章 69: Setting the Stage

(Mina)

"Holy shit." I stare down at the arena with my mouth hanging open while my classmates talk around me. Because unlike them, I actually recognize the person standing down there with Izumi. She showed me pictures of him while telling me what he was like. Even though they almost never had any positive interactions, she always kept an eye on him.

She described him as a shy guy who'd talk for hours about quirks if you gave him the opportunity, and would barely even pause for breath. I made an effort to not point out that he was probably shy due to years of bullying though, since I've been trying to help her get better.

But as I watch her brother, hear him speak to her, my stomach drops. That smile, the way he mocks her, the quickly reigned in flashes of intense rage and hatred. I'm not a psychiatrist, but something tells me that she's going to backslide on all the progress we've made these last couple of weeks.

And then something crashes down into the arena between the two of them.

`~`

(Uraraka)

I stare at the arena with my mouth hanging open, utterly confused. I mean, who wouldn't be in this situation!?

First the ghost of the guy who sacrificed himself to save me during the Entrance Exam shows up to help me beat Bakugou -and it somehow worked! Sure, I got taken out by Tokoyami right afterwards, but still.

Now, that same ghost boy is standing in front of Izumi Yagi, who's been depressed ever since the USJ. Mina pulled her out of it, thankfully, but everyone is still concerned about her. Which is a good thing, since apparently Biggius Dickus lied and is her brother!?

Ok, to be fair, I always thought the name was weird, but I saw him die! No way I was going to disrespect his memory like that! But everyone else can see him, so did he even really die? How much of the very limited information about him is actually a lie?

But wait…

Maybe he has a ghost quirk, and that's why he didn't die!

But all the thoughts running through my head get thrown clear out by my already high confusion peaking at his next words. How could they not?

"-you and our dear old 'dad' caused me to turn into Midosagi?"

`~`

"Hey, Izumi." I say with a grin, my arms stretched out as if to give the biggest hug in the world to my dear sister. "I'm baaack~. Did you miss me?"

She doesn't reply, just stares at me with wide eyes. She's trembling. I adopt a confused look, crossing one arm across my chest while grabbing my chin with my other hand. "What? You aren't happy to see me? I wonder why?" I hum to myself as I look up, watching Midnight out of the corner of my eye.

She's talking into an earpiece, her expression going grave as she listens to whoever is on the other end. She's already torn her costume to ensure better dispersion of her quirk, but she hasn't started using it yet. Probably because they have no idea what I'm actually doing here or how I'll react.

Honestly, I'm not sure either. All I know is that Izumi doesn't get to say 'you don't need a quirk to be a hero'.

Things could have turned out so much differently if she actually believed that, back when we were growing up. But instead I got derision. Pain. Scars. And now…

"Oh! I know!" I tap a fist into my palm before I pull my goggles from my pocket, snapping them on before lifting my mask from around my neck. "Could it be," I reach for my hood, pulling out the ears from where I pulled them in before flipping it on. "That you and our dear old 'dad' caused me to turn into Midosagi?"

`~`

(Nezu)

I bark out orders through comms to all the heroes at the Festival, splitting them between evacuating civilians and searching for any other villains that might have infiltrated the event. Updates are coming in just as fast, including a startling discovery.

"Mt. Lady has been found! Unconscious, but no other signs of injuries. I'll bring her to Recovery Girl just in case."

"Understood, Kamui Woods. Everyone else is accounted for, but keep your eyes peeled. There's always the possibility that Midosagi is merely a distraction. Speaking of, someone make sure to keep All Might away from the arena. Midnight is prepared to intervene should things turn violent, but this is a delicate situation."

Midosagi and the League of Villains had Izuku Usagi in their custody for roughly a year, if estimates are accurate. There's no telling what kind of information they obtained from him. And goodness knows that All Might is anything but delicate.

There's also the possibility…

I dismiss the thought, for now. Whether it is revealed to be accurate or not, we shall discover soon. For no matter how this commotion ends, one thing is for certain.

Midosagi will not be getting away.

`~`

(Shoko)

I thumb the button on the device that Izuku gave me while staring at the television with a focused look. No, this isn't how I expected the Sports Festival to end, but that's not important.

Izuku's back.

A shiver goes through me at the thought, my eyes not moving from his figure as he mocks his sister. Another thing I didn't expect.

He's changed.

When he was here, with me, those short few minutes, he was like he was back in middle school on those days where I'd freeze his bullies to a wall and we'd go hang out. They were kind eyes.

But now, standing in front of Izumi, they're different. They tremble with emotion as he pulls goggles out of his pocket, and he covers them before I can see more. But I saw enough.

Having trouble displaying emotion does not mean the same as not understanding emotions. Though I do have trouble with that sometimes too. But there's an exception to that. I know Izuku, and I know his emotions even better than my own.

He may not be showing it, but he's in pain.

