Chương 21: NO. 21 - Not a Monster
AN:
Here I am again, delivering another bonus chapter to you all. Jesus, you all are insatiable. I love it. I suppose I have to determine the following PS requirement.
Let's see if we can hit 1500 PS this time!
Without further ado, enjoy the chapter!
-
I watched as Toga took a nervous step back. Her scared eyes scanned me up and down while occasionally looking around for an escape route.
"W-who are you?" Toga whispered. "Did my p-parents send you to find m-me?"
I looked over Toga's state of dress and frowned. The girl was still wearing her school uniform, but at this point, it was hard to tell it was a uniform, given how dirty it was. Her skin was also covered in filth, and my enhanced sense of smell was able to pick up that she hadn't showered in a while.
"No, no. Those asshats didn't send me after you." I said as I threw back my hood. No need to keep scaring the girl.
[+10 SP]
Standing in front of me wasn't the Toga Himiko that would one day fight and kill for the League of Villians. No, this was the Toga Himiko which had recently went through a mental breakdown.
A broken girl that had finally snapped and attacked her classmate, causing her to run away out of fear of the consequences.
This Toga Himiko was just a scared, confused middle schooler. Not a trained killer.
"My name is… Sukuna. Nice to meet you, Toga." I said as I took a seat on a nearby stack of wooden boxes.
I intentionally made myself smaller to her in order to help calm her down. I wanted to tell her my real name, but I decided against it for now. I wanted to see how this plays out first.
"Huh? Sukuna? Are you... with the police? A hero?" Toga asked as she held her boxcutter in front of her. But by the way the boxcutter shook in her dirty hands, it was easy to tell she was still terrified of me. "I-I'm not going back to them! I won't! I can't!"
"Easy there. No one's taking you anywhere you don't want to go." I said with my hands raised. I then slowly reached into my jacket and pulled out a paper bag. Toga watched me carefully as I reached into the bag and pulled out a warm meat bun. "You hungry?"
"I'm not-" A low, rumbling sound echoed from her stomach, causing the girl to blush in embarrassment and frustration. "I'm not hungry..."
[+25 SP]
"That so? Well, I'm famished." I said as I placed the wrapped-up meat bun a good distance away from me on the wooden box I sat on and pulled out another bun from the bag. "Ima eat."
And so I did. Who would have thought meditating all day without eating a thing would cause one to be painfully hungry?
I ate my food silently while keeping an eye on Toga. She looked away from me toward the other end of the alley but then back at the waiting meat bun. Her stomach rumbled again, causing her to grimace.
She then shuffled closer and snatched the meat bun away. Toga quickly unwrapped the bun and began to eat with gusto.
"These buns are my favorite. The old woman who makes them always makes the dough fresh every day." I said softly and took another bite. "She doesn't just make meat buns, though. There's a multitude of flavors, too."
Toga ignored me and continued to eat like a starving animal. I smiled and slid over another bun for her, which she quickly took while throwing me a suspicious glare.
"I... like sweet things."
"That so?" I smiled at her and then brought out a canister. "Water?"
Toga paused mid-bite and eyed the canister suspiciously. I chuckled, took a sip from it, and then held it back out. "See? It's not poisoned or anything."
[+10 SP]
It's not like it would do anything to me if it was.
Toga frowned and then snatched the canister out of my hand quickly. She eyed the finish of the canister and then back at my lips with hesitation. Finally, she gave in and took several long, thirsty gulps from the canister.
When she was done, she let out a long gasp, her face contorting into a wide, satisfied smile. Her eyes then grew wide, and her arm flew up to cover her lower face.
"Hooh? You have a pretty cute smile there." I leaned back on the wall behind me and pointed at my teeth. "I like your sharp fangs."
[+35 SP]
"...y-you do?" Toga asked in a small, hushed voice. Her body shrank into itself as she looked at me with distrust and some hope.
"Oh yeah. Anyways, what were you planning on doing here, Toga?" I asked as I looked down at the boxcutter in her hand. "What were you planning to do with that?"
"I... I was..." Any sense of ease Toga had built up disappeared as she returned to her flight or fight mode. "Blood… Saito-kun… I didn't..."
