#tsukare onryo

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 46

Warnings: Feelings, transphobia, religious fueled detestment, chaos, pure and utter chaos Word count: 6422

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 45 | Volt 47

"We should play truth or dare!" Mina said excitedly, we all hesitantly agreed after a lot of persuasion. We sat in a circle in the center of the basement, all of us changed and ready for bed but too awake after a day of fun. "Okay, rules are simple. Spin the flat iron, whoever the corded end lands on has to answer truth or dare but if they choose to back out, they have to take a sip of the concoction of death!" I looked at the half full red solo cup on the end table, a mix of soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, ketchup, mustard, salsa, apple juice, hot sauce, ginger salad dressing and lemon juice sitting intimidatingly by itself. All of us had emergency drinks just in case so we wouldn't upchuck anything, but also an emergency trash can on standby. "I'll go first!" She leaned forward and spun the straightener, the object pointing to Kirishima. "Truth or dare!"

"Ah, shoot, uh, truth I guess?" He blurted out, clearly unprepared for whatever the girl might have in store.

"Boringgg! Fine, uh, if you were to get any piercing, what would it be?" Kirishima thought about this for a moment.

"Probably my eyebrow." The girl nodded in approval before Kiri spun, Denki up next. "Alright, truth or dare man?"

"I'm not scared, I'll go with dare." He said with a smirk, leaning back on his palms.

"Alright, I dare you to burp the alphabet without throwing up." Denki went upstairs and came back with a can of soda.

None of us could contain our laughter as he finished it without puking. I excused myself to go grab a soda as well after asking Sero, needing something to help me sleep tonight. I came back down and saw Mina and Sero dancing.

"I dared them to a dance off, to see who would fail first at copying the others move." Denki filled me in and I nodded, watching as Mina won Sero's dare.

I didn't get a turn for a while, somehow the flat iron always landing on Mina or Denki rather than me, until it did.

"Tsukababes! Finally! Truth or dare?"

"Easy, truth. I don't trust where you would take a dare." She poured but nodded.

"Who do you like?" She asked without missing much of a beat.

'I should've thought this through more.'

All eyes were on me and the sip of death looked tempting right now.

"A guy." I finally spluttered out. Sero snorting out laughter at my aversion.

"Well duh, but that's not who."

"Eh, it counts. Me saying 'a guy' is a valid answer because it's a key descriptor and definer of the 'who' which is what you were asking. If you wanted me to say the person, then you should've asked something else." She glared and pointed a finger at me. I spun the straightener and it landed on Kiri. "Truth or dare, bro?"

"I trust you Tsukabro, so dare."

"I dare you to let Mina do your makeup." Mina squealed in excitement and dug out her makeup. As she was doing his, we continued playing. He spun the flat iron before she even started, the appliance landing on Mina.

"Truth or dare, Min."

"Dare, duh."

"I dare you not to do my makeup." She groaned and put all of her stuff back.

"You're no fun!" She pouted but spun her straightener anyways, almost bouncing with joy when it landed on Denki. "Someone fun! Truth or dare!"

"Obviously dare. C'mon you already knew that." She got a glint in her eye and I immediately felt concerned on the multitude of ways she could take this.

"I dare you to kiss who you think the hottest person in the room is. Of course, only if they're okay with it." Everyone was watching what his next move would be.

I stared at my lap, not wanting to know who he would choose until I felt a familiar hand on top of mine. I glanced up at him and nervously licked my lips like earlier. We were already sitting fairly close, not letting the awkward tension break our normal.

"Is this okay?" His voice was soft and quiet, a mere whisper but I heard it all the same. My eyes glanced down to his lips without thinking and I nodded.

His free hand came up and cupped my cheek before leaning in. I met him in the middle, finally working up the courage to lean forward as well. Every bit of it felt like fireworks erupting inside my entire body. It was slow and gentle, our lips slowly moving together after a moment and he pulled away. My face and neck were bright red as was his. We stared at each other for a minute, trying to figure out what this meant and where we stood, my mind all over the place. Without looking, I knew Mina got a picture of it. Slowly, he moved back into his spot fully but his hand stayed on mine.

"It's my turn next, yeah?" Denki broke the silence and spun the hair straightener, the object pointing to Sero. "Truth or dare, man?"

"After the last dare, I'm going with truth cause the only one I wanna kiss is Todoroki." I bit back a giggle but nodded in respect.

"Is your binder still on?" Sero's eyes darted to the floor at the question, giving a clear answer. "Go take it off and put on a hoodie, please." Sero looked torn but I was slightly confused.

"Can I ask a question? Cause I'm a little lost." The pair of best friends nodded. "Is it bad if you wear it for too long?" Sero sighed and sadly nodded.

"Yeah, if I wear it too long it can cause some damage to my ribs. I'm already pushing it with wearing it during hero training." He said in a dull tone, a complete opposite to how he usually is.

"Go take it off, okay? Trust me, broken ribs are not fun. You're still a man, nothings gonna change that, but hurting yourself is only going to make things worse." He sighed and stood up, going up the stairs and coming down a few minutes later in a very baggy hoodie.

"It's off." He stated in a somber voice.

"You know we only push it because we care bro, yeah?" Sero nodded, confirming Kiri's words.

"If it makes you feel any better, apparently I have the biggest chest here." My comment got our friend to finally laugh.

"You're not wrong. We all know it too." I gave him a wide smile and a thumbs up. "Alright, so who's sleeping where? We have one queen size air mattress, the couch and the love seat. I would grab old mattresses, but most of them are toddler mattresses."

"Mina, who's your cuddle buddy tonight?" I asked the pink haired girl.

"Depends on who I sleep next to."

"We can always push everything together so that we aren't separated too much." I suggested, everyone shocked that I offered that.

"Yes! More cuddles!" Mina cheered with her hands raised, pumped at the suggestion.

As the air mattress was being inflated, Kiri and I moved the couch over, sliding it parallel to the loveseat. Mina and Denki set out spare blankets and throw pillows. Just as the air mattress got set up, I took out my ears and put them on the charger. I got settled in on the loveseat, opting to allowing Kirishima to be comfier on the couch. Mina slept beside him with Sero in the middle and Denki right beside me.

We sat up for a little bit, mostly on our phones doing whatever, sometimes I would look over and join the conversation but for the most part, I sat in a comfortable silence with my friends.

I don't remember falling asleep, but I remember briefly waking up. Mostly to turn over and get comfortable again, my eyes immediately drooping shut again. When I fully woke up, I wasn't expecting to be warm.

Or on Denki.

I went to stretch and found myself unable to move, his arms wrapped around me. One draped over my waist and his free hand in front of me as he scrolled on his phone. My head laid on his chest, my body curled into his side with our legs tangled together. His arm left, the rush of cool air sending a chill across my side until it returned along with my phone.

From Pikachu: Good morning :)

To Pikachu: Good morning

To Pikachu: When did I fall asleep? I don't remember

From Pikachu: About 11

To Pikachu: I can't believe I slept for ten hours

From Pikachu: Me neither but I'm glad you got sleep

To Pikachu: When did you go to bed?

From Pikachu: I was up until about 1, that's when you rolled onto me

To Pikachu: Sorry about that, I hope you weren't uncomfortable or anything

From Pikachu: Why would I be uncomfortable?

To Pikachu: I don't know, I just don't want to make you uncomfortable or anything

From Pikachu: Well I promise I wasn't uncomfortable, I wouldn't complain about getting to cuddle with you

From Pikachu: Unless you were uncomfortable?

To Pikachu: I toootally was, hence why I'm still laying on you

I could feel the vibrations and slight jostling in his chest from laughter.

From Pikachu: Well I'm glad you weren't either

From Pikachu: I think that's the first time you've ever fallen asleep before me

To Pikachu: Yeah I was tired yesterday, I pulled an all nighter the other night

From Pikachu: What??? Why??

To Pikachu: Just couldn't sleep, it happens sometimes

From Pikachu: I guess, but I'm really happy you caught up on some sleep last night then

To Pikachu: Me too :)

From Pikachu: Soooo

To Pikachu: Soooo?

From Pikachu: Who's your crush?

To Pikachu: Take a guess

From Pikachu: I don't know, that's why I'm asking

To Pikachu: You should know

From Pikachu: How would I know??

To Pikachu: It should be obvious enough for you to guess

From Pikachu: Just tell meeeee

From Pikachu: Pleaseeeee

To Pikachu: You gotta guessss

From Pikachu: Why won't you tell meee

From Pikachu: Is it really that bad?

From Pikachu: I can literally see you reading these

From Pikachu: C'mon, talk to me

From Pikachu: Why not tell me?

To Pikachu: Fear? Judgement? I don't know, maybe a mix of the two. I'd rather just keep it to myself because I don't think it's going anywhere and the more people I tell who it is, the more real my feelings are and the more it's going to hurt in the long run

From Pikachu: I'm sorry for pushing so much, I didn't mean to make you upset

To Pikachu: You're okay, I know you didn't mean anything by it

From Pikachu: Still, I'm sorry

From Pikachu: Forgive me?

To Pikachu: You're forgiven, Denks

From Pikachu: Phew, okay

To Pikachu: Mina probably got pictures of us to add to her collection

From Pikachu: You mean to add to your collection?

To Pikachu: And what about yours?

From Pikachu: Okay so OUR collection

To Pikachu: I didn't know you saved the pictures she took

From Pikachu: Of course I do! What, you don't?

To Pikachu: I never said that

Denki ruffled my hair a bit and I put my phone down, noticing Sero sit up and start talking.

"Uno momento, estoy agarrando mis audífonos." (One moment, I'm grabbing my hearing aids.) I told the two that I knew were awake, not even realizing I was talking in Spanish until I turned back around to a confused looking Denki. "Sorry, language switch." I mumbled, still half asleep to a degree. "What were you saying Sero?"

"I was just wondering when you two woke up."

"I woke up a little while ago."

"I woke up probably an hour ago." Denki stated, Sero looking at him in disbelief.

"I didn't hear you wake up, I've been up for about an hour and a half." I gestured to our phones and he realized why.

"Should we wake those two up?" I pointed to a sleeping Mina and Kirishima. The girl being spooned by Kirishima while curling into Sero's side, the red heads arm reaching over her waist and onto the other boys.

"Please, I've been overheating this whole time." I couldn't help my small laugh at his words but got up to help wake the two up.

I circled around and poked Kiri's stomach rapidly, watching his muscles flex through his shirt before he woke up confused. His arm moving and waking up Mina in the process.

"What time is it?" The red head asked groggily.

"Almost ten in the morning." He hummed and rubbed his face, his usually gelled hair sticking all over the place. "Time to wake up." He nodded and stretched his arms, reminding me of the morning stiffness in my spine. "Hey Hanta? Can I borrow your legs for support?" He looked at me curiously but slowly nodded. I sat down near his feet and placed one hand on his shins to help me balance as I turned. The relieving pops going up my spine making me sigh before I turned and repeated it on the other side. "Thank you." Everyone looked at me with wide eyes.

"How the— what was that?" Kirishima asked.

"I cracked my back, that reminds me." I propped my chin on my hand and cracked my neck both ways. "I almost forgot about my neck." Mina fake gagged while everyone else was just looking mortified. "It's okay, I do it all the time. Hey, Hanta, where's the bathroom?" He slowly blinked before processing what I had asked him.

"I'll show you, you three meet us up there when you're ready, yeah?" They all agreed and we walked upstairs, my friend showing me where to go as he got caught up talking to Hinata.

I did my business and came back out to see Hanta no longer looking cheerful, but stressed.

"What's up?" He shook his head but I nudged his arm in silent retaliation. "What's wrong?" He sighed and leaned against the wall.

"My mom just let me know that my tío and his new wife are coming to visit for a few days." I raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"So, what's the issue?"

"Issue one, they'll be here in a few hours. Issue two, he's kinda..."

"Not accepting?" He nodded grimly and looked to the floor stressed. "You want me to stay after the others head out? Run some sort of interference?"

"You don't gotta, I couldn't ask you to do that."

"Well you aren't asking, I offered. If you want I can text my parents and let them know. Only if you want me to though." He nodded and gave me a sad smile.

"Thank you." I held out my fist and received a fist bump.

"Course. Let's get this show on the road."

After an hour or two, Kirishima and Mina left, both of them having to go home early and catch the train back to Chiba. Denki left after a little while too, saying how he had to start packing so he wouldn't cram pack on the last night and forget something. So I sat on the couch with Hanta, his twin little sisters joining us. Hana, the one with her ears pierced, slowly came up to me with a curious look on her face.

"Hey kiddo." I greeted with a small smile, not wanting to scare either of them.

"Hi." She looked at her older brother and he gestured it was okay for her to ask whatever was on her mind. "Do you know how to braid hair?" I stifled a confused laugh and nodded.

"I do actually. Do you want me to braid your hair?" Her eyes lit up and she ran to grab what was needed. "Do you want me to braid your hair too, Hikari?"

"Yes please." She mumbled before running off to her sister.

"I didn't know you could braid hair."

"Ah, yeah, I learned after I got adopted. I lost my fidget cube one day and my Pops let me fidget with his hair. He got the bright idea I could braid it and pulled up a few videos for me to learn from." My friend laughed at my simplified story, the twins running back around the corner. "You two ready?" They happily nodded. "Should I do different braids to tell them apart easier?" I whispered to Sero who rapidly nodded. "Okay, who wants to go first?" Hikari plopped in front of me on the floor and I couldn't help but laugh before I started brushing through her hair.

It took probably fifteen minutes for each of them, but I gave Hikari two dutch braids and Hana two french braids.

"Thank you!" The two cheered together, Himari peaking into the living room in disbelief.

"You two look so pretty! Why don't you go show your dad?" The two skipped out of the room and Himari stood next to her son.

"Is tío bringing his kids?" Hanta asked, the subtle look of discomfort already on his face.

"No, they're staying at home with your tía, said they'll come next year." He sighed but nodded. "You should go get changed." Hanta glared at the ground.

"I'm not dressing like a girl for him, it's his problem if he can't get over himself." Himari sighed and rubbed his back.

"You know your tío just sees things differently."

"You two grew up together, your personality should have rubbed off on him." She huffed out a sad laugh at his statement. "I'm not dressing as a girl. I'm not putting myself through that." Himari nodded and gave him a side hug.

"Okay, but you two should still go get changed out of pajamas. They'll be here soon. I'll call you both down when they get here, okay?" Hanta nodded and I gave her a thumbs up before trekking up to his room. He already put his binder on earlier, so he changed comfortably in front of me. Opting for a graphic t-shirt, a zip up hoodie and joggers. I went for a thin, grey long sleeve and ripped jeans.

"You okay?" I asked him hesitantly and he sighed.

"Yeah. Just, not a fan of when he visits. It was more tolerable when he was still married to my tía or when he at least brought the kids, but I don't like his new wife. Plus he insists on using my deadname." I nodded along, easily keeping up.

"I'm sorry dude. If it gets too outta hand I can ask if you can crash at my house for a day or two." He looked at me in shock.

"Really?" I nodded and he sat down beside me on his bed. "Maybe, I think it might be awkward sleeping at my teachers house." I snorted, causing him to laugh as well.

"It's weird for me going to school and having all my family as teachers. Trust me, it fades after a while." He nodded and flopped back on his bed, I followed suit and we sat in a comfortable silence until we were called down. "You ready?" He sighed but stood up, not giving me a verbal answer.

(A/N: anything typed in bold from here on out is someone talking in spanish. i'm not trusting google translate to be right and that's a lot to copy and paste.)

Hanta and I awkwardly stood to the side as his uncle greeted all of his siblings. He looked almost nothing like Hanta's mom, for obvious reasons. A woman stood to the side, looking irked that none of the kids happily hugged her like they did their uncle. I saw a boy I didn't recognize and put together that he was Hanta's brother, Hiroshi.

"Hello Hitomi." His uncle said blandly and I repressed a visual cringe at the use of his deadname. Hanta didn't say anything, just stood kicked back against the wall with an indifferent look on his face. "It's rude to ignore people."

"And it's rude to disregard a simple request." His uncle sighed and shook his head before acknowledging me.

"Who's this?"

"I'm Tsukare Onryo." His eyes widened at my use of his native tongue, unprepared for me to respond.

"It's nice to meet you, Tsukare. I'm Antonio Garcia, Hitomi's uncle." My eyes narrowed as I looked at the ground. He beckoned his wife over, she looked pretty but I could already tell she was stuck up. "This is my wife, Valeria." I sent her a nod in acknowledgement. "How did you two meet?"

"He's one of my good friends, Hanta and I are in the same class at school." That singular sentence earned me a shocked looked from Hanta and two glares from the adults in front of me.

"Her name is Hitomi, and you will address her as such. She is a girl, despite any of the lies she's convinced you of." He vehemently exclaimed, a vein nearly bulging out of his neck.

"I won't. You aren't my father, and you aren't his. You have no authority over me, and you can stop trying to make a display because of your negative prerogative and judgement of Himari's parenting. If you have an issue with the respect and human decency I'm giving to one of my friends then you can challenge my parents on how they raised me." He glared at me before turning around and walking away with his wife. I turned to my friend who was starting to shake. I pulled him around the corner and hugged him. "You okay?" He nodded and hugged me tighter before letting go completely.

"I don't think anyone has told him off in a while." I laughed and nodded.

"Yeah. But hey, you say the word and we're outta here. Okay?" He nodded and eventually went and rejoined his family. The twins came up and sat between us, happily chatting away.

"What's in your ear?" Hana asked curiously.

"These are my hearings aids. My ears don't work too good, so they help 'em out. Y'know how earbuds work?" The two little girls nodded. "Well, they're kinda like that. But instead of getting the sounds from your phone or computer, it gets the sounds from the world." They lit up, enthusiastic at that.

"Can we see them?" I nodded and took my ears out, placing one in each of their open palms and watching closely as they held them. Hana handed my left one back first, Hikari going to do the same until their tío showed up behind them.

Hanta tapped me on the shoulder and pointed to the man who was glaring at me.

"Don't ignore me. What did you give them?" I put my left hearing aid back in and lightly grabbed the other one from Hikari before he could, watching as he went to reach for it.

"They're my hearing aids, Hana and Hikari were curious on what they were and wanted to see them." Antonio scoffed as I put my second one in.

"You're not deaf, those were earbuds. You're just attached to your phone like every other kid your age. It's disgusting that you would lie about something like that." I rolled my eyes, not wanting to deal with this.

"Kids, I know it's early but dinners ready. Come eat." Himari said as she popped her head into the living room, quickly leaving again.

We all sat at the table somehow. Hanta and I squished at the end corner, the twins beside me. His dad at the head with Hinata on his lap, his mom beside them, Antonio and Valeria across from us and Hiroshi at the end beside Hanta. Hanta checked his phone briefly, staring at the screen for a moment before he got scolded by his mom.

"Honey, no phones when we're eating. You know the rule." Hanta apologized under his breath and pocketed his phone, Antonio sending a look towards me.

"Tsukare. That means no earbuds as well. Take them out." He chided, thinking he had something on me.

"Oh don't be silly, Antonio. Those are his hearings aids. Speaking of those, how did you lose your hearing? Were you born deaf?" It took everything in me not to smirk so I took a bite of food instead to bide time.

"No, I was born with my hearing. About two months ago I lost over half of my hearing during our internships, then less than a month ago I lost a little more in my right ear from a classmate setting off a loud explosion with his quirk." Himari, Hiroto, Antonio and Valeria looked at me in disbelief. "In my left ear, I have about forty percent of my hearing and in my right I have about twenty percent."

"Oh goodness. I'm so sorry to hear that." Himari's eyes widened as she realized what she said and she tried to backpedal but I was laughing.

"It's okay! No need to apologize. I came to terms with it a long time ago. My quirk is sound based so I was expecting to lose it eventually." Himari sent me a soft smile and nod.

"Tsukare! Can I put one in my ear?" Hana asked cheerfully beside me, Hikari joining and asking as well.

"Sorry but they won't fit. They're a little too big for you, plus they were specially made to fit in my ear." They looked at me with wide eyes and dropped jaws, clearly amazed at that.

"Tsukare, you mentioned that your quirk is sound based and that could contribute to your hearing loss. Do you know of any genetic factors from your birth parents that might contribute to that?" Hiroto asked politely. Antonio looked confused but before he could ask, Hanta explained.

"Tsuka's adopted." Antonio glared at his nephew before aggressively eating more.

"I don't know much about them honestly, I mostly base it off of my dad since he has such a similar quirk." I explained, almost saying Pops out of habit but catching myself so I wouldn't run any risks.

"But he's not your real dad, is he?" Antonio asked sarcastically, earning a glare from half the table.

"He is my dad. My birth parents signed me away legally. So he is just as much of my dad as Hiroto is to any of his kids , unless you're also saying nobody here is really family to you, then you can take up that dull prerogative with everyone here." Antonio glared at me and went to speak but was cut off once more.

"How did you lose your hearing?" Hana asked curiously.

"Well, your big brother and I had to do these internships at school. That's why he was gone for a week a while ago. But, when I was on mine, I was following around Endeavour. We were walking down the street and a kid about your age came up and talked to us. I saw a car coming really really fast, so I scooped him up and got us out of the way. The car crashed into the building and there was a huge explosion. It was like it was right out of a movie!" Hana, Hikari and Hinata laughed at my over exemplified rendition of what happened, enjoying my mild theatrics and not realizing the actuality of it.

"That didn't actually happen. You don't have to lie to try and impress anyone." Valeria said, her voice alone making me want to snap at her.

"It did happen, I recorded it. It was on the news and everything." Hanta said with a smirk.

"I remember seeing that on the news, your hero name is Sonus, right?" Himari asked curiously to which I nodded.

"How are your grades Hitomi?" Antonio asked, obviously wanting to change the subject. Hanta ignored him, munching on his dinner. "Don't ignore me Hitomi. Answer the question." He still got silence.

"Hanta, answer his question." Hiroto said softly.

"Stop being delusional already. Her name is Hitomi, she is a girl. Don't fuel her idiocy." Antonio snapped. Himari looked around at the table and saw most of us were done.

"Kids, why don't you go play for a bit, yeah? We have to have a grown up talk." Hanta nudged me and gestured for me to follow him, all of the kids in front of us. My hand was on his back, rubbing soothing circles to try and ground him, until I felt him stop moving. One look behind me, I saw Antonio had his hand grasped firmly on Hanta's wrist. Immediately, I turned and yanked it off.

"Don't even think about that." I seethed, Antonio pausing as I properly snapped.

"Why are you filling the children's heads with these immoral acts? It's a disgrace. My nieces and nephews shouldn't have any part in this." Antonio yelled at his sister.

"Don't you talk to my wife like that in our own house." Hiroto snapped back, clearly just as fed up with this as the rest of us.

"I see why Antonio was worried about me coming, he warned me you two would act like this." Valeria said as if she had any input.

"You stay out of this, as far as I'm concerned, you're not apart of this family or this discussion." Hanta and I tried not to laugh at Himari's retort. "And you. Antonio, you have no right to come into our house and act like you run the place."

"Then do a better job. This is disgusting behavior that you should have put a stop to a long time ago. Hitomi, enough is enough. Stop this. Stop giving in to this sin already."

"His name is Hanta. It is that simple." Hiroto said calmly, so Hanta and I tried to slip out again. However Antonio grabbed his wrist once more. I grabbed his as well, yanking it off with a harsh tug.

"Hitomi, please. Stop this already. You're tearing our family apart." Antonio pleaded and went to take a step forward but I stood between him and Hanta.

"You're not going near him. You're going to shut your mouth and you're going to listen. You have no right to try and manhandle him and yank him around like that because you're throwing a bigger temper tantrum then Hinata. You can cry 'sin' all you want but let's face the truth. By the sounds of it, you're christian or catholic, so let's make a few things clear. It is not a sin. Because your God is about love and acceptance. You want to talk about sin? Fine. Then in the eyes of your God, you're a sinner. To him you would be an adulterous, judgmental man with no morals or ethics. To him, you did one of the big no-no's, you got a divorce and got remarried. You also have constantly been doing another no-no, you've been judging him. As far as I'm concerned, he's more of a man then you will ever be. He is kind and compassionate, he is trustworthy, patient, respectful. So Hanta and I are going to leave the kitchen now and you are not going to touch him." Antonio froze at my tangent, Hanta and I walking out and immediately to his room.

"Hey, you o-" he tackled me in a hug and I slowly hugged him back, "-kay..?"

"Thank you." I heard a small sniffle from him and held him tighter.

"Of course. I got your back." He nodded and let go, rushing to pack his bag.

I texted my parents to ask, thankfully Pops responded saying it was okay for him to stay the night. A small tap on the door grabbed our attention, Hiroshi slowly coming in.

"Hey." He mumbled. Hanta immediately dried his eyes and waved.

"Hey kiddo." My friend responded.

"Can I ask you something?" Hiroshi asked while he looked at me. I pointed at myself to be sure and he nodded.

"Sure. What's up?" He chewed on his bottom lip for a moment, gesturing for Hanta to cover his ears, so he did.

"Do you think.. Do you think Hi- H- Hanta thinks I'm like Tío Antonio?" I shook my head and crouched down to his level from where he sat on Hanta's bed.

"No, not at all. Because Hanta knows you don't like change. And he knows you're trying your best despite that. It takes time and change is hard enough to begin with." He nodded and stared at his hands. "What about change scares you so much?"

"I don't like uncertainty. I like to know what's going on." I gave him a lopsided smile.

"Which is why you were eavesdropping?" He blushed from embarrassment and nodded. "Well, there's a few things I'm certain about. I know Hanta cares about his family because he carries just about everything in his backpack that might be needed for when he goes outside with you or his friends. I know he loves being your big brother. I know he's a goofball. But I am one hundred and ten percent certain, that he loves all of you, despite the hiccups and mistakes, because he knows you're trying and putting in an effort. And I know he isn't mad at you at all." Hiroshi nodded slowly and gave me a small side hug before standing up and tackling Hanta in one.

"Love you dude." He mumbled into Hanta's chest once his older brother moved his hands.

"I love you too." Hanta mumbled back into his younger brother's hair before he left the room. "What did you two talk about?"

"I'll explain later, we should head back to my place." He nodded and we went downstairs, his mom coming out of the kitchen looking stressed.

"I'm gonna sleep at Tsukare's tonight." Himari nodded and hugged him. She turned to me and I bowed.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted in your household earlier." She gave me a soft smile and a hug once I stood back up.

"Don't apologize. I'm glad my son has friends like you. And Hanta, text me when you get to his house please. We'll talk more about everything when you come home." Hanta nodded and they bid their goodbyes.

"That was the first time he hugged me on his own terms since I came out." Hanta told me as we walked down my street, the train ride draining both of us almost as much as his uncle.

"Really?"

"Yeah. What'd you say to get him to do that?"

"Just told him the truth. That change is scary but you love him and you know he's trying and that even though change is scary, you can tell he's been trying anyways." He gave me a soft smile and a pat in the back before we walked into my house. "Dad! Pops! I'm home and I have Hanta with me!" I called out as we took our shoes off. Dad walked past the entryway with a mug of coffee.

"Hello. Did you have fun?" He asked me. I looked at Sero and we both laughed. "Oh no." Dad sighed and took another sip of his coffee. "Should I ask?"

"Maybe later. Where's Pops and Toshi?"

"Pops is taking a shower and Hitoshi is taking a nap." I nodded and guided Sero through the house. "Sero, are you allergic to cats?" My friend shook his head right before Mittens came up and started rubbing against his legs.

"That's Mittens, and that," I pointed to our other cat in her cat tree, "that's Spots. They won't scratch or anything if you pick them up." He nodded and slowly picked up Mittens, cradling her to his chest.

"Sero." He looked up at Dad's voice. "I take it he knows?" Sero paused for a moment before nodding. "Alright. I expect you to take your binder off tonight. Onryo and Hitoshi both have spare hoodies if you would like one, if those don't fit then you can ask either me or Mic. Understood?" Sero sighed and nodded.

"Yes, sir."

"I forgot he would know. Which.. wait, holy shit. Dad do you think that means All Might knows?" His eyebrows furrowed in confusion before the realization dawned on him.

"If he read his file, then yes. He clearly didn't think ahead about his actions and potentially turning the countries future heroes against him." I chuckled under my breath.

"Yeah. Still don't know why Izuku idolizes him so much." Dad shrugged but Sero looked a little lost. "I'll explain later." My friend nodded and Pops walked into the living room.

"Hey little listeners, do you have fun at Sero's house?" Pops asked, the two of us laughing again. "Oh gods. Sho, should I ask?"

"I don't even know, that's up to you." Pops looked worried for a moment and asked.

"My uncle came to town with his new wife and he's not accepting or anything. It didn't go too well and Tsukare said some things." My parents each raised an eyebrow to me.

"I may or may not have snapped and told him that he was a sinner for being an adulterous, judgmental man with no morals or ethics and Hanta's more of a man then he'll ever be." Pops slowly started cackling, keeling over in fits of laughter while Dad just smirked. Hanta pulled out his phone and showed me the message his mom sent about how they kicked his uncle and his new wife out. I fist pumped the air. "Yes! Now I don't have to threaten him with Pops!" This piqued my parents interest and I clamped my mouth shut.

