Capítulo 2334: 76
Chapter 76: Cherish
A/N: And here we all go with the continuation! We shouldn't end on a cliffhanger this time around (or at least I don't think so;) so read on! Hope you all enjoy the upcoming confrontation between Izuku and his friends!
There they all stood. All six of them. Staring, waiting, lying in wait for him to say something. Do something. Anything. And he didn't know what to do.
"No point in keeping a reign in now," QA muttered off from beside him.
And suddenly, he could see through all the bugs in the room. Thousands of little things immediately intent on sucking in every single minute detail within the room.
Manga, with his text bubble of a head that sprouted precariously from his torso emoting a multitude of expressions, ranging from happiness to confusion to worry and everything in between.
Mei, her crosshair eyes furiously darting up towards Izuku and back towards the small device that she was tinkering around with in her hands. A bead of sweat raced down her forehead and her dreadlocks were in a frazzled state; he hadn't seen her this obviously agitated since the Sports Festival.
Pony swaying from side to side, her long blonde hair moving back and forth in tandem with the slight clack of her hooves when they collided with the wooden floor. Her own expressive eyes wandered around the room, taking slight breaks to look over at Izuku before trailing off again.
Momo fiddling with her hands, her fingers brushing up against one another in a hodgepodge of movement. She had been worryingly whispering to Todoroki beside her, a stream of words which ended up dying off when Izuku had slammed the door open.
Todoroki leaned against the back wall, his hands in his pockets, and his heterochromatic grey and turquoise eyes gazing inquisitively at Izuku's abrupt entrance. His expression was as unreadable as always; caught in between a glare and blatant disinterest.
And finally there was Setsuna, her arms crossed and as she sat atop an unused desk. Her previously pursed lips had turned agape in, her eyes shifting towards the abrupt movement of the slamming door and widening at the appearance of her fellow green-haired friend..
And all the while, there stood Izuku, motionless in the doorway. His abrupt entry had left the door swinging weakly on its hinges against the wall, leaving him and the gathered swarm clone by his side out in the open for all in the room to see.
"Uhm." Izuku gulped. He took an involuntary step back, sending a glare over at QA.
"IZUKU!"
Shrill terror froze him up. The utterance of his name was curt, almost feral. But that didn't mean that he couldn't feel how it was full of emotion, an array of anger and indignation and relief.
"You Idiot!" An enclosed fist flew straight at his face, crossing the room in seconds and meeting skin with a meaty smack, causing him to stumble back. "That's for all the things that you've been keeping from us!"
Setsuna marched up to the doorway, bearing an expression that could lead someone into whimpering in a corner. And before Izuku could prepare himself, her dismembered hand flew back around, splayed open this time.
It arrived as a light slap to the back of Izuku's head, jerking it forward. Izuku braced for another attack, but it never came. Much to his relief, rather than a third incoming attack, the hand went back to reattach itself to Setsuna's wrist.
"And that's for lowkey making me think that you were a criminal," Setsuna muttered, almost timid in her tone.
Izuku recoiled, caught entirely by surprise. But for an entirely different reason that the physical attacks.
"Setsuna, I— You're talking to me again?" Izuku questioned, his relief obvious but almost disbelieving. He walked into the room, just enough to meet Setsuna up close. "But I thought you were still— I mean, back about the— but the—"
He paused, his eyes narrowing. "Wait…"
Izuku met Setsuna's eyes. She averted his gaze immediately, almost skittish in a way.
"What are you talking about? What—" he looked again at the others in the room. "What... things have I been keeping from you?"
Setsuna sighed, biting her lip. "You don't need to play coy anymore, Izuku. We already know." She gestured over at QA's swarm, still lingering in the doorway. "She's told us already."
The words slowly filtered into his mind. One domino after the next, slowly cascading down into doubt, and then fear, to realization. He slowly turned his body, moving until he faced the floating mass of bugs behind him. "Q… QA..."
"Yes Izuku. I did."
Izuku took a breath, in and out. He clenched and unclenched his fists, each cycle having them tightening further each time. "You promised that you wouldn't tell them," he said through his teeth.
"True." QA morphed the swarm body into a much more coherent form, forming an obviously feminne body a little ways taller than him. The mass floated inside and leaned itself against the wall, lifting one of its legs and pressing it against the wall as it crossed its arms.