"He's alive, you know? That classmate of yours." I said while taking out a picture of a black-haired kid who looked like Izuku in a hospital gown. I held it out for her with an easy-going smile. "You didn't kill him."
[+40 SP]
Toga's eyes were wide in surprise, and the boxcutter in her hand fell on the ground as she grabbed the picture from my hand. Her legs began to shake from under her until her knees gave out, causing her to fall to the ground. Tears began to fall from her eyes as she looked down at the picture of her classmate.
"S-Saito-kun. I didn't... kill him." Toga whispered as her shoulders trembled. "He's alive. But..." She then looked up at me with the saddest smile I've ever seen. "But I'm still a monster. A demon."
Poor girl. What have your parents done to you? Great, now I feel like I'm the monster for wanting to use you as my points farm.
She then hugged herself as her head hung low. "I... was told not to smile. I was j-jealous of everyone..." Toga stared down at the picture in her hands with a frown. "Saito-kun… I had a crush on him. And then that day happened, and I was so transfixed on the blood on his face. It was beautiful. But I couldn't ask him for his blood because if I did... he would say I wasn't human... just like Mother and Father."
I kneeled down in front of her and hesitantly placed a hand on her trembling shoulder. Even after all this time, I was still dogshit at talking to or comforting people. Especially with sensitive stuff like this.
Man, where was Izuku when you needed a protagonist-powered speech?
"Toga... you're not a monster. Far from it. I've come into contact with some real monsters in human skin... You're not even close to resembling one." I said softly. Toga shook her head and leaned away from my touch. I frowned and pulled her in for a hug. A hug that she fought to escape from.
[+40 SP]
"Let me go! Let me g-go!" Toga tried to push me away, but my greater strength kept her in place. "You don't even know me!"
But I do know you. At least, a version of you.
"Listen to me!" I grabbed her face so she could look me straight in the eyes. Her large, wet eyes were looking at me with sadness and hurt. "Forget what your damn parents said to you! They're wrong! You're not a monster or a demon or anything like that! You're just a middle-school girl!"
[+65 SP]
Toga's hands slowly came up and grabbed my own. "But I… I like drinking blood. That's not… normal. I'm not normal."
"Hah! Normal? The fuck does that mean?" I smiled and pulled back my hands. After taking off my gloves, I held out my palms in front of her. I then activated my technique, causing a stream of blood to flow out of my palm. The blood then shifted into different shapes. "You know, people like us, those with blood type… abilities, aren't looked upon nicely by society. We're looked at like freaks, and no one wants to see what we can do just because of some blood. Hell, the people out there avoid me just because they get a bad feeling! The pussies. But you know what I say? Fuck em! Fuck them to hell and back. Why can't we live like we want, like everyone else?"
[+100 SP]
What I said was true. In this super-hero society. Those with uncomfortable or "gross" quirks were looked at with disdain and disgust. Vladking had to prove himself for several years until his blood type quirk was seen as okay. And that was with the benefit of being a famous pro hero with great connections.
But not everyone can be like him, a famous pro. Everyone with what were deemed as uncomfortable quirks had to hide their abilities just for the chance to fit in. It wasn't fair. That goes twice for the Heteromorphs.
This society wasn't fair.
But was any society fair?
Throughout my speech, Toga began to smile wider and wider. A look of happiness and relief flooded her face. Seeing that, I continued.
"So what if you drink blood? If you want, I'll let you drink mine!" I grinned at her and slid back my sleeves in order to hold out my bare forearm for her to bite. She looked down at my forearm with a deep desire. Her eyes transfixed on my veins.
"…are you sure?"
"Yup, go nuts. And don't worry about me. I'm built different."
[+150 SP]
Toga looked unsure but then shyly opened her mouth to reveal her sharp fangs. She grabbed my arm gently and brought it close to her lips. Before biting down, she looked up at me questioningly. I smiled and nodded at her. Toga blushed and sank her teeth into my forearm.