"Uh, he tried getting physical. Tsuka pulled his hand off before he could do any real damage and stood between us." Pops immediately pulled me into a hug.

You are so lucky you didn't get hurt.

I know Pops. But I couldn't just stand there and see how far he would take it. The furthest he got was grabbing Hanta's wrist.

"These next two and a half years are going to be torturous with how you and Midoriya like to handle things." I sent Dad a wide smile and two thumbs up, the anxiety slowly dissipating as Hanta and I settled in for the night.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 35

Warnings: It's a rollercoaster of emotions and basically every warning used up to this point applies to this chapter Word count: 5394

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts Rayquaza is Midoriya's contact name Jangmo-o is Mic's contact

Masterlist

Volt 34 | Volt 36

I stood outside of the police station nervously after taking the first train I could back home. After calling Pops back and sitting on the phone with Toshi for half the train ride, I still wasn't ready to face my fears. But I was ready to get some answers.

I slowly made my way in, the person at the desk directing me to my family. The three of them surging up at the sight of me, my parents pulled me into a hug and my brother gave me a separate one before rifling through his pockets for his phone.

"I like the change in style, little listener. It looks great." Pops said with a proud smile on his face.

"Thanks.. Mina made me wear it. I think I might like my sweaters better though." Dad chuckled and ruffled my hair.

We sat there for twenty more minutes before Tsukauchi came out, the detective looking exhausted and worn out.

"Eraser, Mic, we can't get her to talk and I hate to ask this but-"

"I'll do it." Everyone looked at me baffled. "It's pretty obvious what you were going to ask. So I'll do it if you need me to but I have questions for her. She might be the only one who can give me those answers. If me talking to her means we can get a restraining order renewed faster or something done sooner, then I'll do it." The room soon became more glum and dreadful, Tsukauchi silently asking my parents approval before he nodded.

"Okay, but first I have to tell you what to expect so you aren't going in blind." I nodded and stared at my feet. "She just got here today after being in the hospital for detox, so she may be irritable and frustrated. Her mood might flip on a dime. She's in there with a lawyer right now, a public defense attorney, he'll probably tell her not to answer certain things but it's okay to push. Your family and I will be right behind the glass at all times so if at any point you want to leave, say the word and you're done in there." I nodded along and took a deep shaky breath. "Is there anything you need before we do this?" I fiddled with my bag and found my panic attack meds, taking two quickly as a preventative before setting my bag down.

"I'm ready." Tsukauchi laughed under his breath and nodded. The five of us walked down a few hallways before stopping outside of a door. An officer opened the door and waited for me to be inside before shutting and locking it, I shakily made my way to the open chair across from two adults.

"Really? They're so desperate they sent in a kid?" The attorney scoffed but all I could feel were Shiroka's eyes on me.

"Baby? What are you doing here? Oh you look great, I've missed you Onryo. When will you come home?" I bit back the wave of nausea, disgusted by her sickly sweet tone.

"I have questions that my Dads can't answer. You're the only one who can. I can answer some of your questions too, I don't know how helpful they'll be to you, but I want answers." Shiroka nodded frantically, her appearance being similar to a skeleton.

"Yes, yes I'll answer what I can. Oh I've just missed you so much." I ducked my head down, not wanting to jeopardize using my quirk on accident, until I felt it turn off.

"Who even are you, kid?" The man who was balding asked, clearly already annoyed with my presence alone.

"My name is Tsukare Onryo. She's my birth mother." The man looked at me wide eyed and at a loss for words. "Why did you give me up?" Shiroka looked at me wide eyed for a moment this time before collecting herself.

"I wasn't in a good place, your father left me and I wouldn't have been able to care for you the way a mother should." I cringed at the words, not liking the titles she gave to strangers who contributed to me being alive.

"How did you get our address a few years ago?" I made sure to keep my voice relaxed, not wanting to accidentally set her off and have this all be for nothing.

"Don't answer that." The attorney chided but Shiroka ignored him.

"I talked to a lady that used to run the foster center and she had some things to say about the people that adopted you, I took that as a bad sign. I just knew I had to get you out there and bring you home safe. She gave me the address really quick." I took a shaky breath, thankful that I took my medication before this.

"Do you have any questions for me, before I ask more?" This seemed to catch her attention, her eyes practically twinkling.

"Why do you have so many doctors? Is everything okay?" That piqued my interest, knowing that that was in fact illegal and a HIPAA violation.

"I was born with a common heart problem, so once every few years the cardiologist likes go check that everything is still running smooth. I have ADHD, and the doctors like to check that my attention is as well as it can be. I have my pediatrician like everyone else. I have a doctor for my ears. And I've been in and out of hospitals for a bunch of different things.. but you already knew all of that." Her eyes widened larger than Australia, an undeniable reaction. "If you knew where I was for the first eight years of my life, why wait until I was in a stable home after being legally adopted to try and see me? Let alone try to kidnap me and then follow me places?"

"I just wanted my baby back, a mothers instincts are one of the strongest things out there after all." I rested my forearms on the table, leaning against them and having them slightly bent, but she still saw. She practically lunged forward and I instinctively pushed back out of her reach. "What happened? Who did that to you?" I took a shaky breath and let it out of my chest, fighting to keep myself grounded.

"This happened from me developing an unhealthy coping mechanism to cope with middle school bullies and being stalked every time I set foot outside. Most of the other scars on my body are from all of the horrible foster homes I went to before I was taken in by my dads. Do you have any other questions for me?" She sniffled and took a shaky breath, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"How's U.A. treating you?"

"It's amazing, all of the teachers treat me like family and I've made a lot of friends so far." She nodded with a smile.

"Will you finally come home?" I shook my head, fearful for her reaction. "Why? Please honey, I'm sorry that I've messed up. I'll do better just come home baby."

"I'm done with questions right now. However, one thing that I've learned is how to read people. It's a really good trick I've learned. So let me tell you what I've put together in our almost fifteen minute conversation and you can tell me if I'm right or wrong. You've gathered personal information illegally, along with gathering my medical records illegally which is a HIPAA violation. You haven't been able to stop looking at me because I presumably share a large resemblance to my birth father, along with his quirk. The only other reason you might be staring this much is because of the scar on my face and if that's the case then that's just rude. After you heard of who my parents are, you probably did some research to try and dig up something bad so you could petition to get me removed until you realized they were both squeaky clean pro heroes who teach at a prestigious school.

"So then you went with grander measures, you forced your way into our home, tried to take me, and when that failed you opted to following me around outside whenever you could. After the first restraining order was filed, you kept your distance and started watching me from the minimum distance you could legally be near me once you figured out that loophole until it's time was up and it expired two weeks ago. You saw me on the news and showed up in Hosu and tried to get your way into my hospital room for the second time. You say you care and you love me but you don't have that maternal instinct, if you did you never would have put me in the system to begin with when you know just how horrible it is.

"Your financial instability however, would've gotten me revoked either way but the icing on the cake was you chose drugs over what was supposed to be your child. You used drugs while pregnant with me and, I'm guessing from your appearance, you have a new vice. This tells me the first time you tried getting clean is when you showed up to my house almost three years ago." I took a deep breath and stood up. "Now, attorney person, I'm sure that I, a high school student, won't have to explain to you what position Shiroka has put herself in. Shiroka, I know it will hurt to hear this but you aren't my mom, because a mom would never have let her child go through what I did. I hope you realize that if you went about this differently then you might have had a chance at being apart of my life in a positive way. You might have been involved after you showed up, but you ruined any chance of that happening a long time ago." The door opened and once I set foot outside of the stuffy room, I allowed the first tear to fall. My parents immediately pulled me into a hug, Hitoshi joining in as well.

"You did great, Onryo. You did an amazing job." My dad mumbled to me before I started sobbing, everything that just happened sinking in. I clung onto my family desperately, finding temporary solace in their embraces.

It took about ten minutes for the tears to stop falling, hiccups punched their way out of my body and the shaking slowly stopped. I turned towards the glass, completely tuned out from what was being said in there but from how it looked, the attorney was clearly stressed about something. Our parents lead us over to some chairs, Hitoshi and I sitting down until Tsukauchi came over to us. The detective crouched down in front of me, his forearms resting on his knees as he looked up at me.

"Tsukare, you did an amazing job back there. You should be very proud of yourself, I know your family is." I swallowed nervously, not liking where this was going.

"But it wasn't enough, was it?" Tsukauchi shook his head solemnly and I willed myself not to cry out of pure frustration. "So what's gonna happen?" I tried to keep up my cheerful act, not wanting anyone outside of my family see me hurting. Even the officers gave us space in the hallway earlier.

"Her attorney is trying to make a deal. Extended restraining order in exchange for information. So far it's looking to go in her favor." I nodded and put a small smile on my face.

"At least somethings getting done, right?" Tsukauchi let out a sad laugh with a nod.

"Something will get done in the end. And if hero work doesn't work out for you in the future, try your luck as an interrogator. I've been doing this for years and not many people are that naturally gifted with that ability. And if going pro works out for you, I look forward to working with you and your brother." I gave him a quick nod and he stood up, bidding his farewells to us before retreating down the hallway again. I felt three sets of curious eyes on me, but I shrugged them off, knowing it was just out of concern.

"I'll be okay. Just processing it all." It was painfully obvious none of them believed me. I held my head in my hand, now realizing how bright the light really was in the station while a dull ache started spreading through my head. "Can I go home?" I asked quietly, completely drained after the days events. Our parents nodded and we left as soon as possible.

The whole car ride home I was lost in thought, I didn't notice if anyone was talking to me or talking at all. I just stared out the window and watched the buildings rush past until we pulled into the driveway.

As if I were on autopilot, as soon as I got inside, I beelined to the kitchen and started making the only thing that could bring me happiness right now.

Peppermint hot chocolate with whipped cream on top.

I ignored all sets of eyes on me as I made my way to my room with my drink, both cats trailing behind up the stairs and to my bed. I took my hearing aids out and set them up on their charger, changed into sweats and a hoodie, wrapped myself up in two soft and fuzzy blankets and watched random videos on my laptop.

I don't know how much time had passed, but enough for my computer to lose over half of its battery and my drink to be mostly gone and cold. I did get confused when I got a text from Pops, his designated vibration pattern alerting my senses.

From Jangmo-o: Hey little listener, are you awake?

To Jangmo-o: Yeah, Mittens and Spots are sleeping though

From Jangmo-o: Can I come in?

From Jangmo-o: If you still want some space and alone time that's okay too, I just wanted to check in on you

To Jangmo-o: Yeah you can come in

I set my phone down and watched Pops poke his head into my room which earned me a sad smile. He was in his house wear, a baggy t-shirt, joggers, his regular glasses and his hair pulled back in a bun. He gestured to the bed and I nodded, the blond adult gently sat down on my bed a little bit away from my feet.

How are you holding up?

Just tired and kind of out of it. But I'll be alright.

It sucks though, and you're allowed to be upset and angry about it, okay?

I know. I think I'm just still processing all of it.

That's okay. Y'know, I remember when I first met my birth parents.

How did it go?

Well, I met them when I was probably about eighteen or nineteen. Sho and I brought them over to our first apartment, and it didn't go as well as we were hoping. I finally got to ask the questions you did and they told me they gave me up because they wanted a girl, then said with my long hair and the fact I was happily engaged to your Dad I might as well be one if it weren't for the parts I was born with. I asked them if they wanted to be apart of my life at all and they got really quiet and told me no and that they gave me up for a reason. They said they were happy that I reached out but after seeing the lifestyle I chose, they didn't want to see me anymore unless I changed. I was about ready to cry until Sho kicked them out and said a few choice words. We got our first noise complaint because of him shouting at them.

You got a noise complaint because Dad was yelling? That's out of character for him.

Yeah, it is. Not nearly as chaotic and nerve racking as yours, but it wasn't great.

I nodded and he looked hesitant to ask something. He stared at the comforter on my bed intensely until I nudged him slightly.

What's up?

I've been wanting to ask you and Hitoshi this for a while now. I asked him about it earlier, but Sho and I have been talking and figured it might be worth mentioning. Do you want to find out who your birth dad is and meet him if possible? We won't be offended if you do, you and your brother will always be our sons no matter what, but from going through it myself and your Dad watching me go through it, we know how important it is to some kids that went through the system to meet their birth parents. Some have no interest in it, but others crave it.

Honestly, I haven't even really put much thought into finding out who he is, let alone meeting him. There's too many unknown factors right now, so I don't know yet.

Okay. Well if you decide just let us know, no matter what it is. Alright?

I will. Has Toshi made up his mind yet?

I don't think so. Are you two going to have one of your brother talks tonight?

You know about those?

Of course we do, we should probably lecture you about your sleeping habits but it's not going to change anything. Sho and I know how hard it is to sleep sometimes, but as long as you two are safe, we aren't mad.

What gave it away that we have our late night talks?

Well, the one time I went to the bathroom and heard you go into his room but the smell of coffee gives it away on the nights your Dad doesn't have patrol.

No wonder you're a pro hero.

The comment made him laugh a little, making me smile in turn. Being able to make people smile makes a lot of things worth it.

Is there any reason in particular you took your ears out?

I chewed on my lip and nodded, knowing my answer would worry him but also knowing him and Dad want the truth from me.

Sometimes the silence is better. It makes everything feel calmer even though I'm stressed. Being in the quiet feels nice once in a while.

I get it. That's why I take them out for lazy Sundays. It's calming once in a while.

I nodded, glad that he understood and leaned forward for a somewhat hug. My head rested on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around me, tugging me close to him. He rubbed soft circles on my back and just held me for a moment. After a minute or two, he gave me a kiss on top of my head and left my room, I took a minute to check my phone seeing multiple messages.

From Espeon: Bro talk tonight?

From Boldore: Hey bro, everything okay?

From Pikachu: Hey

From Scraggy: Hey Tsuka, how're you holding up?

From Venomoth: Hey Tsukababes!

From Rayquaza: Hey Onryo, Hitoshi filled me in on what happened today.. Are you okay?

Tsukababes Pokémon

(Boldore - Kirishima, Venomoth - Mina, Scraggy - Sero, Pikachu - Kaminari, Whismur - Tsukare)

From Venomoth: Has anyone heard from Tsukababes? I tried texting him but I haven't heard anything

From Boldore: No, I tried texting him too

From Scraggy: Same here

From Pikachu: Me too, do you guys think he's okay?

From Scraggy: I hope he is

From Venomoth: I texted his brother asking if he was okay and he said he hasn't come out of his room yet so he might be taking a nap

From Boldore: Maybe he is, I mean, if I had to go for a family emergency I'd probably stress nap

From Pikachu: I don't know guys, I'm really worried about him

From Venomoth: Kami, we all know why you're worried ;)

From Pikachu: Not the time Min, I'm serious :/

My heart sank as I read all the texts, I felt horrible knowing I worried everyone when I put my phone on silent, the only reason I saw Pops' text being that he's an emergency contact so he has emergency bypass.

To Espeon: Yes please, Pops talked to me a little bit ago

To Rayquaza: Hey Izu, I'm doing better, sorry for the late response I had my phone on silent

Tsukababes Pokémon

From Whismur: Hey guys, I'm sorry for worrying all of you

From Whismur: My phone was on silent, I'm really sorry

From Venomoth: TSUKABABES!!!

From Boldore: BRO!!!

From Scraggy: How are you holding up Tsuka?

From Whismur: I'm alright, just kinda meh and out of it

From Pikachu: How did it go with Shiroka?

From Boldore: Who's Shiroka?

From Whismur: She's my birth mom.

From Whismur: And it was fine, just more legal stuff

I locked my phone and tossed it on my bed, already somewhat drained with talking about it. I turned back to my laptop, ready to hit play on the paused video until a video call started coming through from Denki. Confused, I answered and quickly asked him to wait a moment so I could get my hearing aids in.

"Hey." I said awkwardly, still confused about to impromptu call. The blond sat on the other end playing a video game, sitting back in his gaming chair and I couldn't help but notice his hair mostly pulled back into a small ponytail and enunciating his jawline.

"Hey!" He said with a bright smile.

"Uh, what's up?" I asked hesitantly.

"I wanted to see how you were doing. You went MIA for a few hours and saw Shiroka. After last time.. I was worried." His voice grew soft towards the end, heavily showing just how concerned he was.

"I'll be okay." I told him with a small smile on my face. He looked off put for a moment before speaking again.

"So what happened?" I rearranged my area to buy some time but to also get more comfortable. I sat up straight in my bed and moved my laptop in front of me more.

"She got arrested." He paused his game and turned towards his camera completely.

"I'm gonna add Sero if that's okay." I nodded and watched the screen split before he joined.

"Hey Tsuka, you doing alright?" I nodded again and he looked slightly relieved. "Not mad that I was added, but why was I added?"

"Onryo was about to fill me in and since you're the only other one who knows about Shiroka I figured you might wanna be here so he wouldn't have to explain everything all over again." Sero hummed in understanding and asked what happened.

"She was arrested and my parents called me down to the station." Sero's eyes looked ready to jump out of his head.

"Woah." He slumped back at the news and ran a hand through his black hair. "What was she arrested for?"

"She got a few charges. The initial one was stalking followed by a harassment charge because when I was in the hospital in Hosu, she showed up and from what I was told, had to be dragged out." The two looked at me in shock and I anxiously fiddled with my fingers as I worked on getting the next slew of words out. "When they arrested her, she got charged with possession and drug misuse. So she had to detox in the hospital before they brought her in." The mood grew somber from the two and I started beating myself up for causing that shift in the atmosphere. "It's okay. I finally asked her what I wanted to, so I guess going there was worth it." I told them with a small smile, hoping it could be convincing enough.

"How come you went in to talk to her if she wasn't in a cell? They allowed that?" Denki asked, confusion written all over his face. So I explained everything for the most part, why I went in there, that she's getting a deal, and that I'll probably have to make an appearance in court.

"Are you sure you're doing okay, hermano?" I nodded quickly at Sero's question, wanting to erase all of his concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I hoped that my smile helped ease any of their worries. They shouldn't have to worry about me. Sero looked like he wanted to say something but ghost attention got redirected to his door.

"¡Baja en un minuto! Sorry, I have to go eat dinner. I'll see you both tomorrow. Text or call me if either of you need something." We both gave him a thumbs up but his comment struck an odd chord with me.

'Why would he say that to both of us?'

"Are you sure you're okay?" I nodded with a smile.

"Yeah, it's just been a weird day." He looked like he wanted to say something but didn't. "Sorry again, for worrying you guys. I didn't mean to."

"You don't have to apologize, it's okay!" He gave me a bright smile, the gesture contagious and making me smile as well.

"Alright.. What game are you playing?" He looked at the other screen and back at me before he started rambling.

His voice alone brought me comfort, let alone hearing him ramble about something. It was cute, listening to him go on about something that gave him joy. He talked for a good twenty minutes before he awkwardly smiled and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Sorry.. I was rambling, huh?" I giggled and nodded.

"Yeah but it's okay. I- uh, it's relaxing." He gave me a playful smile.

"Nope, what were you going to say? Hmm?" I rolled my eyes jokingly at his teasing.

"I don't know what you're talking about." It was his turn to roll his eyes as he kicked back in his chair.

"C'mon, Onryo. I wanna know." I sighed and gave in, ducking me head slightly in hopes of hiding the blush that was working its way onto my face.

"I was gonna say that I like hearing you talk. But it is relaxing, you rambling about stuff, it's easy to keep up with." He smirked and turned his head but I could've sworn I saw him blushing.

"Do you want me to keep talking about stuff?" I nodded bashfully before he started talking about miscellaneous things again.

I tried my hardest not to stare and if he caught me then he didn't mention it, thankfully sparing me the embarrassment. But I have to remind myself that he's just a flirt. I've seen him flirt with Jirou and Momo, I've seen him check out a few people in our class. I have to get my feelings in check and push them down so I don't get hurt.

After a quiet dinner on my end and talking to Denki for a while until he fell asleep on the phone, I made coffee and met my brother in his room. Both Spots and Mittens already in there and Toshi with his array of blankets.

I take it Dad and Pops talked to you too?

I nodded slightly, still trying to wrap my head around it.

Yeah. What do you think about it?

I don't know. I don't know who either of my birth parents are and what if they turn out psycho? I don't know if I'm ready to know why they gave me up. What about you?

My file from the center has my birth dads name blank. He didn't sign my birth certificate either. So the only ways to go about it is question Shiroka again or doing a DNA test and finding out he's a criminal or dead. I already went through the freak show once with Shiroka, I don't know if I want to chance it again.

I don't blame you for that. Mine was a closed case though, so I don't know if it's even possible for me to find out. What do you think I should do?

I think if you have even an ounce of curiosity, or you want to ask them the questions I got to ask Shiroka, then go for it. If you want to know, Dad and Pops won't get mad. Pops went through the same thing with Dad by his side. What do you think I should do?

He thought for a moment, hands stilling in front of him.

I think the same thing you told me. And Onryo? I tilted my head to the side and hummed. If I meet them, can you be there? I know Dad and Pops would want to but if I meet them, two heroes in the room might scare them and I don't think I would be able to do it alone.

Of course. If I meet him, will you come too?

He nodded and we nursed our coffee. The cats also earning some well earned head scratches.

"Come in." Hitoshi said and I looked to the door curiously. The instinct to cover my arms slipping into my brain as I wore a muscle tank making me freeze for a moment before I relaxed.

Pops peaked his head in and sat on the bed beside me. His glasses on and hair messily tied out of his face.

"Just checkin' in, everything alright?" He asked, signing as he spoke. I nodded and Hitoshi did as well. "I'm sorry for springing the heavy question on you two listeners earlier. I probably should've waited."

It's okay, Pops. We were actually just talking about that.

"I figured as much. Either of you reach a decision or still thinking on it?"

Still thinking on it, but if either or both of us choose to, we decided that we would go together. Figured that you and Dad being there with one of us might overwhelm people a bit.

He laughed a little and bowed his head.

"Fair point, little listener."

Pops?

"What's up, Ryo?"

How did you know that you wanted to meet your birth parents?

"Well, my adoption story is a little different than yours."

"Can we hear about it?" Toshi asked before I got the chance. Pops looked shocked for a moment before the soft smile fell on his face again and he got comfortable.

"Alright, so like both of you, I was in and out of some pretty bad foster homes. I didn't get adopted until I was almost sixteen. As soon as I graduated I was forced to move out, so your Dad and I got our first apartment together. My adoptive parents aren't the worst but they have their views and grew up in a different time yada yada. Part of the reason you haven't met them is because they've made it clear that they love me but not that I'm married to Sho. And I don't want you two facing that negativity. But for a while, I wanted to at least know who my birth parents were. Curiosity and all. When I moved out though, I started thinking about it and finally did some digging after a while with the help of your Dad. It didn't go well by any means, but it helped to finally get some answers." I let what he told us sink in, absorbing his words.

Thank you, Pops.

He nodded and gave each of us a kiss on the head.

"I hope that helped at least a little." Toshi and I both nodded. "I'm going to go to bed now. Both of you try to get at least a little sleep before school, alright?" We agreed to his request and he gave us each a hug and ruffled our messes of hair. "Good night, I love you both."

I love you too.

"Love you too, Pops."

He left the room and gently shut the door behind him, my brother and I turning back to each other.

Do you know what you want to do?

Yeah. Do you?

No.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 5

Warnings: Descriptions of past abuse, Tsukare has a small panic attack, mentions of child abuse Word count: 1920

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 4 | Volt 6

After a long four hours at the mall and sixteen bags brought home, two of the three were exhausted. Yamada and Aizawa bought Onryo plenty of new clothes, new bedding, new knickknacks, shoes, art and music supplies, some books per the child's request, a new backpack and other miscellaneous items. When the three were unpacking all the bags and organized what needed to be, Aizawa noticed Onryo was particularly protective of his bed and not letting the two anywhere near it without a watchful eye.

"Can I sit down real quick?" The child hesitated at his question but slowly nodded. "I wanted to ask you something." His heart weighed down at the fearful look on his sons face. "You're not in trouble, I just wanted to ask you something. Are you hiding something from us? You've been really protective of your bed and you don't have to tell us what it is, we just want to make sure you're safe and it's nothing that might hurt you."

It's just my really important stuff. The other kids would try and take them sometimes so I keep it hidden. Sometimes other foster parents would take them if I broke a rule.

"We won't take them from you, it's your stuff little listener. If you want you can show us so we know not to touch them." Tsukare took a shaky breath before getting on the floor and crawling under his bed, retrieving a small box. He sat on the floor, holding the box tightly in his lap before opening it.

Aizawa joined the two on the floor, silently jovial about Onryo opening up so soon. He watched quietly as the box was placed between the three, allowing his kid to go at his own pace and comfortability. First, he pulled out a rare Present Mic trading card, a small blush of embarrassment on his face.

I always looked up to you because you have a sound quirk like me.

Yamada melted a little at this, not expecting his kid to look up to him that much. He tucked his knees to his chest with a soft smile on his face to try and hide his giddiness.

The next item he pulled out was a card and a chain necklace with a ring on it.

My birth mom left this for me when I was born. Apparently the ring is an heirloom or something.

He then pulled out a tattered, string bracelet, clearly heavily worn and cherished.

This was from one of the kids at the center before he got aged out. He was one of the only other kids who learned sign language for me and treated me like family. He gave me the trading card, too.

Next, he pulled out a small compass on a chain. It looked like it had been scorched at some point and the heroes minds immediately went to the worst possibility.

This one is from a stranger. I got lost in one of the big neighborhoods after running away once. He had a lot of scars and was kinda scary but he was nice. He gave me this so I wouldn't get lost again, it didn't really work but he tried.

Finally, he picked out a fidget cube. An odd find but clearly something valuable to him.

This one I use a lot, it helps me focus on things when I need to. It's also really fun.

The two were touched, knowing he was already starting to trust them.

"Thank you for showing us, Onryo. If you want to put them somewhere out in the open, we'll make sure not to touch them." He nodded slowly, putting his treasures back in his box for the time being but setting it on his bed side table now. "We wanted to ask you something else and remember, you don't have to do this if you aren't comfortable." Rather than concerned, he looked perplexed at Aizawa's precursor to his question. "Hizashi was in the same foster center that you were when he was a kid, and after today and seeing they haven't changed, he wants to file a police report against Kasumi. Would you want to give a statement and potentially provide evidence?" Tsukare's mind was flooded with different questions and scenarios, not knowing what path to choose. It was up to him but he felt lost and confused.

They sat in silence for a few minutes as he thought, clearly weighing his options diligently and heavily, something both heroes admired, respected but were also concerned about.

I'll do it.

——————

A few days passed, the heroes wanting to give some time to Tsukare to adjust before meeting Tsukauchi. Thankfully, the young detective is allowing the questioning to happen in the safety of their home rather than the police station or hospital.

"Hi Tsukare, I'm Tsukauchi, it's nice to meet you. Would you rather sign and have one of them interpret, or do you feel comfortable talking?" The young detective asked softly as they sat in the living room. Onryo looked to Aizawa in a way of searching for permission and receiving a singular nod in response.

"I- I'll talk." The three adults smiled softly, proud of the child in front of them.

"Alright, if talking gets to be too much you can switch over to sign whenever you'd like. You call the shots today kiddo, the second you say you're done or you just want a break, we stop. Okay? And is it alright with you if I record this to take back to the station?" Onryo nodded again, consistently using his fidget cube to keep himself grounded. "Alright, so Eraser and Mic have already given me some stuff, they gave me a copy of your file and copies of your medical reports from when you were in the foster center. Can you tell me who was in charge?"

"Kasumi, she's an old lady with grey hair always back in a bun, tiny rectangle glasses, and uh, she had a weird thing with bugs and stuff." His voice was barely above a whisper, keeping his head down so he didn't risk accidentally using his quirk. It only happened if he looked at people he realized.

"That is weird, Tsukare can you tell me how she treated you when you were at the foster center?"

"She didn't like me, if I spoke too much or accidentally used my quirk, she would put a weird thing on my face that held my tongue really tight. Sh-She would let other kids hurt me, sometimes they'd lie and say I used my quirk when I didn't just so she would put the thing on me." Yamada listened to his son intently, similar memories vividly instilled in his brain now repeating while Aizawa held his hand.

"Did it look something like this?" Tsukauchi held up an evidence bag with the muzzle in it, watching Tsukare's reaction. He curled back into the couch with wide, teary eyes, the worst thought coming into mind. He confirmed it with a nod, his breath getting caught in his throat while fear completely consumed him.

I need a break.

Thankfully, while Mic looked away, his husband kept a close eye on their child.

"He needs a break." Tsukauchi nodded and paused the recording device on the table, guilt filling him while he watched the kid panic.

A tear rolled down Tsukare's cheek as he feared getting muzzled again. The detective left the room, giving the new family a moment to recoup before they continued.