"But the moment that I stumbled upon you, Izuku, I made a promise to myself. I promised to do whatever I could to maintain your safety and mental sanity. Your well-being will always come first to me, and a promise like the one you proposed on Christmas went against that. So, quite obviously, I had to do something about it. And thus..."
The swarm lifted its arms out, gesturing to the room around it. "Here we are."
Izuku didn't even think. He moved, barreling himself at the unconcerned avatar of QA.
"You fucking—"
"Whoa whoa! Hey!" A pair of arms found themselves wrapped around Izuku torso, pulling him back and preventing him from stomping towards the mass of bugs idly standing nearby. "Calm down Izuku! No need to get violent! Besides, you can't even do anything to her!"
"It doesn't matter!" Izuku screamed. "You don't know how it's been! She's been systematically making my life more and more complicated!" Izuku struggled to break free, but Setsuna's grip remained tight.
"Every step of the way it's 'Izuku this!' and 'Izuku that!' Or 'I'm sorry Izuku, but what's done is done!'"
"Izuku—!"
"No!" Izuku cut Setsuna off. "It was a promise! One I made in good conscience! She wasn't—"
Izuku took a breath, shaky and brief. "She wasn't supposed to say anything! She was supposed to keep it a secret!"
"Izuku!"
"No!" He flailed around in his restraints. "You weren't supposed to know!" He trembled, face contorting into an agitated mess. "You didn't need to know! You didn't— Why..."
Izuku slackened in his friend's grip, his knees going wobbly until he collapsed on the floor, bringing Setsuna along with him.. "It was the one thing she was supposed to do for me," he whispered.
One of the Setsuna's hands detached and found its way atop Izuku's head, pressing down with a comforting pressure. "Hey, it's fine Izuku. Like… Really! It's better this way."
"But it isn't!" Izuku rebuked, closing his eyes and facing the floor. He slammed a fist down onto the ground.
"None of you needed to know. All of this, it's… it's just an unnecessary burden on your shoulders… And everything is just..." He sniffled. "Just…"
"Hey." He felt a hand go over his. It tingled, almost startling him. Looking up, he found Momo, squatting down to meet him at eye level, her hand resting comfortably atop his own..
"Momo?" Izuku questioned. He let out a strained laugh. "Man, I really must be out of it. I should've noticed you coming."
"Izuku." She tightened her grasp. "We've already said it before, and I know that you know it, but—"
"But you'll always be there if I need you," Izuku sighed. "Any of you."
Momo smiled, ever so slightly. "Exactly..Just like after USJ, and just like after Kamino. We'll always be there when you need us, Izuku."
Izuku huffed, slightly bobbing his head in a lazy nod of agreement. He then sent one last glare over at the buzzing swarm, which merely stared back, void of emotion due to its ever moving bugs..
After a few tense moments, QA nodded.
"I'll leave you be. Feel free to talk. I'll make sure that you remain uninterrupted." And just like that, the swarm of bugs that made up QA's presence flew out of the room, closing the door behind it.
Izuku tsked. "Fine. Maybe I can get over the fact that QA spilled the beans. But only for you guys," Izuku specified. "Not for her."
He shook his head. "But that doesn't mean that I like it," he muttered.
A soft smile found its way onto Momo's face. "It's a step, I suppose. And I can live with that for now. Come on," she moved her grip towards Izuku's arm. "Let's get you up."
"A wonderful idea!" Setsuna cheered as she disassembled her body, freeing herself from the awkward position she found from under Izuku.
"Momo can help you with that. I mean, you brought me down with you!" She reformed just a little ways away. "Ya owe me now for breaking your fall, you know?"
With Momo's help Izuku found himself on his feet again. And as he began dusting off his clothes, he looked at Setsuna with a tired look.
"That's fine. I deserve it," Izuku acquiesced. "It's just more to add onto what's already there. I already owe you for that thing with the quirk destroyers, after all."
"What?!" Setsuna lightly slapped Izuku's arm. "Nonsense Izuku! Come on, I was just kidding! You don't owe me anything!"
Momo decided to butt in. "If anything, you owe us a discussion. We do need to have a thorough talk about… well," she tapped a finger to her chin. "About your... mindset? I suppose I should say. It'd be best to be rid of any negative thoughts firsthand."
"Oi!" Manga exclaimed, enunciating his words with a clap and getting the attention of the other three. "We're still here too you know!"
"I know," Izuku said, turning to meet the rest. "I didn't forget. How could I?"
"Oh, I don't know," Setsuna teased. She walked back over to the desk she was sitting on before and plopped herself back atop it. "I kinda did."