`~`

(Inko)

I stare at the wall of televisions displayed in the store window, rage burning in my heart. It's tuned to the Sports Festival, and I was hoping to catch sight of my perfect daughter winning it. But now…

"You let your guard down!" The no-name villain I was in the middle of apprehending yells out as he jumps at me, twin hammers made out of some sort of energy raised so high that he's bent over backwards. He tries to swing down, but I control a pair of shock cuffs to latch onto his ankles, slowing his forward momentum and angling his upper body forward. He slams into the ground face-first with a sharp crack, his hammers disappearing. He groans in pain, so he's not dead.

At least, not yet.

I'm being forced to patrol some of the less…savory… parts of the city while keeping an eye out for the League of Villains, so thankfully there's no one around. Sure, there are still cameras. But they won't be a problem, even if by some miracle they do still work.

They have more than enough resources to make a simple recording disappear.

He screams as I turn the cuffs on to their maximum voltage, electricity causing his body to convulse. His pitch rises when I send another set to his wrists, before devolving into choked sounds as I send one of my specialty restraints around his throat. I tighten in slowly, not even glancing at his reflection in the window anymore.

All of my attention is on the worthless, quirkless trash on the screen taking away Izumi's big moment with his pathetic act. As if he'd ever be strong enough to fight a hero! Midosagi is an actual villain, not a quirkless waste of space!

The villain stops screaming, so I use the cuffs to drag his body into a random alley. I scowl as I start making my way back to my agency, frustrated that the events at UA will be over before I can get there. It's ridiculous! The USJ, his faked suicide, and even back then…

"Why won't you just stay dead!?"

`~`

(Mirko)

"So," I say into the phone conversationally. "It looks like the whole 'use the Usagi Twins to infiltrate the League of Villains' plan is going out the window."

I'm in the stands overlooking UA's Sports Festival, which has basically just gone to shit. I mean, a villain just crashed the Finals for the tournament. And who he is just makes it all the more complicated.

I mean, his villain ranking has basically been shooting up nonstop ever since he fought with Hawks. And his connection with the League of Villains, who attacked the school once already?

Gotta admire the balls on him. Which I already have.

"He's cuter than I thought he would be." More androgynous than I thought he would look too, though the unhinged air about him fits well.

"What?"

Crap, I said that out loud.

"Not important. Anyways, what do you want me to do?"

"...Let it play out for now. Don't interfere. Depending on how this goes, you can still make use of them."

Cunt.

I hang up, neither confirming nor denying that I heard the old bat. Seriously. It's like she has no idea what a hero's job actually is. But he hasn't made a move against anyone yet, not even the girl he's ranting against. So until he does, I'll play nice with the bitch and observe.

But after All Might crashes to the floor in front of him, Midosagi's words echo through the speakers and my jaw drops.

"So~ glad you could make it to our family reunion, father."

Holy shit.

"I fucked All Might's kid."

`~`

I smile at Izumi, even if she can't see it through my mask. My voice is light, whimsical, when I speak. "Aww, what's wrong? Still nothing to say?" I pout at her and cross my arms across my chest. "And after I worked sooo hard to set this up too."

She stares at me with wide eyes before stuttering out a reply. "Y-y-you died." She lifts a foot then puts it back down without moving. I'm not sure what she wanted to do, move backwards or forwards, but she clearly hasn't processed what's going on yet.

Good.

I chuckle and plant my fists on my hips before bending sideways at the waist, looking like a curved upside down 'L'. "Yeah… Never said I didn't! Thing is though, it didn't really stick. But that's not important."

I bounce back to a regular standing position before taking an aggressive step towards her, taking satisfaction in how she takes one back. My anger is palpable. "Where do you get off saying anyone can be a hero? You spent ten years beating into me that I couldn't!"

All the times I said I would become a hero. All the times I was laughed at. All the times I'd get beaten. All the times I was told I could never be a hero.

My back. The fire.

Nearly all of those memories flash through my mind, some blurry, but clearer than they were before. But I forcibly push them down, a nearly forgotten sensation of pain flashing through my mind.

"You got up on that stage today, and you lied. Just like you lied to me when we were younger." My voice is cold, no longer the lighthearted and familiar tone I was using before. "You said we would be heroes together, no matter what. Well guess what? You worked hard to make that a lie, and I accepted it as my new truth."

I take a mocking bow, gesturing to her before straightening up and gesturing to me. "You are a hero. I am a villain. And it's all~. Thanks. To. You~!"

I flick my hand, drawing a knife from my sleeve. But before I can throw it, something crashes down onto the stage, throwing a cloud of dust into the air. I scowl before tilting my head as a crooked grin crosses my face.

"Well then. So~ glad you could make it to our family reunion, father." I spit out the word, grimacing as it passes my lips.

All Might stands in front of me as the dust clears, his smile forced -more of a grimace- his own rage radiating off of him.

"VILLAIN. YOU WON'T GET AWAY AGAIN."

I have a small smile on my face, hidden under my mask as I let another knife drop into my empty hand. "Oh, don't worry father. I'm exactly where I want to be."