"Onryo, hey you're alright." Aizawa tried to soothe him but realized this was a little out of his expertise.

Please don't let him put it on me, dad. I was good, I didn't use my quirk! I promise!

Mic got off the couch and crouched in front of him, hoping that getting on his level would help. Aizawa was too concerned to even notice that one of them was already called 'dad' for the first time.

Hey, hey, hey, little listener, breathe. Nobody is going to put that thing on you ever again. I know it's scary seeing it again, but it'll never be on you again. I promise. So let's breathe, calm down a bit and go from there. Okay? With a sniffle and another tear, Onryo nodded and took a deep, shaky breath.

After half an hour of consoling back rubs, fingers running through topaz curls, and reassuring words, Tsukare was ready to talk again.

"I'm sorry Tsukare, I should've brought a picture rather than the actual thing. Are you feeling alright?" He nodded once, not completely soothed from earlier but still substantially better. "Are you feeling alright to continue?" The kid nodded again, destressing largely with his fidget while Tsuchauchi started recording again. "Okay, would Kasumi do anything else to hurt you?" He slowly nodded his head and swallowed the lump in his throat.

"S-Sometimes she wouldn't let me come out of my bedroom, or I wouldn't be allowed to eat. She w-would always tell me nobody would want me and if other kids hurt me she didn't care. Sometimes she would hurt me, b-but not a lot." Tsukare slid a little closer to Mic, subconsciously finding comfort in the blond.

"And how would they hurt you?"

"One day she was really mad at me and bumped me down the stairs, I broke my ankle. Sometimes she would slap me or kick me. The other kids would hit me more then her though. Some of my old foster parents would use b-belts and stuff." Aizawa grimaced at the thought, memories now resurfacing for him from his own gruesome childhood.

"How old were you when she broke your ankle?"

"Uh, six." Tsukauchi nodded, not quite understanding why the eight year old wouldn't meet his eye but he shrugged it off as general shyness.

"Alright. Thank you, Tsukare. I'm gonna talk to these two in the kitchen for a moment then I'll be out of your hair." The parents followed the detective to the kitchen, both awaiting what his news could be.

"Okay, so everything matches, which is good for the case. The hard part is going to be getting a court mandate because almost none of those kids are of legal age to talk without an adult. I might be able to get her out of there with this alone but I'm not sure. I know you two probably already know this, but he's traumatized. I think you need to get him in with a therapist of some sorts so that he doesn't deal with this on his own. Yes, he has you both now, but that kinda thing he's probably going to try and keep bottled up. By the looks of it, he has anxiety and probably some level of depression, plus what his chart says. He may need to be medicated and I want you two to be prepared, he's going to need a lot of help and a lot of support, and he's already starting to trust you two which is a great sign. So just have patience. I know this is hard, and I know this brought up a lot of old wounds for you both, but there's no doubt in my mind that you two are going to be great parents."

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 4

Warnings: Mentions of past abuse, sad Present Mic, brief mention of drugs Word count: 2054

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts Masterlist

Volt 3 | Volt 5

"Aren't you two a little young to be adopting?" The older woman asked, her librarian-like glasses sitting low on the tip of her nose. The lady in charge of the foster center was clearly judgmental of the two pro heroes looking to adopt.

"We're twenty three and if you haven't noticed, we can't exactly reproduce on our own." She raised an eyebrow at Mic's comment, her distaste of todays events as clear as day.

"Are you sure you want him? Any foster home he's been to they brought him right back. Especially with that quirk of his." Two sets of eyes narrowed on her.

"If you've failed to forget, I have a voice quirk myself. We're in this for the long run, we plan on adopting him and at least we won't put any muzzles on him." Her face bloomed red in embarrassment, clearly not expecting to be caught and by a hero at that.

"He's your problem now, just need a few signatures, identification, proof of income and proof of residency." Thankfully, the blond was prepared after having been through this in his own life. He made sure him and his husband brought everything needed. "Alright then, I'll send him to grab his things."

"Shouta will be going with him, I've seen how you treat kids here and I have a feeling the other kids mistreated him as well. So I'm not risking anything happening to him due to your negligence." The lady scoffed but gestured to the door, watching the dark haired man walk out.

While the two were grabbing the child's few belongings and putting them into a spare book bag, Yamada read over his file a little more.

Name: Tsukare Onryo Birthday: October 18th Age: 8 Height: 133 cm (4'2") Hair color: Topaz Eye color: Hazel Blood type: O

Quirk: Sound waves

Description: N/A

Biological Mother: Tsukare Shiroka

Biological Father: Unknown

Hobbies: N/A

Medical History: N/A

Notes: Quirk is dangerous, earplugs and muzzle recommended for parental protection

Mic's face turned stone cold at what he read. They barely kept any information about him.

"Why was he put up for adoption?" The lady sighed and leaned back in her chair.

"Drugs, the mom just couldn't quit and gave the kid up instead of trying to get clean. She probably made the better choice though." Mic turned his glare to her, an odd yet very threatening look from the typically boisterous man.

"I also need his birth certificate and identification card, along with any previous medical records that you've failed to put on here." The woman scoffed and leaned forward on the desk with a faux saccharine smile.

"Sorry but we aren't permitted to give you that." The blond laughed sarcastically, taking the woman off guard.

"You may not remember me, but I remember you Kasumi. So I know you're obligated to hand over my sons documents because I went through the same thing here ten years ago. Or would you like me to get the cops over here right now for a wellness check?" Her face paled at the realization of who she was sat in front of.

"I remember you now. Can't believe you actually became a hero." He scoffed as she tried to act nice now.

"Cut the act, I don't play your games anymore. Give me my sons documents and we'll be out of here." She shook her head and shrugged, getting up and rummaging through the filing cabinets.

After checking everything matched up, Yamada left her office without another word and placed his signature smile on when he saw his husband and son waiting at the door.

Shouta placed a kiss on his husbands forehead as he saw through the fake smile. He knew this would be a hard day for him, coming back to a place of his nightmares.

"We're calling the cops and getting her removed, I can't let her do this to people any more Sho." Mic's voice was weak and strained as he rested his forehead against his husbands shoulder.

"I'll talk to Onryo about telling Tsukauchi. You go home and rest, we'll be back from the doctors in a little while." Yamada slipped his hand into Aizawa's, giving it a small squeeze before letting go.

"I got his medical records, threatened them with a wellness check." Eraser smiled behind his scarf at his husbands antics.

"Looks like it's time to head home then, maybe you can do some shopping therapy in a few hours." That seemed to cheer up the blond as the three started on their way home.

"Do you want to go unpack your bag in your new room?" Tsukare nodded and excitedly scuttled down the hall at Aizawa's idea. Once out of sight, he placed his hands on his husbands hips and rubbed small circles of comfort while the blond let his head drop onto the others shoulder. "Let it out, Sunshine."

"That place hasn't changed a bit, Shouta. They had almost no information about him and told me it was good choice on the mothers end that he was put up for adoption. That it was smart for his birth mother to choose drugs over a child but they treated him just how they treated me, if not worse. He's so underweight, he doesn't even look eight! On his file they suggested parents get earplugs and those damn contraptions!" Aizawa placed a comforting kiss to his husbands shoulder.

"They're stupid, and once we talk to Onryo we'll call Tsukauchi. In the meantime, let's look over his medical records." Mic nodded slightly and finally stood up straight, the two heading to the kitchen island to read it over.

They read over the several hospital stays he's had. Each one from a different foster home and a few from the center. Two different bones broken, multiple accounts of bruising, scarring, malnourishment, dehydration, and once for vocal chord strain leading to internal bruising. That was most likely when he discovered his quirk. The rest was concerning, Yamada almost cried as he read over many different accounts.

Reading deeper, they learned that he has a heart arrhythmia, ADHD, a history of blacking out, his birth mother was addicted to opioids and used them while pregnant, along with sleeping issues.

They were so invested in reading more, they almost didn't hear Tsukare come down the stairs.

"Hey, little listener." The kid looked concerned as he looked at Mic, taking in his appearance.

Are you okay? You look sad.

"I'm okay, kiddo. Just upset with the center director. Did you get your bag unpacked?" Tsukare nodded, worried he did something wrong already to get sent back. "Do you want to play a game? It's a little get to know each other better thing." Tsukare nodded again, this time in excitement. "Alright, let's go sit on the couch." Aizawa tried not to smile at his husbands antics, following the blond and his son over to the living room. "Okay, it's called twenty questions. You ask us a question, we give you an answer, and then we ask you a question and you answer. We just keep going back and forth until we hit twenty or we can't think of anything anymore. You can go first." He thought for a moment, wanting his first question to be a good one.

How old are you two?

"We're 23! What's your favorite thing to do?"

I don't know, but I really like music. And I really want to learn how to play some instruments.

"Lucky for you little listener, we have our own music room and I know how to play most of them." The couple watched happily as their sons eyes widened with excitement, rapidly nodded and showing his first smile around them.

Why do you wear a scarf whenever you're outside?

"It's a capture weapon, that way I can catch villains without hurting them. What's your favorite color?"

Dark grey. What's your real name? I know your hero name is Eraserhead, and I've heard him call you Sho but I don't know your real name.

"My real name is Aizawa Shouta."

"What's your favorite food?"

I really like strawberry milkshakes. If you two are married how come you have different last names?

"We kept them different for safety, that way villains can't hurt us as easily." Tsukare nodded slowly as he took in the new information. "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

I want to be a hero like you two. And I want to learn more languages so when people visit Japan I can understand them.

"That's really cool, Onryo, if you want I can teach you english."

Really?

"Heck yeah!" Their son beamed with excitement, visibly happy with being able to do something he wants.

Why did you both learn sign language?

"I learned it because I was at that foster center too, so some days I couldn't talk. Then when I got older, I realized I was starting to lose some of my hearing because of my quirk." Tsukare frowned slightly at the news.

"I learned for him because of those things."

"What school do you go to?"

I go to Hadano Elementary. What are your favorite animals?

"I like birds!"

"Cats are better. We actually have two so you'll probably see them around soon." Tsukare looked excited beyond belief hearing this, looking forward to meeting the fluffy creatures. "What hand do you write with?"

I can use both, I learned to when I broke my arm.

He hesitated before continuing with his next question.

What should I call you two?

"What do you mean, little listener?" Tsukare fidgeted with his fingers for a moment, not wanting to risk making anything awkward.

Should I call you both dad? Or do I call you two by your names?

"You can call us whatever you'd like. If you don't feel comfortable calling either of us 'dad' then you don't have to. Okay?" The kid nodded in response, seemingly relieved that something was his choice. "I can't think of anything else, so do you have anymore question for us?"

I have three.

"Ask away, little listener!"

How long have you two been together?

"We've been together for eight years, and we got married three years ago." Onryo smiled contently at the answer, happy for the two adults.

How come there's random post-it notes everywhere?

"He leaves them for me to wake up to if he's not here." He smiled ever so slightly at Aizawa's words, finding the gesture sweet and endearing.

And what are the rules here?

"Whaddya mean?" Their son shrunk a bit at Mic's question, taking his time to answer.

House rules. Every house I've been to has it's own rules, the foster center too. What are the rules here?

Yamada's heart sunk, remembering the rules of that place vividly.

"Our rules are nothing like theirs. All we ask is you be honest with us, if you don't feel like talking about something just let us know and we can discuss it later. Aside from that, keep your room somewhat clean. When you get older, we can discuss a curfew and we'll probably give you another chore or two like loading the dishwasher and doing your own laundry. Aside from that, when you get older, no dating loud blonds. You'll never get rid of them." Tsukare laughed at his sarcastic tone, luckily picking up on it while Mic pressed a loud kiss to Aizawa's cheek. The action made their son giggle, the sound was magical to the new parents, adoring Onryo's happiness.

"And if you do anything wrong, then we'll talk about it. Okay?" Onryo nodded quickly, comfortable with the set of rules the couple set for him. "Now what do you say about a shopping trip? We need to get you some new clothes and things for your room and if you want, we can get you music stuff."

Really? I'm allowed to have music stuff?

"Of course, kiddo! You wanna head out now?"

The three left shortly after, the blond most excited out of them. Like his husband said, he needed shopping therapy.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks Masterlist

Welcome to the masterlist for Silent Sparks! Am I overworking myself a smidge? Probably.

Synopsis: Tsukare Onryo, a once quiet kid despite his loud quirk, was adopted by Eraserhead and Present Mic and is slowly finding his way at his new school where his dad just so happens to be his homeroom teacher.

OR

In which after learning about his past, he breaks Erasers main rule about loud blonds.

Genre: Angst, Slowburn

Warnings: Mentions of s*lf h*rm and su*c*dal thoughts. Abuse, depression, anxiety, trauma. I always put these characters through a lot but as always, each chapter will be marked accordingly.

Any other warnings will be added at the top of each chapter.

Status: Ongoing

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Intro

Volt 1

Volt 2

Volt 3

Volt 4

Volt 5

Volt 6

Volt 7

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Character Profile

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Timeline

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[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 43

Warnings: It's I-Island part two, violence and blood mentions Word count: 4690

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 42 | Volt 44

I walked off the elevator with my brother. I wore a dark gray suit with a navy blue tie, my brother in a full black suit with a purple tie to match his hair and eyes. I took extra time to style my curls and make sure they weren't crazy.

Denki looked at me with wide eyes and I awkwardly rubbed my neck. Midoriya came out of the elevator next and I watched my brother turn pink in the face. Uraraka came next though, with a pink dress and black tights, she graviatated towards Izuku and I watched my brother start feeling rejected. Jirou hid behind Yao-momo and I offered her my arm, my purple haired friend slowly accepting it and stepping out of the elevator.

"You look great, dude." She rolled her eyes and gave me a small shove but quietly thanked me anyways.

Finally, Melissa came out and we were ready to go. Until we weren't. The emergency system kicked in and we quickly became trapped.

"That's weird. This isn't the protocol for when explosives are found." Melissa filled us in.

"Toshi?" I looked at my brother and already saw him on his phone but he shook his head. "Dad and Pops are already there since they're pro's. Our emergency calling isn't working either." I looked to Jirou, seeing she had no luck at the elevator.

"Iida, let's go to that party." I looked at Izuku in disbelief that he thought he could break out of the security system that rivals Tartarus.

"Why?" The class rep asked, equally confused.

"Because that's where All Might is right now." I rolled my eyes, unsurprised that he came with the dumb blond but the only other one who seemed happy was Uraraka. "So, Melissa, do you know of any way we could get down there without the elevator?"

"Yeah, sure. We can use the emergency stairs. It'll at least get us close." I pulled my glasses from my hero costume out of my coat pocket and watched as my brother grabbed his capture weapon and voice modifier.

"Glad we had the same idea. Before we go, Momo, can you make regular shoes or flats for all the girls here? I don't think trekking the stairs in heels would be fun, let alone if something really is wrong and we have to fight." I asked the girl with the ponytail.

"Good thinking Tsukare. On it." I gave her a curt nod and waited as everyone got ready.

"How do you know somethings wrong?" Melissa asked as we started on the stairs.

"I don't, but I have a gut feeling and I'm trusting it. You said it yourself, this isn't protocol." Everyone looked at me in shock at my bluntness.

'Dad. Pops. You better be okay.' I thought to myself as we got to the upper level of the party.

We saw multiple heroes tied in a glowing, blue band, including All Might who was on the stage. Quietly, I looked around and eventually saw Dad and Pops. Pops was bound but since Dad's costume looked more like casual wear, he was sitting on the side.

The supposed leader started walking around, only for him to kick a pro hero back when he asked what he was after. We sat quietly as the villain started moving David Shield, threatening Melissa in the process to make him comply. Midoriya was shining his flashlight towards the blond hero, finally gathering his attention while I worked on getting our parents informed.

"Dad. Pops. It's Onryo. We're on the upper level. Hitoshi's with me and we're safe. We're gonna get you and everyone else outta here. I know you're gonna lecture me later, but this is worth it. I love you." They both signed the sentiment back and I turned to Jirou, waiting for her verdict.

"This is bad." She said and we all moved to more private area as she filled us in.

"We've received All Mights orders loud and clear. He's our teacher. I suggest we follow his instructions and escape this place. Otherwise, we'd be going against his will." Iida stated confidently, all of us gathering in a circle.

"I'm afraid I have to agree with what Iida is saying. We're still only students. We can't fight these villains if we don't have our hero licenses. Does anyone else have any other input?" Momo asked and I stood up, my brother following suit.

"I vote against that. I respect your prerogatives and beliefs, but I'm not leaving my parents down there so I can hope that I might see them in the morning. I'm looking at this as rationally as I can right now. It's a high defense system, okay? This islands security rivals Tartarus itself, so it's highly unlikely we're getting out anytime soon, let alone undetected. Hero's are being held hostage right now. We don't know what they're after, and we don't know where they're based but we can assume it's going to be around where most of the research here happens because they took Melissa's Dad. And quite frankly, for once I'm going to say that it doesn't matter that we don't have our licenses. We're not home. I-Island has no laws restricting quirk use, the law for it is based on moral compasses. So technically, we're allowed to fight as long as it's with no means to maim or kill." Everyone stared at me in shock, my brother giving a single nod in agreement.

"I agree with Tsukare." Todoroki said quietly. "We want to become heroes, this is something a hero would do."

"If you're in, I am too." Denki said as he stood up next to me.

"I wanna help." My best friend said.

"Okay. I think I have a plan. Jirou, you're our ears. Uraraka, Todoroki, you're in charge of creating distance between anyone we come across. Momo, Iida, you're our brains. Zuku, Denks and I are the muscle. Melissa, you're the strategist, our map around this place. And Toshi, you're gonna get to mess with some people's heads so get your voice modifier on." Everyone agreed fairly easily, liking the simplicity of my explanation. "Melissa, how can we find where they are or get to where they're going? You know this place better than anyone." She paused for a moment before lighting up.

"I know where the security system is. It's on the top floor of this tower. If these criminals managed to take control of it, then the authentication locks and passwords have probably been disabled. We should be able to restart the system ourselves. We just have to stay off the villains radar until we can get to the top floor. That's all. If we do that, the whole island will be safe again." Melissa explained, clearly trying to spare some of the details.

"Then it's possible." Midoriya said with a gleam in his eyes.

"Sure, but how do we keep on the low for that long?" Jirou asked for everyone.

"The security system hasn't discovered us yet. That means the villains probably don't know how it works very well." Melissa said to us.

"So we avoid fighting anyone and try to get the place back to normal. It could work." Todoroki confirmed.

"I think we have a solid plan. Any other thoughts?" I asked, looking around to see everyone growing hopeful.

"Many of our enemies are likely gathered there on the top floor." Momo pointed out after a moment.

"If we're fast, we won't have to fight them!" Izuku proclaimed. "When the security system goes back to normal, All Might and the others will be released. They'll immediately jump into action and stop the villains, I know it!" He announced.

"I would rely on any of the heroes but him to have my back, you do remember I basically cost him his job, right?" Midoriya's lips pressed together into a firm line. "Look, I'm stating the facts here, if it comes down to it, I don't think he'd protect me. But our parents are down there, and this is our only plan, so, everybody ready?"

"The moment I think we've gone too far, it's over. If that's something we can agree to, I will join you as well." Iida confirmed.

"I know this is about Hosu and uh, I was the most level headed one there outside of Todoroki. And are we really going to ignore the fact that legally, we can use our quirks in self defense? The one time we can and nobody wants to." I mumbled to myself, the action making a few of them laugh.

"Melissa, you can wait down here for us." Midoriya interjected.

"And how do you expect us to get up there? Especially if we need to take a detour? She's quirkless, not dead weight." My best friend shot me a glare at my retort and I stared back.

"But without a quirk, she'll be in danger." He tried to ration with me.

"Izuku, this isn't up for debate. You have no right to decide that for her. She's a genius in support gear, last time I checked, you barely know how to use your bones properly." He flushed a bright red and nodded begrudgingly. "So, let's do this. Momo, take these." I reached into my coat pocket and handed her my emergency snacks. "Your quirks based on your lipids, so in case of emergency, you'll need 'em more then I do."

"Thank you Tsukare, that's very thoughtful." She said and grabbed the snacks.

"Onryo, we need to use your quirk so we can inform All Might and your parents about our plan." I sent him a nod and walked back with him to the balcony.

"All Might, Dad, Pops. We came up with a plan. We'll be safe and keep combative and defensive quirk use to a minimum. Be ready, we're aiming to drop the restraints within the next half hour, max. There won't be a big window, so once they break, act fast. Jirou's our ears, so if something happens, we'll hear you." All Might glared at us for not leaving but Dad and Pops nodded ever so slightly.

We all started jogging up the stairs, Iida and I going in the front for our speed and sight, but I quickly realized that Melissa was falling behind at floor thirty out of two hundred. Once we hit level eighty, we ran into a metal door blocking the stairs.

"What should we do? Break through it?" Todoroki asked.

"If we did that, I'm sure the security system would alert the villains that someone's in here." Melissa exclaimed while trying to catch her breath.

"What's behind that door?" Denki pointed to the other one, already opening it before Melissa and Zuku could stop him.

"I think we should run, yeah?" Melissa quickly nodded and we booked it out the door around the floor.

"Stop." Jirou said abruptly, one of her ear jacks in the wall. "Villains are on their way, they know we're here." I took a deep breath and nodded once.

"Is there another way to go up?" My brother asked.

"There should be another emergency stair case down at the other end of the hallway." Melissa said.

"Let's hurry!" Iida followed with, only for all the metal dividers on the level to start closing. "Todoroki!"

"I'm on it!" He answered, freezing the last one open. Iida smashed the door open with his recipro burst, beckoning us to cross through the level.

"Melissa, I hate to cut you off but the elevator is coming up, so we have to move, now." I said as she went to say something. We all hid behind some shrubbery, I sat near the front beside Todoroki, deciding my extended vision would be beneficial. Kirishima and Bakugou were walking around but they were out of my sight before I could get to say anything.

Two guys in knock off tact gear came walking out of the moving metal box, I sent my brother a look and watched him completely understand.

"Hey, we see you, stupid kids!"

"I think he's talking to Kirishima and Bakugou. Everyone relax. Toshi, do your thing." My brother sent a single nod and took the long way around the bushes.

"There you two are, I was looking everywhere for you." My brother said, playing it up and pulling them into my line of sight.

"Both of you play along and we'll explain in a minute, Bakugou, you'll get to knock some heads in." I said to the pair, knowing that if I sweetened the deal, Bakugou would agree and he thankfully did.

"What's up with the mask kid?" The taller one asked my brother.

"I have a compromised immune system, bronchial emphatic respiratory decrease. It's a pain in the ass, huh?" The two responded just enough to go brain dead. "Good, cause I had no idea what I just said. Give me your authorization passes." We all stepped out as they obeyed. "Unclip your walkies and hand them to me. Now, go stand in the corner and count to ten thousand." The two walked away sluggishly and I watched my brother smile to himself.

"What the hell's going on earbleed."

"Villains overthrew the tower, all the hero's are restrained and we have to get to the security room to reset the system. Best part about it, we can use our quirks as long as we don't maim or kill anyone. So for the most part, sparky, you get to let loose." Bakugou smirked and lit a few sparks in his hands.

"Nobody messes with my head but me!" The villain from earlier said, the shorter one by his side.

"Toshi? What happened?" I asked my brother as I got ready to fight.

"Time decreases with the more people I control. Especially if I can't keep a steady focus."

"Hey watch out!" Bakugou yelled, lunging in front of Kiri, only to be blocked by a wall of ice.

"Everyone move, we'll hold 'em off!" I called out, the group hesitantly moving on as Bakugou, Kirishima, Todoroki and I stayed behind. My brother tossed me one of the security passes and with a final look, took off with the others. The dual haired boy sending the rest further out as the villains chipped away his ice.

"What the heck's goin' on?" Kiri asked.

"Villains broke into the expo and have multiple hero's held hostage. They need to get Melissa to the control room so she can fix the security system and right now, we need to hold off these guys." I summed up quickly, blocking the shards of ice flying towards me.

"What's with this guys quirk?" Bakugou asked, clearly annoyed as we got ready to fight.

"So you wanna pick a fight? Let's see how tough you really are!" The short of the two announced as he grew much larger and turned purple, punching through Roki's ice with ease.

"Hey big guy! You done playing games yet?" I taunted with my quirk, a thing of ice bashing him in the face as he scrunched his eyes shut from pain. "I didn't forget about you. What? Are you scared of getting your ass kicked by some kids?" I asked the leaner one from earlier. Bakugou sending a large explosion to the back of the purple guy and giving me the advantage with a smoke screen. I ran around and managed to get the other guy in a choke hold, knocking him to the floor and keeping his palms towards the ground with my feet. I kept my legs locked, not wanting to chance him getting me with his quirk. "Bakugou! Behind you!" I called out as the purple guy came back up, surging forward with a right hook. Kirishima pushed him out of the way and activated his quirk, getting blown back from the hit.

"Kirishima!" Bakugou called out, catching everyone off guard but we kept our focus. The villain under me chuckled, the ground below us shifting. Until I realized, it was disappearing. I jumped off of him, deliberately hitting his head as hard as I could in the process in hopes of disorienting him.

"You two, cover! I'm checking on Kiri!" I ran over to the red head as fast as I could, keeping an eye out in my glasses for attacks. I slid to a stop in front of him and saw him stuck in the wall. "You okay?"

"I can't move, can you get me outta here?" I quickly nodded, small explosions in the background letting me know my time frame without looking.

"Kiri. Turn your quirk off." I gently said and watched him loosen up, smiling once again. I saw Bakugou getting ready for a large explosion in my glasses. "Gimme your hands, use your quirk on them and cover my ears. No time for questions just do it." He looked at me confused but scrambled to do so after I pulled out my hearing aids, clenching them in my hands. The large explosion severely muffled and hopefully not adding any damage. I took a breath and just as he was moving his hands, I pulled them back on when I saw Todoroki sending out a blazing stream of fire. Another loud explosion erupting from the other end of the room. I waited until the smoke settled and let Kirishima fully remove his hands. Bakugou and Todoroki came running over once the villains were held back.

"Are you two okay?" Todoroki asked calmly.

"Yeah, we're good." I responded simply, putting my hearing aids back in. The devices thankfully still in tact. Bakugou tutted and turned around, hands now tucked in his pockets.

"Thank you." He mumbled out, clearly towards Kiri. I simply stared in disbelief, not expecting him to ever say that.

"Woah! Where'd that come from?! Don't worry about it."

"I'm not worried!" Bakugou yelled back to the red head, the faintest of pinks on his face.

"Right. Let's catch up with the others." Todoroki stated.

"Don't order me around!"

"Bakugou, not the time. Save it for later, villains attacking, focus." I snapped at him, almost laughing at the irony of having to tell someone to focus but I refrained. We all stopped as well over a hundred, tiny red robots came towards us.

"Looks like they've gotten serious." Todoroki announced.

"Cover your ears. I get to break some of these things now." I said with a smirk, turning off my hearing aids for good measure. Bakugou was the only one who didn't but he was used to loud noises to begin with so I let loose. Screaming as loud as I could, I watched dozens of them drop like flies as the whole tower started shaking with the force of my quirk. Once I ran out of air, I stopped and started coughing hoarsely. Todoroki stayed by my side while Bakugou and Kirishima ran in to finish off the rest.

"Are you alright, Tsukare?" I gave him a thumbs up and cleared my throat, a slight metallic taste filling my mouth. I spit the bit of blood on the floor and wiped my mouth with my sleeve, ignoring the throbbing in my head.

"Good work, Tsukabro! You wiped out like sixty of them!" Kirishima cheered for me once they finished up.

The four of us took off up the elevator with the security pass, only being able to scale so many floors at a time before we got to level 138, the elevator stopping again. We got out in time to see Uraraka getting swarmed by the robots. Bakugou flew forward and blasted them off.

"Kacchan! Onryo!" I heard a familiar voice call out and I looked up to see Izuku floating with Melissa. Todoroki froze more of them.

"Todoroki and Kirishima!" Uraraka announced.

"That was close. Are you okay?" Todoroki asked her, ready to fight off more while Bakugou and Kiri dove head first into fighting.

"Todoroki! Can you make an ice pillar to get us up there too?" I asked him quickly, ignoring the stabbing ache in my throat. He sent a curt nod and I pulled Kirishima over to us, Bakugou flying up a level with explosions. "Uraraka, where's everyone else?"

"They got captured by the robots in the breaker room." She informed me and my blood ran cold. The ice sending us up to the top of the bridge while I simply froze in place.

"And my brother?" I finally asked.

"I don't know." My face fell and we all entered floor 198. I tossed off my jacket and ran towards the approaching villain while everyone talked and coordinated. I tackled him to the ground and soon felt a sharp pain across my arm and chest.

"Go! Get Melissa to the top floor!" I called out and held on tighter despite the pain and blood seeping through my clothes. I watched as most of them ran, Kirishima staying behind as my back up. "I got this!" I tried telling him, not wanting anyone else to get hurt.

