Double Take (Part 4)

Ms. Harper couldn't take the suspense anymore. She got out of bed and grabbed her phone. She sent a text to both Chris and Jason letting them know that she was on her way to UA. Due to her work, she hadn't gotten the chance to see them for their most recent hospital visit. As she got dressed for the drive up to Santa Cruz, she remembered when Chris and Jason would come home after school covered in bruises. Upon first meeting Jason, she had taken him as a punk who liked to pick fights and drag Chris into the whole mess. It was only after getting to know him, along with multiple school visits, did Ms. Harper learn how caring Jason was. Jason may not have been her son, but the two still shared a mother and son bond; a bond so strong that she had been the only person Jason had told his past to. It weighed heavily on her heart, knowing what he had gone through, and knowing he was staying on the streets. It was difficult to keep the secret from Chris, but he never complained about Jason staying the night for weeks at a time, only ever departing to avoid suspicion. Ms. Harper collected her things and got in her car. She knew it was late, but she simply couldn't hold herself back until morning. After the most recent hero bullshit that had endured, she needed to see her kids.

Chris didn't know what to do. His best friend, or both of them, technically, were trying to remain calm. However, the revelation that one of them was a clone was too much for them to handle. Chris and Shoto glanced at each other. Despite being the two people in UA Jason was closest to, neither of them seemed to know what to do. All Might and Aizawa glanced at each other before Aizawa raised his hands to bring everyone's attention to him. "Alright everyone, listen up. We can figure this out, but it will take some time and cooperation. Jason, you-" Both Jasons looked at Aizawa. The teacher sighed. "Both Jasons, come with us. We're going to try and figure this out."

Neither Jason moved. Aizawa looked between them. "What?" The Jason in rags glared. "This is a trap." Everyone looked at him. He took a step back. "...none of you believe me… you…" Shoto took a step towards him. "Jason, calm down." He shook his head. "No. You all made your choice." He angrily pointed at the other Jason. "He got here first, so he must be the original, right? Is that how your brains operate?" Chris shook his head. "None of us said that." "But you were thinking about it, right?" "No." "Liar!" Kirishima took a step forward. "Jason, just listen to Aizawa. We can figure this out together." The nervous Jason pointed at Kirishima. "You all think I'm the clone just because I showed up after the other one! But I promise you that I'm the real one!" Momo took a few steps forward. "Then prove it. Come with us." The Jason continued to panic. "No!" Nobody knew what to do. The Jason in torn up clothes looked around at his friends. "You're going to kill me! You're going to kill me because you think I'm a clone!" Mina shouted. "Nobody is saying that!" The other Jason narrowed his eyes, not knowing what his other self was planning.

The Jason in rags jumped backwards, reflexively dodging an ice attack. Nobody moved an inch. The Jason looked towards Shoto, seeing the line of ice originating from her right foot. Shoto's heart skipped a beat. Jason landed on his feet. "...Shoto…" She looked at him. "...it's not what it looks like…" "...you tried to…" "I was just trying to stop you from escaping." "I know." Shoto looked down at the ground, knowing she just made things a whole lot worse. Chris stepped forward. "Look, just come with us. We won't hurt you." All Might approached the other Jason, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Are you ok?" He sighed. "...if the other Jason wasn't freaking out… I would be…" The other Jason saw All Might's interaction with what he perceived to be the clone. That was the final straw.

The Jason in rags lowered his head. He took a deep breath as he closed his eyes. Tears slowly ran down his cheek. "...not a single one of you trusts me…" His friends, now in a circle around him, remained silent. Then his arms became covered in red and blue energy. The calm Jason's eyes widened as he activated his own quirk, running towards Shoto. "Move!" As Jason pulled Shoto out of the way, Chris tackled Momo to the ground, using his body as a shield. Kirishima hardened his body and shielded Mina. Both teachers ducked down. Tokoyami shouted. "Dark Shadow!" Dark Shadow emerged from Tokoyami to protect him and Denki. The Jason in rags raised his arms up and slammed the ground, creating a massive dust cloud and crater. The shockwave nearly tossed everyone to the side. After the shockwave passed, Chris got up and rushed into the dust cloud. His movement forced the dust to dissipate, revealing nothing. The second Jason, who had arrived not only ten minutes ago, had escaped.

Campus security had been alerted to the ordeal. However, the truth had to be kept hidden from the public for the time being. Shoto was holding Jason's hand. Chris returned. "I searched all across the forest. He's gone." Jason scoffed. "I'd be ashamed if you caught me so easily." Chris sighed and sat down next to his friend. "How did you know he was about to do that attack?" "It's an escape technique I've been playing with for a while: create a giant dust cloud, shockwave throws off enemies, escape in the chaos." Shoto looked at her boyfriend. "Are you going to be ok?" "No." Everyone looked at the Jason who had remained. He began to tear up. "I don't even know if I'm real or not. How the hell am I supposed to deal with that?" Shoto didn't have an answer. Neither did Chris. Or Aizawa.

Mina got up and walked over to Jason, wrapping her arms around him. Jason's tears, for a brief moment, stopped flowing. Shoto let go of Jason's hand so she could hug him too. Chris sighed and wrapped his arms around them all. Kirishima and Momo joined the group hug. Mina whispered. "It doesn't matter if you're a clone, or if there are a hundred clones, or if there are a million. We love all of you the same no matter what." Chris nodded. "You're our Jason, regardless of how many of you there are. And I plan on explaining that to the one who escaped as soon as I find him."