"Sure you did," muttered Manga. He shook his head and turned his gaze towards Izuku. "Point is, it's like Yaoyorozu said: We're all here for you. Right guys?"
"Right!" Pony cried out, pumping a fist into the air. "I'll always have an open ear for you Izuku! You can count on me!"
"Yep!" Mei burst out. "Have to keep you running at peak efficiency at all times, you know? I'll do what I can to ensure that!"
From his spot leaning up against the back wall, Todoroki made a simple nod towards his green-haired friend.
Izuku closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath. He almost looked serene.
But then he scowled, inaudible curses erupting from his lips. The others let him vent, the outburst trailing on for nearly a whole a minute before the string of enraged words died down.
"Sorry," Izuku fretted. "I'm not mad." He paused. "Not at any of you, at least. I'm appreciative, really. It's just…"
Izuku pinched his nose. "Now you're all caught up in stuff you never needed to be caught up in."
"You shouldn't worry about that!" Pony countered, her fists to her side as she stamped her foot down. "It isn't your fault that you got caught up in all of this junk in the first hand! Just a horrible coincidence, you know? But now that we know about it we can help you with all of it!"
"Yeah!" Setsuna interjected. "And now we know about your morally ambiguous and bitchy friend that shares your headspace and lives in your head!"
One of her hands shot out towards Izuku's head, moving to ruffle his hair while slightly pushing his head down. "I mean, I knew there was more behind those quirk destroyers, you know? And it was bugging me — heh, get it? — but now that I know about this 'QA' lady it makes so much sense now!"
Izuku pushed Setsuna's hand off. "You know about QA. Fine. I get that. But did she really tell you everything else?"
"Well," Manga said, holding his fingers out, "let's see. There's the fact that you've been an active vigilante for years—
"Which I am definitely mad about!" Mei interrupted. "Think of all the babies—"
"—Getting tangled up with the police and the safety commission!" Manga interrupted, talking over Mei. "And that weird thing you have going with that serial killer group."
Izuku licked his lips. "So—"
"And what happened at Nabu," Momo added sheepishly. "About what happened to… you know."
Izuku averted his gaze.
"It's like with USJ!" Momo added, pleadingly. "Dire circumstances. It wasn't your fault Izuku. You did what you had to do considering the circumstances."
Izuku growled. "USJ was QA's fault, Momo! I had plausible deniability! And I wasn't even awake for it! I didn't feel any of it! But this time!"
He choked. "This time, Nine… I killed him," Izuku hissed. "My blood is on my hands—"
"Nine was trying to kill us," Manga interrupted. "He nearly killed you!"
"So what?!" Izuku yelled. "That makes it okay to kill him back?!"
"Yes!" Setsuna added. But she growled at herself right after. "No! I mean— It's different Izuku. It was self defense—"
"Even if I was already planning to kill him, months in advance? Just because some serial killer supervillain told me I had to?"
There was a bout of silence, everyone looking at each other with grimaced faces.
"Yes," Setsuna said, breaking the silence. "Yes, it's okay. Because we all know you. We know that you wouldn't do something like that unless you had to. Unless it was the last possible thing you could've done."
Izuku stared at her, straight into her eyes, dissecting her words and her thoughts through the action alone.
Setsuna held her gaze as well, never hesitating or faltering in the slightest, keeping eye contact with a fiery resolve.
But Izuku broke the stare off himself. He looked at his feet, shuffling them around. "And you're all just… okay with knowing all of that?" Izuku ran his hands through his hair.
"Yes," the collective voices of the others all said at once.
He could feel tears flowing down his cheeks. But still...
"But how about all the other stuff?" Izuku sniffled. "The vigilantism! Sneaking off at night, even after the police got on my case! None of you are mad about any of it?"
Manga held a finger up. "Well technically, since that Kaniyashiki lady was there— Ow!"
Pony jabbed an elbow into his side, effectively shutting him up.
Mome took the rein. "Oh, we're mad alright," she admitted, crossing her arms. "You were being reckless, lacking any sense of self preservation! You could have died!"
"But…" She huffed. And then her stern expression all but melted away. A strained smile crawled onto her face, her arms untangling and one arm moving to rub the other.
"We just don't think it warrants the physical violence that we want to inflict on you for your stupidity?" She turned towards the other fellow 1-A student in the room. "Right, Todoroki?"