"We got this!" He stated back and pulled me off the villain, his arms hardening in front of him as the weaponized arms from the villains quirk lunged forward again. A loud clanging sounding from the impact. I circled around and kicked the villain in the head, effectively knocking him out. I rushed to tie his arms together at his elbows with my tie and finally assessed my injuries. A deep red line going from my pectoral to my bicep soaking my shirt. I tore off my sleeve and wrapped it around my torso since that one had the deeper cut, hissing in pain when I tied it.

"Onryo." A familiar voice came from behind me, I whipped around and saw my brother standing there. I quickly pulled him into a hug before getting back to the task at hand. "We have to get to the top floor. Now." Kiri and I both nodded and followed him up the stairs, running towards the commotion.

We stopped at a corner and saw a few villains standing at the stairs to the room, the rest of our classmates inside the room fighting. I held up my pointer finger and slid towards the very corner of the wall.

"Izuku's trapped with some metal, the others are fighting. We don't have much time. We can't go in head first, we'll get snuffed right away. Two people were shot. Hitoshi, get to the other wall so you can use your quirk. Use whatever voice you need to, but that guy in the big mask looks like he's the boss." My brother sent me a firm nod and silently crossed the entrance, waiting at the other corner.

"Please, stop! You don't need to do this!" My brother called out in Melissa's voice.

"What'd I sa-" The metal man stopped in his tracks and I let out a sigh of relief. Izuku dropped from the wall while Hitoshi shot his scarf out and captured the boss.

"Here's what's going to happen. He's going to stand here, and none of you are going to move or your boss is going to end up worse than the two on the ground. You might ask why or how, to put it simply, I'm controlling his mind right now, so if I want, I can also control his quirk. He's in charge after all, you must hold some fear towards him. You know the damage he can deal." As he spoke, Melissa crept towards the edge of the door. I grabbed her arm and we booked it.

"Keep it up! Kiri, guard the door, don't let any of the villains out!" He nodded and hardened his whole body, Melissa and I rushing to the control room. I sat guarding the door for her as she typed away at a rapid pace.

"Uncle Might!" She exclaimed over her phone and I rolled my eyes. "The villains are on the top floor, Papa's been taken by the villains, they're going to the roof, Izuku's following them! Some students are hurt!" My feet moved before I told them too and I ran back to the room I was in just a moment ago. My brother laid on the ground, knocked out cold with blood around him. I quickly called Dad, not knowing what else to do.

"Onryo. Where are you? Are you and your brother okay?" He asked hurriedly.

"Dad, get to the roof. The main villains up there and your quirk would really help. Be careful because I think his quirk is metal manipulation. I'm on the top floor with Hitoshi, we got a little banged up. He's out cold right now and I'm about to check him over for injuries." I said quickly, coughing harshly at the end.

"Pops is coming to you two, I'll go to the roof. But you all better be okay when I see you." He hung up the phone and I checked my brothers pulse.

The building continued to shake, explosions sounding outside. I checked my brothers body until I saw a gash across his thigh, blood seeping into his capture weapon, his mask broken and flashbacks of the USJ played in my head. There was a cut on his upper lip and eyebrow. My eyes darted around the room until I saw the first aid kit on the wall. I rushed to grab it, disinfecting his cut and bandaging him up as best I could.

"Toshi, please wake up." I mumbled, pushing away my own pain until his eyebrows furrowed together. Pops running in and pulling us both into hugs.

"Fuck the lights are loud." He grumbled out and slowly sat up.

"Oh my gods, you two need to get stitched up. Your Dad should be on the roof by now, how are you both feeling?"

"I'm okay." I said quietly, not pushing the limits on my voice.

"I feel like I got hit by a semi." Hitoshi groaned out as he tried to adjust to the bright lights.

"You two had us worried sick. But you both did a great job, let's get downstairs and patched up." I nodded and helped my brother up, the two of us trying to stifle our pain and failing.

"Good thing we have the elevator key." I said in an attempt to lighten the mood.

We all went down to the ground floor and waited impatiently to see Dad walk in or call us. Those ten minutes felt like forever to see him walking into the common area with our classmates. He all but ran over to us and crouched in front of Hitoshi and I.

"What the hell happened?" He asked in a rushed tone.

"I tackled a guy with the pointy stabby quirk before he activated it. And I think I strained my vocal cords again." He sent me a knowing look before turning to my brother.

"I got the drop on the guy in charge for a while, but one of the other villains snuck up on me and threw a knife at my leg. The main guy threw a few punches, we went back and forth for a bit until he knocked me out. Guess I got a little more busted up than I thought." He explained lightly.

"Let's get you two to a hospital. I couldn't help out much with the fight, he stayed out of my line of sight too often. But I kept a close eye on the students." Dad stated blandly. Pulling the two of us into a firm hug.

"Sorry for worrying you, we did our best to stay out of too much trouble." I told him on our way to the hospital, slightly disappointed with the turn out.

"You two did the best you could. Despite how concerned we were, we're still very proud of you." Dad told us and I smiled softly, still not expecting people to say they're proud of me.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 41

Warnings: ✨trauma✨ Word count: 2376

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 40 | Volt 42

We made it to the mall around one in the afternoon. The place filled with good memories for Toshi and I, both of us having gone shopping with our parents here after we got adopted.

"Oh, man, do I love this place! It's got a ton of different stores to shop at and they're all super cool and hip! The Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall!" Mina cheered happily as we entered. Reflexively, I stepped back at the amount of people here. My back hitting my brothers chest abruptly. He sent me a concern look before looking to Midoriya who was rambling already about all the different things here.

"You're going to scare the children." Tokoyami quietly chided towards Midoriya.

"Woah, are those U.A. students?" Some kid pointed out a few meters away.

"1-A!" Another yelled.

"I saw them on TV!"

"The sports festival was so good!" The three people yelled at once.

"Hey, I saw that one on the news! His hero name is Sonus! Did you hear about how he saved a kid from a car?" The one in the middle announced and I awkwardly smiled, sending a small wave their way once I stepped away from my brothers chest.

"I can't believe they still remember that." Uraraka said awkwardly. I looked over to see Momo and Jirou talking, the two slightly blushing and I smiled, happy for them.

"Why don't we split up and look around? We can meet up here again when we're done." Kirishima offered.

"Great idea!" Mina cheered behind me.

"Perfect. Let's say we're all back around three?" We all agreed to his suggestion easily. Kirishima, Mina, Kami and Sero whisked me away from everyone else, I looked back to see my brother with Midoriya and Uraraka.

To Espeon: Text or call me if you need an escape, I'm sorry, I got pulled over here before I knew what was happening

My brother checked the text I sent him and nodded, so I tucked my phone away and pulled my drawstring closer to me.

"So what do you want to get Tsukababes?" Mina asked me, I swallowed the lump of nerves down my throat and flashed a convincing smile.

"I don't know, my Pops asked me to grab him some hair ties if I see any. But for camp? I guess some cough drops, or a spray form to help my throat when using my quirk. Uh, yeah that's about all I can think of." She looked at me shocked, clearly not expecting me to have such few things on my list. I looked at how everyone was dressed, stopping on Kiri's choice of footwear. "I mean this in the nicest way possible, but Kirishima Eijirou what in the ever loving fuck are on your feet?" He looked down curiously with wide eyes before smiling like a five year old.

"Crocs." He gave his simple answer.

"Alright, I guess. Just know I'm judging you heavily for it." He huffed at my words, the five of us walking into a store for Denki to get some shoes. My phone buzzed in my back pocket and my blood ran cold at the text.

From Espeon: SOS

I held my phone tighter and turned quickly.

"Hitoshi just texted me, I-I'll be right back." I ran to the courtyard, hoping he didn't move too far from where we all were but I saw him sitting on the fountain, the hand guy holding his and Midoriya's necks in his hands, one finger raised on each. I quickly called Dad, thankful that he picked up on the second ring. "Dad, Shigaraki's here. He has a hand on Toshi and Midoriya's necks and I don't know what to do." I rushed out before he could properly answer.

"We will be there as soon as we can, call Tsukauchi, I give you and your brother permission to use your quirks but only to protect yourselves. Understood?"

"Okay. I love you, please hurry."

"I love you too." I hung up the phone and clicked on the detectives contact.

"Hello, this is Detective Tsukauchi."

"Hi, this is Tsukare Onryo, a league member is at Kiyashi Ward Mall, Shigaraki, th-the hand guy. He has my brother and a friend held hostage right now."

"Are you positive?"

"Yes, I'm looking at them right now. How fast can you have police here? Or pro's?"

"I switched you over to the public line at the station, I can have pros and police there in five minutes. Okay?"

"Okay, just please hurry." I hung up and switched to my camera. I zoomed in on Hitoshi and made it look like I was taking a picture of the bridge of the mall. "Toshi. Dad said we can use our quirks to protect ourselves if it's safe. Okay?" He looked directly at me and I took that as an 'okay'. I started a video and made sure to focus in on Shigaraki, Midoriya and Hitoshi. "It's a beautiful day over here! I'm currently at the Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall waiting for some of my friends to join me!" I ended the video and acted like I was waiting for friends until I saw Uraraka show up. She looked at them curiously until Shigaraki left.

I ran over to my brother and pulled him into a hug. His body shook as he held me tightly, not letting up on his grip.

"It's okay. It's okay, Toshi. I gotcha." He took a shaky breath and I just held him. I pulled Midoriya over and wrapped an arm around each of them, holding them tightly in hopes of comforting the pair.

The mall was cleared out except for our class. Police and heroes came and did a massive sweep. I ended up interpreting for Hitoshi, my brother worried that he might accidentally use his quirk on one of them when asking us basic questions. Our parents came soon after, pulling us into hugs and checking us over for injuries. The rest of the class giving us worried glances or consoling pats on the back. Tsukauchi appreciated the video I got, telling me that I'm on top of things when it comes to responding to emergencies.

The car ride home was painfully silent, Hitoshi rested his head on my shoulder the whole way home. One of my hands ran through his mess of purple hair, the shaking of his body subsiding by the time we pulled into the driveway.

The four of us piled into the house, Dad bringing both of us into a tight hug.

"Don't ever scare us like that again." I nodded and nudged Toshi.

"You scared the shit out of me with that SOS." Dad cocked an eyebrow and guided us further into the house.

"As Onryo would put it, we need reinforcements. Sunshine, go grab some blankets. Toshi, grab Spots and Mittens. Onryo, you're on ice cream duty." We all nodded.

"What are you doing?" Dad smiled like he did in class yesterday and I tried my hardest not to laugh.

"Coffee." He said as enthusiastically as he could, Toshi and I laughing hysterically.

I scooped three bowls of ice cream while Dad made three mugs of coffee. We all met out in the living room, Toshi holding Spots and Pops holding Mittens. A large amount of fluffy blankets strewn about. Dad and I passed the bowls of ice cream and mugs of coffee, Hitoshi and I getting one of each.

"Hitoshi, do you want to talk about what happened?" Dad asked gently, knowing it would be a sensitive topic for a while.

"Uraraka ran off to get bug spray, so it was just Izuku and I. Everyone was already gone because we decided to split off into groups. Shigaraki came up behind us talking about how he found a couple of U.A. students and wanted an autograph. He wrapped his arms around us. I still had my phone in my hand so I got a text out to Onryo. He explained how he recognized us, that Izuku's the one that got 'beat to hell' and how I was player twos brother." He took a bite of ice cream and tugged his knees up towards his chest. "He asked if Midoriya was one of the students that ran into the Hero Killer. I knew who it was because of him calling Onryo 'player two' but he didn't really seem to care about me too much. He said he's a big fan of him and he can't believe he's running into us again. He said it couldn't be coincidence and it had to be destiny, that's when he put his hands on our throats. I went to text Dad but he told me to put my phone away, he just wanted to chat. He said he wanted to spend some time catching up and said our names." Hitoshi took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. "He told us to act natural and not to make a scene, he was just an old friend who ran into us at the mall. He wanted to have a friendly chat. He told us that if we tried to run or fight him in any way that it would be fast, as soon as all five of his fingers touch our necks, our throats would be the first things to disintegrate. He kept taunting us with it, getting his lifted finger closer but not touching. In a matter of seconds we would be nothing more than dust and powdered bone." I put my hand on his, hoping to comfort him. "Midoriya told him if he did that, a hero would catch him in no time and he wouldn't escape. Shigaraki told us to look at the sheep, any of them could use their quirks and start a massacre whenever they want, but they were all there smiling. He went on about laws and morals protecting them but after us he could kill twenty or thirty, if not more before pro's showed up. He took us to the fountain and sat us down, he monologued for a while. For the most part, he was just talking to Izuku, acted like I wasn't even there. He went on about how he hates everything but the Hero Killer pisses him off the most right now. He wasn't one of their guys but that's how the media is making it look and that's his big problem. The attack on U.A. and the Nomus he released on Hosu, the Hero Killer upstaged all of it. He asked Izuku and I what we thought the difference between him and the Stain were. That's when Onryo showed up. Izuku told him his honest thoughts, how he doesn't understand him but himself and Stain are both inspired by All Might and that's why he can understand the Hero Killer better. Stain didn't kill and destroy for fun but at least when things got tough, he didn't abandon his mission and ideals like Shigaraki. Izuku told him that the way Stain acted was wrong and that the difference is he held true to his beliefs. I thought he was going to kill us on the spot. Then he said he can see it now and that Izuku connected all the dots. Why Stain makes him angry and why Izu irritates Shigaraki so much. That the problem is All Might. How it's the most rational explanation. Everything went fuzzy in my head. His started choking us and I couldn't breathe- I just kept waiting for him to put the final finger down. Then Uraraka came back and he let go, told us if we tried following him he would get angry and he left. I thought he was going to kill us, I just, I just kept waiting for it to happen." He voice broke and I saw the first tear fall. I offered open arms to him and he instantly fell into my hold.

"He didn't and that's all that matters." I mumbled to him, hoping it would help but it only spurred him to cry harder. Pops joined in on the hug from Hitoshi's right side, Dad joining in from next to me.

"You two did everything right and we'll get this guy and the rest of them." Dad told us, I nodded and started playing with my brothers hair.

We stayed on the couch for a while until Tsukauchi called saying we had to give our statements at the station. The four us went and met Midoriya there, our green haired friend also having to give details of the event. I went first since mine would be the quickest, followed by Hitoshi and then Midoriya. Tsukauchi came out and thanked us for coming down on such short notice.

"You all did great today. Most people, let alone kids, would have panicked. I'm proud of you three. Eraser, Mic, call me if you have any new information." Dad nodded. "Tsukare, can I talk to you for a moment?" I looked at my parents before following him off to the side. "According to what Midoriya and your brother said, I have to say, I'm concerned. It sounds as though Shigaraki has taken an interest in you. Do you know why he calls you 'Player Two'?" I fidgeted with my fingers as I thought back to the USJ.

"During the attack, I acted irrationally. I jumped into the fight to protect my Dad. He asked me if I wanted to be Player Two." The detective sighed and nodded.

"Okay. Well-" We got cut off by Midoriya Inko running in crying. She saw me first.

"Tsukare! Are you boys alright? Where's Izuku?" She pulled me into a hug and held me tight.

"We're alright. Izuku's right over there. Let's go over to him." She nodded and we walked over to my family and best friend.

"Izuku! Don't scare me like that! My heart can't take it!" She sobbed as she pulled him into a hug. Our parents guided us away to go home.

All I could think about was how far Shigaraki might take this 'player two' thing.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 92

Warnings: There's a kid in danger and medical stuff but Tsukare saved the day, fluff, is this unrealistic to happen given work studies were cancelled? yes. yes it is. however, i think Tsukare needed a good day of saving someone to heal part of his inner child Word count: 2534

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 91 | Volt 93

"Thanks for gettin' here as soon as you could. I know it's a bit of a trip from your school." Rock Lock greeted me as I walked up to the abandoned house in Mie, police officers surrounding the house and staring at me in befuddlement.

"Didn't know you were cleared to come back yet. How's the wound healing up?" I asked as I shook his hand, Dad allowing me to go on my own.

"It's great. Came back to work and this is what I get on my first day. A long graveyard shift with a kidnapping and now to find out the kid has major health concerns? I can't leave now, I'm too invested. I'm gonna give it to ya straight, we've been going in circles in that house for hours and keep coming up blank. Can you take a crack at it?" I nodded and walked inside, the captain blocking my way.

"The hell is a kid doin' here, Lock? Thought you said you were callin' help." He said in a condescending tone while he looked down at me.

"Gimme ten minutes and I'll prove my worth." I told him, crossing my arms over my chest. He glared at me but stepped the side. "Rock Lock, time me, will ya? Sarge! Gimme the details on who we think did it so far."

"We're looking at the ex-husband, the kids step father. He never legally adopted her, mom lives in Fukui, looks like it was a messy divorce especially when it came to the custody battle he tried to force but lost. The girl, Emi, has diabetes and stress induced asthma." He explained.

"And the ex? Where's he?" I followed with as I looked around closely.

"He's in custody. He already admitted to kidnapping her, but he won't give up the where."

"Okay. Assuming she gets her insulin around the same time everyday, which would be around lunch time, we have about four hours to find this kid before things get really dicey. Rock Lock, I'm done. What's my time?" I asked.

"Four minutes and thirty seven seconds."

"There's no damn way, that you-"

"This house was condemned by the prefecture. It's unsuitable to live in. If somebody bought it, the first thing they would contractually be required to take care of is the mold spores. That tells me the neighbors here think he bought it as a vacation home to fix up and visit once it's done. They were none the wiser. In all the array of foot prints, none of them, even the edges of them, match anything other than my shoes, or cop shoes. The handle on the door is broken, further proving my point. You're going in circles and not finding anything because she's not here. I'm willing to bet that he's in the middle of a psychotic break and doesn't realize he's going to kill her. He's playing a game and you walked right into his trap. Let me talk to him." I pushed, watching as the captain looked at me, purely baffled.

"I'm not sending a kid to talk to a criminal."

"It's not the first time I have. Make the choice, are you going to take part of the blame when she dies because you tried to hold onto your ego before anything else?" I antagonized, watching him sweat drop.

"Fine, get in a car and let's get this show on the road." He barked. I sat in the back of a squad car as they all flew down to the station. "You ready?"

"Almost. Gotta print a few things. You'll understand." I told him.

"Whatcha doin', ginger?" Rock Lock came over and asked me.

"I'm about to break this guys entire spirit and get a location." I told him as my fingers flew across the keys and the printer sounded across the room.

"You been sleeping?" He asked as I moved to the printer.

"Yeah. Why."

"You look exhausted." He explained and I rolled my eyes.

"Not important, what matters right now is this missing girl." I told him, putting the papers in a manilla folder and walking down to the interrogation room door. I knocked twice before stepping in. "My name's Sonus, you must be Emi's father, right?" I asked gingerly as I sat down.

"You're not a cop." He said cautiously, studying my figure intensely.

"Not at all, I'm Sonus. Hero in training under Fat Gum." He nodded slowly and sat there nervously. "Look, I'm not here to bark down your throat asking questions, I only wanna know one thing and you know what that is."

"You wouldn't get it, you're just a stupid kid!" He snapped and I held up my hands in a surrender.

"Hey, I don't yell, you don't yell. Sounds fair?" He paused but nodded. "Look, I think I get it more than you think. You raised her for most of her life, you're her Dad, I get it. It's just the legality bullshit that's screwing you over, right?" He nodded rapidly.

"Yeah, you're on my side!"

"I don't pick sides. I'm Switzerland. We actually had to call Emi's mom, just because of standard procedure stuff, and uh, I think it was just the worried ramblings but she told me that Emi's growing like a weed and was really uh, excited about her getting a new bed." He nodded along.

"Yeah, she's eleven and hitting another growth spurt." He said softly.

"I was actually wondering if you wanted to pick out some bed frames and stuff, that way she can feel comforted that it came from you." I suggested, setting my plan in motion. He quickly perked up and leaned forward, eager to see what I had in the folder I brought with me. I opened it up and placed it in front of him, watching his face fall.

"This isn't funny." He said grimly.

"It's not. But if you don't tell us where she is, that's going to be her bed soon enough. There's mahogany, oak, cedar, different varnishes and lacquers you can choose from. If you want the handles to be gold or brass or silver. We could even discuss if you want a proper head stone or just a plaque in the ground. Unless you were thinking something more like a tomb." He shook his head and I could see part of his rationality reaching him. "She's diabetic and has asthma. You remember all those doctors appointments, don't you? How many times you had to give her her insulin? Find a back up inhaler? Do you want to see her again?"

"Yes, that's all I wanted out of this. I just want my daughter." He confirmed through short, stifled sobs.

"If you don't tell us where she is, then you'll never be able to see her again. The only time you'll see her, is when you get out of jail and you look at the tombstone you picked out." He stared at the photos I had printed, holding them with shaky hands and watery eyes. "We have about one hour until we're in the danger zone. Choose wisely."

"She's in Gujo. My grandfather left a farm house to me when he died. She's in the shed." I gave him a small nod and walked out of the room.

"Already cross checked, he was tellin' the truth about the property. That also explains why he was holdin' a bag of mulch when I found him. His quirk let's him teleport things and swap out their place. Let's go save her." Rock Lock said and I made my way to head home, not thinking they needed my help anymore. "Kid! Where ya goin'? Hop in." He said, pointing to his expensive looking car.

"I thought my work was done." I said as I sat in the front seat.

"Not yet, you always see a job through unless you're out of commission." He said before speeding off.

We got there in an hour and eighteen minutes, driving through the streets at illegal speeds to get there as soon as we could.

"Wait." I said as the group of me, Rock Lock and the cops ran towards the shed. "Send me in alone."

"What? Why?" Rock Lock asked, clearly perplexed.

"If she's in there, she's already terrified. Seeing a bunch of adults surrounding her will only freak her out more. I'm the closest to her age out of all of you by a long shot and I've been told I'm a natural with kids. And if it's a trap, then only one of us gets hurt." I explained, waiting for Rock Lock's approval. He paused but gave me a firm nod and I walked up to the shed cautiously. "Someone call an ambulance to have on standby. Emi? Are you in there? My name is Sonus, I'm here with some friends to take you back to your mom, okay?" I called out through the door before slowly opening it. I shined my flashlight in, the dust particles flittering around and I could already feel my breathing begin to labor. "Emi? If you can hear me, I need you to move something, okay? It's alright if you knock something over." I continued as I walked in, checked behind things, in corners and in the rafters until I saw something in the corner of my eye. A pink shoe. I slid over to the corner and moved the stuff from in front of her. I picked her up and carried her outside as fast as my legs could carry me, laying her down on the grass. "I got her! How far out is that ambulance!"

"Eight minutes!" One of the cops responded.

"I need one of you to grab me an emergency blanket and any hot packs or hand warmers you keep in your squad cars! She's hypothermic!" I yelled as I saw her blue lips and finger tips. I brought my own to her pulse point and felt nothing. "Starting CPR! No pulse!" I brought my hands to heart chest and remembered the course I took a while ago. Pumping my hands routinely against her diaphragm between her ribs. Pinch the nose, tilt the chin, breathe. Repeat.

I only briefly stopped when the cops came over with the items I had requested. Letting them place the blanket under her to wrap around her arms, placing the hot packs around her body.

"Medics are almost here, kid!" The guy who had a problem with me earlier called out.

"Tell them to hurry up!" I barked back, not losing my tempo on getting her heartbeat back. Until a harsh cough came from her, followed by more, her chest seizing up as she coughed. "Hey, hey, breathe it out." I said soothingly as I sat her up and grabbed the inhaler from my pouch, popped it open and helped her breathing balance out. "There ya go. You're okay now. Can you tell me your name?"

"E-Emi. It's so cold." She said through chattering teeth.

"I know. We're gonna get you warmed up soon. Okay?" She nodded and curled into my chest a bit for warmth while I rubbed her back. The ambulance came moments later, rushing her onto a gurney and into the back of the ambulance.

"Sonus, thought that was you. You helped that lady deliver her baby." The woman said as she approached me. "Fill me in, how's the patient?"

"Eleven year old with asthma and diabetes, found her hypothermic with no identifiable pulse. I performed CPR in the field, we wrapped her in a blanket and placed hot packs on her to bring up her core temp as much as we could. After about six minutes of CPR she came to and immediately had an asthma attack and I gave her an inhaler to stabilize. Check her lungs for debris, she was in that shed for a while and it was messing with my lungs for the few minutes I was in there. She might present with PTSD or anxiety after what happened." She nodded and shook my hand.

"Can't wait for you to graduate. You'll be an asset wherever you land. Let's head out!" She yelled to the driver, hopping in the back of the ambulance.

"Gotta say, you did good kid." The captain said as he walked over to me.

"Told ya he'd be able to help. This is the kid that patched me up during the raid after I got stabbed." Rock Lock told him, resting an elbow on my shoulder.

"You just saved that kids life, be proud of the work you did today." I gave him a small nod.

"It's why I wanna be a hero. I want to save people." I told him earnestly and he gave me a gentle smile.

"You should get back to the dorms kid, and get some sleep." Rock Lock told me and I started on my way back.

After getting changed in the locker room and cleaning myself up, I got back to the dorms a few hours later and I was glad I didn't have school that day.

"You're back!" Denki exclaimed as he ran around the couch, pulling me into a hug.

"I'm back. Sorry for heading out with no notice." I told him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Dude where did you go? You were gone when I woke up." Hitoshi commented.

"Dad and I went to the 24 hour diner we always went to and Rock Lock called in a favor. Ended up hopping on a train to Mie to save a girl who was kidnapped." I said non-chalantly, only for my entire class to erupt in questions. "Can any of these questions wait to be answered later? Cause I'm tired." I said while yawning, leaning further into my boyfriends side. Everyone eventually agreed, Denki guiding us over to the couches and letting me use his thighs as a pillow. I took out my hearing aids and put them in their case, my phone buzzing grabbing my attention again.

From Pikachu <;3: How long have you been up baby?

To Pikachu <;3: Promise you won't be mad?

From Pikachu <;3: I promise

To Pikachu <;3: About sixty hours now

From Pikachu <;3: Onryo...

To Pikachu <;3: I'm okay, really

From Pikachu <;3: Being up that long can't be good for you

I peered up at him through my lashes, only relaxing further when one of his hands started combing through my curls. I reached for his free hand that was resting on my chest and brought it towards my face, gently kissing his knuckles. He smiled down at me with a familiar warmth that made my stomach erupt in butterflies.

"No fair, you're using my weakness that makes me sleepy." I mumbled, already feeling my eyes struggle even more to stay open.

"Take a nap. I'll be here when you wake up." He told me and I only nodded a little, unable to fight it any further.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 91

Warnings: Trauma talk, insomnia, Dadzawa bonding time!! Word count: 3418

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 90 | Volt 92

"Holy shit." Hitoshi mumbled after I explained what happened.

"Wait, Aoyama left a warning?" Pops asked and I nodded.

"I can't figure it out and it's eating at me. I know I read about it too!" I exclaimed, dragging my hands down my face. "I read about it in middle school." I said after seeing two of the three confused.

"I already asked him about it. The random facts will never stop." Dad surmised and I nodded.

"I can list so many right now but not that! I can tell you that scientifically speaking, jellyfish shouldn't be alive, that spiders technically don't have brains, sharks don't have bones, some lipsticks contain fish scales, rubber bands last longer when refrigerated, if you sneeze too hard you can fracture a rib, but I can't remember what the proverb originally tied to!" Everyone stared at me with wide eyes and I groaned flopping onto my back. "This is making my head spin around in circles." I said while rubbing my eyes. I slowly sat back up, meeting everyone's wide eyes again.

"That could also be because you've been awake for over forty hours." Pops reasoned and I looked at him in disbelief.

"I didn't even realize it'd been that long." I said under my breath as I counted the hours. "Well shit. Oh yeah, Toshi, why did you react the way you did when Yoru came for dinner a few weeks ago?"

"I didn't like his attitude and cockiness. He gave the vibe of 'I was his brother first' and it rubbed me the wrong way. Doesn't matter when we became brothers, we're brothers and that's what matters to me." He said earnestly.

"Damn."

"Before we get ready for bed, is there anything else any of us need to talk about?" Pops asked.

"I uh," Hitoshi started, hesitating as his voice got caught in his throat, "I think I want to try going on antidepressants." He said it so fast I had almost missed it.

"Okay." Dad said casually, making Hitoshi visibly break mentally.

"Okay?" He asked cautiously.

"You're old enough to weigh the pro's and con's on your own. In all honesty, Sunshine and I have been wondering when you would want to start them." Dad explained, watching as Hitoshi processed his thoughts. "Is there anything in particular that sparked you wanting to start them?" I noticed Hitoshi starting to curl in on himself, hunching over to rest his forearms on his bouncing knees.

"My depressions been getting worse, and I knew I had to say something before it got worse again. I uh, I started getting thoughts. Not serious ones. The passive ones that Hound Dog and Recovery Girl told Onryo and I about. I know I won't act on it, but I want to stop it before they become serious." He explained and I felt my heart sink to my stomach.

