now… So why she did it was just a question in itself.
She didn't really have much of an answer. Why she was even here at all was a complete and total mystery to her, one that she didn't know how to answer. How to even begin answering. She didn't really need one though. She hated the guy. That was really all that she needed, when she thought about it.
Slamming into his door with her fist twice to alert the guy that he was coming in was honestly more than he deserved. After that, she pretty much just invited herself into his room, and slamming the door shut behind her.
For his part, Bakugou just stared at her as she entered the room. Like she had been, he was just staring out of the room, watching the world pass by behind him. One had was shoved into his pocket. His red eyes quickly met Mina's black and golden ones, burrowed into a glare. There was silence for a moment. Neither of them said a word.
Both of them just stood still, staring at one another. Mina, trying her best not to outright just run over and punch the guy in the throat, and Bakugou staring back at her, like she were just some dejected lunatic. He clearly thought very little of her in that moment, and it showed in his expressions. And his words.
"You need to calm the fuck down, Ashido. You're not going to save anyone if you're emotional."
The very first words Bakugou had to say to her, and he was going to try to give her a lecture? Him, of all people, wanted to talk to her about rescuing people? The guy who spent his time trying to prove he was the best at blowing things up rather than capable of rescuing people?
He was good at riling people up. Mina would certainly give him that.
"Like you've ever cared about saving anyone." She flatly retorted. "You're the one person here who doesn't even give the slightest crap about rescuing people. All we've ever seen you do is try to fight. That's the reason the Villains even wanted you in the first place."
"I'm here trying to save Deku, aren't I?"
"You think that makes everything that you've done okay?!"
"I don't particularly care if it makes things okay or not." The blond boy said, taking his eyes off of the pink girl and looking out the window once again. Mind could see his right arm tensing up as he did so, like he were clutching onto something in his pockets. "The fact is, I'm going along if you like it or not. I was in a cell with the guy. I spoke with him, and I watched his fucking Quirk getting ripped form his body." He looked towards her with his eye, but he didn't move his body at all. "If you think that you're going to tell me who the fuck I can save and who I can't save, I'll throw you out this window right now, Ashido."
Growls now made their way out of Mina's lips. She hated not knowing what had happened to Izuku, and that her only source of information had to come from this bastard right in front of her.
"Let me make myself as clear to you as possible, Bakugou."
His red eyes once again locked gaze contact with hers.
"I hate you. I hate you with every single fiber of my entire being. You're not a Hero. You don't even deserve to be in Yuuei."
Saying it out loud, saying it to his face… If she were being honest, it didn't feel good. It didn't make her feel better.
But she'd be damned if someone didn't do this. It had been a long time coming for this guy. Someone needed to say this all point blank to his face. It might as well be her.
"You are nothing but a bully with a powerful Quirk. That's all that you have ever been. That's all you're ever going to be. Izuku is a better Hero than you. He's a better Hero than me. He's a better Hero than every single person in all of Yuuei, and you've been beating him down because you want to hang onto this bullshit idea that you're better. That you're stronger. And you had the fucking nerve to reveal Izuku's Quirk to everyone?"
It honestly was taking everything she had in her not to attack him outright. It really was.
"If it were up to me, Izuku would be here. And he'd want to go and save you. And I'd be trying my best to convince him to leave you to fucking. Rot."
Bakugou didn't say anything in response. Her words hadn't phased him.
Not that she was surprised. Bakugou was so self-absorbed he simply didn't care for the opinions of those around him. She didn't know what she had thought would happen.
She turned around, and started to make her way out. She hadn't achieved anything that she came her to achieve. Why had she bothered again? What had she expected, honestly? Shaking her head, she realized that she didn't even feel particularly angry after it had all come out.
Just… Empty.
It wasn't until she reached the door to the room that she realized what a waste of time that this had honestly been. Nothing about this had been even slightly worth it.
Why had she…
Why….
…
Her heart froze. She'd only seen it by chance – Pure chance. Her eye just managed to capture it out of the corner of her eye, and seeing it at all was simply pure luck. The first stroke of luck she'd had in the last week or so.
Not that she felt even remotely lucky at all.
They were hidden under the lampshade that was on Bakugou's nightstand, and it was merely a single corner of them that Mina saw. They looked like paper. One folded up, and another outright kept unfolded.
Curiosity made Mina move the nightstand.
And realization made her eyes widen in horror.
Pictures of Izuku. Beaten, broken and bloodied. Several of them, some stacked on top of one another, one or two were hidden using angles more to hide the images behind the lamp. His arms were torn apart, broken, and Mina could swear she saw something black growing from them, though she prayed to Christ it was dirt. For the first time in her life…. And in this situation especially, Mina couldn't think of Izuku being the important part of this context. Somehow, it got worse than this though.
The pictures were wet. With what…. Mina didn't even want to know.
"...Bakugou."
It was a hunch. If it turned out wrong, then another serious conversation needed to be had.
"What."
If it was right….
"…Use your Quirk."
"What? What're you - "
As Bakugou turned, he saw that Mina had moved the lamp. Now it was his time to freeze. It was the closest to shock that he'd shown since he returned.
Mina just looked at him. There was no anger now though.
Just fear. Downright fear. If this hunch was right... Then everyone in this hospital was in serious danger.
"Bakugou… I want to be wrong on this here… Please tell me I'm wrong. Please tell me that the Villains just gave you these to try and demoralize us... Or try to make the Heroes consider negotiations… Or… O-Or something… I…"
Her breathing increased. As did her heart beat.
"Use your Quirk. Prove that you're the person you say you are."
Bakugou didn't move. He didn't blink. He didn't do anything.
He just continued to look at Mina.
"…You always called me Raccoon eyes..." Mina suddenly realized. Oddities in Bakugou's behavior... His quieter demeanor... His use of proper names... Everything was starting to click together. "You never called me Ashido before... You never called anyone but Uraraka by her name before..."
Things suddenly made sense.
Way too much sense.
Why would the villains release Bakugou after all of that?
What would that gain?
Why would Bakugou just accept everything that was said about him without retaliation?
Why would Bakugou reveal everything like he had?
Why would any of this gone down like it had?
The two of them just stared at one another, without a single word between them. Mina's eyes wide open in abject horror. Bakugou's eyes narrow as he glared.
"...You know something, Mina?"
His hand retracted from his pocket.
I hate you too."
From his hand, he displayed a black, cylindrical object. He then flipped it open.
A switchblade knife.
His eyes went from red to yellow.
He smirked.
And his voice turned horrifyingly feminine.
"So I'ma stab you."