Her fangs hurt for a split second, but Yuji's pain tolerance made it so as if she wasn't biting me at all. Toga's face grew blissful as a deep, red blush covered her face as she drank away. She was starting to remind me of a cat, especially considering her eyes, so I began to pet her head out of instinct.
After a minute or so, I began to feel a bit lightheaded. Thankfully, she pulled away, seemingly having her fill. She licked the dripping blood off my forearm and then off her lips with a clouded look in her eyes.
"How do I taste?" I asked in amusement as Toga leaned into my chest. Her eyes began to close slowly as her breath began to slow. Just before she fell asleep, Toga whispered a single word.
"Heavenly."
x x x
[General POV]
A soft glow filled the room as dawn light pierced through the windows. Himiko stirred, her mind slowly unfurling from the depths of sleep. For a moment, she was enveloped in a cocoon of warmth and comfort, but as awareness crept in, she felt a flicker of disorientation. The sheet beneath her was unfamiliar, cool against her skin, and she could hear the faint sound of birds chirping outside.
This wasn't her bed.
This wasn't her house!
Himiko's eyes snapped open, blinking against the brightness, and she quickly propped herself out of bed. She looked around the bare room. The floors were made of pristine hardwood, and the walls were painted soft beige. A large dresser and desk stood on the other side of the room. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves outside, casting fleeting shadows across the space, creating a dreamy yet unfamiliar atmosphere.
Panic fluttered in her chest as memories from the night before began to assemble.
"Forget what your damn parents said to you. They're wrong! You're not a monster or a demon or anything like that! You're just a middle-school girl!"
Himiko remembered the strange boy's words, causing a wave of warmth to flood her chest. Anxiety filled her as the thought of her meeting with Sukuna was nothing more but a dream.
Himiko swung her legs over the side of the bed. The chill of the wooden floor met her bare feet, grounding her in reality. Himiko noticed that she was still in her dirty, tattered school uniform. This gave her a sense of relief that nothing had happened to her while she was asleep. She took a deep breath, attempting to calm the whirlwind inside her.
"No. It wasn't a dream. Last night was real... right?" Himiko said as she stepped through the sliding shoji door; the soft sound of the door gliding on its track welcomed her into the gentle tranquility of the traditional Japanese home Himiko found herself.
The coolness of the hardwood floors enveloped her bare feet, their cool texture comforting beneath her as she took a moment to breathe in the faint scent of cedar that lingered in the air.
Sunlight filtered through the rice paper screens, casting delicate patterns on the floor and illuminating the carefully arranged tokonoma, a small alcove that displayed a simple yet elegant piece of art—a hanging scroll depicting serene mountains, accompanied by a single ikebana flower arrangement.
As she moved further inside, the dim light of the interior contrasted with the vibrant garden colors visible through another shoji window. The well-kept garden, with its moss-covered stones and neatly trimmed bonsai trees, beckoned with the promise of peace. The gentle rustle of leaves in the breeze and the distant sound of flowing water from a small stone basin added to the natural atmosphere.
Continuing her exploration, she found a small library full of books and manga. Stepping inside, Himiko looked over to a reclining chair where a novel sat on the armrest. Losing interest, she then walked out into the strangely western-styled living room.
Himiko perked up when she heard the sounds of swooshes cut through the air. Despite her apprehension, Himiko walked to the shoji door that led outside. Sliding the door open, she saw a vast open courtyard where a young black-haired boy her age was going through several katas with his black and gold staff. The boy was dressed differently from last night, now in a black martial arts gi.
However, Himiko could still recognize him as the boy who voluntarily gave her his blood. Oddly enough, he lacked the sharp black tattoos from last night, and his hair wasn't brushed back. It now sat in a loose, wild fashion on his head.
"Sukuna?" Himiko asked carefully, her cheeks tingling as a blush grew.
Sukuna quickly stopped an overhead swing with his staff and turned to her with a small smile, sending a wave of warmth through Himiko's body.
"Ah, Toga. You're finally up," Sukuna said as he walked over to her with his staff over his shoulders. "You hungry?" Sukuna then looked her up and down, causing Himiko to feel self-conscious suddenly.
"Actually, how about a bath first? And some new clothes?"
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