"We can talk to Hound Dog at your next therapy session and have you referred to the old lady for med checks and whatnot." Hitoshi nodded a little and wiped a hand down his face. "How long has it been getting worse?"

"I thought about a month ago, but now that I'm in a clearer state of mind, a few months. Probably since Kamino." He said, his body shaking with a sniffle. "I couldn't get to Onryo in time. I was so close and I can't help but think that if I just moved a little faster or I had my capture weapon, I could've stopped it from happening." I scooted forward and pulled him into a hug. "I didn't want to say anything at first cause I thought it was just another depressive episode and it would pass. Then I started getting more and they started lasting a little longer, but I didn't know how to bring it up. I guess it's similar to Onryo's concerns. I know how much you both have on your plates and I didn't want to overwhelm you both even more."

"Little listener, you shouldn't worry about that. We are always going to worry about you and your brother. It's part of being parents." Pops said to him through his teary eyes.

"I'm sorry. I'm really trying to do better." Hitoshi said.

"We know." I said reassuringly. "You're doing the best you can and that's more than enough." He sniffled again and nodded.

"I think medication would be a good idea." He stated.

"Okay." Pops said. "Then we'll try medication and go from there." We all nodded and sat for a moment, still processing the conversation we just had. "Let's get the couch set up and relax. It's been a long day for everyone."

We all agreed and got the couch set up. I sat against some pillows in the corner and grabbed my laptop while a movie played on the television. I clicked on the search engine and started scrolling, hoping to find what I was looking for.

I clicked on link after link, hoping something would lead me to what I had found several years ago. Minutes easily turned into hours until Dad reached over and closed my laptop. My head snapped towards him reflexively, so focused that I didn't even see him reach over until the illumination from the screen immediately cut out.

You need to at least try and sleep. You'll remember when you remember.

I'm not tired.

Okay. Then what do you want to put on?

I don't know. I'm thinking about making something to eat though.

I'm hungry too. We could go to the 24 hour diner in Shimada.

What's the catch?

Catch? Who said anything about a catch?

You're offering for us to go to the 24 hour diner at almost three in the morning. There's a catch.

I want you to try opening up. I don't care what specifically it's about, I don't care how much you tell me. All I care about is that you try.

You're despicable. Using my love of that diner against me. Okay, fine, let me go get dressed and try to figure out how to get rid of my eye bags and dark circles.

He nodded and watched me quietly walk out the door. I made haste getting back to my dorm room, changing into a pair of ripped jeans and a black shirt with a decently thick, classic, red and black flannel. I grabbed my old tube of concealer and patted a little around my eyes, blending it out to the best of my ability. It felt weird seeing myself less exhausted, but I was content with the fact that it somewhat worked and tossed on my black boots along with my hearing aids.

"Ready?" Dad asked as I snuck out of the dorms, not wanting to wake any of my classmates. I patted my pockets quickly.

'Phone, keys, wallet, case, hearing aids.'

"Yep." We got in his car, usually we would take the train there but I think we both realized that taking the train back would be cramped with the morning rush of workers.

The car ride was quiet and relaxing, I stared up at the stars through the window. Looking at as many of the eighty eight constellations as I could.

"Looking at the stars?" Dad asked.

"Yeah. It's harder to see them though with the light pollution from the city. One of these days I wanna go out to Hyogo or the edge of Okayama to look at the stars. There's such little light pollution, I bet they're really bright out there." I said softly, enamored by the burning orbs millions of miles away.

"They probably are. So Sunshine and I were talking, we were wondering if after you turn sixteen if you'd like to get your permit." My head shot towards him with my growing excitement.

"Wait, seriously?" He nodded and I couldn't contain the smile growing on my face. "Yes! Hundred percent! Absolutely!" I said in excitement. "Is Toshi finally going for his too?"

"He hasn't expressed wanting to get his but we were thinking about asking him if he's thought about it." I nodded along to his words. "Do you still want to get your ears pierced?"

"Yeah, I really like how they look and want to get them done. Thankfully the stigma behind them is starting to die down. I don't really believe in it anyways." He hummed and glanced at me.

"I see my disliking for conforming to societal norms rubbed off on you." I chuckled softly.

"Yeah, but also, I'm a ginger. Been surrounded by those since I was born."

"True. I'm just glad you don't feel confined to them. Is there anything else out of the normalities of the country that you want to have in the future?" He asked.

"I definitely want cartilage piercings. Maybe a tongue piercing too. Oh! And I want tattoos!" He hummed and nodded his head as I spoke.

"Maybe that'll be your present for your eighteenth birthday. Just, please, when you do get tattoos, don't get anything abhorrently stupid. Like curse words, or inappropriate body parts." He said, clearly perturbed about me getting them.

"You don't have to worry about it. And I won't be getting any face tattoos either." He let out a sigh of relief and nodded.

"Okay. I'm glad we're on the same page. How would you feel about piercings being part of your birthday present?"

"That works." I told him and he nodded.

"We're here. So let's get a table and get something to eat." I nodded, almost bouncing as my seat as I waited for him to put the car in park. Excitedly, I rushed over to the door and waited impatiently for him to get inside. He sighed and took his time, sluggishly walking over to where I held the outside door open. He reached over my head once he caught up and opened the inside door.

"Aizawa? Tsukare? Haven't seen you two here in quite some time." The hostess, Ikeda, said as we walked in, she was always here for the graveyard shift. "Go sit wherever you'd like and I'll be right over with some menus." Dad and I happily walked over to the booth we normally sat in.

"Here ya both are. Regular drinks to start with?" She asked as she put a menu in front of each of us. Dad and I both nodded and she typed a few words on her tablet. "Black coffee and let me check that I got this right, it's been a little while, a strawberry milkshake with whipped cream and chocolate syrup?" I nodded with a large smile. "Okay, I'll be back with your drinks in a sec." She said happily.

"When was the last time we were here?" I asked Dad, blanking on just how long it'd been.

"I think after you and Hitoshi took your entrance exams. You two were both stressed over the results not being in yet so I took both of you here one night." He told me and I stared at him in disbelief.

"That was in like, February. It's really been that long?" I asked him, shocked that it's been eight months. He nodded and turned his attention to the menu and I did the same, my eyes already set on what I wanted.

"Here ya both are. Are you two ready to order?" She asked as she sat down in a chair from the table beside us. Ikeda was always personable with everyone that walked in here, we'd seen it multiple times.

"Uh can I get an order of the kakuni manju?" I asked while I put a straw in my milkshake.

"Absolutely, and what can I get for you Aizawa?"

"Just some udon please." He said quietly and I happily took a sip of my milkshake. She set the tablet on her lap after punching our orders in and leaned forward a little bit.

"You've grown up quite a bit since the last time I saw ya, Tsukare. How's school goin'? Any more fights?" Ikeda asked teasingly.

"No, no fights. I'm over at U.A. in the hero course." I told her.

"Sonus, right?" I blushed a little and nodded my head. "Knew that was you when I saw the news. What else is new with ya?"

"I have my first boyfriend." I told her shyly, blushing like a mad man.

"Good for you, hun!" She said happily, a genuine smile on her face. "It's a shame I can't try and set ya up with my daughter anymore. She's 'bout your age." I laughed a little bit and tried to stifle it by taking a sip of my drink. "What? You're a good kid, strong set of morals, clear head on your shoulders, you'd be a good influence!" She defended her statement on it, her Hyogo accent heavily coming out.

"Thanks, Ikeda."

"So, what's he like? Is he treatin' you good?" She asked with a pointed look.

"He is, he's amazing. He's patient and kind, he has an amazing smile and beautiful hair, he knows right away when my hearing aids are out and does his best with it. We have a lot of the same interests. I feel comfortable and safe around him." I told her happily, indulging in her impromptu boy talk.

"And do you approve of him?" She asked Dad and he sighed.

"He's a good kid, so I'm trying to warm up to him for Onryo's sake." Dad begrudgingly told her.

"Well, I'm glad to hear you're happy, sweetie. You deserve to be. Now when did you get them fancy things in your ears?" She said, not passing over my comment about hearing aids.

"Probably five or six months ago." I told her, watching her face soften a bit.

"How ya holdin' up with it?" She asked sincerely.

"It was an adjustment at first, but with my quirk I always knew I'd need them one day. It was more of an adjustment for my friends, I think. We have dorms now, so after class my hearings aids are usually out, if I'm not wearing them there's only so much I can catch in large conversations." She hummed and nodded.

"That sounds like a pain, hun. How are you adjustin' to it? It must be a change for you and your other son. Speaking of, where is he?" She turned to my Dad.

"It wasn't a large adjustment for me. My spouse is hard of hearing, too. And Hitoshi was sleeping, this one couldn't sleep and we were both hungry, we figured we would come here." He answered, careful with his wording about Pops.

"Well that's a shame, kids missin' out. So tell me, what's UA like?"

We talked for another ten or so minutes before another customer walked in and she excused herself.

So, what to do you want to open up about?

Preferably, I wouldn't, but a deals a deal. I took a long sip of my milkshake to buy time. I opened up to Bakugou a little about Kamino.

How did that go?

He brought me up to the roof to talk one night and he told me that was my chance to let it out so I might stop having nightmares about it. Solid effort before the raid. I told him what Toga did.

Do you want to tell me about that?

Not really, to sum it up, there was a lot of blood and she turned into Shiroka at one point. I'm mad at myself more than anything. I feel like if I was stronger then none of that would've happened.

It wasn't your fault.

But-

It wasn't your fault.

I told them to take it out on me. How is it not my fault?

You didn't ask to be kidnapped. You just didn't want Bakugou to get hurt.

Everything from earlier has me concerned. Why would he leave a warning?

I'm not sure. He might just be able to tell tensions are high in the world.

I don't trust him.

I never said you had too.

Do you trust him?

He's one of my students. I'm required to have some sort of faith in him but I wouldn't call it trust.

Do you think it could be another way to get attention? I hate to phrase it that way, but he lives to be in the spotlight.

Could be a possibility, I suppose.

"Here ya are. A bowl of udon and a plate of kakuni manju. And let me top that off for ya, sweetheart." She said, reaching over and filling up Dad's almost empty coffee mug.

"Thank you, Ikeda." Dad said.

"Anytime, hun. I'll be back to check on y'all later." She said sweetly and I dug in right away, happily sighing at the amazing taste.

Do you think I should open up to Denki about what happened?

There's a question I never thought I'd hear. Why do you ask?

Well, cause, you and Pops and Toshi and even Bakugou knows what happened. I know he's curious and it's because he cares and he can see how much it effects me and I don't blame him for that. Even if I can bring myself to talk about it and tell him, I don't know if it would be a good idea. It would be me telling my boyfriend about how I was tortured mentally and physically for almost three days.

Your Pops and I were together for about a year when your Uncle Oboro died. I didn't open up about it to him for almost a whole year. I didn't know he died, I was convinced that he was still talking to me. Cheering me on as I fought. I blamed myself for a while. It was the only time I didn't believe Sunshine, then I saw the body bag and it felt like part of my heart stopped pumping blood. I felt crazy. So, tell him when you feel like the time is right. If he doesn't have it in him to wait, then he's not worth your time.

Thanks Dad. And you're not crazy. I think your brain just didn't want you to feel it yet so you would stay alive. And I'm sorry, if I brought back any flashbacks when I radioed in to the school when I was trapped.

You don't have to apologize for any of it.

It made me realize I don't want to die anymore. I'm not ready. I was scared, of losing you and everyone.

You're still here. That's what counts.

After we finished our food, we talked for another hours or so, even as the sun rose and shined brightly through the windows we talked. A ghost of a smile appearing on Dad's face when he checked his phone, I already knew who it was.

"Ready to head home?" He asked and I nodded. He paid and left a tip, the two of us walking out to the car. We sat in it as we waited for it to warm up. His phone started ringing after a moment and he picked it up, looking at it confused. "Rock Lock is calling me."

"Put it on speaker! I wanna hear! Please?" He sighed but obliged, answering the phone call and putting it on speaker.

"Hello?" He said tiredly.

"Hey Eraser. I gotta ask a favor." Rock Lock cut in on the other end.

"What's your favor? And so you're aware, I have Onryo with me and you're on speaker." I rolled my eyes jokingly at him taking my fun out of it but he shot me a look.

"That's perfect actually. I was callin' about your kid, I'm at a loss and the cops are too, can I borrow your kid?" He asked.

"I'm sorry, would you like to rephrase that?"

"Can ginger come down to the scene and tell us if we're missin' anything? Like I said, we're at a loss and after the raid, I trust his judgement and he has a different way at lookin' at things." Dad looked at me and we had a silent conversation.

"I'll be there as soon as I can. Send him the address and details to save time on you briefing me."

"Heard that, see ya soon kid." Dad ended the phone call and put the car in gear.

"This should be fun." He sighed.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 90

Warnings: Brief mentions of puke and some stress, I guess?? Word count: 4477

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 89 | Volt 91

After getting in a few minutes of heavily interrupted sleep throughout the night, I only realized Denki's alarm was going off after he started to stir, aimlessly patting behind him to try and hit his alarm clock. He slowly sat up a bit to properly shut off his alarm before burying his face back into my stomach. I went to move my hand from his hair, just for him to grab my hand and move it back to his hair.

"My love, we have to get up. If we don't then my Dad will absolutely come in here again." I felt him groan, holding me just a little tighter before he sat up a bit.

"But you're so comfortable and warm." He whined, pouting as he looked at me.

"I'm glad. But I'd rather have my boyfriend alive." I told him, cupping his face gently. He leaned into my touch and gave me a sleepy smile before he started looking concerned.

"You didn't sleep last night?" He asked gently, his eyes filling with concern.

"Couldn't really sleep." I told him quietly, feeling slightly ashamed admitting it.

"Maybe tonight you'll get more sleep." He hummed and went to lay back down but I tapped his cheek with my thumb.

"Baby, we have to get up." I reiterated. He sighed but agreed, slowly getting up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

I slowly sat up too, soon after leaving his room to get my hearing aids and get changed into my uniform. On the way down to the commons, I crossed paths with Hitoshi and Izuku in the elevator.

Hey, you okay after last night?

I'm doing better. Did you sleep at all?

I'm not gonna answer that.

"Dad's gonna kill you." Hitoshi snorted but he still looked concerned.

"I'll live." I brushed off, gravitating to the coffee immediately.

"Tsukababes?" Mina chimed in, looking at me in dismay. "You didn't sleep?" She asked softly, concern ever present in her expression.

"I got a little bit of sleep. I'll be fine. Promise." I tried to brush off, knowing there was a small chance of her letting it go. She sighed but gave me a tight hug.

With a to-go cup of coffee and holding my boyfriends hand, we made it to class on time. Narrowly avoiding Iida lecturing us to get there as soon as possible.

"Tsukare! Don't think I forgot you!" Iida announced as he came back in. "I see those dark circles! Have you been getting enough sleep?"

"Hundred percent." I responded sarcastically, walking Izuku walk in nervously. "Hey, Zuku! Over here!" I called him over, hoping to get him away from Aoyama and it thankfully worked.

Class dragged by, I sat mostly still inattentive and mostly trying to stay awake.

"Woah, look at this. Mount Lady teamed up with Edgeshot! And Kamui Woods!" Denki exclaimed between classes while we all grabbed our hero costume cases, showing me his phone excitedly.

"Woah, really? I wonder what for." I responded.

"I think they're going by 'Team Lurkers'. I saw it mentioned in the news earlier." Jirou commented.

"There sure are a bunch of heroes teaming up these days." Denki said excitedly.

"Once we're pros, we should do some team-ups too!" Mina exclaimed. "Here's an idea!" She turned to Uraraka as they started walking out.

I reached up and grabbed my suit from the wall, waiting for my brother and Denki to grab theirs. I fidgeted with my hearing aids and after some debate, opted to take them out, a migraine hitting me like a brick wall.

Hey, you don't look so good.

I'm gonna be sick. I barely got out before walking over to the trash can and upchucking the bit of toast I had this morning.

I felt someone start rubbing my back and I could tell from the touch alone it was my boyfriend. I held my head in my hands as the pain started to travel, I haven't had one hit me this hard and this fast in a while. After a moment, I felt my brother start rubbing my back and helping me move, probably telling everyone he was taking me to Recovery Girl.

We walked the familiar path, I was barely coherent enough to properly walk with the pain radiating in my skull. I was soon placed on the cot, a few muffled voices talking around me but even that was excruciating and nauseating.

Migraine. Puked everything up, no gradual start. One of the worst ones I've had in a while. Pains an 8.

I managed to sign with my shaky hands. A cool, wet cloth was placed on my forehead and over my eyes, instantly relieving some of my pain. I let out a sigh of relief and held my head.

Thank you.

I sat there for about twenty minutes before I felt Chiyo tap my hand, placing something in a wrapper, presumably a granola bar, in my palm. Hesitantly, I ate it, knowing if I wanted to take my migraine meds, I would need something in my system. Another ten minutes of precautionary waiting while nursing a water bottle. My pain dropping down to maybe a 7 while I deprived half of my senses. Then I felt her place the medicine in my hand, I quickly took the pills that I knew were white and oblong.

Then the true waiting game started.

How long these would take to kick in.

I let my shoulders slowly relax, uncaring about whoever might come in. It was a moment of peace and quite, the pain being the only thing tethering me to the earth. I didn't know how much time had passed before I peaked through the cloth long enough to find a bin, thankfully she sat one within arms reach of me, to once again, let the contents of my stomach escape. She came over and rubbed my back gently before taking the bowl.

A few more minutes ticked by and I felt someone tapping my hand before gingerly lifting the cloth off my eyes. The blinds were drawn shut and all of the lights were off, making it mildly tolerable in comparison to how I felt in the classroom. Dad sat beside me, looking at me with heavy concern.

I love you, but you look like shit.

Feel like it too.

I was talking to the old lady. She thinks that with everything that's been going on and the lack of sleep you've been getting triggered it to be substantially worse and not give you any warnings.

I figured that was why. It's been a while since I've thrown up from one of these or it got to be this bad. Usually I'm pretty good with a preemptive strike to get rid of them.

You usually are. However this isn't the usual.

I know. I'm worried. I swallowed the lump in my throat and tried to figure out a way to take all of the heat off myself but still get my point across. I'm not doing as okay as I thought I would be. But I'm also worried about you and Pops and Toshi. I can see how much stuff is effecting each of you. And we all have our own stuff going on too.

We'll talk more about it later when you're not coming down from a migraine.

Okay.

You didn't sleep last night.

I couldn't sleep. Just wasn't able to.

Make sure you try and get a few hours in tonight.

I'll try.

He nodded and ruffled my hair, flipping the cloth over to the cool side after a moment and just sat with me.

Dad?

Yes, Onryo?

I'm scared.

How come?

I'm not doing okay. If it's bad enough that I can admit it, somethings wrong.

It means you've reached your breaking point and you know you need help.

That scares me.

I sat up a bit when I saw movement in the corner of my eye, Yoru walking in sheepishly.

"Hey, kiddo. How ya feeling?" He asked as he made his way over.

"Getting better. What are you doing here? Did we have ultimate move stuff today?" I asked softly, the reverberation of my own voice felt painful. However it still wasn't as bad as earlier.

"Yeah. I was talking to your Dad. We figured that me and you could do some one on one training in the TDL with him to supervise." He offered and I nodded.

"Yeah. That sounds good." I mumbled, staving off the nausea resonating in my core. "Do you think Hitoshi can join us? Give you more of a challenge?"

"Sure. Let me know when you want to meet there for training, kid." I nodded and shut my eyes, slowly laying my head back again. Dad stayed with me for a little bit longer before going back to the class.

It took almost three hours for it to subside, but I was more relieved than anything that it didn't last longer like some of them. My brother met up with me at Recovery Girls office, bringing me a spare change of clothes to train in and texted Yoru for me. I stuffed my uniform in my bag, now adorning a black tank top and grey sweats and walking with my brother to the TDL. Denki joining us to watch, claiming that he wanted to see me spar since he hasn't in a while.

"You kids ready?" Yoru asked cockily and I nodded. "What are we working on today?"

"I want to work on my control with my capture weapon." Hitoshi said, making Yoru raise an eyebrow.

"Well as you know, we're supposed to be working on Ultimate Moves." He tried to push and I could see the irk mark forming on Toshi's forehead.

"I don't have one. I didn't work on any today either. I don't want to be a limelight hero, I'm going for underground. Like our Dad. They don't have ultimate moves that they call out." He responded.

"Fine. Yeah, work on control. I'm sure you could use it." Yoru said in a condescending, drawled out tone. My brother raised an eyebrow in defiance and sent out his capture weapon before the hero could react, having him trapped in his spot and firmly secured before he could think. "Shit, you sure are Eraser's kid. Got the same look on your face and everything." He sighed as he tried to squirm out of the cloth bindings while Denki stifled his chuckles from beside our Dad. "Okay, I yield, you can let me go now." The cloth suddenly fell limp and Hitoshi brought it back. "You're almost on Eraser's level with that thing. Okay then, Onryo, why do you want to work on today?"

"I want to work on using my Pin Point Accuracy without my glasses, in case anything happens where they might break or I can't use them." I said plainly, still recovering from the migraine.

"Sounds like a plan. I'll give you some vines since Cementoss isn't here to build you any walls." I nodded and got myself ready. He sent out a few vines and I found the spot, mumbling the name of the move under my breath. I cut the vine in half, but I was off by about two yards, a crack forming in the ground. "Damn. Seems like you picked up in it quick." I shook my head and crouched down.

"No. I was off about two yards from where I was aiming." I muttered, glaring at the dismembered vine.

"It's your first time really trying without your glasses. It's gonna take time." I sighed but nodded, knowing Yoru was right.

He sent out another string of vines, the two of us repeating the process for nearly forty minutes before I got frustrated and sat down.

"Why can't I get it?" I angrily mumbled at the ground. I've done this dozens of time in training, why couldn't I get it now.

"You have a mental block. If it gets any worse, you'll end up stunting how you use it altogether." I heard Dad say from across the gym. "Don't tell me you don't. I know you do. I've been able to see it for a few days now. We need to stop it before it gets worse. Break that wall in your path." I let out a huff of air and brought myself back into a crouch.

"Imagine it's like a sword making contact. You know your aim, you know where it'll land on the path it's swinging." Yoru suggested and I mulled it over, clearly getting lost in my head.

"Onryo." I heard Dad say firmly and I looked up to meet his eye. "Find a way to stop this block. What do you need to do?" I ran a hand through my dampened curls and thought on it.

"Yoru, hand to hand with quirks randomly thrown in." I finally said, feeling like I was at a last stitch effort.

"Fine by me." He said with a smirk. I stood up fully and stepped closer to him, waiting for him to make the first move.

He led with a kick that I easily rolled under, catching him off guard when I grabbed his ankle and brought him down. He rolled to the side and got back up, sending a punch my way. I blocked, ducking and weaving while still sending out blows. We each landed a few hits here and there, most of the time we dodged and blocked.

"Your Dad taught you well." He stated casually.

"I know." I replied, not allowing myself to get distracted. I sent a punch, knowing fully well he would catch it and he did. I took the distraction I made to send a kick to his side, watching him sputter.

"What? Showing off for blondie?" He asked through a wheezed breath.

"Not at all." I said before he went to send another hit. We went back and forth again for a few minutes until he tried to pull the same move on me. I caught his fist in my hand, and then his leg, pinning it to my side. I meticulously slid my foot behind his planted one and kicked back on his heel, pushing his hand backwards at the same time to make him fall. "That was showing off." I breathed out, watching as he coughed harshly.

"Again." I heard Dad say from across the gym. "You didn't use any quirks, go again." I pinched the bridge of my nose and nodded, as frustrated as I was, I knew why he was doing this and I would thank him later.

So we sparred. We sparred eleven times. Only once out of those did I use my quirk briefly while Yoru used his plenty. Then it happened. That magical movie-esque moment. I was in the air, Yoru taking advantage over a moment and flinging me up with a vine. I originally planned to come down with a kick, until my window of opportunity struck. He was sending a vine straight up at me and I clearly said the name of my move, taking Yoru's advice with the sword analogy and watched as the vine split almost exactly where I intended, only a few inches off. I landed in a small crouch, rolling forward to lessen the blow of the fall and straight into his ankles. He fell back and tapped the ground twice before letting his limbs flop.

"Dad! I did it!" I exclaimed, Toshi running over and giving me a hug.

"Shit, I haven't gone hand to hand like that in a while, you're out here making me look like a rookie, squirt." Yoru said. I laughed off his comment and walked over to him, reaching out a hand and pulling him up. "And where the fuck did these muscles come from? You're a teenager."

"A teenager in a superhuman society with pro heroes for parents." I shot back.

"I'm wiped out after that." He grumbled. "Hey, I'll see you next week, right?" I groaned dramatically and flung my head back.

"Yeah. And I have a surprise for you." I told him, watching him grow very confused very fast.

"It's your birthday. Shouldn't you be the one getting a surprise?"

"Trust me. You'll like this surprise." I told him. He shrugged his shoulders but nodded. He gave me an awkward side hug before leaving and I flopped onto my brother. "Hey, Toshi. I never got to ask you, but why were you giving him the evil eye during dinner a while back...?" My words trailed off as a certain rock caught my attention. "Dad?" I asked in a whisper as I slowly walked closer to the words written in french, engraved into a rock.

"Onryo? What's the matter?" He asked and I slowly sat down.

We need to talk alone. Maybe get Nedzu in here too.

"I need to have a word with Onryo, alone." He said firmly, waiting for Hitoshi and Denki to leave before crouching next to me. "Onryo?" He asked again.

"Call Nedzu." I mumbled, staring at the words in shock.

"What does it say?" Nedzu asked gently, staring at the rock beside me, Dad on my other side.

"Il faut se méfier de l'eau qui dort." I read off the rock. "Beware the water that sleeps or there is no worse water than sleeping water. Layman's terms, still waters may run deep." I said, swallowing the lump in my throat. "This isn't good." I whispered.

"It's a good thing you know french." Dad commented but I shook my head.

"Aoyama wrote this. He's the only other one in the class that knows the language. Or would be able to engrave it in a rock." I licked my lips nervously. "So much for sleeping tonight. It's a warning."

"A warning?" Dad asked.

"Yeah, it basically means it's the quiet ones you have to watch out for, a wolf in sheep's clothing situation." I confirmed. "That's the old meaning, at least. It's a proverb stemming from Latin, now it's usually used for something about placidity hiding a passionate or subtle nature. It used to refer to something else though, can't remember what exactly." I explained. "I'm worried."

"Understandably so. But try not to dwell on it." Nedzu told me. "We're on top of this and will look into why he wrote this." I nodded slightly but still stared at the words, racking my brain for what the old meaning was. "Tsukare. Don't stress yourself over it. We'll figure this out."

"I'm trying to remember what it was. Like, specifically. The synopsis was a warning. Similar to sleep with one eye open, know your enemy, everyone is a suspect no matter how they appear type thing. I just, I can't remember what it was commonly referenced to." Dad looked at me confused for a minute.

"You never fail to surprise me,  but when did you learn about that?" He asked as he turned back to the french engraving.

"Sometime in junior high when I was learning french and spanish. Had a mental block on them for a few weeks, so I figured if I studied stuff about latin since it's the base language, it'd come easier. Didn't work, but read some cool stuff." I mumbled almost inaudibly, racking my brain for what the hell I had read.

"You're going to give yourself an aneurysm if you keep stressing over it." Dad stated in his typical dry sarcasm. I rolled my eyes but stared at it with just as much intensity. "You're not sitting here all night." He told me with no room for argument. "Go back to the dorms and get changed, you're staying the night with your Pops and I."

"I hate to come off as nosy, but is everything alright, Shouta?" Nedzu asked and I chuckled under my breath.

"No disrespect, but you loving being nosy. You have an intelligence quirk, it's what you live for." I told him. "I didn't sleep last night, so he probably wants me to stay the night so I actually sleep and he can erase my quirk if I have another nightmare where I wake up screaming."

"You'd be right." Dad confirmed and I nodded. "So go get changed." I groaned and stood up, taking my time to get back to the dorms.

"Tsukababes! Oh em gee!!" I rolled my eyes and checked my phone as I felt it buzz.

From Pikachu <;3: You look hot in grey sweats

I felt my face light up a bright red and I shoved my phone in my pocket.

"I-I'm gonna go change." I stumbled over my words, earning a few giggles from Mina and a smirk from my boyfriend. My brother looked confused and I saw Aoyama trying to give Izuku more cheese.

I rushed around my room haphazardly as I changed into a baggy long sleeve and a pair of basketball shorts. I tossed my hearing aids on the charger and grabbed my laptop, putting it in its case before heading back downstairs. I set it on one of the tables and wrapped my arms around my boyfriends waist while he was brushing his teeth in the commons. He leaned back into me and tapped on my wrist, pointing towards Mina.

"Tsukababes! What happened to your leg?!" I could hear the very faint mumbling of her yell, clearly shocked. I followed her gaze down to my calf and realized what scar she was talking about.