Todoroki shrugged. "Maybe. Might have something to do with you still trying to get over the parallel universe part, though."
Momo rubbed her head, letting out a strained laugh.
Izuku looked around and noticed the others in similar states of remembrance upon hearing the words.
"Oh," Izuku breathed. "Yeah. That too."
And then he looked back at Todoroki, who was still acting as his stoic self. "And you're not…"
Todoroki shrugged once more. "I already overheard you that one time. What I've been told today just confirmed my suspicions."
Izuku looked on in disbelief. He'd overheard? When? Before I met up with Eri and Togata and toured the festival grounds? Wait, that means that he lied!
"IOf course, I'm not surprised that my theory on your bugs being an entity separate from you was correct," Todoroki continued. "But I'm still waiting on evidence that Aizawa's actually your dad, however."
The outburst of laughter that sprung up amongst the others wasn't contained in the slightest.
"What!?" Izuku exclaimed, him being in a state of shock instead of one of humor. "Why would you think that?"
"Your hair, for one," Todoroki admitted, nonchalant, pointing a finger at the offending virescent strands.
"Your sleeping habits can be a bit off sometimes as well," Todoroki added. And you're tired and irritable sometimes for no reason."
"Yeah," Izuku rebuked, "but now you know that it's because of my nighttime activities!"
Todoroki raised an eyebrow. "But do I?"
And just like that, whatever lingering tension in the air was but a thing of the past.
"HA!" A small bundle of kanji burst forth from Manga and clattered to the floor. Manga merely stepped over the accidental creation, making his way over to Todoroki before patting the boy in the back.
"Nice one, man! Just what we needed in lightening up the atmosphere after such a heavy topic!"
Todoroki tilted his head at the praise. "What do you mean?"
"Wait!" Mei screeched. "Does that mean that we're good now?!"
Izuku let out a small chuckle before letting out a final sigh. "Yeah. I suppose."
"Great!" Mei dashed over, draping one of her arms over Izuku's shoulders. "You being a mopey mope really doesn't suit you 'Zuku."
"Happy that you think so," Izuku drawled.
"Mhm!" Mei vigorously nodded. "And speaking of!" She reached into her pocket, taking out the device she had been previously working on.
"Here you go! Primed and ready, just like you asked! Think of it as a congratulatory gift for getting through our combined might!"
The small device was deposited onto Izuku's open palm. It was quite remarkable, really. At nearly the size of cashew and with its black shape, it was just what he needed.
"Of course, given its size it is quite fragile, so don't jostle it too much. The remote doesn't have that same problem of course, that'd be ridiculous. Unless you want it that small? To control it with one of your bugs maybe? 'Cause I can totally do— Gah!"
Mei's cluster of words were cut short as she was suddenly caught in a hug. "Thanks Mei's just what I needed."
Setsuna's floating head abruptly appeared in front of Izuku's face. "Need? Need for what?"
Izuku blinked, only then realizing that the others were still in the same room as him. "Umm. For, uh, stuff."
Setsuna's head floated back to her body, her hands on her hips. "Really?"
"Mei!" Manga yelled out. "What's the thing that you made for Izuku?"
Izuku felt panic rise in him. "Wait—"
"It's a drone!" Mei happily exclaimed. "One for surveillance. It's nigh undetectable!"
"Thank you, Hatsume," Momo said. She turned to Izuku. "We're coming too."
"What! No!" Izuku exclaimed. "This right here is exactly why I didn't want any of you—"
"Oi!" And suddenly, his head was smacked with a heavy wrench. "We're in this together, remember?"
Izuku narrowed his eyes at his pink-haired friend. "You purposely waited to give it to me until now, didn't you?"
Her satisfied look was answer enough. He shook his head, and once more looked at everyone else in the room, fully taking in all of their unwavering gazes. He knew, just then, that he wouldn't be worming his way out of this one.
"Fine," he relented. "I'll consider it."
"Ahem." Pony glared at him, one of her horns rising from her head and aimed straight at him.
"Consider which of you will go," Izuku corrected. "All of us together would be too inconspicuous."
He couldn't argue with their victorious expressions.
"But not tonight," Izuku emphasized. "Not yet. I still need to do some research."
"But in that case," Manga pointed out. "When?"
"Soon," Izuku promised. "Soon."
A/N: And there you all go! A whole new slew of people in the know with the ongoings of Izuku and QA. Just where will it take them? That's for all of you to figure out next time! Until then!
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