"That's when Tsukare was a total badass during the licensing exams and ran a lady out of a collapsing building." Jirou added, coming up behind Mina and resting her forearms on her shoulders.

Izu. What happened?

We talked everything out and we're friends now! He said that he could realize my body wasn't made for my quirk, and he's just like me with his. His body doesn't have the right constitution for it either and he said he wanted to comfort me and let me know I wasn't alone.

I looked at Aoyama, analyzing him. I didn't trust him.

Hey, what happened?

Something's off about him.

Well, yeah, he's Aoyama. He sparkles, like, literally.

Not that, it's something else. I don't trust him.

Do you want me to not be friends with him?

I'm not saying that, you can be friends with whoever you'd like. I'm just saying my truth on it, I don't trust him.

Izuku nodded and Denki tapped my arm again. I dropped my arms and watched him walk to the bathroom before coming back without a tooth brush.

"Everything okay? Your Dad kinda rushed us out of there." He asked as he got closer to me.

"Yeah. Yeah, he uh, wanted to talk to me about my grades. He was worried that they're going to start slipping because of everything." My stomach churned as I lied through my teeth to him. He looked at me in dismay and I felt even worse. "I'm sleeping at my parents tonight, my Dad is basically forcing me to. But I'll text you, okay?" He nodded a little and looked sad. I gently cupped his face and pressed my lips to his, hoping to convey my sincerity and trust through a small action.

"Okay." He mumbled and pressed another kiss to my lips. I grabbed my laptop and saw my brother fake gagging in the corner before following me out the door.

To Pikachu <;3: I'm sorry for lying, I just didn't want our friends to interrogate me if I said what actually happened or if I said I'll tell you later

From Pikachu <;3: You had me really worried for a minute, it's not like you to lie :(

From Pikachu <;3: So what did your Dad want to talk to you about?

To Pikachu <;3: Denki, I trust you so much, and the reason I'm not telling you isn't because I don't trust you or anything like that

To Pikachu <;3: It's just that, right now, I have no idea whether or not I'm even allowed to talk about it

To Pikachu <;3: I pinky promise, I trust you, I just need time to get back to you with an answer because it's in such a weird grey area that I don't know how much I can say

From Pikachu <;3: I trust you, too, so you can get back to me on it whenever you can

From Pikachu <;3: I see why you didn't say something else though, Mina would've pestered you until the end of time

To Pikachu <;3: Exactly

I tucked my phone away and took off my shoes after walking through the door to my parents place, my brother hot on my trail.

"Can someone please fill me in on what happened earlier? Because now I'm even more fucking confused." My brother said immediately, clearly frustrated as he signed messily.

"Woah, back it up, what happened?" Pops asked calmly, trying his hardest to be the voice of reason.

"I don't know, first Onryo short circuited after training, then Dad sent me and Kaminari out of the TDL, Onryo told Izuku he doesn't trust Aoyama and then I watched him lie to Kaminari!" He said, clearly exasperated.

"Okay, let's sit down in the living room while we wait for your Dad. Sleepy head's getting out of the shower." Pops said soothingly, resting his hands on Toshi's biceps. My brother plopped his head on his chest and let out a full body sigh. "But why did you lie to Kaminari? Is something wrong?" Pops asked while looking at me.

"Because I didn't know how much I was allowed to tell him or anyone so I said Dad wanted to talk to me cause he was concerned about my grades slipping after everything that's happened and I didn't wanna say I would talk about it later cause I knew Mina would be relentless about asking what happened and I know it comes from a place of love but I didn't want to have her trying to figure it out." I explained, my words rushed and coming out in one breath. "I already texted Denki apologizing and explained that I can't talk about it right now cause I don't know how much I can even say and explained my reasoning and he said he understood and he doesn't fault me for how I handled it."

"Wow, I gotta say I'm not used to my teenagers acting like teenagers. So this is new and refreshing. You probably did the right thing, not the lying part, but communicating to him why you did." I nodded and plopped my head on Hitoshi's back.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 89

Warnings: More therapyyyy Word count: 2994

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 88 | Volt 90

The next day classes dragged on and on, my boyfriend even short circuiting during Uncle Ecto's math class and saying 'start by carrying the yay'. Then before we left for the cafeteria, I saw Aoyama putting cheese into Midoriya's mouth.

I watched closely for a minute to make sure he wouldn't try anything else, but once I saw Iida had it under control, I went to the cafeteria. Denki saved a spot for me beside him, my brother and Kiri sat across from us, Bakugou on the other side of the red head. Sero sat on Denki's other side followed by Mina.

Where's Izuku?

He got trapped talking to Aoyama. He should be here soon if you want to sit with everyone else.

I'd rather sit with you today. Bro talk later?

Bro talk later.

Bakugou watched annoyed, glaring as he aggressively ate his food. Most of the table talked comfortably, bouncing words back and forth, but I couldn't keep up. Everything felt muddled. Denki slowly moved his hand into my thigh, his palm resting up and allowed me to fidget with his fingers.

I glanced at Kirishima and saw him blushing wildly and stammering on and off for the right words. Sero was concealing one of his smirks and Mina looked proud of herself.

Poor Kiri. He got set up.

I leaned around my boyfriend and flicked Hanta, giving him a pointed look. He gave me a guilty smile in turn, knowing he had been caught. My brother threw a grain of rice from his lunch at me.

What's going on?

I can't say anything, I promised I'd keep my mouth shut. I'm sorry.

He rolled his eyes but accepted the answer, knowing how much I took privacy seriously.

"Everything okay?" Denki mumbled into my ear and I nodded, scooching a little closer to him.

"Yeah, might have to go code yellow on one of our friends." I said jokingly, loud enough for Sero to hear and make him pale.

"Oh gods." He laughed out, oblivious to what all had happened.

"You two." I said in the commons at almost midnight, pointing at Mina and Sero. The group of us hanging out since none of us could seem to get some sleep.

"Who? Us?" Mina asked.

"Whatever for?" Sero said with just as much sarcasm, a hand splayed on his chest.

"Upstairs. Now." Sero rubbed his elbows nervously and took the walk of shame up to his room, Mina following behind him while I was in the back. They awkwardly sat down on the bed and stared at the ground. "Why would you two put him in that situation?" I asked.

"Look, it's not as bad as you thoug-"

"Cállate." I said firmly, watching Sero's eyes widen. "I will go full hispanic mother on you right now, he was extremely uncomfortable back there." I said defensively.

"Okay, so, Ei told us that he was confused about his feelings between Bakubabes and Toshibabes, so we figured a nudge in the right direction would help." Mina explained, going on for another fifteen minutes to explain her elaborate plan that she thought of.

"I'm not even going to ask what you just called my brother. The point is, is that Kirishima was so clearly uncomfortable back there. This is something he needs to figure out on his own, I understand where you both were coming from, and I know you both wanted to help, but when it's something like that you need to talk to him first." I explained.

"But we did the same thing with you and Kami." Mina pouted.

"That was different. I already knew what my feelings towards Denks was. You knew my feelings towards him. Everyone basically knew except him somehow. Kirishima is still trying to figure out his feelings and I know you like to get involved with people's love lives. I understand that, but you also need to know when to step back, or at least keep me in the loop so I can help you take a step back." I told her. She slowly nodded.

"I'm sorry." She said softly.

"You need to apologize to Kirishima. And you." Hanta looked at me with wide eyes and sat completely still. "Why?"

"Mina talked me into it." He said solemnly. "She just wanted to help Kiri, so I agreed and asked Shinsou to sit with us at lunch when we saw Midoriya wasn't there yet."

"And you both are very well aware that my brother likes Izuku." I said firmly, stating the clear as day fact. "You also know that my brother and I are both fairly antisocial. We have our comfort people. Yes, all of you have become my comfort people in one sense or another, but for Toshi, outside of family, his main comfort person is Izuku. And I would be willing to bet that he's going to ask me if you guys were messing with him at lunch."

"I'm sorry for not thinking things through." Hanta said softly. "And I'll make sure to apologize to Kirishima."

"Thank you. Now who the hell is blowing up my phone after midnight?" I sighed, taking my phone out of my pocket, fully prepared to see a multitude of texts from my family, or Kiri and Denki texting in the group chat to figure out if this was a true code yellow or if I was bluffing earlier. Instead, I saw multiple messages from Izuku.

From Rayquaza: 911

From Rayquaza: Emergency

From Rayquaza: I'm freaking out and I need you to come to my dorm

From Rayquaza: I texted Hitoshi too

From Rayquaza: I feel like I'm going crazy

"Can one of you tell Denki I'll meet him in his room in a little while? I have to go to Izuku's room." I told them before ducking out of the room. My brother was about to step into the elevator until he saw me running towards him. "Do you know what happened?"

"No, I was hoping you would." He said, the both of us impatiently waiting for the elevator to hit floor two. We rushed to his room and let ourselves in to find him anxiously pacing with his hands in his hair.

"Hey, what happened?" I asked him softly as I turned on his All Might lamp.

I think Aoyama was on my balcony. I don't know. What if I imagined it? If it was him I don't want him listening in.

"Okay, let's go to my room. Yeah?" He nodded and followed us over one door to help ease his racing mind. "Okay, walk us through it, what happened?"

"I've been having a hard time sleeping and I heard something on my balcony. I could hear footsteps so I pretended to be sleeping just in case. A- And I opened my eyes just a little bit to look in my mirror so I could see who it was and I saw Aoyama on my balcony just staring at me. I waited for him to leave before texting you and he left a message on my balcony in cheese. It said 'I know' but I don't know what that could even be about and what if I just imagined it? What if it didn't really happen?" He rushed out and I was relieved that I turned on my light so I could read his lips.

"Breathe. If you say you saw him then we believe you." Hitoshi said slowly, trying to help ground him a little more.

"Izuku?" His head shot towards me and the panic in his eyes made my chest contract. "When was the last time you properly slept?"

"I don't know. Not since the raid." I nodded and kept my demeanor soft so he would feel more relaxed.

"Okay. Look, I believe you. Hitoshi believes you. We don't think you were imagining anything. I want you to sleep in Hitoshi's room tonight, so you're less freaked out and you get a little more sleep. I promise it'll help. It will clear your head a bit for when you think about it in the morning and run through what happened ten more times. Okay?" I asked softly.

"Okay. Yeah, yeah that makes sense. I'm not crazy."

"You're not crazy. You've always been extremely observant and tactical, it wasn't a dream, it wasn't imagined. If you say it happened, then it happened." He nodded along to my words, and I watched the weight slowly come off of his shoulders.

"It happened. I'm not crazy. He is. He was on my balcony and left a message in cheese." He mumbled, starting to relax a bit.

"It happened." Hitoshi echoed to him. "Let's go to my room." He followed with softly.

The two slowly walked out and I got changed into something that wasn't starting to mess with my sensory issues. A pair of basketball shorts and no shirt. I texted my boyfriend and waited patiently for him to respond before heading to his room. As soon as he saw me, he pulled me into a hug and not so subtly checked me out.

"Everything okay with Midoriya?" He asked, making sure he was in my line of sight.

"Yeah, he's sleeping in Hitoshi's room tonight." I told him, resting my head on his shoulder a little. One of his hands came up and combed through my hair, making my entire body relax almost immediately. He slowly guided me over to his bed and we sat down, my head laying on his shoulder still.

"Do you wanna put anything on to watch?" He asked, grabbing my attention before talking.

"Sure. Anything in particular you wanna watch?" He thought about it for a moment, but half shrugged. I slowly lifted my head and watched as he grabbed his laptop, pulling up a streaming service and let me get comfortable with him.

I laid down next to him and curled into his side a bit, trying my hardest to fight any walls my brain had reinforced in the last week. He scrolled through the different movies until we both agreed on one and he immediately clicked the subtitles button.

"Can you see?" He asked and I nodded a little. "Hey, you okay?" He asked and I nodded again. He paused the movie and looked at me. "What's going on babe?"

"It's nothing, just dumb stuff." I mumbled, not daring to look him in the eye.

"Even if you think it's dumb, I wanna hear about it." He told me earnestly. I slowly started drawing shapes on his stomach, hoping to distract my racing heart for a minute.

"Just in a depressive episode." I mumbled, not used to talking about my emotions with him.

"I had a feeling, I just didn't want to say anything and put you on the spot after everything that happened with the raid." He told gently, his eyes trailing to my hand that was still tracing shapes on his abdomen, growing visibly confused when I stopped.

"Recovery Girl also said that the raid was a major setback for me." I managed to get out and he let me take my time. "Uh, th-this is how I used to act when I was a kid."

"What do you mean?" I chewed on my bottom lip nervously, kicking myself mentally for opening my mouth.

"My Pops told you how when I was a kid, I was really quiet and stuff." He moved his hand towards mine gingerly, playing with my fingertips. "I was always scared of using my quirk cause I was told it hurt people, so I avoided talking." I explained, looking at the wall as I spoke. I looked back up at him hesitantly, not knowing how he might react.

"You're scared you're going to hurt me?" I slowly nodded against his chest. "Ryo, you won't hurt me. Especially not on purpose."

"But I already did. And I hurt Izuku. I don't want to hurt you again." I said, practically pleading with him.

"Onryo." He mumbled and I curled into him a little more.

"I know. I'm sorry. I'm really trying to get past this mental block. I promise." His face softened and he placed a kiss on top of my head.

"I know you are. You don't need to apologize for struggling." I let my body relax a bit and sink into his side fully, I placed a chaste kiss to his abdomen instead of reaching up.

A few times through out the movie I let my eyes fall shut, but after a few minutes my body always jolted back awake until I gave up on sleep. I sat up a little more and gave him a kiss on the cheek, his sleep filled eyes looking at me confused.

"Can you stay?" He asked in what I could only imagine being a groggy voice.

"I'll stay. Do you wanna get comfy?" I asked him and he nodded. After a moment, he had his face buried in my stomach and his legs tangled with mine. His right hand came up and he sleepily starting tracing some of my scars and for once, I didn't let myself be scared about what he thought.

What's this one from?

He showed me what he typed on his phone before pointing to the thick on on my side just beneath my ribs.

"Those ones are from the Nomu in Hosu." I told him softly. He tapped another one and I looked at it. "That one I think was from one of my foster homes." He tapped a third one and as soon as I saw it I started laughing a little. "That one actually has a bit of a story. I tried to jump off a swing." I could almost feel the confused expression on his face. "I was about nine or ten and living with my Dad's. Toshi and I were at the play ground and I got really high on the swings, so I jumped off without thinking cause it was fun. I landed a little funny and rolled my ankle. Unbeknownst to us, one of the stakes in the wall of the platform was sticking up and pointed and I rolled right into it. My Pops was freaking out, Toshi looked like he saw a ghost and it resulted in a day trip to the hospital." He softly laughed, his eyes finally starting to flutter shut all the way. "Good night, baby." I whispered, moving my hand up to play with his hair. Eventually my phone buzzed quite some time later, and my guess was correct that it was Hitoshi texting me.

From Espeon: Bro talk?

To Espeon: Bro talk, what's going on?

From Espeon: What was that about in lunch? Were our friends messing with me or am I just not getting their humor.

To Espeon: No they weren't messing with you, it's something I can't get into because I promised I wouldn't and it's not my place to anyways, but I promise they weren't messing with you

From Espeon: You're sure?

To Espeon: I'm sure

To Espeon: What else is going on?

From Espeon: My depressions been getting worse again.

To Espeon: When did it start getting worse?

From Espeon: Technically a month ago, but more recently in the past few days and I don't think stressing about my birth family is helping. I've been thinking about talking to Dad and Pops about trying antidepressants.

To Espeon: Why didn't you say anything sooner?

From Espeon: I guess part of it is the same reason you don't say anything. Worrying about putting more on their plate. But the other part is it's not a constant. I can handle a depressive episode that lasts a week. So I just tried to ignore it and carry on with life because it's nothing new. But then it started getting worse and I'm at the point where I know I need more help and if I ignore it anymore then it'll only get worse.

To Espeon: If you think medication will help regulate it, then I say go for it. Dad and Pops are going to ask a million questions though, so just be prepared for that, and you know I'm always here if you need someone

From Espeon: You're with Kaminari a lot of the time now.

To Espeon: Shinsou Hitoshi

From Espeon: Oh shit.

To Espeon: I don't give a singular fuck. I don't care who I am with in the moment, whether it be Denki, Dad, our friends, Nedzu, whoever. If you text me saying you need me, I'm coming to wherever the fuck you are to help you. Yknow why? Because you're my brother. You're my family. I'm always gonna have your back. And if our friends or my boyfriend gets bent out of shape because I'm there for my brother, then that's a separate issue and conversation I get to have with that person.

From Espeon: Thanks man.

To Espeon: Now who the fuck do I have to beat up that made you think I wouldn't be there for you because I have a boyfriend?

From Espeon: My overthinking brain.

To Espeon: I will curb stomp that small portion of your brain so that doesn't happen anymore

From Espeon: I think that would kill me.

To Espeon: Never mind then. Antidepressants it is.

From Espeon: Is there anything I should expect with antidepressants?

To Espeon: Be prepared for one or two of them not to work and for your body to slowly build a tolerance to them once you find the one that does work

From Espeon: That sounds somewhat manageable.

To Espeon: For the most part it is, but you have to be completely honest during your med checks and you have to let someone know immediately if you're getting any bad side effects.

From Espeon: Fuck.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 88

Warnings: The true start of big brother Tsukare!!!! Mini therapy session Word count: 3785

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 87 | Volt 89

The next few days passed by in a blur with little to no sleep and multiple therapy appointments. Everyone involved in the raid was invited to Nighteyes funeral. It was a quiet and solemn service, but Mirio tried his best to hold himself together. And I admire him for that.

The work studies ended up being put on hold after the raid.

As upset as a lot of us were, we understood why and couldn't argue the facts. It was a large danger that none of us as students should have been a part of.

But if I was given the opportunity to save Eri again, I would do it without any hesitation. Then the day after the service, Eri pulled out of her fever and was moved out of a stricter quarantine.

"Onryo." Dad said at the end of class on Saturday, calling me over to his desk. "How would you feel about visiting Eri?" He asked softly.

"Yes, absolutely. When are we going?"

"We can leave now." I nodded excitedly and gave Denki a quick hug and told Toshi I would see him later before following my Dad to his car. "Eri isn't supposed to be having any visitors. I was able to sway the hospital staff on bringing you since I believe it might cheer her up and because I will be there to nullify her quirk if she loses control."

"Do we know how her quirk works yet?" I asked him as I watched the buildings pass by.

"It's indicated by the horn on her head. It seems to power quirk. The larger it is, the more strength her quirk has. Right now, it's about the size of a small bump. She was also transferred to a closer hospital, that way if something does go wrong with her quirk, I can be there sooner." I nodded and sat contently, waiting for us to arrive. "How much sleep did you get last night?" He asked out of nowhere. I looked down at my lap awkwardly, knowing he would be worried no matter what.

"A few hours maybe?" I hesitantly responded.

"Nightmares again?" I nodded and turned my head towards the window. "Do you wanna talk about it?" He asked softly.

"Just wish they would stop." I mumbled. "Wednesday night was a major setback."

"I know." He sighed. "You've been acting a lot different, and you haven't been talking as much." I licked my lips awkwardly, not knowing how to get around this.

"I've just been tired." I tried to brush off, not wanting to concern him anymore.

"That's expected. You haven't been sleeping much." I nodded a little and fiddled with my fingers.

"Hey, Dad?" I started, cursing myself for being so anxious to ask him something so menial. "F-For uh, my birthday dinner next week, I invited Nakami and wanted to see if that was okay."

"You invited someone?" He asked rhetorically, seemingly shocked. "Wow, I'm impressed. I wasn't really expecting that. I don't see why not, I'll make sure Nedzu knows he's coming so he doesn't get shut out at the entrance." I nodded a little and got excited as the hospital came into view, a sentence I never thought would apply to me.

We got checked in and got our visitor passes, walked up to the second floor and I stopped at a nurse's station.

"Hi, uh, sorry I just have a quick question." I said meekly, the nurse turning to me with a soft smile. "I'm here with Eraser Head to visit Eri and I was wondering if you had any spare coloring sheets and crayons, that way she could have something to do."

"Of course, honey." She hummed and passed me a small stack of sheets with different pictures and a few paper cups with crayons.

I followed the other nurse into her room and was given the rundown of do's and don'ts.

"Eri? You have a visitor." The nurse said, piquing the girls interest. I slowly walked in and gave her small smile.

"Hi, Eri. It's good to see you again." I told her softly.

"Hi." She mumbled.

"How are you feeling?" I asked her gently, watching out of the corner of my eye as the nurse quietly left.

"I'm okay." She said nervously.

"Doctors are a little scary, huh?" She nodded slowly. "Is it okay if I sit?" I asked her.

"Yeah." I slowly sat on the edge of her bed.

"I brought something for us to do." I told her softly.

"What did you bring?" She fearfully asked and I showed her a few of the pictures and the crayons.

"I figured you would be a little bored, so I thought we could color together." I told her cheerfully and watched as she perked up a little bit. Slowly, I pulled the bedside tray around and set the stuff between us. "Go ahead and pick a picture you want to color." I told her, knowing she might need a bit of guidance still.

We colored in a comfortable silence for a bit until I saw her looking at me confused.

"What's your name? I know the one who got really hurt is Lemillion, but I don't know what to call you." She timidly confessed.

"So my hero name is Sonus, but my given name is Onryo." I told her happily, hoping to ease any of her fears even a little.

"Onryo?" She asked, testing it out on her tongue as she got used to it. "That's a nice name."

"Thank you, Eri. You have a very nice name too." I told her.

"Onryo?" She started, gripping her crayon tighter.

"Yeah, Eri?"

"Thank you, for helping Lemillion and for getting me out of there." My face softened a bit, and I gave her a warm smile.

"You're welcome. I'm just glad you're safe now."

"Is Chisaki coming back to get me?" She asked my in a wobbly voice.

"No honey, he's not coming to get you. And he'll never be able to hurt you again." I explained, watching her slowly process it.

"I'm scared." She weakly told me, and I looked at her softly.

"What has you scared?" She rolled her lips together nervously.

"I don't like it here... And I don't want to hurt you." Her watery red eyes looked up at me and I felt my stomach twist.

"I know, I don't like hospitals either. They're kinda scary." I told her gently.

"They scare you too?" I nodded a little.

"Yeah, they give me the heebie jeebies." I told her, watching her breathe out a semblance of a laugh. "But then I realized that the nice people here just want to help me, and it didn't feel so scary anymore." She slowly nodded. "And you won't hurt me. But if you do, I know you don't mean to, and it was an accident. I've accidentally used my quirk and hurt people a lot of times when I was your age, it's part of learning. And do you want to know the amazing thing?" I asked her, watching her eyes light up a little bit. "When you do start learning how to control your quirk, you'll have a pretty great teacher."

"Really?" She asked and I happily nodded.

"Yep!" She nodded along and continued coloring. Slowly, after about twenty minutes, one of her tiny, cold hands rested on top of my free one. I glanced at her from the corner of my eye, not moving or saying anything. I just let her be comfortable.

"You're really warm." Eri ended up mumbling.

"I get told that a lot. Hospitals are always so cold, and I don't understand why." I told her and she nodded mindlessly. "Are you cold?" I asked her, testing the waters on how much she would open up.

"Yeah." She mumbled cautiously.

"Well, I have an idea. I will be right back." She slowly nodded and watched me walk out of her room to the hallway. "Could I get two blankets, please?" I asked the nurse who stood watching. She shrugged her shoulders but went to the nearest supplies closet and grabbed two blankets. "Thanks." I said before walking back into the room. Eri looked at me curiously and slowly sat down her crayon. "Here is your new blanket." I said dramatically, she slowly grabbed it and set it on her lap. I took my own and wrapped it around my shoulders like a mini cocoon, along with flipping part of it over my head. Eri curiously followed suit, managing to stick out one of her tiny, bandaged arms to keep coloring. "Better?"

"It is, thank you."

The two of us relaxed and chatted a bit while coloring more pictures over the next hour or two, she slowly started letting her guard down around me and I tried my best to contain my excitement. I watched as she tensed up, her head snapping towards the door, and I assumed someone knocked lightly. I looked where she was and saw a different nurse walk in, a lean man with medium brown hair that was neatly trimmed but still grown out a little bit. I felt Eri retract a little and curl in on herself, I stole a glance at her and saw her cherry red eyes wide with fear. I slowly stood up, only stopping when I felt her small hand grip mine.

"Please don't go." She whispered, lip reading being my saving grace since it was so quiet, I couldn't hear her.

"I'm not leaving. I'm just going to talk to the nice doctor out in the hall and I will be right back, okay?" She gave me a shaky nod and I sent the man a look, reluctantly he followed me out of the room.

"Mind if I ask why the hell you aren't letting me do my job?" He asked me, arms crossed over his chest.

"Because seeing you almost sent her into a panic." The doctor scoffed and looked down at me, which wasn't hard for him to do seeing as he was a little taller than my Dad.

"Look, I don't need a kid telling me how to do my job." He went to walk past me but I stepped in front of him.

"You're, what? 25? 26 years old? I doubt you've dealt with an abuse case or someone, let alone a small child with PTSD this severe." I saw my Dad standing a fair distance away incase he needed to step in.

"Kid, I saw you on the news, I get this might be personal to you, but that doesn't mean you know more than I do." He bit out.

"I think it does. I'm sorry, were you slapped around? Beaten until you blacked out? Insulted for any tiny inconvenience? Tossed around like a volleyball from home to home?" He paused as he started taking in my words. "Were you starved or refused water multiple times for no reason that resulted in you going to a hospital where none of the doctors thought anything was wrong because it was looked over? Was your body blasted apart by a man's quirk, someone who was supposed to be a caretaker to you, only to be put back together so he could continue his science experiment because he realized cutting you open repeatedly could only get him so far?" He licked his lips and slowly shook his head. "Exactly. She's already terrified of being here because she's worried about you guys using her like that, because she has known nothing else in her life up until this point. For six years, that is all she has known. So I'm requesting she has a different nurse come in for this shift to take care of her, preferably someone's who's female. Because you saw the news. You saw what her abuser looked like. You're almost the same height as him, similar build, similar hair cut, similar hair color. And I'd be willing to bet in her mind, where she is still living in her own personal hellscape and paranoia, she only saw you as Chisaki. You saw how scared she looked, you saw her heart monitor spike. Do the right thing." I told him softly, making sure to keep my voice low.

"Okay. Fine, yeah." He mumbled and walked away. Dad walked over to me and gave me a hug.

"Good job, I'm proud of you." He said and I hugged him tighter.

"I'm gonna get back in there for a few minutes before we leave, so I can properly say goodbye to her and stuff." He nodded and let me walk back in. "Hey Eri, I'm back."

"Hi Onryo." She murmured and I slowly sat back down at the foot of her bed.

"Are you okay now?" I asked her softly, to which she nodded. After another minute or two, a different nurse walked in, a lady with blond hair who looked to be in her thirties. She started taking her vitals and I noticed Eri's confused look at what was going on. "You can ask what she's doing if you're curious. There's no harm in asking questions." I lightly told her, hoping to ease her nerves a bit.

"What's that?" She asked in a small, shaky voice, pointing to the doctors neck.

"This is a stethoscope. It helps me listen to your heart and your lungs." She explained softly to the child.

"It doesn't hurt?" She asked, worry flooding her face.

"Not at all." I told her. "If you want, she can show you how it works on me." I offered, watching her nod. The nurse smiled softly and placed the metal disc on my chest, instructing me to take a few deep breaths. I watched as she tried to hide her concerns, making me giggle. "See? Doesn't hurt, just a little cold."

We went on explaining different medical equipment to her, which I think helped her relax a lot more when she realized none of them could hurt her.

"Hey Eri, I have to go back to school now, but I'll be back to visit you. Okay?" She sadly nodded. "Do you want a hug?" I asked gently, until I realized by the look on her face, she didn't know exactly what I meant. "Okay, so open your arms really really wide. And then we hold each other." I told her happily. She slowly opened her arms and leaned forward. I wrapped her in my arms and rubbed her back until she pulled away.

"I think I like hugs." She hesitantly told me.

"I like hugs too, so if you ever want one, I will happily give you one." She nodded and waved goodbye to me as I left her room with the nurse.

"Sonus?" She said after the door shut. "I'm really glad you came to visit her. That's the most cheerful she's been all week." She told me softly.

"I'm glad I could cheer her up."

"You're a natural with kids. That's the fastest anyone has been able to put her at ease or get her to open up. Feel free to come and visit her anytime. As long as you're with Eraser, we don't mind bending the rules a little."

"Thank you. I'll be sure to visit again. And uh, I'm sorry that I snapped on your coworker." I told her awkwardly and she waved her hand.

"No need. You were doing right by the patient and that's what counts." She told me nonchalantly. "Well, I'll see you around when you visit again. Have a nice day."

"Onryo." Dad said as he walked over. "Before you go back to the dorms, we have to have a family meeting. I already texted Hitoshi and Sunshine."

"Is everything okay?" I asked concerned.

"Yes. Everything's okay. We all just need to talk about something."

I slowly nodded and followed him out to the car. My anxiety slowly started creeping up on me the longer I thought about why we were having a family meeting.

'The raid is over, so it's not about that.'

'My grades are fine and I only have a little bit of homework.'

'Maybe one of them have another large mission coming up?'

'Maybe it has to do with Nedzu?'

'Does it have to do with my bio family?'

'Maybe Toshi's bio family? I know Dad and Pops reached out, but to my knowledge they haven't responded yet.'

"Stop overthinking it." Dad chided softly from the driver seat, the gates of U.A. coming into view.

"Sorry.." I mumbled out.

"You don't need to apologize, I just don't want you worrying yourself sick over a possibility you come up with." I chuckled a little under my breath and nodded while I followed him inside.

"Sho? Is everything okay?" Pops asked as soon as we walked in the door. I took off my shoes and walked to the living room, giving Pops a small side hug.

"Everything's okay. There's a lot we all need to discuss, so if you two want to get reinforcements, I suggest doing it now." Dad said, directing that statement towards Hitoshi and I.

My brother and I got ice cream and coffee, while Pops grabbed blankets. We all gathered in the living room once again, all of us ready for whatever was about to happen.

"So, first, Hitoshi." My brother's eyes widened almost comically, and he pointed to himself with a spoon hanging out of his mouth. "Your birth parents got back to us yesterday. They were wondering if you were still interested in meeting and if we could set up a day for that." I watched as my brother's face fell into one of shock and disbelief, clearly still taking all of it in.

"Yeah, yeah I wanna meet them." He managed to get out.

"Okay, then we'll talk more about that later. I'll make sure Onryo can go with you as well." Dad paused, both of us nodding in agreement. "Second thing, Nedzu called me into his office today. I told him I would have to talk to everyone first because it's a big decision. For safety and emergency reasons, Sunshine and I have been asked to foster Eri. Her quirk is rewind, and her lack of control poses a true safety issue for people around her, when she got her quirk, she wiped her father out of existence. Her mother walked out after that. I'm the only who can ensure everyone's safety and I will be the one to work with her on how to use her quirk. So, how would each of you honestly feel about Eri coming into our family? Hitoshi?" My brother looked at him blandly.

"Yeah, I'm okay with that." He said casually, seemingly unfazed about it.

"Okay. Onryo?" Dad asked, turning to me.

"Yeah, absolutely." I told him, trying to contain how excited I was. We all turned to Pops, who was bordering on bouncing in place with joy.

"Sunshine?"

"Yes! A thousand times, yes! We're gonna have another kid and our family is getting bigger! And, oh my gosh, can we do those cute family photos? Please, Sho?" Pops started, Dad ended up having to use his quirk when Pops got a little too enthusiastic, starting to talk about shopping therapy.

"Sunshine. Relax. It's probably going to be a few weeks until she can come home. That gives us time to talk to Nedzu about living arrangements, set up a room for her, figure out what she does and doesn't like. Okay?" We all agreed, understanding fully well where he was coming from. "And third, Onryo." I looked at him with wide eyes and slowly took a bite of my melting ice cream.

"Yeah?" I asked in a drawn out voice, looking between my parents.

"I asked Sho if we could talk to you. We're really concerned." Pops said while looking at me intently. "What's been going on?"

"A lot but nothing at the same time." I mumbled, picking at my fingers.

"Dude, you're acting different, we all noticed it. We just want you to be able to talk to us. Or just, someone in general." Hitoshi told me before inhaling the rest of his coffee.

"I know. I think... I think you were right, Dad. About the mental toll it would take on me after. Some of the things that happened, I wasn't prepared for." I admitted finally.

"Onryo. You've been acting more and more like you did when we first adopted you. You haven't been talking as much, more cautious with what you say and how you act, you haven't been interacting with your friends as much." My leg started bouncing with my nerves.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled, mentally cursing myself for proving his point.

"We aren't mad or upset. We're worried about you and your mental health." Pops said and I nodded along.

"I know. I just, I don't want to hurt anyone again." I finally told them, making sure to stare at my hands. "First I hurt Denki because of a nightmare. Then I hurt Izuku. All because I couldn't get myself to stop screaming after a nightmare. I don't want to keep hurting the people I care about."

"You didn't mean to hurt them." Toshi told me.

"I know I didn't mean to, but I did." I said in a wavering breath. "Maybe it's just a bad mix right now, with being in a bad depressive episode and everything that happened." I tried to brush off, not wanting to talk about this anymore. "Can I go back to the dorms?" I asked weakly, feeling extremely drained, physically and mentally. Dad nodded and pulled me into a hug, Pops and Toshi joining in on it before I walked back to the dorms.

My boyfriend immediately greeted me with a warm hug and a loving kiss, I held onto him tight and buried my face in the nape of his neck.

"Everything okay?" He asked softly and I nodded into his chest. "Do you wanna go do something to distract yourself from whatever is on your mind?" He gently offered and I could feel my heart melting.

"That would be amazing. Let me grab my wallet just in case." I told him and placed a kiss to his cheek. "And get changed... Where are we going?" I asked him, wanting to dress at least somewhat decently.

"Just out and about. So dress a little warm." He suggested and I nodded, going upstairs and letting myself feel at least a little excited.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 87

Warnings: Nightmares, third person POV and more PTSD Word count: 1705

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts Leafeon is Nakami's contact

Masterlist

Volt 86 | Volt 88

Those who weren't already sleeping, were awoken to the building shaking along with Tsukare's broken, crying screams.

Midoriya was the first one there, Shinsou, Kirishima, Sero, Mina and Kaminari all arriving around the same time as their tired but panicked homeroom teacher. Aizawa canceled his sons quirk immediately, him and Shinsou going into the room to comfort him and give him his inhaler. Tsukare sobbed into his father's shoulder, clinging onto him like he was a scared eight year old again.

"They killed everyone. The League." He sobbed, shoulders shaking with every breath and tear. "They turned me into a nomu. I tried to make it stop, but I couldn't control my body anymore. And-" He cried out, but Aizawa stopped him, simply holding him tighter. He knew where it was going.

"It didn't happen. That's the important part. None of that happened." He soothed his youngest son, rubbing his back softly.

"I'm sorry." He managed to get out, choking on his own breath.

"Don't apologize. You're okay." Aizawa reassured him. "It's okay. You didn't mean to." He said, moving to crouch in front of his son so he could see him better.

Do you want to stay here with your friends, or do you want to come to mine and Pops'?

He froze up as he tried to make the decision, looking between his dad and his brother with a concerned look. The same look he had as a kid whenever he was asked to make a decision. Fearful of choosing the wrong thing, worried that it was a trick question that would inevitably get him in trouble.

Whatever you choose, you aren't in trouble. I just want you to feel safe and comfortable.

I'm sorry. He signed shakily, resting his head in his hands, starting to grow frustrated and disappointed with himself.

How about we stay here for a bit and if you want to go see Dad and Pops, we can go there later. His brother suggested, more hoping to be of any help possible. Onryo nervously nodded and Aizawa gave him a hug.

"Okay. Text or call me if you need anything." He said, Onryo nodded again. "I love you both."

I love you too.

He watched as his Dad walked away, saying something to his classmates before leaving. Then he saw Midoriya's ears, blood dripping down them,11 trickling down his freckled face and he willed himself not to cry.

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you.

"It's okay. I know you didn't mean to." Midoriya told him while signing, truly not upset with his friend, more concerned with his wellbeing.

'I keep hurting people. My voice hurts people.' Onryo hung his head in shame and rubbed his watering eyes, the derogatory phrase he had grown up with playing on loop in his head, weighing down his chest to a pit forming in his stomach. His brother tapped his shoulder m, temporarily pulling him out of his thoughts and pointed to Sero.

"Do you want to go relax in my room?" He offered and he looked between his friend and his brother nervously.

"I- uh, I don't.." He trailed off, looking to his brother for a bit of guidance.

Do you want to?

I don't know.

How about we go, and if you want to leave then we can, okay?

Okay.

Onryo gave Sero a small nod and all of them moved up to his room. His boyfriend gravitating to his side and slowly holding his hand. He gave his boyfriends hand a small squeeze in turn but really, he was terrified of hurting him. It was the last thing he wanted to do. He had already hurt him once and part of him was relieved that he took the precaution he did, but someone still got hurt because of him.

Sero slowly opened his door and let everyone inside, mindful of not freaking out his topaz haired friend.

Did I break anything?

I'll tell you about it tomorrow.

So, I did. Shinsou gave his brother a sad smile and a small nod. Where's Izuku?

He's getting checked over by Recovery Girl.

Guilt swirled around in Tsukare's stomach, his voice caught in his throat. He slowly sat down and curled into his boyfriends side, almost hesitantly. The two of them sitting on Sero's bed, not wanting to attempt solid coordination for cuddling on the hammock. Tsukare didn't dare to look anyone in the eyes, small shakes and tremors still leaving his body. Kaminari turned to Shinsou for any advice possible. In the months he had known and fallen for the boy tucked into his side, he had never seen him at this level of despair or disarray. Shinsou simply nodded and crouched down in front of his brother, subtly waving to grab his attention.

Do you remember when we were kids?

Yeah, but what specifically are you talking about? He nervously signed, hands shaking with each motion.

All of the ADHD word plays?

Tsukare sniffled with a small laugh, nodding slightly.

What did you call the microwave the one day?

I think I called it the food radiator. He signed with a sad laugh.

Didn't you call the light switch the inside sun control?

You didn't let me live that down for almost a year, how could I forget?

Kaminari relaxed slightly after seeing Shinsou cheer him up even a little bit, more happy to hear even a small laugh come out of his lover.

Do you wanna talk about what happened?

Tsukare quickly shook his head and started to shut down again.

Okay, just please go see Chiyo tomorrow, alright?

Okay.

Shinsou accepted that answer and moved back over to the floor at the foot of the bed, leaning against the bed frame for a smidge of support, the sleepy red head sitting beside him.

Midoriya soon came back and Sero put on a Studio Ghibli movie, hoping to relax everyone's nerves and remaining anxieties. While the intro played, he grabbed blankets and pillows for everyone out of his closet, passing them to Kirishima, who handed them to everyone else on his behalf. Everyone except Tsukare looked at the door curiously when a knock sounded, Sero slowly opened it, expecting to see their homeroom teacher, but instead saw Bakugou standing there with his usual glare.

"Earbleed woke me up and I can't fall back asleep." He grumbled. Sero wordlessly let him in, watching in disbelief as he didn't even attempt to antagonize Midoriya. He grumpily plopped himself beside Kirishima, Shinsou on the red heads other side, followed by Midoriya.

Tsukare didn't even notice Bakugou come in, he only felt how tense the atmosphere became and soon saw why. Midoriya, Shinsou, Kiri and Bakugou all sitting beside each other in that order, Midoriya using Shinsou's shoulder as a pillow.

Poor Kirishima.

Sero moved to sit with Mina in the hammock, knowing she would request a cuddle buddy, and he was not about to interrupt Kirishima from whatever situation he got himself trapped in. He didn't even know the details, but he could tell it was messy.

Eventually, Tsukare pulled out his phone to check the time and saw he received a text over an hour ago from Nakami.

From Leafeon: I heard about the raid you were in. Are you okay?

To Leafeon: I'm alright, thankfully no major injuries

From Leafeon: I see your sleep schedule hasn't changed.

To Leafeon: Same for you, how come you're up so late?

From Leafeon: Couldn't sleep, so I started doing homework.

From Leafeon: Why are you up so late?

To Leafeon: Couldn't sleep, too much going on in my brain

From Leafeon: I'm sorry to hear that.

To Leafeon: No worries, it happens

To Leafeon: How's it going with your new foster brother? Did you talk things out yet?

From Leafeon: I've been trying to. So I've opted to what you taught me as kids. Do what annoys them until they break. So I haven't been talking around them unless I need to.

To Leafeon: Oh gods, this should be interesting

From Leafeon: I think it will be. I've also reached a point of exhaustion from it where I don't have the energy to talk to them.

To Leafeon: I get that, I'm there with you right now

From Leafeon: What happened?

To Leafeon: I've been getting nightmares again

From Leafeon: I'm sorry.

From Leafeon: Would talking about it help?

To Leafeon: It's just been a major set back, and I don't know what to do

To Leafeon: It's similar to what you said last time, how you're close with people but it's different because we went through that stuff together. Hitoshi is the same way, same with my Pops. I just feel guilty worrying them. I want to get better, but I'm just stuck.

From Leafeon: Maybe talking about it would help.

To Leafeon: I know talking about it would help. I know that. But I don't want to keep remembering it. I remember so much of it that it hurts. It's exhausting.

From Leafeon: Maybe a mental health day would help a little?

To Leafeon: Maybe, thank you

To Leafeon: And I'm sorry, for dumping all of that on you

From Leafeon: You don't have to apologize. I know that you empathizing and sharing your experiences is how you express the best that you care.

To Leafeon: I have a question

To Leafeon: My family's throwing a small party for my birthday on the 19th. Do you want to come?

From Leafeon: But you hate your birthday.

To Leafeon: I've been working on it. Still not a fan but my family likes to celebrate it

From Leafeon: Who's going to be there?

To Leafeon: My parents and my brother, some of my aunts and uncles, they'll probably show up for a little bit at different times. My boyfriend, Denki, maybe my friend Izuku, the one with the broccoli hair, and Yoru might be there

From Leafeon: Sure, I'll go. Just remember to send me the details.

To Leafeon: Will do

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 86

Warnings: Kinda crappy cops Word count: 2712

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 85 | Volt 87

I stared at my feet as I watched the segment on the news about Chisaki. The League got the drop on him as they were transporting him to prison and he lost his arms, along with Snatch, a smaller pro-hero who still had a good reputation, was killed.

"This is the only thing they've reported on since yesterday." Recovery Girl said, I sat with her in the lobby of the hospital, visiting my friends and classmates that were in the raid. Dad stood beside us and Izuku ended up wandering down at some point.

"It isn't something either of you should feel responsible for." Dad told us. "Please try not to blame yourselves." I simply nodded and Izuku agreed softly. "Good news is, most everyone's headed back to class. The doctors wanna monitor Togata a little while longer. But Recovery Girl was able to completely heal the rest of the students involved in the raid. They're gathering their things now."

"I'll stick around a little while longer and heal a few more patients since I'm here." Recovery Girl said while standing from her seat.

"I'll stay, too." Izuku chimed in. "I want to be here for Eri whenever she wakes up."

"I'm afraid she's still too dangerous for that. Right now, we need to trust that the doctors will help her." Dad explained.

"Yeah, I get that, but I was hoping I could..." Izuku mumbled and I rubbed his back a little.

"She'll be fine." Dad told him.

"Okay, then. I wanna see Togata before I leave, though. I'll be right back. Please watch my stuff!" I gave him a thumbs up and stayed seated.

"I know you guys are leaving soon, so I'll watch his stuff." Dad sighed and ruffled my hair before leaving. Recovery Girl gave me a soft pat on my hand and a knowing look. "I'll be in for therapy later, I don't want to get lectured." She sighed dramatically and walked off.

"Hey, Tsukabro!" Kirishima called out as he walked through the lobby.

"Hey, Kiri." I said softly.

"How are you doing after the raid?" He asked, sitting next to me.

"I'm tired, but I'm bouncing back." I told him earnestly.

"Did Recovery Girl not give you any energy gummies?" He asked and I shook my head.

"All that was wrong was the cut on my back and strained vocal cords, I told her not to use her quirk on me, save the energy for someone else. Just slept like shit last night." He frowned a bit and looked at me concerned.

"I'm sorry man." He mumbled and I shrugged.

"It's not your fault." I told him, not wanting him to feel guilty for anything. Eventually, Midoriya came back down and grabbed his stuff.

"Midoriya! Hey!" Kiri greeted him happily. "Did you get all healed up?"

"Yeah, I'm all good now. Thank you." He told him as we started heading back to the dorms.

"Midoriya Izuku, Eijirou Kirishima and Tsukare Onryo?" An officer asked as soon as we stepped out of the hospital and I froze for a moment. "I'm sorry to bother you three right after your discharge. But we'd like you to come down to the station with us. We have some questions for you about the incident."

"Yes, sir." Kirishima responded. The three of us clambered into the back seat of the cop car and sat in silence as we drove down to the station.

We were all placed in separate rooms, all to be asked what I assumed were the same questions and fill out the same paperwork.

Two officers came in and I froze up as I watched the second one lock the door behind him.

"Tsukare Onryo?" One asked and I slowly nodded. "Pleasure to meet you, we just wanted to ask you some questions about the incident from yesterday." I gave him a tight lipped, fake smile and gestured for him that he had the floor, my eyes continuously glancing to the door that remained locked. "So we have that you were working under Fat Gum, and the raid started at 8:30 in the morning, correct?"

"Yeah, we had a few briefings beforehand." I murmured, fingers starting to fidget in my lap.

"Thank you, and the League made an appearance, correct?"

"Yes, Toga and Twice showed up." I confirmed, my eyes still bouncing to the door.

"And just to confirm your identity, would you mind answering a question for me?" I lightly nodded, not surprised about the precaution. "Your last time here, you met with Detective Tsukauchi, what was the reason Shigaraki couldn't figure out the contact names on your phone?" I scoffed and rolled my eyes.

"That's a pointless question. If I were Toga or Twice, they would both know that considering they were both present for it." I quipped, already tired of this.

"Well, I hope you'll understand my wanting to ask. Especially because you are acting fairly suspicious right now." I raised an eyebrow at him and just stared, waiting for him to elaborate. The other cop tossed a stack of photos in front of me, most consisting of the compass.

"We have your prints all over this and it's been claimed to have belonged to one of the League of Villains members, more specifically, Dabi. Including the fact that the League has a special interest in you. On top of that, your eyes haven't stopped looking over at the door and you're fidgeting like you're anxious about something." I rolled my eyes again and crossed my arms over my chest.

"Behavioral analysis. Cute." I said plainly. "And good cop, bad cop? I see you both wanted to put a spin on the classics. But you two jumped the gun on so much. The compass? Dabi gave it to me when I was a little kid, Kamino was the first and last time I saw him since. I gave it to my parents to hand over to Tsukauchi because I didn't want it anymore and hoped something beneficial would come out of it. I see that wasn't the case." I mumbled sarcastically, cop number two standing up aggressively and slamming his hands on the table.

"You watch your mouth." He snarled at me and I raised an eyebrow.

"Then watch your attitude. We're on camera." I told him while waving to the camera behind me. "And to answer your points on why I'm fidgeting, I have anxiety and ADHD, I struggle to sit still and my eyes keep going back to the door because your buddy Mister Wannabe-Good-Cop over here, locked it on his way in. I have complex PTSD, enclosed spaces make me nervous, and I have had to give multiple statements, that's not standard procedure. So either you two don't want someone coming in because you're not supposed to be here, or you're scared I'm going to hurt someone out there. But, if that were the case you probably would've cuffed me to the table. So, I'm not answering any more questions unless it's with Tsukauchi or someone else more qualified than you two. And while you're at it, call one of my parents down here." They both glared at me, cop number two kicking his feet up on the table.

"We're not calling anyone until you start talking, kid." He smirked, thinking he had the upper hand.

"Fine by me, just know that you two are currently restricting a minor from leaving the premises with no reason along with wrongfully interrogating when no guardians were informed, plus you're denying me a phone call, so I guess you've forced my hand this time." I sighed dramatically and pulled out my phone that I had recording since I walked into the building. "Now I have your names, badges and faces on camera." Cop number one leaned forward to try and grab it and I leaned back. "Ah, ah, ah, do you wanna tack on illegal search and seizure to everything else? So, either get my parents here, or Tsukauchi." I told them, sending my parents a text in the group chat before pocketing the device along with my hearing aids.

I sat there for a little over an hour, twiddling my thumbs and watching my surroundings before the door opened. Dad walked in looking furious, glaring at the two cops.

"Eraser head!" One of the cops exclaimed, the other taking his feet off the table.

"Both of you, out, now. Someone else will be taking his official statement." He said to them in a dark tone.

"Sorry sir, but we don't take orders from you." Cop number one tried to reason.

"I'm his father, and you idiots turned a statement into an interrogation without any direction, while he didn't receive his legal rights. So you're taking orders from me since you won't take them from your boss." The two cops awkwardly shuffled out of the room and Dad sat beside me. "I take it we're going to their supervisor after this?" I laughed softly and nodded.

"You know Pops would be disappointed if we didn't." I told him. He laughed lightly under his breath and we waited a few more moments before a different officer came in.

"Tsukare Onryo?" She asked as she sat down. "And Eraserhead, which one of you gave my guys a run for their money?" She asked sarcastically while I put my hearing aids back in.

"That would be both of us, ma'am." She cocked an eyebrow at me and crossed her arms.

"I'm impressed. Eraserhead, I hope you don't mind if I ask you to wait in the viewing area?" He nodded once and stood up, leaving the room quietly. "So, I've been asked to get your statement on the Hassaikai incident, I hope you don't mind if I record this."

"Go right ahead, you're already doing substantially better than the last guys that were in here." I told her, making her laugh under her breath as she set the recorder between us. "My name is Tsukare Onryo, hero name is Sonus." I said once she hit the button.

"I see this isn't the first time you've given a statement that's been recorded. Can you walk me through everything involving the raid, anything leading up to it or that may have impacted anything?" She asked and I obliged, starting from the beginning and going into detail until she interrupted me. "I'm sorry, but you said that the explosion you were in was caused by the Hassaikai?"

"Yeah, plenty of people can corroborate, but Setsuno told us that Chisaki wanted me on his side and planned to revive my body after I died." She looked at me in shock but nodded.

"And can you explain what happened during the explosion?" So I informed her of the details. "How could you tell it was a trap?" She followed up.

"Single panel dry wall is notoriously easy to install as long as you have a nail gun or a power tool. Or in Chisaki's case, a quirk that can rearrange anything the way you want it. Everything was staged, set up to mirror every single room and not change. By the time I realized, the door to the room I came in from was locked and the other room had the grate to the air ducts glued. I would've broken the walls after I felt the first explosion but it was highly unlikely to work, between the thickness of the concrete and the already fragile stability of the building, I would've been trapped either way as soon as I set foot in there." Her face softened a bit and she nodded, so I continued to tell her about the rest of the raid.

"Thank you for giving your statement, it truly helps. If you'd like to do the paperwork in the lobby instead of in here, that's perfectly fine." I nodded and followed her out, Dad meeting us there.

He sat with me, Izuku and Kirishima as we filled out our paperwork, it took almost two hours before we collectively finished them. My friends waited while Dad and I stayed to talk to the supervisor.

After everything, we didn't get back to the dorms until late at night, everyone waiting up for us, Uraraka and Tsu arriving seconds after us.

Everyone came up to us worried, expressing their concerns about us. Denki came over to me and wrapped me in a firm hug, even though he saw me yesterday, I think it's partially because he didn't want to indulge in too much PDA around my parents. He then turned and went off on a tangent to our classmates about how we're always getting into crazy situations and it scares everyone.

"Yeah. We're sorry." Izuku said awkwardly.

I nervously tapped Denki's hand at a quick pace, slowly getting overwhelmed by everyone surrounding us. Soon, Iida jumped in front of us and yelled.

"Enough of this! I know everyone was worried! But calm down!" He exclaimed, blocking us off with his arms. "We all saw news coverage. Our classmates have been through an ordeal. If you want to help, you should console them quietly and let them rest their bodies and their minds. Because I'm sure today wasn't taxing just physically, but mentally as well!"

"Hey, um, Iida. Thanks for that. But really, this is okay." Izuku told her delicately.

"Then, if I may." Iida started, adjusting his glasses, before going to Midoriya and shaking him. "Do you have any idea how worried I was for all of you? It was awful! What if you'd never returned?"

"Take your own advice and chill out!" Sero butted in.

I stepped back a bit with Denki while Sato was trying to shove the double chocolate cake into his mouth, Momo running off to make tea. Sero came over to Kiri and I, asking why we blind sided them like this.

"Sorry. We were sworn to secrecy." Kiri said and I choked on air laughing as his hair poked into Sero's eye.

"I'm glad you two are okay." Mina said softly while holding Koda's bunny for comfort.

"Yeah. Getting there, anyway." He responded.

"Right. Got it." She said softly. I leaned over and gave her a hug.

"We'll be okay, Min. Promise." I told her, watching my boyfriend run off to pester Bakugou, only to fall face first onto the couch. Bakugou and Todoroki talking about how they had to go to bed.

"Huh? Since when am I surrounded by geezers?" Denki asked them.

"I understand Bakugou, but Todoroki wants to leave the party this early, too?" Tsu asked for everyone.

"They've got their provisional license training course tomorrow. But still, it is pretty early." Jirou commented.

Iida started pestering us to go to bed and try to get some rest, so I walked with Denki to his room, knowing this would upset him.

"Hey, what are you doin' waiting at the door?" He asked teasingly.

"Denks, I don't think it's a good idea for us to have a sleepover for a day or two." I said weakly.

"Because of the raid?" He asked while holding my hand and I nodded tiredly.

"Yeah. With the League showing up, I- I don't know if it triggered anything or not. I couldn't really sleep last night. I don't want to risk hurting you." I managed to get out. He looked upset and I started beating myself up more. "I'm not upset with you, I know you're probably overthinking a bit because we always sleep in one of our rooms, I just... I don't want to hurt you again. And I'd rather take that precaution than anything else." He nodded and pulled me into a tight hug. I leaned back a bit and cupped his face, giving him a gentle kiss. I sulked back to my room and opened my laptop to see him calling me.

"Is it bad that I have a hard time sleeping without you?" He asked and I shook my head. "Okay." He said, already on the brink of passing out.

I sat up with him until he fell asleep, I didn't fall asleep until a little while later.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 85

Warnings: Some emotions but mostly fluff, and Mic finally getting to do a cliche parent-child embarrass stunt Word count: 4054

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 84 | Volt 86

Dad and I walked into his and Pops' apartment a few hours later, Spots and Mittens ran up to us and rubbed against our legs. The two of us were wiped after the mission, physically and mentally. Thankfully, when Pops came to the hospital earlier, he brought me a spare change of clothes, so I wouldn't have to sit around in my hero costume that needed repair, again. But also, the baggy t-shirt and sweats were significantly more comfortable than my hero costume.

I plopped myself on the couch and took my ears out, letting myself relax a little bit even though I couldn't fully do that. Dad flicking the lights to the living room caught my attention, I turned around and smiled when I saw Denki standing there awkwardly with my brother. I stood up and walked over to him, pulling him into a tight hug. His arms cradled around me, holding me securely to his chest until I pulled away. I popped my hearing aids in and turned back to my boyfriend.

"I asked him to come." Hitoshi chimed in and I looked at him curiously. "I knew you wouldn't want to talk about it multiple times and figured bringing him, it would cut back on how much you talked about it." I pulled him into a hug and smiled widely.

"That's why you're my favorite brother." He shot me a look and I simply smiled wider.

"I'm your only brother, doofus." He let out a breath and walked to the kitchen, presumably to make a cup of coffee.

"Kaminari." Dad said, making both of us freeze. "Are you allergic to cats?" He asked tiredly.

"Uh, no sir." He stammered out and I gently grabbed his hand, playfully leading him to the living room.

"This is Spots, and that was Mittens." I said, picking up Spots while gesturing to Mittens who ran and hid somewhere.

"She's so cute." He cooed, scooping Spots out of my arms. I heard the door open and saw Pops walk in exhausted. He gave Dad a kiss on the cheek and slowly started taking off his hero gear.

"Hey, little listener. Oh, hi Kaminari, I wasn't expecting to see you here." Pops said cheerfully, walking over and giving me a side hug.

"Toshi brought him over for the family talk, is that okay?" I asked softly, not even knowing if this was okay with our parents.

"Yeah, of course. I've been waiting for you to bring him over!" He cheered as he walked to the master bedroom. I blushed furiously and ducked my head, I should've expected Pops to say something like that.

"I have to go get reinforcements, do you want to come with?" He looked at me confused, probably not understanding what I meant.

"Sure?" He slowly agreed, setting Spots on the couch and following me. He took half the blankets I grabbed from the closet and we got them on the couch before joining Hitoshi in the kitchen, who was pouring three mugs of coffee.

"Alright, so, you have a few choices, ice cream, hot chocolate and or coffee." He smiled softly and suppressed a laugh but eventually said ice cream. "Good choice." I told him, moving to the cabinet and scaling the counter to grab four bowls. I could hear him stifling his laughter. "Hey, don't laugh! This is normal!" I said through my own laughter, setting the bowls down on the counter top. Denki came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, swaying us back and forth as I scooped ice cream.

"So, why ice cream?" He asked softly, pressing a kiss to my shoulder.

"When I got adopted, my Dad found me muzzled. My first night home, my Pops looked at me and asked if I wanted ice cream because he said it would help with the pain. I was eight and more excited about having ice cream rather than making the pain stop, but it helped a lot. A few months later, Hitoshi came home and we went through the same thing. After that, it became more of a comfort thing. If someone had a bad day or there was stressful stuff going on, ice cream became a comfort snack and eventually integrated into most of our talks. It makes the stress of all of it seem... calmer, I guess. As we got older, we added in coffee for our Dad, and then Toshi and I. Figured I'd just offer hot chocolate for you cause I know you don't really drink coffee that much." I explained delicately, still mindlessly swaying with him.

"That's actually kinda wholesome." He commented.

"Kaminari, don't make me say this again, watch your hands." Dad said. Denki quickly lifted his hands in a mock surrender and took a step back.

"Dad, he was just hugging me." I said in a dragged out breath to over exaggerate it while I placed spoons in each bowl. He huffed and walked over, grabbing a bowl of ice cream and his mug of black coffee before walking out to the living room.

"He still scares me." Denki mumbled to me. I laughed a little and placed a quick kiss on his cheek.

"Could you grab two bowls for me? One's for you and one's for Hitoshi." I told him while I grabbed my bowl and my coffee. He nodded and grabbed the two bowls, following me out to the living room. I set my stuff down and sat on the floor, grabbing a blanket for Denki and I. He cheekily wrapped it around our shoulders and passed me my bowl of ice cream.

"So, who's starting?" Hitoshi asked.

"Well, clearly, today was the raid, hence why I've been so out of it and why I got trapped in the rubble." I said, starting off the conversation. Dad sighed and started explaining why we were there and what the mission was.

"Sorry, I'm a little lost on something." Denki hesitantly added.

"What's up, Kaminari?" Pops asked, throwing in a finger gun.

"How does the raid tie back to 'Ryo getting trapped in the building?" He asked slowly, trying not to beat around the bush.

"Uh, the whole Reservoir Dogs thing was the cover story. Fat Gum, Kirishima and I were on a stakeout for the raid on the yakuza, so I went in. I was the only one who could fit in the vents properly, plus with him as my Dad, I have some stealth under my belt. Something didn't feel right, so after getting confirmation from Nighteye, I went in. It was a set up, they set bombs in the basement and trapped me in before I could leave. The walls were too thick to break safely. We found out why during the raid." Hitoshi and Pops practically flung forward at the news. My fingers nervously tapped against the bowl and I took a steadying breath. "Chisaki wanted me. Probably because of Shigaraki. He wanted me to die down there so he could come down and refigure my body so he could take me." I licked my lips and ducked my head down, not wanting to see the horror on their faces.

Denki grabbed my fidgeting hand and gently held it, rubbing his thumb back and forth over my marred skin.

"Onryo and I also need to have another lesson on impulsive decisions." Dad commented and I groaned.

"Woah, what'd you do to deserve a lesson?" Hitoshi commented.

"He jumped in front of a gun." He said and the room fell silent before erupting in chaos. Everything I was expecting thrown at me and I sat there, I was expecting this.

"Onryo, you never do that." Pops said sternly, but I could hear how scared he was.

"I made a calculated risk." I said weakly. "His finger wasn't even on the trigger yet, he was originally pointing the gun at Dad. I knew I had back up and I exploded it." I told them.

"This is why you and Izuku earned the nickname 'problem child'." Hitoshi said sarcastically.

"Yeah, I know." I sighed out, rubbing a hand down my face. "Dad? Was he right?" I asked weakly, the words still spinning in my head.

"Was who right?" Denki asked.

"One of the gang members, uh, Setsuno, he said I would've fit right in because I was crazy." I mumbled.

"You're not crazy." Hitoshi said firmly and I licked my lips hesitantly.

"He said I looked insane and that I had to be crazy to jump in front of a gun like that." I told them duly.

"You're not crazy. You reacted. Was it in the best way you could've, no. But also, you've always been fond of adding a subtle dramatic flare." Dad reasoned and I sadly laughed. He went on to explain the rest of the raid, up until he got stuck with the rewind guy. Then I explained the rest, Pops, Toshi and Denki took a moment to let everything sink in.

"He forgot to tell you the best part." I said sarcastically. "He couldn't figure out how to use my glasses." I told them, watching Dad roll his eyes but Hitoshi started chuckling a little.

"Next time we have training, I'm trying them on." He said through his chuckles.

"Pops designed them, so good luck." I told him before taking a sip from my mug.

"Little listener, you know I have to ask. How are you holding up mentally after the League showing up?" Pops asked softly, piquing everyone's attention.

"I'm fine." I said softly.

"Nobody is expecting you to be. Especially after everything that's happened." He told me gently and I nodded once.

"Look, I- I'm fine. Might just have a few more nightmares, nothing new." I said dismissively, hoping that would be the end of the conversation.

"Does Kami-" Pops started but I shook my head.

"I don't like talking about Kamino. The only thing I've talked to him about from it was Toga taking me to the other room and cutting me up." I said emotionlessly. "I had to explain how she got so much of my blood. Aside from that, I don't talk about it. Not even with Chiyo."

"Kaminari? Have you asked him about it?" Pops asked, holding up a finger when I gave him a bewildered look.

"Yeah. But I don't push him to talk about it." He said calmly.

"And why's that?" Pops followed up and I saw where he was going with it. Him and Dad were testing him.

"I don't want to make him uncomfortable, he already lives through it every time he has a nightmare and I don't want to be the reason he has to live through it even more. I've told him if he wants to talk to me about it then he can, but if he's not ready to, it's not my place to push." He elaborated and I tucked my chin down to hide my smile.

"Good answer." Dad said. "We have something else to talk about though." I looked at him confused, not knowing where this was going, until it hit me and I groaned.

"You're evil. Talking about this in front of Denki so he knows when it is." Dad gave me a maniacal grin and chuckled.

"B- Onryo? Why is your Dad smiling like that?" Denki asked fearfully, careful not to call me a pet name in front of my parents.

"My birthday is next Friday, the 18th." I grumbled, throwing my head back dramatically.

"What? And you didn't tell me?" He asked, completely baffled.

"I'm weird about my birthday." I mumbled out.

"You two can talk more about that later. But, Kaminari," Pops started, grabbing both of our attentions, "we wanted to invite you to his family birthday dinner on the 19th."

"Yeah, I'd love to." He said happily.

"Great! I'll make sure to have a plate for you. Do you have any food allergies?" Pops asked him and Denki shook his head. "Okay. Also, Onryo, Fumikoto has still been reaching out." I groaned loudly and slouched.

"Joy. Is it about Sota's party?" Pops nodded and I sighed.

"Yeah, his party is the 20th and the smaller party is the 25th. Fumikoto's wondering if you want to go to both or either, she said you told her it would depend on work studies and stuff."

"Who's Fumikoto? It sounds familiar." Denki said.

"Remember after camp how Hitoshi texted the group chat code yellow because of a social worker at our house?" I asked him, watching as he slowly nodded his head. "Yeah, well, found out the social worker was Shiroka's sister and Shiroka called in a favor. Her son, Sota, is turning a year old." He looked at me with wide eyes, clearly processing it.

"That's fucked." He mumbled before completely freezing, realizing he just swore in front of two of his teachers. "Sorry." He awkwardly apologized.

"I don't think we can actually scold you for your language." Dad said lackadaisically.

"If you go, do you want one of us to go with you?" Denki asked softly. I looked at him with wide eyes, my heart melting at the fact he would offer that.

"If Kaminari can go with you, I'm okay with not going to a toddler's birthday party." Hitoshi commented.

"Really?" I asked him quietly and he nodded.

"Of course." He mumbled and I smiled widely, tackling him into a hug.

"Okay, so should I tell her you're going to the big party and maybe the small one depending on classes?" I nodded happily and sat back up. "Okay, I'm glad we got that sorted out. Little listeners, Kaminari? Do you three want to stay for dinner?" I looked between the two, not wanting to overstep on Denki's behalf. Hitoshi nodded and I turned to Denki, watching him nod as well, so I joined them in the action. "Then I'm going to get started on dinner, Sho, do you wanna help me?" Dad begrudgingly agreed and followed Pops to the kitchen.

"Y'know, I bet Kaminari would love to see you play the drums." My brother slyly commented, making Denki pipe up with excitement.

"Wait, can you? Please?" My boyfriend asked happily.

"Make sure to get it on video!" Pops called out from the kitchen. I dramatically sighed and stood up, watching stars form in Denki's eyes.

"Okay, let's just rinse our dishes and put them in the sink first." I said while grabbing my bowl and mug, my brother and boyfriend each doing the same.

Once in the music room, I took my hearing aids out since they were going to die soon anyways, and put them in their case. Denki happily sat on one of the stools and watched as I slowly found my beat. I already knew Hitoshi was recording it to send to our family group chat and our friends, but I paid no attention to the electronic device pointed in my direction.

I let the vibrations run through my body and my bones, feeling the percussion echo in my chest with every hit of the drum sticks. I guess Hitoshi knew I needed a release after today, and this would be the best kind. I glanced up through my eyelashes and saw Denki sitting there in awe. I smirked at him before picking up the beat, letting out my stress about everything with every single hit on the instrument.

Once I slowed down, I felt my chest lock up and I curled into a coughing fit.

Toshi. Inhaler.

My brother stuck his head out the door and yelled something, I tried gasping for a solid breath between every hacking cough. Denki moved to stand beside me, rubbing my back lightly until Pops came rushing in with my spare inhaler we agreed to keep here. I quickly took a puff and counted to three before exhaling, coughing a bit more as I got my breathing back.

"I had to use it once, during the raid, after running so much. But drumming, for ten minutes? Really? That's bullshit." I said between clustered breaths. Pops sadly laughed and held one of my hands firmly. "I'm okay." I whispered, leaning back into Denki's chest a little for extra support. "I'm okay."

"You scared us, Hitoshi yelled to us that you couldn't breathe, and to grab your inhaler. I'm just glad we decided to keep a spare here in case of emergencies." He said with worried eyes, taking a deep breath of his own.

"I know, I'm sorry, I'm okay." I whispered, finally getting a majority of my breathing back in order.

"Since yours is broken, you might just wanna hang onto that one." Pops suggested, to which I nodded. "How about you boys hang out in the living room until dinner's ready, okay?"

"Okay." I mumbled, waiting for Pops to stand before I did, Denki slowly dropping his hand to my waist. We made our way out to the living room and sat on the couch, we talked for a few minutes until Pops came out again with Dad in tow, mischevious grins on their faces. "Oh gods. This can't be good."

"Oh, this is gonna be great, I have dinner in the slow cooker so we have time to kill. And we'll do the same with Hitoshi when he has his first partner over here." Pops said coyly. I groaned and leaned my head on Denki's shoulder while Pops sat on the other side of him with the photo album. Hitoshi sat on the arm of the couch by Pops to interpret for me and Dad leaned over the back of it. "This is the picture I showed you in the hospital, his third night home." Denki placed one of his hands on mine and I saw a small smile on his face. After that, the pictures showed less smiles for a few pages, all of my firsts with them. A picture of when I learned how to ride a bike. My ninth birthday. My adoption day. Christmas. New Years.

"You were so tiny!" Denki exclaimed, tapping my hand so I would look up and read his lips.

"Gods, how did you let my hair look like that?" I asked, feeling embarrassed already and we were only three pages in.

"You hated having your hair brushed and you never wanted it cut, what were we supposed to do?" Pops asked sarcastically and I sighed, knowing he had a point.

Then he showed pictures of me at the park, Hitoshi and I goofing off together. A picture Dad grabbed when I was learning how to braid hair on Pops. Mittens and Spots making quite a few appearances.

"Woah, is that the sensory room?" Denki asked, pointing to the picture in the top right corner.

"Yeah, Onryo was 11 or so, that's when Nedzu asked him for his help and he wanted to organize all of it." Pops chuckled. Pops flipped the page and I broke out laughing.

"What?" Denki asked, not able to get any other words out through his own laughter.

"I didn't know you guys put that in there! Oh my gods, I look so bad." I said through my giggles. "Okay so, that was a part of doctor week when I was a kid. I had to go to the cardiologist and I knew I had to get an EKG done and I hate the feeling of hospital gowns. So our Dad asked if I brought a button up shirt, if I could change into that and they agreed to it. He gave me one of his old ones that he never wore, clearly it was drowning me." I managed to get out.

"You said you looked more ridiculous than you felt with all the wires and sensors on, so I took a picture so you could see what you looked like." Dad finished, all of us laughing. In the picture, I had a miserable look on my face with two thumbs sticking up out of the sleeves. Electrodes and wires going all across my chest and bunched to the side and secured at my waist with some velcro. The next one being me passed out on the couch with Spots and Mittens, the words next to it saying 'Doctor Week: Success'. Multiple birthdays and celebrations thrown in the mix throughout everything, and we still were only three quarters of the way done. A few more goofy pictures in, there was a picture of Toshi and I in our Aldera Junior High uniforms.

'First day at a new school!!' I read next to it, not surprised that there was a large gap between a few pictures. That's when things started getting bad. The next picture was one Izuku's mom took and sent to our Dad of me, Hitoshi and Izuku all laughing on the couch over something.

"Woah, Midoriya hasn't changed at all!" Denki laughed.

A few other pictures were thrown in before a picture of me sitting in the car with Pops pointing at me with comically wide eyes. 'First fight!' I snorted out a laugh reading that and Denki joined in.

"That's the day I gave Bakugou a black eye and told off the principal." I explained, making him laugh harder.

Pops flipped to the next page, showing a picture that Inko took again, one that she sent to our Dad one of the days we went to clean up the beach. Midoriya smiled widely, Hitoshi giving a thumbs up next to him, I stood behind the two with a smile and flexing my biceps in a tank top.

"'Community service?' From punching Kacchan?" Denki asked, confused, making me snort out a small laugh.

"One of these days he's going to send an explosion when I'm not around if you keep calling him that. But no, it was Izuku's idea, something about working out and cleaning up the beach." My boyfriend hummed but nodded, a few more pictures thrown in before we got to our entrance exams. A picture of me, Hitoshi and Izuku, all standing nervously next to each other. Anxious, tense smiles on our faces, but Izuku looked utterly terrified.

"Hey, that's the day we met." Denki commented, sending me a cheeky smile.

"I quite literally bumped into you." I laughed, blushing a faint pink. "Woah, I didn't know you guys got pictures of the exam." I said as Pops flipped to the next page, showing a few highlight moments of the exam. Including a picture of the girl I saved, the two of us on the robot as I was making a plan to get her off. "Her! She was my gay awakening!" I exclaimed, all of us erupting in laughter.

The next page was my acceptance letter, followed by a picture of Hitoshi and I sitting in the classroom near the windows and I looked at Pops, confused.

"You two wouldn't let me get a first day photo, I had to improvise!" He defended himself. I simply laughed and fully lifted my head off of Denki's shoulder. Pops went to put the album away, Dad walked away to check on the food in the kitchen and Hitoshi just scrolled on his phone. Denki poked me and sent me a large smile. I gave him one back, only to start laughing loudly when his fingers started tickling my sides. He eventually stopped and I opened my eyes again, a genuine smile still etched on my face, mirroring his own, but then I saw movement in the corner of my eyes. Pops was taking a picture. "What? It has to go in the album!" He exclaimed. I leaned forward and rested my head back on Denki's shoulder.

"I can't wait to go through your album again, Toshi." I said to my brother and watched him cringe.

"Some of my pictures are so bad." He grumbled and turned the television on, flicking through channels until we settled on something.

The rest of the night went by smoothly and surprisingly, Dad didn't bite Denki's head off.

So all in all, I'd call it a success.

[passerine-writes]

Silent Sparks - Volt 84

Warnings: The raid part two Word count: 2910

Notes: Italics - Tsukare signing Bold italics - Family member/friend signing 'Italics with apostrophes' - Thoughts

Masterlist

Volt 83 | Volt 85

I took a breath before diving into the chaos I saw in the room. A monstrous pit of spikes, Nighteye holding Mirio and Eri in his arms, the blond being severely beaten and battered. Izuku was sitting in the spikes, evading Overhaul's impending attacks and anything else was out of sight. Chisaki, however, was morphed into something else entirely. But I still couldn't see my Dad.

"...and now your quirk is lost forever." I caught Chisaki say as I stepped in, stealthily moving towards Nighteye. "If you'd only backed down sooner, you could have held on to your pathetic dreams. But instead you fought, refusing to give up even after your quirk was gone. And now, thanks to your heroics, your friends will die along with you!" He yelled, lunging forward. I grabbed Eri and let Nighteye move Mirio, Izuku broke off a piece of a spike and used it as a weapon against Overhaul. The pro moved Mirio towards me and lunged into action. I moved the two over to the side and crouched down.

"Hey, your name is Eri, right?" I asked the girl softly, watching as she fearfully nodded. "You're really popular, we actually all came to see you and get you out of here so you don't get hurt anymore. Is it okay if we start moving on out of here?"

"What happened to Eraser Head? Did your lackey take him somewhere?" I heard Nighteye ask.

"I'm interested in heroes who can erase quirks, so he's been shown to the VIP room." Chisaki said and I felt my stomach churn.

"I'm getting Eri and Lemillion out of here. I'll be back." I informed Nighteye and Izuku with my quirk. "Hey, Eri," she looked at me with her big, red eyes, "let's get moving, yeah?" I asked her, offering her my hand.

"I don't want to hurt you. That's all I do." My heart crumbled at her shaky words, having said them myself when I was her age.

"You don't hurt people, honey. I could actually really use your help with something." She looked up at me and gave me a small nod, thankfully following me out into the hallway. "Just wait here for a second, I need to grab Lemillion." She nodded again and I grabbed the injured blond, sitting him up against the wall in the hallway. "So Lemillion got really hurt back there and I know that can be scary. But we can actually help him. Do you want to help him feel better?"

"Yeah, he needs help." She mumbled as she knelt beside me.

"He does, and in here," I said while shuffling around in my belt pouches, "I have stuff that can help him. So what I need your help with, is for you to hand me the stuff I need." She nodded hesitantly and watched as I sat everything out. I hummed in between pauses, making sure to blast something in the monsters head as he fought so it might throw him off balance. I used the last of the alcohol and some peroxide on Mirio's wounds, watching his eyes squint shut in pain. "I'm sorry, I know it hurts, but the hard parts over." I reassured him. "Eri, could you hand me some of those squares, please?" She slowly grabbed a few and passed them to me. "Thank you very much." I told her, watching her eyes water a little. "And could you pass me that roll?"

"This?" She asked, holding up the bandages.

"Yep, thank you so, so much." I said, wrapping the bandage around his torso and tying it off. And then I saw it.

Nighteye being impaled by a giant spike.

"Eri, look at me please." I said gently, making sure her back was turned from what just happened. "You and Lemillion need to get out of here. You two keep walking, okay?" She slowly nodded and grabbed Mirio's hand. "Mirio. Look at me. Amajiki told Midoriya and I to look out for you and we failed, but you need to take it easy walking back. Even if you don't make it completely out, the farther away you are the better. At least make it to Rock Lock. Something just happened in there that's going to hurt you a lot, but you need to keep moving. I have to back up Midoriya." He swallowed hard but nodded, starting to walk away with Eri. I rushed back in and used my wires to fling me into the air and kick Chisaki in his mask.

"So you're the one that's been messing with my head." He drawled out as he turned to me.

"What, want me to turn up the volume?" I asked, watching as he backpedaled from my quirk at full blast.

"Sonus! Can you level the ground?" Izuku asked as he flung himself into the air again.

"No, not with Nighteye the way he is. It would do more harm than good." I rolled out of the way as more spikes emerged, breaking some of the new ones to spare Midoriya the dodging.

The two of us fought side by side, taking turns attacking and breaking the new spikes, until we tag teamed on him. The two of us dodged as much as we could to tire the young head out, hoping to frustrate him.

We communicated through glances and head nods, I distracted Chisaki while Izuku launched into the air, aiming to send a forceful kick into his head, only for Chisaki to dodge.

"Deku!" I yelled as spikes shot towards him. He dodged most, the ground breaking, leaving two small ones in him, an arm and a leg. With a low hum on my quirk, I managed to break the spikes to where they were shorter and less likely to get snagged.

"Someone else is about to die because of you! Is that really what you want? Eri!" The mouth that appeared on one of Chisaki's hands called out, and I felt the bone chilling fear and dread that I hadn't truly experienced since I was a small child flooded my body.

"You're a monster." I spat out, wiping the blood of my own ears off of my face.

"Wait." I heard Eri say, watching as she stepped back in. "It's not... I don't want this!" She said in a shaky voice.

"Eri, it's okay. We know you don't want this. Chisaki does, not you. None of this is your fault." I told her with my quirk, tears welling in her eyes.

"Eri." The mouth on his hand spoke again. "Look at these two, injured and broken. You don't really think they can defeat me, do you?"

"No, I don't." My heart broke from those three simple words. She wanted to have hope, I could see it in her eyes. But Chisaki was the monster under the bed, nobody had been able to get rid of him.

"Smart girl. So then, what do you suppose you should do?" He asked tauntingly.

"I'll come back." Her shaky voice responded. "But if I do, I want you to make them all better again!" She cried out.

"Eri, you need to go back to Lemillion. Chisaki might say he'll make us all better but he won't. We can beat him, we have more heroes coming to help, but you need to get back to Lemillion. Please." I begged from across the room.

"Ah, yes, it's so much easier to be hurt yourself than to watch while others are hurt for you, isn't it?" He asked sardonically. "These two understand that perfectly. But she doesn't want you." He gritted out.

"Maybe what he said is true." Midoriya mutter while ripping the spike out of his leg. "Maybe you think you don't want our help, but we won't let you down, Eri. I'm not letting anyone die!" He called out, crushing the spike in his hand, when the roof suddenly caved in. Ryukyu, Katsukame, Tsu and Uraraka all came crashing in.

"Ryukyu! You guys came!" I exclaimed.

"Deku!" Uraraka cheered. "Wait..."

"If you're here, who's the Deku we just saw?" Tsu asked.

"That was Toga, the League is here, we'll explain in a minute!" I called out.

"Uravity! Look!" Tsu called.

"Nighteye!"

"Ryukyu!" I yelled up, catching her attention. "Chisaki's trying to manipulate Eri back to him. Nighteye, Rock Lock, and Lemillion got hurt. I don't know where Fat Gum and Kirishima wound up, but I'm going to try and find Eraser Head." I called out before pillars launched up and debris clouded most of my vision. The only thing I saw after a moment was Eri jumping into Izuku's arms with Mirio's cape. I kept searching until I found a hole in the ground, a small explosion rattled around and I jumped into the hole. One of the members of the inner circle stood above my Dad who was blindfolded. "Fancy seeing you here." I told him, watching him clutch his ears reflexively. "We beat your boss, stand down." I told him, hoping my bluff would work.

"No you didn't, that's impossible." I scoffed and sent a harsh kick to his temple, watching him black out. "Dad, are you okay?" He paused for a moment before letting out a very long 'yes'. I slowly undid the blindfold and watched as all of his movements were slow. "I take it this has to do with his quirk, so let me get you to the surface." I told him and picked him up, getting him settled over my shoulder before using one of my wires to get us out. "Ryukyu! Wait!" I called out, rushing over there as fast as my fatigued body would let me. "Get him to the surface, I'll meet you up there. I knocked out another guy from the inner circle." She nodded and waited for me to get him situated on her back. I ran back to the hole and tied a spare bit of rope around the yakuza members wrists, tossing him over my shoulder as well. But once I got back to the hole leading to the surface, I realized I might not be able to get up there. My strength was fading fast, all the adrenaline starting to wear off. But also the distance, I couldn't measure it properly. Especially with the debris falling off the sides, I wouldn't have anything sturdy to grab onto. "Shit." I mumbled under my breath. I sat impatiently waiting for Ryukyu to return since I saw Tsu with Mirio walking over.

"Onryo, you're okay!" She called out.

"Yeah, just a little banged up. I'll be okay." I told her as Ryukyu landed back down, the four of us flying to the top. We landed as the dust settled, revealing Eri wrapped around on Midoriya's back. And a very transfigured Chisaki knocked out on the ground. "Midoriya!" I called out as he crumpled, a yellow light glowing around him.

'Is that her quirk?'

He yelled in agony and I ran around to my Dad, Chisaki broke apart and Uraraka grabbed his original body.

"You gotta look up and use your quirk." I told him calmly as I angled his head up and towards Midoriya and Eri. I watched as Eri passed out immediately after, wiped after losing control of her quirk.

I helped with the aftermath, directing people to where we may have a few stragglers inside, damage control, emotional support.

"Kirishima!" I called out, coughing harshly. "Holy shit, dude." He gave me a weak smile as he was pushed out on a gurney. I turned around as a coughing fit started, aiming it into my elbow out of instinct. I tried finding my inhaler but all I found was it in pieces.

"Hey, I need you to breathe." One of the EMT's said as he came to my side. I couldn't get the words out, all I could do was show him my broken inhaler. He swiftly guided me over to one of the ambulance's and found one of the spares kept in there. I inhaled as much of the aerosolized medicine until eventually my diaphragm calmed down. "There ya go." He mumbled, patting my back. I let out one final cough and spit the pooling blood onto the black top. "Let's get you checked out." He told me and I sighed. Fatgum came rushing over after Kirishima was loaded into his ambulance.

"Kid, are you okay?"

"Yeah, broke my inhaler. Used my quirk too much and scratched up my throat." He sighed a bit and visibly relaxed. "Is Kirishima okay?" I asked him, still slightly winded.

"He's banged up, but he should make a full recovery." I lightly nodded and let the EMT do his job.

"Was the inhaler for asthma?" He asked and I shook my head, briefly explaining the why. "And the coughing up blood? Don't tell me that's normal." He said sarcastically.

"Only when I overuse my quirk, which I definitely did." I mumbled.

"And it looks like, nevermind. You're just full of surprises. You don't feel any pain in your back?" I shrugged a little and he sighed. "You have quite the laceration on your back going across your shoulder blades, you don't feel it?"

"It's uncomfortable I guess." I told him and watched him internally break.

"Okay, let's get you to the hospital." I sighed but sat on the gurney. The doors shut and I let my shoulders slump.

'We did it.'

Pops met me in the hospital, my discharge went by quick and we soon met up with Dad who seemed to be doing much better already. Pops pulled us both into a hug and took a deep breath.

"You two sure know how to scare me." He said jokingly.

"I'm okay. Just some bumps and bruises and a cut on my back. I'm okay physically." I said, watching as his eyes dropped.

"We'll go over the details at home. Okay?" I nodded into his chest and held him a little tighter.

"Onryo did great, he bandaged up Rock Lock, myself and Mirio." Dad added on and I nodded in confirmation.

"I'm glad you two are okay, but I have to get back to the school before lunch ends."

"Sunshine, do you mind waiting a moment? I want to fill in Onryo and then have him go back to the dorms with you."

"I can sit with Kirishima, Dad. I'm sure he'd like some company. That way we don't hold him up." He nodded and we said our goodbyes.

"Sorry I couldn't be with you both at the end, when it counted." Dad said softly.

"It's alright. How are all the others?" I asked him.

"Kirishima's covered with bruises and lacerations from head to toe, but he'll live. Amajiki cracked a bone in his face, and he has some other, minor injuries, but none of them should leave a scar. Fat Gum has a few broken bones, too, but he seems mostly fine otherwise. Luckily, the blade the stabbed Rock Lock didn't hit any vital organs, so he should make a full recovery." He said, relieving most of my nerves.

"I'm glad." I responded softly. "So what about Eri?" I asked, hoping she was okay

"Still feverish and sleeping fitfully. She's being quarantined for now."

"Quarantined? So does that mean we can't see her?" I asked.

"You know, they made that call based on Midoriya's description on what happened back there. She's got a dangerous quirk and no control over it, making that the most dangerous part. If something provokes her enough to activate it again, I'm the only one who can stop her. Teaching her control will be especially hard since her quirk only seems to work on people. When you're training on live subjects, the danger is exponentially greater. Her emotional state will be a factor, too. With so many unknowns, it makes sense to keep her quarantined for now."

"Could try old animals, if it's a biological feature she needs, she would probably have the same effect on animals. And if they're old or injured, she doesn't risk any true damage." I commented, watching him mull it over while we still walked through hallways to Kirishima's room.

"Once she wakes up, I'm thinking about having you there to talk to her. She'll probably be scared, and having someone who understands and can relate to her might help. It also seems you've made an impact on her based on your statement." My heart swelled at the news and I smiled softly.

"I'm glad I did. And can you do me a favor?" He hummed as we stopped outside of Kirishima's room. "Don't tell Pops about the gun?" I asked and he sent me a dull look. "I figured. How's Mirio and Nighteye?" I asked.

"Mirio lost his quirk, we're hoping to find a way to restore it. Aside from that, a few broken bones and lacerations. As for Nighteye, it's not looking good." He said and I could tell by the look in his eye what he meant. I stepped forward and gave him a hug, wrapping my arms tight around his torso. "I have to go get Midoriya, I'll stop in here before I leave." I nodded a little into his chest and went into Kirishima's room.

"Hey, bro. Figured you might want some company."